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Learners' beliefs are considered an essential factor that impacts foreign or second language learning. Moreover, learners' beliefs about the importance of grammar learning and grammar learning approaches are involved in an ongoing debate in applied linguistics. Therefore, the present study investigated learners' beliefs about the importance of grammar learning, how learners prefer to learn grammar (explicitly or implicitly), and why. 172 Saudi male EFL college students completed a survey. Among them, 24 students participated in four focus-group interviews. The quantitative data from the survey were collected, and the emerging themes from the qualitative data were determined. The findings show that grammar learning is important or very important to most learners. Around two-thirds of the learners preferred learning grammar explicitly, whereas around one-third preferred implicit grammar learning. Learners reported different beliefs about their preferences for grammar learning approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study addresses one of the neglected issues in second language acquisition (SLA) research namely emotionality in EFL students. Based on domain specificity dimension of social-cognitive model of emotions, this study aims to capture students' ongoing and spontaneous emotions through experience sampling method. That is, it analyzed 96 forms which students completed at random times and upon receiving random signals in the EFL class. The forms were then analyzed based on the difference between females and males in the following areas: 1) EFL-related activities vs. non-EFL-related activities; 2) the frequency of different emotions; 3) the antecedents of students' emotional states; 4) students' use of emotion regulation strategies and the valence of emotions. The overall results indicated that females and males differed in significant ways in diverse facets of emotional experience. First, females outperformed in the amount of involvement in EFL-related tasks and thinking. Second, they reported experiencing the class emotionally different. Particularly, they experienced greater amount of anxiety and hope comparing to males. Third, they differed in the degree to which they attributed their emotions to teachers meaning that teachers have a more crucial role in emotional dispositions of female students. The implications were then discussed in the light of teachers' responsibility in facilitating communication of emotion and creating positive emotional climate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cooperative learning activities on Iranian intermediate EFL learners' grammatical competence. This research was a quasi-experimental study and its design was comparison group design. The study included one control and one experimental group. In total, 50 students participated in the study. They were male and female intermediate English language learners studying English in EFL department at Shokuh-e-Danesh Institute, Dehdasht, Iran. Following a workshop on the implementation of cooperative learning activities, the experimental group was exposed to cooperative learning activities. The control group was, on the other hand, provided with traditional grammar learning methods. 25-item grammar tests were given to both groups before and after the eight-week treatment. T-tests were employed to analyze the obtained data. The results of the tests revealed significant differences between the control group and the experimental group regarding their grammar learning through cooperative learning. The findings of the study suggested that cooperative learning had positive effects on Iranian intermediate EFL learners' grammatical competence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to examine different kinds of communication strategies employed by students with different levels of communication apprehension in Iranian EFL context. It also investigates which communication strategies are the most and the least frequent ones used by students with high and low levels of communication apprehension. The research participants watched a short visual story and then retold what they found out. The participants employed thirteen communicative strategies which were ranged from the most to the least frequent for both groups of EFL learners. In terms of the type and the frequency of communication strategies, the outcomes of research revealed that EFL learners with high level of communication apprehension employed a larger number of communicative strategies than EFL learners with low level of communication apprehension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study aimed to explore the EFL teachers' perceptions of classroom observation system implemented in an English Language Institute of a Saudi university. It reviewed literature on the nature of instructional supervision and classroom observation to develop an understanding of different types of classroom observation and various contextual issues related to the practice teacher evaluation through observation. The current research utilised semi-structured interviews to elicit qualitative data from five purposively chosen EFL instructors. The participants shared their lived experiences of the research phenomenon in great detail that resulted in wholesome data on the subject. The findings, presented in six overarching themes, reveal the psychological plight of the teachers as they considered the practice of classroom observation a consistent professional challenge due to several factors, i.e. their lack of autonomy in pre and post-observation conference, observer-observee trust deficit, observers' subjective approach towards the assessment criteria and classroom teaching, observers' insufficient training and qualifications, the use of observation as a means to control teachers, and the element of threat and insecurity. Based on the findings, recommendations are set forth to improve the existing observation system for the benefit of the teachers, learners and the institute. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Textbook evaluation has been a matter of interest in almost every EFL/ESL context. Since some aspects of the quality of language learning and teaching stem from the instructor's textbook adaptation and use and since different EFL/ESL textbooks target at touching different aspects of pupils' needs, carrying out an assessment of a particular textbook before its adoption and adaptation is of paramount importance. Accordingly, scrutinizing the weaknesses and strengths of the textbooks that are currently being taught in the most popular and the biggest institute of Iran seems to be inevitable. Hence, the aim of this study is to evaluate the Intermediate ILI (Iran Language Institute) English Series. To this end, eighty highly experienced male and female teachers from different branches in different cities of Iran were called for cooperation. The teachers ranged from BA holders to PhD candidates. In order to obtain the intended data, a forty item questionnaire developed by David R.A Litz (2000) was given to every instructor. Analyzing the data was done by running Independent samples t-test and basic statistics in SPSS 16 package for windows. The results show that although the series favor some strong points, the majority of the sections of the textbooks suffer a few number of pitfalls. Moreover, the overall evaluation of the series manifests the average level of satisfaction in every component on the part of the teachers. Also, the ideas of male and female instructors were different in "Conclusion", "Subject and Content" and "Language Type" categories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A product has a life cycle. A man likewise has life cycle-- from conception to decline through infancy, puberty, youth and maturity. Similarly, a teacher's professional life cycle passes through clearly identifiable stages-from novice to proficient, experienced and then expert (mentor). He enters the profession as a novice and gets training in teaching or at least, guidance of his seniors and accumulates experience. This process may take 1 to 2 years. The experience of classroom situations, training/retraining and/or through diverse interactions, he becomes an experienced and accomplished professional in 5 to 7 years before he starts conceptualising and doing research work, and becomes an expert in teaching in about 6 to 8 years after which, he starts mentoring and becomes a Head Teacher. There can be a variance in the number of years an individual teacher takes to move from one stage to the next. In Yemen and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the upward mobility is purely on seniority; merit alone gets back-seat. Promotion to Head Teacher depends upon the vacancy available. The three broad stages are crossed before retirement. Some teachers study subjects intensively and extensively and remain updated, and create philosophical constructs--they become universally acknowledged super-experts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]