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Abstract Introduction Motivation is a driving force behind man’s behavior which has led to many psychological studies throughout the world. Moreover, it is the fuel for successful learning. While intrinsic motives provide the internal rewards, extrinsic motivation supplies the required external rewards to keep the engine of learning running. Knowing the factors which impact intrinsic/extrinsic motivation helps educators target their efforts at a higher level and make more informed decisions. Method This study intends to examine how intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation may be influenced by demographics including learners’ background factors of major, age, and occupation and to determine the relationships that may exist between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. To this end, an explanatory sequential mixed-methods research was conducted at one of the public universities in Shiraz on the majors of Elementary Education, Educational Affairs, Social Studies and Theology, and the Arabic language which were selected through cluster sampling. These students were having their English courses at the university. Based on Krejcie and Morgan’s formula for sample size, a questionnaire was administered to 100 participants to collect quantitative data. Moreover, semi-structured interview sessions were conducted with one fourth of the participants. Results Using Multiple Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and Pearson correlation, we found that learners’ background factors of age, field of study and professional status did not affect intrinsic nor extrinsic motivation. However, significant and positive relationships were found between intrinsic motivation and total motivation index, and between extrinsic motivation and total motivation index. Qualitative data obtained from the interviews were analyzed using a thematic analysis. The results of the interviews showed some new illuminating trends as revealed from the participants’ responses and it was found that most interviewees followed intrinsic motives and considered motivation as a factor of great significance. Conclusion In the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context in which our study was conducted, instructors can follow more similar classroom motivational techniques and strategies since neither type of motivation was influenced by the variables of different major, age and occupation. Though many studies have shown that EFL learners are more extrinsically motivated in comparison with ESL ones, our study revealed that participants were more intrinsically motivated. Thus, this study may be replicated in other educational contexts such as an ESL context. The study can also be repeated in some universities in which other educational systems such as coed education is used to see the possible similarities and differences. Motivation is the important stimulant to impel the learners to achieve their learning goals; thus, it should receive sufficient attention in various educational settings.

Abstract Introduction Individuals vary in their selection of health messengers. This research aimed to construct an instrument to measure the preferences of medical students in selecting health messengers and in the next step to validate the aforementioned questionnaire. Method This research is a descriptive survey with an approach to construct a questionnaire. The statistical population included all students studying at Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in March to June 2022 in the academic year 2021-2022. 500 participants were involved in the study. To determine the types of health messengers and review the texts, a group of 15 primary items consisting of the 6 components of academic sources (2-items), formal news sources (2-items), mass media (3-items), internet search (2-items), social networks and messenger applications (4-items), and informal conversation (2-items) were compiled. A 4-point scale was developed the content validity of which was confirmed using CVI and CVR method and the reliability index was calculated to be 0.818. Factor analysis was also used to determine the construct validity and factor loading of each item. Results The research covers university students in different medical fields. Using factor analysis, together with KMO = 0.810 and Bartlett's sphericity index P

In recent years, more active roles have been allocated to language learners. Empowering students can help them function more autonomously and their ability to make appropriate use of language learner strategies (LLSs) predisposes them to achieve their academic goals. The participants of the present study were male and female undergraduate university students from two different countries. A multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to compare the use of the six strategy categories of memory strategies, cognitive strategies, compensation strategies, metacognitive strategies, affective strategies and social strategies together with direct strategies, indirect strategies and overall use of language learning strategies among Iranian EFL and Malaysian ESL university students. It was illuminated that social context influenced selected students’ use of social strategies. Classroom observations helped the researchers to find out about frequency of use of language learning strategies. Metacognitive and cognitive strategies were the most used in-class strategies among Iranian and Malaysian university students, respectively. It is suggested that instructors provide a wide range of language learning strategies to satisfy the needs of learners with different needs and expectations.

Stories can contribute to the emotional well-being of children and storytelling is one of the new methods of teaching in the classroom. The main objective of the present study is to evaluate the effects of integrating digital Storytelling on the level of social intelligence and emotional intelligence in female elementary school students. In this quasi-experimental study, all third grade female elementary school students who were studying in an elementary school in Shiraz were involved based on the census method (N = 60). A quantitative approach was taken and the levels of social intelligence and emotional intelligence were examined in all participants before the training. Tromso social intelligence scale and Bar-on emotional intelligence inventory were used to measure the respondents’ social and emotional intelligence. Simple random sampling was performed and the participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group in which digital Storytelling was integrated with group discussion (N = 30) or a control group in which there was no intervention (N = 30) using the random allocation software. The results showed that integrating digital storytelling with group discussion led to meaningful improvement in social intelligence and emotional intelligence among the female elementary school students, whereas in the control group no meaningful changes were observed. Therefore, a combination of digital Storytelling with group discussion is a potentially beneficial educational method for female elementary school students.

Incidental vocabulary learning involves unintentional, unconscious learning of a new lexical item while listening to a speech or reading a passage. Corrective feedback can influence language learning of EFL learners in general, and their incidental vocabulary learning in particular. If teachers and practitioners of language teaching know which types of feedback can be more effective, they may be more prone to use them in their classes. The purpose of the present study was to illustrate if age was a determining factor in the effectiveness of giving “repetition” feedback on new lexical items to L2 learners. The participants of the study were thirty students of a language institute in Shiraz, Iran who were provided with a collection of new vocabulary items. As for the instrument of the study, the first two lessons of an IELTS test which contained 20 lessons were involved. Each incorporated 20 multiple choice questions to be done in 20 minutes. A list of vocabulary items were selected from the aforementioned online vocabulary test to be included in a pre-test that participants took. Then half of the most unknown items were identified to be used in the post-test. The teacher was asked to provide repetition type of corrective feedback on students’ errors when teaching those items. The statistical procedures included one-way ANOVA and the relevant data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. The results of the study showed that the background variable of age did not influence incidental lexical learning.

This study was conducted to examine the Iranian EFL university learners' and lecturers’ attitude towards translation as a tool in reading comprehension. A sample of 50 male and female students of Nursing, Medicine and 10 male and female lecturers at the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences were randomly selected. Using an Oxford Placement Test (OPT), the students in each field were homogenized. Two different questionnaires were administered. In the students’ questionnaire, items were about the functions of L1 in terms of translating in the EFL/ESL classroom based on, and the lecturers’ questionnaire included items about their attitudes towards L1 use in reading comprehension classes. It came to light that students of different age and major did not differ widely in their attitudes towards using translation in reading nor did lecturers differ in their opinions regarding the application of translation. Moreover, the results supported the effectiveness of using translation activities in L2 classrooms to improve student’s reading comprehension. This research is motivated by studies that suggest the use of L1 in ESL/EFL classroom can facilitate rather than impede target language learning.

Learning a second language is of paramount importance as it equips one with the ability to communicate with people of other cultures. There are some factors that affect the success of learning a new language. The most omnipresent of all are students‟ attitudes and motivation. L2 learners‟ motivation helps them move forward and make progress and is deemed to be the key to successful language learning. Motivation for learning a language can have a variety of natures, the most important of which being „instrumental‟ and „integrative‟. Some students strive to learn a language for practical purposes such as entering college or meeting some requirements (i.e. instrumental) whereas others have an affinity for a particular language or for identifying with its native speakers (integrative). This study encompassed Iranian postgraduate students who were studying in Universiti Kebangsaan, Malaysia (UKM), doing either their master‟s or PhD in a variety of majors. The objective was to shed light on their attitudes towards learning English, the second language studied there, and the comparative nature of their motivation, in terms of being instrumentally or integratively oriented. Using a number of instruments, it came to light that those students had highly positive attitudes towards learning English. Moreover, results showed that they had high levels of both integrative and instrumental motivations although the instrumental motivation outweighed the other type. Stated differently, the majority of students were interested in learning English mainly to get a better job or to pursue their studies at a higher degree.

Abstract Background Iranian health sector encountered many challenges in resource allocation and health service purchasing during the past decades, the aim of this study was to determine the main challenges of the present process of health service purchasing for national policymakers and other developing countries with the same setting. Methods It was a qualitative study carried out via the complete content analysis of all relevant national documents from 2007 to 2014. In order to retrieve the related documents, we searched the official websites related to the Ministry of Health and Medical Education, four main Iranian insurance organizations, the Health Committee of the Parliament Profile, strategic vice president’s site and Supreme Insurance Council. After recognition of documents, their credibility and authenticity were evaluated in terms of their publication or adjustment. For the analysis of documents, the four step-Scott method was used applying MAXQDA version 10. Results Findings illustrated that health service purchase challenges in the country can be classified in 6 main themes of policy-making, executive, intersectional, natural, legal and informational challenges with 26 subthemes. Furthermore, 5 themes of Basic Benefit Package, Reimbursement,Decision making, Technology and Contract are considered as the main Challenges in pharmaceutical purchasing area containing 13 relevant subthemes. Conclusions It seems that according to documents, Iran has faced many structural and procedural problems with the purchase of the best health interventions. So it is highly recommended to consider consequences derived from the present challenges and try to use these evidences in their policy making process to decrease the existed problems and move to better procurement of health interventions.

The demanding task of language learning necessitates great efforts on the part of the learners. In the process of learning, some learners are overawed by language anxiety via setting some unreasonable standards. Different factors influence a learner’s anxiety one of which is educational level of the learner. In this respect, this study sought to investigate the effects of educational level on learner anxiety. To this end, both learner’s educational qualifications and parents’ qualification were considered and their influences were measured on the learner anxiety. 150 students were involved who attended some language institutes in Shiraz, Iran. The participants were asked to fill in the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety questionnaire. The statistical analysis applied in this study was Multivariate of Analysis (MANOVA) and the pertinent data were analyzed using SPSS version 22. It came to light that participants with different levels of education and different mother’s educational levels did not differ in their anxiety level. In other words, neither learner education nor his or her parents’ education had any significant effects on the learner anxiety. Delving into factors which may hamper successful language learning is not only worthwhile but also promising and learner anxiety is one of them.

Digital learners, who are now entering schools and universities, have learning expectations, styles, and needs different from past students. Today’s Gen-Z communicates in a language that older generation may not fully understand; the aforementioned learners have a vernacular of their own. It’s an ever-evolving language of interpretation and expression, an interactive approach to learning, creating and responding to information through a complex montage of images, sound, and communication. Students are pushing learning into a new dimension. It’s a mistake to continue to try to teach these learners in time-worn ways. Their choices of communication need to be diversified to encompass visual interpretations of texts and historical figures. Vast challenges have arisen and the impact of technology on the socio-economic landscape is becoming more significant. Gen-Z takes advantage of the enormous resources of the Web, transforming what they find there by using digital technologies to create something new and expressive. More advanced and specialized courses could also be converted, although some level of face-to-face contact is necessary to master such material. Unless teachers are trained to expect and accept content gathered through social networks with emphasis on teaching students how to check validity and reliability of the web, the full power of the digital natives cannot be released or expanded. Educators have to adjust their teaching styles to accommodate a new generation of Gen-Z. This paper, which is a predominantly theoretical one, maintains that creative thinking and a firm commitment are needed to move teaching and learning into the digital age.

Introduction: Motivation is a driving force behind man's behavior which has led to many psychological studies throughout the world. Moreover, it is the fuel for successful learning. While intrinsic motives provide the internal rewards, extrinsic motivation supplies the required external rewards to keep the engine of learning running. Knowing the factors which impact intrinsic/extrinsic motivation helps educators target their efforts at a higher level and make more informed decisions., Method: This study intends to examine how intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation may be influenced by demographics including learners' background factors of major, age, and occupation and to determine the relationships that may exist between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. To this end, an explanatory sequential mixed-methods research was conducted at one of the public universities in Shiraz on the majors of Elementary Education, Educational Affairs, Social Studies and Theology, and the Arabic language which were selected through cluster sampling. These students were having their English courses at the university. Based on Krejcie and Morgan's formula for sample size, a questionnaire was administered to 100 participants to collect quantitative data. Moreover, semi-structured interview sessions were conducted with one fourth of the participants., Results: Using Multiple Analysis of Variance (MANOVA) and Pearson correlation, we found that learners' background factors of age, field of study and professional status did not affect intrinsic nor extrinsic motivation. However, significant and positive relationships were found between intrinsic motivation and total motivation index, and between extrinsic motivation and total motivation index. Qualitative data obtained from the interviews were analyzed using a thematic analysis. The results of the interviews showed some new illuminating trends as revealed from the participants' responses and it was found that most interviewees followed intrinsic motives and considered motivation as a factor of great significance., Conclusion: In the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) context in which our study was conducted, instructors can follow more similar classroom motivational techniques and strategies since neither type of motivation was influenced by the variables of different major, age and occupation. Though many studies have shown that EFL learners are more extrinsically motivated in comparison with ESL ones, our study revealed that participants were more intrinsically motivated. Thus, this study may be replicated in other educational contexts such as an ESL context. The study can also be repeated in some universities in which other educational systems such as coed education is used to see the possible similarities and differences. Motivation is the important stimulant to impel the learners to achieve their learning goals; thus, it should receive sufficient attention in various educational settings., (© 2024. The Author(s).)