This mixed-methods study examines the status of reflective practice among language teachers, identifies barriers to implementing reflective practice, and explores motivators that can address these issues. The study also investigates the discrepancies between teachers' perceptions of reflection and their practice. To this aim, the perception of 190…

In response to recent reforms to English language education in secondary schools in Iran, this study investigated how a small collaborative professional learning community prompted shifts in teachers' practices. The study relied on Engeström's professional learning intervention to examine the practices of three junior high school teachers. Through…

One of the main shortcomings of the Iranian educational system is its focus on training students to succeed in different testing/assessment practices. In this regard, primary emphasis is still placed on memorization rather than learning dialogue, collaboration, tolerance, and life expectation for today's globalized communities. Few voices from…

Professional development is thought to be most effective when teachers participate and collaborate in groups. The present study was to find the collaborative inquiry role in EFL teachers' professional development and their perceptions of collaborative inquiry benefits and challenges. In so doing, 185 Iranian EFL teachers were selected by…

In the past decades, neoliberalism has permeated (foreign) language education, as has been discussed by critical research in the fields of: curriculum theory, applied linguistics, discourse analysis, language policy, language assessment, to name a few. Despite the fact that research on foreign language education and neoliberalism is certainly…

Dyslexia is one of the most common learning disabilities among students, and teachers are often the very first to notice dyslexic students. It is therefore imperative that teachers be well-prepared to intervene appropriately and effectively once they encounter dyslexic students. The current study investigates teachers' knowledge about the disorder…

Globally various barriers hinder English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners from developing English communicative competence. Concern in this regard is also raised in the context of Iran. Two themes that strongly emerge from the vast number of publications on the causes of poor EFL learning outcomes in Iran include the need for teacher…

Research on high-stakes tests indicates that increasing the stakes of large-scale English language tests will have consequential influence on teaching and learning performance and practices. However, evidence for influence on student 'motivation for learning English (MLE)' within such a context is still scarce. Taken this, the present study…

The outbreak of COVID-19 has posed a sudden and unprecedented change to the educational system. This study investigated the impact of this sudden change on EFL learners' perceptions of assessment in a technology-enhanced learning environment. Assessment dimensions such as affective factors, validity, reliability, practicality, security and…

For many years, technology has been applied to improve the quality of language learning and teaching. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the integration of technology in different language learning contexts. The sudden shift to online teaching faced educators with an array of challenges they had not experienced before. In…

The present action-research study explored the experience of a co-educational class in a context where it was a total educational novelty. Generating data from a number of sources before, during, and after the course, the study portrays how the participants experienced initial challenges followed by mutual adaptability toward the end of the…

To investigate the congruence between the requisite postgraduate academic language skills and the language skills measured by the General English section of the Iranian National PhD Entrance exam, field specialist informants, language-specialist informants and post-graduate students were questioned. The informants' data were collected through…

This study aims at investigating the influence of using flipped classroom model on Iranian EFL eleven graders' English achievements and their willingness to communicate. A pre-experimental design was used in this study. The participants were students in four classes of two high schools in Sanadaj, Iran. Two classes functioned as experimental and…

Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is advocated by many applied linguists as a common vehicle to curriculum innovation in many ELT contexts. It represents a change of focus in language teaching from linguistic structures to learners' need for developing communication skills. In recent years, the Iranian Ministry of Education has introduced the…

Different regions of the world are making increasing demands for educational reform, especially when institutions are dissatisfied with the level of proficiency of their graduates. Since the realization of how important English education is to global success, reform to English education is becoming progressively vital in societies all over the…