Non-academic L2 Users: A Neglected Research Pool in ELT in Iran

English Language Teaching (ELT) articles are published and their results are relied on without delving into their methodological credibility. A research study cannot be considered valid unless its population is precisely determined and defined. This article shows the considerable size of non-academic English learners in Iran and argues that the population in ELT research should not be limited only to university and school students who are easily accessible but it should also include the sizeable non-academic sector. To do this, 170 PhD dissertations and MA theses in TEFL were randomly selected. The result showed that only less than 9% of the participants belonged to non-academic sector. The article also argues that there is wrong overgeneralization of even the existing ELT academic researches to non-academic situation. Finally it compares academic and non-academic English learners to show how the latter are highly motivated to learn

Rhetorical Variation in Medical Article Abstracts Written in English and Persian

The present study aimed at finding structural variations in the translated abstracts from Persian into English and comparing them with abstracts originally written in English and published in international journals in the area of medical sciences. To do this, 64 medical article abstracts (32 in Iranian journals, 32 in international journals) were analyzed and compared on the basis of Swales’ model (1990). More detailed analysis was done in the Introduction unit regarding CARS model (Swales, 1990) and also language features of each unit were identified. The IMRC (Introduction, Methods, Results, Conclusion) sequence was considered as the structural conventions for the analysis. The results showed that in terms of structural units, there was a significant difference in using the Methods unit between the two groups of abstracts (p= 0.002). Some variations were observed in the Introduction unit and language features. The data revealed that the translated abstracts from Persian into English in research medical articles meet the determined criteria for scientific writing while the original ones often ignore the criteria, although they are linguistically superior to the original English one

ESL, EFL, EIL Revisited: Investigation, Evaluation and Justification of a Shift in the Current ELT Models in Iran

English language teaching in Iran has usually been considered an EFL model. This position, though common and widespread, seems to need revision in several grounds. Through comparing EFL, ESL and EIL (English as an international language) models based on Smiths (1978) comparative study, the present article reveals that the ELT in Iran no longer follows EFL model. The comparative evaluation makes it clear that in terms of most categories ELT in Iran shows the characteristics of EIL. Therefore, through characterizing it as a developmental process along a continuum towards EIL, the present study argues for instances of paradigm shift and thus claims that the ELT context in Iran is ripe for revision

Syntactic Deviations in the Novel The Sound and the Fury

This article looks at William Faulkner’s work The Sound and the Fury. The goals are to investigate different types of syntactic deviations in the novel, and how these deviations helped the writer to create a literary work in the field of modernist literature and stream of consciousness.  To this end, the theoretical framework for linguistic deviations proposed by Leech (1969) has been chosen. Most prior researches on linguistic deviations especially syntactic deviations focused on poetic text and classic prose. The present study was designed to address syntactic deviations in modern prose, and it highlights the role of syntactic deviations in modernist literature and psychological novel

The Impact of Teaching EFL Medical Vocabulary Through Collocations on Vocabulary Retention of EFL Medical Students

Teaching technical vocabulary in ESP context is a vital part of English language teaching at a university level. EFL teachers almost use traditional techniques for teaching new medical vocabulary. This study aimed at examining the impact of teaching medical vocabulary through collocations on vocabulary learning of medical students. This quasi-experimental study with a pretest/posttest control group design was conducted on 80 students majoring Nursing at Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Iran. The proficiency test was used to determine the proficiency level of the students and 62 students were selected as intermediate students. The students were assigned into two groups. In the experimental group new medical vocabulary was taught through collocations, while in the control group new vocabularies were instructed through traditional techniques including synonym, antonym, definition and mother tongue translation. Data were collected using a researcher-made test of collocation. Results showed that the mean score of teaching medical vocabulary was increased in the experimental group after the treatment. It can be seen that the experimental group outperformed the control group on the medical collocation tests