فصلنامه ادبیات و علوم انسانی
پیاپی 16-17 (بهار و تابستان 1389)

The theory/practice distinction has almost always been one of practitioners‘ basic headaches. Theoreticians who are detached from the practical reality of educational settings put forward the theories which are presumed to be conducive to different contexts in a generalized fashion. This predicament looms large with regard to the role attached to pure linguistics in the realm of language pedagogy, particularly Chomskyan linguistics which is after a universal say. Such approaches, called homework, focus on an individual‘s mind out of the social context (Beaugrande, 1997). Such features might render the homework framework not so much appropriate to TEFL contexts where practical specifics count. On the contrary, fieldwork linguistics has been paradoxically ignored, particularly in linguistics courses offered in TEFL M.A. and Ph.D. programs. This study is intended to investigate the status of pure linguistics in graduate/postgraduate TEFL curriculum in Iran through a qualitative survey study of the attitudes of TEFL M.A. and Ph.D. students/holders towards the relevance of such linguistic courses to their academic and occupational enterprise. To this end, given the cross-sectional nature of the study, a written interview framework was developed for 30 M.A. and Ph.D. students/holders in TEFL. The results of content analysis indicated the participants‘ increasing lack of interest in homework linguistic issues and belief in their irrelevance to the teaching profession; the participants‘ more experience of dealing with Chomskyan linguistics resulted in less interest and the belief that it would lack practical value in TEFL. Pedagogical implications and suggestions are discussed.

This study investigated the impact of Cooperative Learning techniques―Student Team-Achievement Divisions (STAD) and Group Investigation (GI)―on L2 learners‘ reading. Applying the Nelson Test, 90 preintermediate female college students were randomly selected and assigned to 3 groups. The experimental groups (A & B) received instruction according to the STAD and GI techniques. The control group (C) was instructed via the Conventional Instruction (CI) technique. Then, the participants took quizzes on the same materials. Results showed the STAD technique is more effective in improving reading, while the GI and CI techniques didn‘t enhance it significantly. The claim is that team rewards may have a strong impact on L2 learners‘ performance toward reading comprehension.

Realizing the need for empirical investigation, this study explored the generic structure of titles of theses and articles in Applied Linguistics. The study took into account 1871 thesis and article titles, assuming that titles of theses and articles have little in common as far as their communicative purposes are concerned. Categorization of the titles was made according to their varying structural constructions and informativeness. The thesis titles appeared to be more informative while the article titles demonstrated greater variation in their structures. An in-depth understanding of a genre which can, to some extent, be brought about by the works done in this area seems unavoidable. This study can definitely increase students‘ awareness of the effects of the generic differences on the conventions of writing which consequently helps them operate effectively in a certain genre.

Literature in language study has a long pedigree. It once played a pivotal role in (foreign) language teaching in the "classical humanist" paradigm, where an understanding of the high culture and thought expressed through literature took precedence over mere competence in using the language (Maley, 2001, p. 180). Its prominence, however, faded as linguistics became the focal point of language programs (Widdowson, 1982). Some ESL/EFL theorists, emphasizing the ever-increasing focus in ELT on meeting the particular academic and occupational needs of the students, deemed it unnecessary to make any attempt at teaching literature (McKay, 1982). This paper, however, argues that a renewed interest in literature has recently surfaced as the teachers search for resources that take their students beyond the elementary level of intensive language instruction offered by most linguistic approaches to a level which enables them to function effectively in the second language. It will thus be noted that numerous scholars have begun to believe that the literary heritage, whose study fosters habits of ―seeing feelingly on the one hand, and skeptically, rationally, on the other‖ (Oster, 1985, p. 75), should not be denied ESL/EFL students who are intellectually and emotionally, if not linguistically and culturally, ready to examine literary works.

The present study sought to investigate, primarily, the relationship between Iranian EFL teachers‘ critical thinking and self-efficacy in language institutes. Secondly, the role of the teachers‘ years of teaching experience in their critical thinking ability was examined. Finally, the relationship between the teachers‘ age and their critical thinking was studied. To this end, 94 EFL teachers participated from the different language institutes in Mashhad. The teachers sat through the ―Watson-Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal‖ and the ―Teachers‘ Sense of Efficacy Scale.‖ The statistical calculations via ANOVA and correlation revealed that there was no significant relationship between the teachers‘ critical thinking and their self-efficacy. Furthermore, no significant correlation was found between the teachers‘ critical thinking, their teaching experience, and age. The discussion and conclusions of the research are further presented with reference to earlier findings.