Social Media as Language Learning Communities: Impact on EFL Acquisition among Kurdish Learners

This study explored the impact of social media on the development of English as Foreign Language (EFL) skills among Kurdish university students. With the rising importance of English in the Kurdistan Region, students increasingly turned to innovative platforms beyond traditional classrooms to enhance their language proficiency. Social media served as a dynamic environment for practicing vocabulary, speaking, and listening skills, while promoting interaction with English speakers globally. Adopting a mixed-methods design, the study surveyed 200 students from four universities in Duhok, Kurdistan, utilizing both quantitative Likert-scale questionnaires and qualitative interviews. Findings revealed that social media significantly enhanced student engagement and contributed to improvements in vocabulary acquisition, speaking fluency, and listening comprehension. However, challenges in writing proficiency persisted, indicating a need for targeted pedagogical interventions. The study also underscored the importance of the English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) perspective, which emphasized effective communication over native-speaker norms, empowering learners to navigate diverse linguistic contexts with confidence. Ultimately, the integration of social media with traditional instructional strategies offered a more engaging and balanced EFL learning experience, supporting skill-specific development and fostering holistic language acquisition

Epistemic Injustice in the Digital Age: Social Media, Silencing, and the Politics of Credibility

This article explores the evolving contours of epistemic injustice in the digital age, with particular focus on the role of social media in both perpetuating and challenging these injustices. Drawing on Miranda Fricker’s foundational concepts of testimonial and hermeneutical injustice, the paper examines how algorithmic structures, influencer cultures, and digital hierarchies affect the credibility and interpretability of marginalized voices. It interrogates the mechanisms by which epistemic authority is constructed online and highlights how marginalized groups—such as Dalits, women, and indigenous communities—are often discredited, silenced, or rendered unintelligible in mainstream digital discourse. At the same time, the paper explores the emergence of epistemic counter publics that resist these dominant narratives and reclaim space for alternative ways of knowing. The study concludes by calling for a critical epistemic ethics of the digital public sphere—one that ensures inclusivity, interpretive justice, and equitable knowledge production in our increasingly networked societies

Strategies for Improving Student Achievement in Mathematics in Grade 10 Board Examinations

This study looked into the reasons behind the poor mathematics performance i Grade 10 students in one of the Higher Secondary Schools in Dagana, Bhutan, and considers practical ways to raise their academic standing. The study used a qualitative research methodology, gathering data through group discussions involving four mathematics teachers and one-on-one interview with two mathematics teachers’ interviews, two classroom observations. It also involved two focused group with 15 students in each group. The results showed that the main issues influencing students\u27 performance were a lack of student engagement, a dependence on conventional lecture-based teaching techniques, restricted access to learning materials, and little parental participation. Students prefer visual aids, real-world applications, and collaborative learning, on the other hand, teachers recognized the importance of interactive teaching strategies. The study suggests improving teaching strategies, using technology, providing more learning materials, and encouraging teacher-student-parent cooperation in light of these findings. The study emphasized how crucial a student-centered approach is to making mathematics more interesting and useful, which will ultimately boost students\u27 self-esteem, ability to solve problems, and success in board exams

The Impact of Civil Financial Markets on Environmental Quality

Background and Aim: In the financial development process, financing various projects, including environmental projects, is possible with greater ease and lower cost. Financial development by providing the necessary financial resources to form more equipped and advanced research and development units, as well as the possibility of accessing more efficient and environmentally friendly technologies that require more financial resources, the possibility of attracting foreign investment with pollution. Developed countries, on the other hand, tend to emit their polluting industries to countries with poorer environmental standards. The result of the arrival of this type of foreign direct investment in the host country is an increase in pollution. In this regard, the main purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of financial markets on air pollution as an indicator of environmental quality in selected middle-income countries. Methods: The present study is applied, causal research in terms of the inferential research method. The method and tool of collecting information and statistical sources is also the method of written documents, electronic information, and recording showed that - Results: The results of model estimation in Isfahan’s environment using the fixed effects method in the group of selected countries in 2015, the ratio of domestic credits granted to the private sector (% of GDP) as an indicator of money market and exchange rate in Isfahan in 2022. As an indicator of environmental quality in Isfahan\u27s second municipality region, the volume of stock market transactions as an indicator of the capital market has a positive and significant effect on the emission of CO2 in the group of selected middle-income countries. In other words, financial development has increased pollution in middle-income countries. The effect of the ratio of domestic credits granted to the private sector (% of GDP) as an indicator of the money market on more than the ratio of stocks exchanged to the volume of stock market transactions as an indicator of the capital market in selected countries

A Qualitative Study on the Identity Construction of Pre-service English Teachers

This study explores pre-service English teachers\u27 identity construction via Wenger\u27s CoP model. Four postgraduate students with diverse undergraduate majors and over three months of teaching internship were interviewed. Findings reveal that identity is shaped by engagement in teaching (prior experiences, courses, internships) and imagining alternatives (good teacher criteria, career visions). Participants note theory-practice conflicts, with internships revealing gaps between ideals and exam-focused realities. Their "good teacher" concepts stress competence and ethics. The study highlights the need for integrated theory-practice training and further research on dynamic identity transition

A critical analysis of Jacques Derrida’s notion of ‘There is nothing outside the text’

The following paper presents a critical examination of Jacques Derrida’s intriguing assertion, "There is nothing outside the text," set against the wider backdrop of the schools of Poststructuralism and Deconstruction. Taking into account Derrida’s significant works of criticism, alongside critiques from notable figures like Frank Kermode and Stanley Fish, this study explores the profound implications of Derrida’s assertions with regards to language, meaning, and reality.  Additionally, the study places Derrida’s ideas alongside those of significant earlier thinkers, such as Edmund Husserl’s phenomenology and Ferdinand de Saussure’s structural linguistics, emphasizing how Derrida questions the conventional boundaries between language and the reality it aims to depict.  Through an exploration of key ideas like différance, trace, and textuality, the paper illustrates how Derrida deconstructs conventional epistemological structures, uncovering their underlying political aspects.  In the end, the research suggests that Derrida’s transformative view of text and context reveals the fabricated essence of truth and reality, shedding light on the political motivations inherent in every act of interpretation

Study on the Construction and Dissemination Path of Corporate Culture in the Retail Industry: A Case Study of Decathlon

Against the background of the increasingly intense competitive landscape in the retail industry, corporate culture, as a core soft power for enhancing an enterprise\u27s core competitiveness, has gained vital strategic value. This study takes Decathlon, an outstanding enterprise in the sports goods retail sector, as the research sample. Based on six months of participatory observation data and grounded in Edgar Schein\u27s Three-Level Model of Culture, it systematically analyses core characteristics of Decathlon\u27s corporate culture and the internal logic that drives its construction and dissemination. The findings show that Decathlon’s center are its core values in "vitality, responsibility, authenticity, and generosity". Through a value-oriented recruitment and selection mechanism, a systematic cultural training system, and an employee empowerment and authorization framework, the company achieves the in-depth penetration and internalization of corporate culture within the organization. Furthermore, by materializing employees\u27 service behaviors and designing scenario-based store spaces, Decathlon constructs a cultural transmission chain of "organization - employee - customer", forging an irreproducible brand differentiation barrier. The research conclusions provide actionable pathways for the systematic construction and efficient dissemination of corporate culture in retail enterprises, and also point to future research directions – verifying the universality of the conclusions through cross-case comparisons or quantitative research

Spatial Distribution and Analysis of Crime in Haryana: A Geographical Perspective

The present research explores the regional patterns and intensities of IPC crimes across the districts of Haryana over ten years from 2013–14 to 2023–24. Utilizing official data from the NCRB and Statistical Abstracts of Haryana, the analysis highlights the uneven distribution of crime rates across the state. Districts such as Gurugram, Faridabad, Hisar, Karnal, and Panipat have emerged as high-crime zones, recording substantial increases in total IPC cases. Urbanization, population density, socio-economic changes, and improved reporting mechanisms are identified as key factors contributing to the rise. Conversely, districts like Bhiwani and Nuh show comparatively lower increases, though underreporting may be a factor. The use of geographical tools and spatial mapping brings clarity to the concentration and spread of criminal activity, aiding in the identification of crime hotspots. This spatial analysis underscores the importance of localized policing, preventive planning, and socio-economic interventions in curbing crime. The findings provide valuable insights for policymakers, law enforcement agencies, and researchers to devise data-driven strategies tailored to district-specific crime trends, thereby enhancing public safety and governance efficiency across Haryana

Perceptions and Types of Workloads among Chemistry Teachers in Middle Secondary Schools

This study explored perception and types of workloads for middle secondary school chemistry teachers, in one of the districts of Bhutan. The participants included chemistry teachers (n=7), Principals (n=4), and class 9 and 10 students (n=200). Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, survey questionnaires, classroom observation, and document analysis such as chemistry teachers’ teaching schedule, job delegation documents, and class 9 and 10 students’ chemistry notebooks (n=32). The qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis while the quantitative data were analysed using the features such as mean and standard deviation of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The findings of the study highlighted that the chemistry teachers’ workloads were perceived as heavy, caused by 4 different types of workloads such as academic workloads, non-academic workloads, workloads due to inadequate academic resources, and nature of chemistry

The Impact of Social Relationships on Students’ Academic Performance in Secondary Schools, Meru District Council, Arusha, Tanzania

The study assessed the impact of social relationships on students’ academic performance in secondary schools, Meru District Council, Arusha Tanzania. The following specific objectives: to assess the forms of relationships among students in secondary schools and their impact on students’ academic performance; and to investigate on the effects peers, family, school, and neighbours on students’ academic performance were studied. The study surveyed 504 secondary school students, and the data was analysed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test for independence and one-way Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA. Findings revealed six forms of relationships among students including: Friendship, Peers, Acquaintances, Classmates, Support groups, and Romantic. The forms of relationships found to have a significant impact on students’ academic performance. It was also found out that there are a significant effect of family, peers, schools and neighbours’ interactions on students’ academic performance. The study recommends that teachers pay attention on the kind of relationships among students because they may have both positive and negative outcomes, design guidance and counselling systems to guide students’ social interactions; Schools should establish a mutual relationship between the school members and family members for the sake of understanding and follow ups of students both academic and behavioural progresses.&nbsp