The Relationship between Reticence and Personality Types in Iranian University EFL Classrooms

Reticence is regarded as a problematic phenomenon among students in EFL classrooms. The present study was an attempt to explore the issue of reticence in Iranian foreign language classrooms. The study examined the relationship between students’ reticence and their personality types among university EFL learners. For this purpose, the Reticence Scale-12 (RS-12) questionnaire and the 60-item NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) questionnaire were used. Moreover, interviews with the participants about reticence were employed to find the students’ ideas about reticence in the classroom. The results revealed that the five personality types affected Iranian EFL students’ reticence. In addition, educational, situational, and emotional factors contributed to the students’ reticence in EFL classrooms. It can be concluded that teachers’ awareness of learners’ reticence can help them match their teaching styles with their students’ personality types, and choose more appropriate activities that can enhance EFL learners’ participation. The study can have implications and applications for both teachers and students

Metode Kisah dalam Meningkatkan Motivasi Belajar dan Kemampuan Bercerita pada Pembelajaran Sejarah Kebudayaan Islam di Madrasah Ibtidaiyah

Learning Islamic Cultural History is a learning that tends to be monotonous so that students easily feel bored. The reason is because in delivering the material generally by the lecture method without any learning media used. This makes student interest and motivation decrease, as a result the material described by the teacher cannot be accepted and understood easily. It has an impact on the low ability to tell stories to students. Therefore, teachers are required to provide innovation in creating fun learning, one of which is by changing the method in delivering the subject matter. The application of the story method is considered appropriate and relevant to Islamic Cultural History lessons, thereby increasing learning motivation and storytelling skills. The story method can create an attractive learning atmosphere, so students will feel the joy of learning. That way, students will have a desire or desire in the form of a desire to know which is accompanied by power or effort to achieve the goals they want to achieve, this is called the emergence of motivation learning In addition, the story method using pictures can strengthen students 'memory of historical stories, which can provide a real picture of these historical stories so that in this case it can improve students' ability to tell stories. The stages in the application of the story method that educators need to pay attention to include, among others, planning, presentation of material, correlation, conclusion and evaluation. Regarding the design, it can be adjusted to the needs and learning objectives.Pembelajaran Sejarah Kebudayaan Islam merupakan pembelajaran yang cenderung monoton sehingga peserta didik mudah merasa bosan. Penyebabnya karena dalam menyampaikan materi umumnya dengan metode ceramah tanpa adanya media pembelajaran yang digunakan. Hal ini membuat minat dan motivasi siswa menurun, akibatnya materi yang dijelaskan oleh guru tidak dapat diterima dan dipahami secara mudah. Berdampak pada rendahnya kemampuan bercerita pada peserta didik. Oleh sebab itu, guru dituntut memberikan inovasi dalam menciptakan pembelajaran yang menyenangkan, salah satunya dengan mengubah metode dalam menyampaikan materi pelajaran. Penerapan metode kisah dianggap tepat dan relevan dengan pelajaran Sejarah Kebudayaan Islam, dengan begitu meningkatnya motivasi belajar dan kemampuan bercerita. Metode kisah dapat menciptakan suasana belajar yang menarik, maka peserta didik akan merasakan senangnya belajar. Dengan begitu, dalam diri peserta didik akan muncul keinginan atau hasrat yang berupa dorongan rasa ingin tahu yang disertai daya atau usaha dalam mencapai tujuan yang ingin dicapainya, inilah yang disebut munculnya motivasi belajar. Selain itu, Metode kisah menggunakan gambar dapat menguatkan daya ingat peserta didik terhadap kisah sejarah tersebut, yang dapat memberikan gambaran nyata mengenai kisah sejarah tersebut.  Sehingga dalam hal ini dapat meningkatkan kemampun peserta didik dalam bercerita. Adapun tahap-tahap dalam penerapan metode kisah yang perlu diperhatikan oleh para pendidik yaitu diantaranya meliputi, perencaan, penyajian materi, korelasi, kesimpulan dan evaluasi. Mengenai perancangannya dapat disesuaikan dengan kebutuhan dan tujuan pembelajaran

Associations between Iranian University-Level EFL Learners’ Perceptions of Their Language Learning Environment and Their Motivation and Self-regulation

The present study attempted to examine Iranian university level EFL students’ perceptions of their language learning environment regarding two fundamental components of language learning engagement and achievement; that is, motivation and self-regulation. The study involved the administration of modified versions of the Engagement in English Language Learning and Self-Regulation (EELLS) questionnaire to assess participants’ motivation and self-regulation in English language learning, and the School, Physical and Campus Environment Survey (SPACES) questionnaire to assess students’ perceptions of their physical language learning environment. Statistical measures of variance, Eigenvalue, alpha Cronbach value, and component correlation matrix ensured the reliability and validity of the two questionnaires. Furthermore, the results of simple and multiple correlation analyses as well as standardized regression analysis revealed a strong and significant association between students’ perceptions of their language learning environment and their motivation and self-regulation. The findings suggest that EFL stakeholders should carefully examine language learning environments that they are creating in terms of architectural, spatial, visual, ambient, and aesthetics features

The Effect of Employing Electronic Portfolio on Iranian EFL Learners’ Writing Skill

A superior method of language teaching is what all researchers and language teachers look for. In order to facilitate the process of language learning, technological tools can be helpful. The present study aimed to investigate the effect to employing electronic portfolio on Iranian EFL learners’ writing skill in a language institute in Isfahan, Iran in summer 2014. To find the homogeneity of subjects, the Oxford Quick Placement Test was administered and the subjects were divided into experimental and control groups. The experimental group received the treatment which was employing the electronic portfolio, while the control group had the conventional context of language classes. At the end of the study, the obtained scores on the pretests and post-tests were analyzed. Independent t-tests were run to compare the collected scores in the two groups. The results of the study showed significant difference between the experimental group and the control group. The findings of the study can bear implications for EFL student, teachers, policy makers, university and institute organizations, and syllabus designers

English Compliment Response Strategies on Social Networks by Iranian EFL Learners

Development of technology including computers and the Internet has introduced a new channel of sharing ideas and beliefs in social networks all over the world. Despite a huge number of studies on compliment, this verbal behavior has not received sufficient attention in such contexts as online communication in social networks. This study aimed to investigate the realization of English compliment response strategies by Iranian English as Foreign Language (EFL) Learners on social networks. To this end, a sample of 30 Iranian EFL learners studying at Islamic Azad University, Khorasgan Branch (IAUKB) was selected from friend’s list on social networks.  Observing ethical issues, participants’ compliments and compliment response strategies were recorded, classified, analyzed in terms of frequency and percentage, and then interpreted.  The findings revealed that the most frequent response strategy to English compliments was acceptance strategies at macro level and appreciation token at micro level. The findings of this study may benefit teachers, linguists, language learners, and others interested in language learning and teaching

Comparative Analysis of Architecture Research Article Abstracts Written by Native and Non-native Authors: A Cross-linguistic, Cross-cultural Study

It is increasingly becoming important to focus on the rhetorical aspects of texts used for creating different discourse types. In point of fact, the abstract section of scientific articles possesses a rhetorically defined structural framework which is very often culture specific. As such, the present study aimed to investigate the abstract section of the articles written by English and Persian authors, in order to explore whether they followed a similar structural pattern. To this end, a corpus of 60 English and Persian abstracts, thirty each, was randomly selected from English ISI journals and Iranian scientific journals and analyzed based on the IMRD framework introduced by Swales (1990). Findings of this study revealed that most English and Persian authors used the IMRD model in the structure of their abstracts; although, the frequency of occurrence of each move was different. In terms of moves’ sequence, all the used patterns were analyzed and I-M-R-D and I-M-R were identified as the most frequent patterns used in both groups. Findings of this study may have implications for Iranian authors who seek to publish their studies in reputable international journals