Exploring EFL Learners' Metaphorical Conceptions of Language Learning: A Multimodal Analysis

Delving into the relationship between teacher emotion regulation, self-efficacy, engagement, and anger: A focus on English as a foreign language teachers

Due to the potent role of teachers’ emotion regulation in effective teaching, it seems essential to see how emotion regulation can contribute to other relevant teaching constructs. In this regard, the present study is intended to probe into the causal relationship among teacher emotion regulation, self-efficacy beliefs, engagement, and anger. In so doing, the Language Teacher Emotion Regulation Inventory (LTERI), The Teacher Sense of Efficacy Scale (TSES), The Engaged Teacher Scale (ETS), and The Teacher Anger Scale (TAS) were administered to 581 English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers in Iran. To gauge the causal relationships among the variables, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM) using LISREL 8.80 were conducted. The results indicated that language teacher emotion regulation could positively and significantly predict teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs and engagement at work. Moreover, the influence of language teacher emotion regulation on the teacher’s anger is significantly negative. That is, the stronger emotion regulation is implemented the better teachers can manage their anger. The implications of this study may uncover new prospects for effective teaching, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Modeling the role of emotion regulation and critical thinking in immunity in higher education

It is deemed that the effectiveness of teachers is highly entangled with psycho-emotional constructs, such as critical thinking (CT), emotion regulation (ER), and immunity. Despite the potential roles of CR, ER, and immunity, their possible relationships have remained unexplored in the higher education context of Iran. To fill in this lacuna, this study explored the potential role of CT and ER in university teachers' immunity in the Iranian higher education context. For this purpose, a total of 293 English university teachers were selected using a convenience sampling method. They were invited to fill out the Watson–Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal-Form, Language Teacher Emotion Regulation Inventory, and Language Teacher Immunity Instrument. The findings of path analysis indicated that the university teachers with higher CT were more productively immunized. Moreover, the results revealed that ER could predict the university teachers' immunity. The findings of the study lead to this implication that higher order thinking skills, emotion regulatory strategies, and immune enhancement should be incorporated into educational programs of higher education.

Fostering EFL learners' motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy through computer-assisted language learning- and mobile-assisted language learning-based instructions

In the literature, a mass of studies have inspected the effects of computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and mobile-assisted language learning (MALL) on Iranian English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners' achievement. However, the effects of CALL and MALL on psychological factors, such as motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy, have largely remained unexplored. Thus, this study explored the effects of CALL and MALL, and face-to-face (FTF) learning environments on Iranian EFL learners' motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy. To this aim, using a random sampling method, a total of 137 male EFL intermediate learners were selected and homogenized using the Oxford Quick Placement Test (OQPT). Based on the test scores, a total of 90 EFL learners were selected and randomly assigned to three groups, namely, CALL (n = 30), MALL (n = 30), and FTF (n = 30). Then, the participants' motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy were gauged prior to the instructions. Afterward, they received CALL-based, MALL-based, and conventional instructions which lasted 25 1-h sessions held twice a week. At the end of the instructions, the participants' motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy were measured again. The collected data were analyzed through a one-way MANOVA. Findings evidenced that the experimental groups' motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy were positively affected by the CALL-based and MALL-based instructions. However, there was not a statistically significant difference between the CALL group and MALL group concerning the gains of motivation, anxiety, and self-efficacy. In light of the findings, a range of implications is suggested for relevant stakeholders.

Modeling the impact of L2 grit on EFL learners’ core of self-assessment and foreign language anxiety

Learners’ personality traits and self-assessment have an essential role in their academic achievement and the well-being of society. Although L2 grit and the core of self-assessment (CSA) have attracted considerable attention in educational research, few studies have focused on the impact of L2 grit on boosting CSA and managing foreign language anxiety (FLA). Drawing upon this existing research gap, the present study set forth to test a structural model of English as a Foreign Language (EFL) university learners’ L2 grit, CSA, and FLA. The language-domain-specific grit scale (LDSGS), the core of self-assessments questionnaire (CSAQ), and the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) were administered to 418 Iranian EFL university learners. The findings of structural equation modeling (SEM) reflected the contributions of L2 grit and CSA to overcoming language learners’ experienced anxiety. Furthermore, the significant influence of EFL learners’ CSA on FLA was concluded. The implications of the findings are to raise learners’ awareness of their personality traits and self-assessment that can foster effective language instruction and assessment.

The impacts of performance-based assessment on reading comprehension achievement, academic motivation, foreign language anxiety, and students’ self-efficacy

The types of assessment tasks affect the learners’ psychological well-being and the process of learning. For years, educationalists were in search of finding and implementing accurate and convenient approaches to assess learners efficiently. Despite the significant role of performance-based assessment (PBA) in affecting second/foreign language (L2) learning processes, few empirical studies have tried to explore how PBA affects reading comprehension achievement (RCA), academic motivation (AM), foreign language anxiety (FLA), and students’ self-efficacy (SS-E). To fill this lacuna of research, the current study intended to gauge the impact of PBA on the improvement of RCA, AM, FLA, and SS-E in English as a foreign language (EFL) context. In so doing, a sample of 88 intermediate EFL learners were randomly divided into experimental group (EG) and CG (control group). During this research (16 sessions), the learners in the CG (N = 43) received the tradition assessment. In contrast, the learners in the EG (N = 45) were exposed to some modification based on the underpinning theories of PBA. Data inspection applying the one-way multivariate analysis of variance (i.e., the one-way MANOVA) indicated that the learners in the EG outperformed their counterparts in the CG. The results highlighted the significant contributions of PBA in fostering RCA, AM, FLA, and S-E beliefs. The implications of this study may redound to the benefits of language learners, teachers, curriculum designers, and policy makers in providing opportunities for further practice of PBA.