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Showing 4 results for Hajmalek
Volume 0, Issue 0 (Articles accepted at the time of publication 2024)
Abstract
Diagnostic Formative Assessment (DFA) has already established its applicability and necessity in second language teaching practice and research as a legitimate supplement to summative assessment. However, examples of practical implementations of DFA informing SLA research and an investigation of the detailed processes involved, especially when it comes to productive skills such as speaking in tertiary educational settings are rather scarce. Therefore, focusing on the formality dimension, as a rather neglected component in DFA, the present quasi-experimental study set out to compare the effects of formal and informal DFA on Iranian EFL learners’ oral fluency and accuracy at university level. For this purpose, a homogeneous group of 52 male and female L2 learners were assigned to two experimental conditions and after a speaking pre-test developed and scored based on IELTS speaking tasks, went through four months of formal and informal DFA based on four reiterative stages of Observation, Initial Assessment, Hypothesis Checking, and Decision Making. Upon the post-test, the results of ANCOVAs showed that both treatments equally contributed to learners’ development of oral fluency and accuracy, indicating that traditional skepticisms towards informal DFA must be revisited and they can serve as appropriate supplements to more formal approaches whenever necessitated by the instruction. EFL practitioners are recommended to take these rather broad, flexible, and convenient informal DFA practices into consideration and decide on their exact choices based on the particularities of the context, situation, and individual learners, which leads to an expansion in their pedagogical options.
Volume 3, Issue 4 (winter 2022)
Abstract
Aims:One of the most important issues and challenges facing developing societies is the physical identity of buildings and urban facades. Cities, under the influence of modernity, have an identity problem, and the concept of urban identity in the process of cognition and perception presents a multi-dimensional and complex phenomenon. The physical identity of cities has become an influential category in city lifeThis article is based on the question that - How can a solution or a guideline be formulated to improve the formal identity and exterior appearance of architecture in the capital and a metropolis like Tehran, which is in line with today's tastes and intellectual level? Methods: The research method in this research is qualitative survey and research of applied type, and to answer the research question, first from the library method to examine the effective factors in the formation of physical identity, then through the questionnaire asked from the experts and professors of architecture. is placed
Findings: The statistical population consisted of 273 architecture professors, and finally, among the effective factors with the highest priority among the effective factors in the physical identity of the buildings, the combination of traditional and modern facades, the use of details and decorations in the facades, the use of sustainable materials, the spirit Nowadays, using the past model and paying attention to diversity and avoiding uniformity and homogeneity has had the greatest impact.
Conclusion: There are statistically significant differences between different respondents in their attitude towards facade parameters (mass and joint, openings, architectural details and materials). These results show the multiplicity and variety of trends in the practice of architecture for different jobs. It is also clear that the main reason for the significant difference between the averages is related to the fact that the respondents believe that these parameters had a significant impact on the continuity of the architectural identity.Volume 13, Issue 3 (July & August 2022 (Articles in English & French) 2022)
Abstract
Early-career language teachers, who are struggling with transitory stages of identity development from students to teachers, can experience an array of negative emotions known as identity tensions. Coping strategies are used by resilient teachers to overcome these tensions. However, the nature and dynamics of such coping strategies employed by EFL teachers are still under-researched in the Iranian context. In order to address this gap, the present exploratory mixed-methods study probed the coping strategies Iranian EFL teachers most frequently use by first interviewing 16 teachers and, subsequently, administrating a developed questionnaire to a cohort of 150 participants. Thematic analysis and between-groups analyses of t-tests and ANOVAs were used for the qualitative and quantitative phases of the study respectively. The results of both phases revealed that Iranian EFL teachers tend to use active coping strategies significantly more often than passive ones. Also, it was shown that female teachers as well as more experienced teachers above the average age of 28 use more active strategies than their younger colleagues. However, type of training did not seem to play a significant role in their choices, which implies a need for a more systematic integration of coping strategy instruction in training programs. The findings of this study can help English teacher trainers, supervisors, and novice teachers form a deeper insight of coping strategies to deal with identity tensions.
Volume 13, Issue 6 (January & February 2023 2022)
Abstract
Training competent translators who can effectively and readily meet the needs of the translation market is currently a major challenge for translation instructors; however, L2 teaching methodologies have marked a more accelerated progress in general. The present study was an interdisciplinary effort to examine the possibility of transferring these achievements to translation instruction, with a particular focus on Task-Based Language Teaching. To this end, first, the components of Task-Based Translation Teaching (TBTT) were extracted by reviewing the related literature, administrating an open-ended questionnaire to 17 translation instructors, and using Delphi technique with a panel of six experts. The findings pointed at 6 main components for TBTT, namely Authenticity and Contextualization, Balanced Focus on Meaning and Form, Process-orientedness, Interactivity, Learner-centeredness, Reflectivity and Evaluation, comprising 22 subcomponents. Next, a three-hour workshop was designed based on the same components and subcomponents to put the proposed framework on trial. The merits and demerits of practically implementing this framework was elicited from the 10 participants via a semi-structured interview. Content analysis of the interview transcriptions revealed a general positive attitude on the side of the learners despite some criticisms leveled at the method. While the most frequently stated advantage was the collaborative and student-centered nature of the method, the primary drawback was stated as its being time-consuming and challenging for teachers to design and operationalize. These findings can help translation instructors to revise or revisit their curricula and lesson plans or serve as a model for future endeavors in updating teaching methodologies in translation.
1. Introduction
Training knowledgeable and skillful translators who can effectively and readily meet the needs of the translation market is currently a big challenge for translation instructors. In fact, a number of previous research studies have already reported on the failure of newly graduated translators to meet the expectation of their clients in the market. Based on these reports, it can be assumed that, despite the fundamental and revolutionary changes in teaching languages in general, most instructional methodologies and techniques in training translators have not been updated for a rather long time. For instance, in academic translation instruction in Iranian context, students are not engaged in team-work and interactive practices in the class and what most of them do is to practice translation without any collaboration with other fellow students. Subsequently, the instructor and the students focus on the final product of translation in terms of better choices and alternative translation equivalents. Therefore, team-work, interaction, and translation process are largely neglected in this situation. Additionally, the choices made by the instructor are often taken as the reference and learners are instructed to passively take notes of what the instructors dictate based on their personal preferences when dealing with a translation problem. This method, which is frequently reported to be applied in Iranian translation classes, is to some extent similar to what has been traditionally characterized as the Transmissionist approach. On the other hand, it is obvious that English Language Teaching (ELT) has significantly improved during past decades through the efforts of both researchers and practitioners of the field. In this respect, Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) has been a prevailingly successful method in teaching foreign languages that involves authentic tasks needed to be completed collaboratively. However, little attention has been paid to its application to teaching translation and its possible outcomes. Therefore, the present interdisciplinary study aimed to examine the possibility of applying this method to teaching translation. The Following research questions were formed.
2. Research Questions
- What components does Task-based Translation Teaching include?
- What are the challenges and advantages of applying TBLT to translation teaching?
3. Methodology
To address the research questions, the components of task-based teaching in translation were first extracted. For this purpose, 17 experts including university instructors in TEFL and Translation Studies were interviewed. Also, the related literature was reviewed for a list of components in task-based teaching. As a result, a model of TBLT in teaching translation with six main components was developed. In order to check the viability and efficacy of TBLT method applied to translation training and investigate learners’ attitudes towards this experience, a hands-on TBLT workshop was planned and held for three hours based on the extracted components and subcomponents. One of the most important objectives of this study was to design a sample Task-Based Translation Teaching syllabus that could be applied to the workshop and possible future classes. Therefore, the principles of TBLT were drawn upon and considering the nature of this method, a task-based syllabus was developed.
4. Results
The findings of the first phase of this study indicated that six main components with 22 subcomponents were discernable for task-based teaching of translation. The components included “Authenticity and Contextualization”, “Balanced Focus on Meaning and Form”, “Process-orientedness”, “Interactivity”, “Learner-centeredness” and “Reflectivity and Evaluation”. Subsequently, a workshop was designed based on the extracted principles. By analyzing the quality of the participants’ translations before and after the workshop and interviewing them, the challenges and prospects of the method were carefully examined. It turned out that the quality of the translations produced by the participants improved considerably after being exposed to task-based methods of translation training and collaborating with their peers in a process-oriented fashion of problem-solving. The qualitative analysis of the workshop data revealed that TBLT was in general popular with translation trainees and considerably helped improve their translation skills although a number of disadvantages were also articulated. The most significant drawback of the experiment seemed to be the grave responsibility imposed on instructors to design translation training tasks, which can be a delicate and painstaking issue. It became clear that in order to successfully implement a Task-based teaching approach in a translation class, the above-mentioned components have to be fully observed. Moreover, the extracted components in this study were in line with the principles and components of TBLT put forward by ELT researchers, since in both, authenticity, interactivity, reflectivity and evaluation, and process-orientedness are the ground for teaching based on TBLT. This paper also revealed that instructors in TBTT method have to create a cooperative and interactive atmosphere in which students can work in groups and help each other in solving the translation problems and finding the best solution.
5. Conclusion
All in all, it can be concluded that implementing TBLT in translation classes is both plausible and feasible. However, there are some pros and cons that have to be taken into consideration. In this regard, attempts and attention should be given to the application and analysis of such authentic methods to teaching translation. The result of the present paper can be drawn upon to develop translation curricula and update the existing syllabi. It also calls for more adventurous trials of less-often-explored approaches and methodologies in teaching translation.
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