https://www.ijpie.org/ International Journal of Practical and Pedagogical Issues in English Education en daily 1 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0330 Sun, 01 Mar 2026 00:00:00 +0330 https://www.ijpie.org/article_242074.html https://www.ijpie.org/article_234234.html In the rapidly evolving landscape of foreign language education, technology-enhanced approaches offer promising avenues for dealing with persistent challenges in developing oral proficiency among EFL learners. This study investigated the impact of technology-enhanced personalized language learning (TEPLL) on the speaking skills of Iranian EFL learners, guided by the Innovative Choice Learning Theory (ICLT). The purpose was to understand if TEPLL significantly enhanced speaking skills compared to traditional instruction, and whether proficiency level, gender, or age moderated this effect. From an initial pool of 170 participants, a convenience sample of 120 Iranian EFL learners was selected and categorized into pre-intermediate, intermediate, and advanced proficiency levels, before being divided into an experimental group (EG) and a control group (CG). The EG engaged in TEPLL using the Speechling platform, which offered personalized speaking practice, feedback, and progress tracking. The instructional design facilitated ICLT principles through learner choice of curated materials from YouTube and Instagram videos, and personalized lesson plans based on relevant topics. The CG received traditional teacher-centered instruction with limited in-class speaking practice and no digital tools. Speaking skills were assessed using pretests and posttests scored with the TOEFL speaking rubric, and data were analyzed using t-tests and ANOVA. Results revealed that the EG significantly outperformed the CG on post-test speaking scores (t(118) = 5.67, p < .001, Cohen’s d = 0.92), supporting the tenets of ICLT. https://www.ijpie.org/article_232368.html This study evaluates how well "Family and Friends" Young Learners’ textbook series aligns with Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) and Task-Supported Language Teaching (TSLT) methodologies. Additionally, it examines teachers’ feedback on the textbook’s efficacy based on their usage. Utilizing an explanatory mixed-methods design, the study employed checklists to assess the textbook’s underlying approach. Ten teachers from across the country, each with experience using this textbook, participated in the second phase of the study, which was an interview with teachers about their comments on the efficacy of the textbook. Two checklists were designed: one to identify tasks versus other activities in the textbook, and another to compare the textbook’s design with TBLT and TSLT approaches. The analysis revealed that the textbook predominantly follows a weak version of TSLT. Moreover, only half of the teachers expressed satisfaction with the textbook. The rest provided reasons for their dissatisfaction as well as suggestions on how to improve the textbook. The findings suggest that textbook designers should incorporate more robust task-based elements that align with TBLT principles to enhance effectiveness and meet contemporary pedagogical standards. https://www.ijpie.org/article_232371.html Considering the modern digital world and the fast developments, artificial intelligence is gaining greater attention, especially concerning teaching and learning English. Therefore, the present quantitative research investigated the attitudes of 191 EFL instructors about integrating Artificial Intelligence into educational practices in Iran and the extent they find applying AI tools in their teaching beneficial or challenging. The researcher selected the participants through stratified random sampling. This study used descriptive statistics to outline teachers’ attitudes toward the benefits and challenges associated with AI applications. Moreover, it used ANOVA to examine the potential disparities in teachers’ attitudes based on their gender, age, and teaching experience, and determine whether they may moderate such implementations and perspectives. Analysis of the results obtained through the applied questionnaire revealed that teachers believed AI applications have a medium level of benefit in their teaching, considering different dimensions. Additionally, the study’s findings demonstrated that technical obstacles, such as a lack of internet connectivity, are the most challenging issues. Moreover, the findings indicated that instructors’ age, gender, and teaching experience impacted their perceptions of AI applications as beneficial or challenging. As the final point, this research discussed the implications of the study in regard to teacher educators and curriculum designers. https://www.ijpie.org/article_232373.html One of the main challenges facing English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses in the Iranian context, especially in engineering fields, is their apparent inability to meet students’ goals and expectations. This study aimed to examine the current ESP curriculum for biomedical engineering students in Iran by conducting a needs analysis based on students’ perspectives. To do this, a quantitative, descriptive, and ex post facto research design was used. The sample included 100 biomedical engineering students from Tabriz, Zanjan, Ardabil, and Urmia Universities who had completed their ESP courses and were selected through random sampling. These students completed a researcher-developed and validated needs analysis questionnaire, written in Persian, designed to gather data about their language learning needs. Results showed that the participants viewed their general English language requirements positively as addressed by the current curriculum. However, their perception of the program’s effectiveness in meeting their specialized English needs was only moderate, indicating a gap in addressing ESP-specific content. The students expressed a need for more exposure to specialized tasks, including translating technical biomedical engineering documents, understanding scholarly journal articles, and working with advanced textbooks. Overall, the participants’ feedback suggests that the current ESP curriculum only partially meets their actual learning needs. Therefore, it is recommended that the curriculum be revised to include new courses and innovative teaching methods aimed at raising learners’ proficiency to the desired level. The insights from this study provide valuable guidance for EFL curriculum designers and textbook developers striving to improve English education in biomedical engineering universities. https://www.ijpie.org/article_232542.html Virtual professional learning communities (PLCs) are an influential model of teacher professional development in the field of English as a Foreign Language (EFL), offering an alternative to traditional top-down training. Unlike conventional approaches, virtual PLCs leverage digital technologies to foster sustained collaboration, reflective practice, and the co-construction of pedagogy among teachers. In this systematic review, we synthesize evidence from 50 peer-reviewed studies to examine the impact of virtual PLCs on teacher development in EFL contexts. Following PRISMA guidelines, studies were screened for methodological quality using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) and thematically analyzed to identify patterns and outcomes. Our analysis indicates that virtual PLCs enhance teacher development in intercultural competence, digital literacy, reflective practice, and collaborative lesson planning. Digital platforms provide flexibility, opportunities for timely problem-solving, professional networking, and the advancement of innovative pedagogical practices. However, the review also highlights significant challenges to virtual PLC implementation, including the digital divide, uneven engagement within communities, and insufficient structural support from institutions, all of which affect effectiveness, equity, and sustainability. Overall, our findings illustrate the multidimensional opportunities afforded by virtual PLCs for supporting teacher learning. Future virtual PLC initiatives should address structural inequalities, integrate emerging technological tools, and consider longitudinal evidence of impact on both teachers and students to maximize the potential of these digital professional learning spaces. The review concludes by outlining concrete possibilities for designing effective, context-sensitive virtual PLCs for EFL teachers. https://www.ijpie.org/article_234233.html Morality plays a vital role in how learners engage with learning, shaping not just behavioral actions but their deeper cognitive and emotional connections. This study investigates whether morality as cooperation (MAC) factors can foster behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement among Iranian EFL learners. Grounded in seven MAC dimensions, family, group, reciprocity, heroism, deference, fairness, and property, the study situates engagement within Iran's secondary school context where strong socio-cultural norms and examination pressures prevail. The quantitative study surveyed 500 EFL students at the 7th to 12th grades with an equal proportion of male and female students. Primary data were collected using the Language Classroom Engagement Scale (LCES) and the Morality as Cooperation Questionnaire (MAC-Q). Structural equation modeling (SEM) via SPSS 26.0 and AMOS 24.0 probed MAC factor-relationship to dimensions of engagement, with model fit indices and bootstrapping guiding estimation. All MAC factors are positively related to the three dimensions of engagement (behavioral, emotional, cognitive). Of these, group, reciprocity, and heroism are the strongest predictors of Overall Language Class Engagement (LCE). Deference is negatively correlated with emotional engagement, implying intricate effects of some moral dispositions on affective commitment. Overall, the results show that MAC supports learner motivation, emotional commitment, and cognitive effort in language learning. The paper urges adding moral growth to EFL teaching to boost participation and achievement, highlighting how moral values, group support, and heroism can enhance motivation and focus while addressing challenges like deference in Iranian classrooms. https://www.ijpie.org/article_239622.html The present paper examines the impoliteness strategies in Greta Thunberg's public speeches on climate change and their role in persuasive communication. Employing an integrated framework of Culpeper's Impoliteness Strategies and Aristotle's Rhetorical Appeals, we qualitatively analyzed twelve speeches. The findings indicate that bald on-record impoliteness is the dominant strategy, used to express frustration and deliver direct criticism toward politicians and adults. This straightforwardness constructs ethos by projecting a persona of bold truth-telling. Furthermore, negative impoliteness, which expresses disappointment with the indifference of older generations, cultivates pathos by aligning with the perspective of youth and fostering a shared emotional response. Similarly, the use of sarcasm to mock politicians enhances pathos by provoking audience indignation at perceived incompetence. Finally, positive impoliteness, manifested through direct disagreement, underscores her use of logos by pinpointing logical flaws in policymakers' positions. Overall, this study substantiates the persuasive power of impoliteness in public oratory. It offers new insights into how strategic face-threatening acts can generate persuasive discourse capable of mobilizing action towards climate action. https://www.ijpie.org/article_239374.html In patriarchal cultures, women are systematically oppressed as the inferior sex, which has been reflected in the literature of the times, as even many of the canonical masterpieces cast them into identifiable stereotypes. One of the dominant stereotypes that women have been traditionally molded into is the femme fatale: an alluring woman who with her mysterious magnetism lures men into danger. Macbeth is a great Shakespearean tragedy that puts forth the enigmatic character of Lady Macbeth. Traditionally, she has been harshly cast as the quintessential femme fatale and Eve that lures Macbeth to his demise. In order to delve into the intricacies of this character type and why Lady Macbeth has been molded into it, this study intends to adopt a cultural materialist perspective, embedding the discussion of Macbeth in the social, cultural, and political fabric of the time of its production. Through an adoption of Alan Sinfield’s notion of dissent, the writers aim to show how Shakespeare creates a multi-faceted character in Lady Macbeth, presenting a subversive woman and having her punished as a way of subduing backlash. Despite the eventual damnation she receives in Shakespeare’s text, her dissenting voice makes itself heard, a woman in search of equality. https://www.ijpie.org/article_235557.html This article examines Caryl Churchill’s The Skriker to theorize the destabilization of the liberal humanist subject through the intertwined concepts of sensible transcendence and the hysteric subject. It argues that the Skriker, as a shape-shifting, cross-gendered entity, materially embodies Luce Irigaray’s notion of sensible transcendence, reconceiving transcendence not as disembodied escape but as an emergent process rooted in corporeal difference and intercorporeal flux. Simultaneously, the Skriker’s fragmented language and protean identity perform the role of the Lacanian hysteric subject, exposing the economy of sacrifice inherent to liberal and neoliberal orders, which demand psychic fragmentation and the abjection of non-normative identities for their reproduction. By placing Irigaray’s and Merleau-Ponty’s phenomenological frameworks in dialogue with psychoanalytic theory, this analysis demonstrates how Churchill’s dramaturgy uses the Skriker’s radical embodiment to subvert hegemonic gender binaries, challenge patriarchal symbolic structures, and render visible the psychic and social costs of a system sustained by sacrificial logic. https://www.ijpie.org/article_236844.html Abstract Research on English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) in language teaching has increased significantly due to its importance in facilitating communication among speakers from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds. However, the construct of ELF awareness among Iranian English as a foreign language teachers and its relationship with their self-efficacy beliefs is still unknown. This study involved the development and validation of a 41-item language teachers’ ELF awareness inventory (TELFAI) with 198 convenience sampled Iranian EFL teachers. The exploratory factor analysis results showed its four-component construct including perceptions about ELF-informed ELT practices (17 items), nativespeakerism (8 items), English language varieties (10 items), and ELF-informed teacher education (6 items). As the study’s second aim, the relationship between 96 convenience sampled EFL teachers’ TELFAI scores and their teaching self-efficacy beliefs was investigated through a Pearson correlation. The results revealed a positive, but moderate, relationship. The study provides insights into ELF awareness and its impact on teachers’ characteristics such as self-efficacy and also practices. It supports educators in designing better training courses, benefits learners through improved instruction, and aids policymakers in developing relevant language education policies. https://www.ijpie.org/article_237069.html Advances in mobile technology have transformed language education, enabling innovative approaches like mobile-assisted blended and backward design learning. However, the combined effects of these instructional models with intensive versus extensive reading remain underexplored. As such, this quasi-experimental study compared the effects of mobile-assisted blended learning and backward design, integrated with intensive and extensive reading, on the reading comprehension of Iranian intermediate-level learners of EFL. Eighty participants were randomly assigned to four experimental groups: blended intensive, blended extensive, backward intensive, and backward extensive reading. All groups received intervention via Telegram, followed by pre- and post-testing using parallel TOEFL reading comprehension tests. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore their perceptions of learning experiences. One-way ANOVA revealed significant differences among the groups. The backward extensive reading group significantly outperformed all other groups. Furthermore, the blended extensive group outperformed the blended intensive group. However, no significant difference was found between the backward intensive and blended intensive groups. The qualitative analysis of the interviews revealed that learners in the backward extensive group placed a great emphasis on pre-class preparation, which fostered confidence and readiness for in-class collaborative activities. Also, the learners in both of the extensive reading groups reported that they enjoyed the course more than the students in the intensive groups. The accessibility and ease of use of the Telegram platform were also lauded across all groups for promoting consistent engagement. The findings suggest that mobile-assisted extensive reading within a backward design framework is highly effective for enhancing Foreign language (FL) reading comprehension. https://www.ijpie.org/article_237708.html This mixed-methods study has set its goal on evaluating the effectiveness of an in-service teachers’ development course on the dialogic inquiry approach to language teaching to make EFL teachers ready to practice the approach in order to enhance learners’ dialogic classroom talk. To reach this aim, the researchers held an in-service teachers’ development course by considering social-constructivist principles for teachers’ professional development. The course was held by the participation of 3 EFL teachers teaching at Mehr Language Institute, Eghlid, Fars, Iran. Then, the teachers practiced the approach for a whole term. The sessions were video-recorded and analyzed, and interpreted by Wells’s (2001) Discourse Analysis Coding Protocol. The researchers also scrutinized the learners’ perception on the application of the approach to foster their dialogic classroom talk. To do this, the learners were surveyed by a researcher-modified questionnaire developed by Lee (2014) after finishing the term. To triangulate the results of the questionnaire, the researchers selected 9 students by a random sampling method to participate in in-depth interview sessions. The results of analyzing the qualitative and quantitative data revealed that the teachers’ development course was positively effective in the accurate application of the dialogic inquiry approach by the teachers to enhance learners’ classroom talk dialogically. https://www.ijpie.org/article_237736.html Recent technological innovations have significantly influenced the process of language learning. Among these, language learning applications have emerged as a major development that has gained substantial attention in empirical research. Duolingo, in particular, has become one of the most widely used applications globally, largely owing to its user-friendly features. The current study explored the effects of Duolingo-based language instruction on EFL learners’ Self-Regulated Language Learning (SRLL), Foreign Language Enjoyment (FLE), and Language Engagement (LE). It further investigated learners’ attitudes toward this instructional approach. To achieve this, the researcher employed a mixed-methods design. At the quantitative phase, 50 intermediate-level male EFL learners from a language institute in Urmia (Iran) were selected as participants, and data were gathered through pretests, instructional sessions, and posttests. At the qualitative phase, a semi-structured interview protocol was used to elicit learners’ views on this approach. Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed using T-test, MANOVA, and thematic analysis, respectively. Findings revealed that Duolingo-based instruction exerted significantly positive effects on learners’ SRLL, FLE, and LE. The study offers valuable insights for teacher education program developers, syllabus designers, and instructors regarding the incorporation of Duolingo into language classrooms in foreign language settings. https://www.ijpie.org/article_237788.html Educators constantly seek innovative and engaging methods to engage students and ensure their academic achievement. Using humor in the classroom is one of the strategies which can promote classroom environment and facilitate teacher-student rapport. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effectiveness of using humor techniques through synchronous computer-mediated communication (SCMC) in enhancing EFL teacher-student rapport. The population of this quasi-experimental study consisted of 70 Iranian female EFL intermediate learners and eight TEFL instructors. Initially, the Oxford Placement Test (OPT) was initially administered to the language learners in two English classes. Subsequently, the Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (QTI) was administered to both teachers and students to gather their feedback. Afterward, the treatment began and lasted for twelve sessions. The control group received speaking skill instruction through traditional face-to-face teaching without humor techniques, while the experimental group received instruction incorporating humor techniques through SCMC using WhatsApp. After the treatment period, both student and teacher groups completed the QTI post-test. Upon data collection, the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze potential differences in teacher-student rapport between the two independent groups at both the beginning and end of the study. The results indicated that the experimental group demonstrated a significant improvement in teacher-student rapport from both student and teacher perspectives, whereas the control group showed only minimal improvement. The results emphasize the potential of humor to serve as an effective means for fostering a positive and engaging learning environment, particularly in online or blended learning contexts. https://www.ijpie.org/article_238736.html Designing practical professional development (PD) for language teachers remains a persistent concern, particularly in settings where linguistic, cultural, and institutional dynamics are intertwined. This study explored the experiences of 30 Iranian English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) teachers teaching in public junior high schools in a synergistic PD model integrating class-based reflection, ICT-mediated collaboration, and AI-driven support within communities of practice. Adopting a qualitative narrative inquiry approach grounded in sociocultural theory, the researchers collected the data over nine months from multiple sources, including reflective essays, interviews, AI interaction logs, WhatsApp discussions, and observational field notes. For data analysis, MAXQDA 24 was utilized, and results from thematic analysis revealed six related themes: relational foundations of reflection, ICT as connective tissue, AI both as a supporter and a distractor, professional identity renewal, contextual constraints and inequities, and cultural translation of technology. The findings indicate that the synergistic integration of human and AI-mediated reflective practice can enhance teacher learning, agency, and resilience, underscoring the need to thoughtfully incorporate relational, cultural, and structural conditions. Implications for teacher education, policy, and AI-supported PD design are discussed. https://www.ijpie.org/article_240654.html Boredom is one of the most frequently experienced emotions in academic contexts, and research has demonstrated its detrimental effects on students’ academic achievements. Despite its significance, little attempt has been made to understand students’ boredom coping strategies in the English as a foreign language (EFL) learning context. Therefore, this research employed a multimodal design comprising video recordings of class sessions, motometer, and interviews to investigate the behaviors demonstrated by EFL students at universities while they were experiencing boredom in their EFL classes within the context of Iran. This study was undertaken with the participation of 12 EFL students who were chosen through extreme case sampling. These participants were chosen from an Advanced English Grammar (AEG) course. The data collection was done over a period of two months and during seven classroom sessions. The multimodal analysis of the data conducted by MAXQDA software resulted in the identification of 16 boredom coping strategies among Iranian EFL students, categorized at four levels of Nett et al.’s (2010) taxonomy of boredom coping strategies (i.e. cognitive approach, behavioral approach, cognitive avoidance, and behavioral avoidance). The findings of this study shed some insight into how EFL students and their teachers collaborate to find solutions and strategies for coping with boredom when attending EFL classes. https://www.ijpie.org/article_241439.html This study examined the interplay among second language form type (easy vs. difficult), the individual difference factors captured by the new Second Language Motivational Self-system (L2MSS), and the type of L2 knowledge (explicit vs. implicit), focusing on how newly bifurcated self-guides relate to knowledge of two target forms, using a quasi-experimental design. Participants received explicit form-focused instruction (deductive) on easy and difficult L2 forms, followed by explicit and implicit knowledge tests for the two forms and completion of the new L2MSS questionnaire. The sample comprised 259 Iranian ESP university students (134 males, 125 females), aged 18–25, with an average pre-intermediate English level. Participants were recruited via convenience sampling. Two target forms (easy and difficult) were tested for explicit/implicit knowledge. The Roehr and Ganem-Gutierrez’s (2009) taxonomy of form difficulty and Papi et al.’s (2019) new four-factor model of L2MSS were utilized to examine the interrelationships between type of L2 forms, type of Iranian EFL learners’ motivation, and type of L2 knowledge. SEM analyses were conducted to examine direct, indirect, and total effects among L2MSS sub-dimensions and explicit/implicit knowledge across form difficulties The findings illustrated that; ideal L2 selfown and ought-to L2 selfown were significant positive predictors of explicit and implicit knowledge, and the explicit knowledge was a significant positive predictor of implicit knowledge of both easy and difficult L2 forms. The outcomes underscore the substantial role of bifurcated L2MSS self-guides in shaping explicit and implicit knowledge, with explicit knowledge facilitating implicit knowledge. These results have implications for designing form-focused instruction. https://www.ijpie.org/article_241440.html Modern technologies continually advance digital diagnostic assessment tools that provide tailored, immediate feedback to L2 learners’ writing in higher education. However, the synergetic role of L2 teachers’ contextual and professional attributes, such as institutional affiliation and teaching experience, has remained insufficiently explored in pedagogical diagnostic assessment. To explore such nuances, this quasi-experimental study cross-examined how novice and experienced ELT professors employed diagnostic assessment in physical and virtual classrooms at State Universities and Islamic Azad University (IAU) Branches in Iran to improve EFL undergraduates’ academic writing performance. To do so, 320 EFL undergraduates were non-randomly selected and assigned to eight groups, grounded in ELT professors’ teaching experience (novice versus experienced), university affiliation (State versus IAU Branches), and diagnostic assessment modality (in real classroom versus Google Meet). Participants who collaborated on writing tasks received teacher diagnostic assessments and ratings across 14 sessions, based on the IELTS writing task rubric. Incorporated repeated measures two-way ANOVA tests demonstrated that ELT professors’ productive classroom-based diagnostic assessment was not interfaced with their teaching experience or university affiliation. Yet, their e-diagnostic assessment, teaching experience, and university affiliation showed notable interactions. In other words, experienced ELT professors at State Universities and novice ELT professors at IAU Branches achieved better results with e-diagnostic assessment than their counterparts. These controversial findings imply the superiority of ELT professors’ digital literacy to teaching experience or institutional affiliation in virtual L2 learning platforms. Moreover, regular and systematic institutional support for technology-mediated EFL learning is endorsed in higher education. https://www.ijpie.org/article_241441.html Despite extensive research on self-efficacy, motivation, and artificial intelligence (AI) in English as a foreign language (EFL) education, their interrelationships remain underexplored. This study targets Iranian EFL teachers' self-efficacy in writing, their writing motivation, and tendency to use AI in academic writing by examining the relationship between these constructs. A quantitative, correlational design was employed. A total of 250 EFL teachers were selected via convenience sampling and completed three validated scales: The Academic Writing Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (AWSEQ) to measure writing self-efficacy, the Motivation in Writing Questionnaire (Cahyono & Rahayu, 2020) to measure writing motivation, and the AI Acceptance in Academic Writing scale (Farahian & Rezaee, 2025) to measure AI acceptance. Pearson correlation analyses indicated a strong, positive relationship between self-efficacy and motivation, and weaker but significant relationships between motivation and AI acceptance and self-efficacy and AI acceptance. Furthermore, Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) revealed that teachers' self-efficacy in writing acted as a significant predictor influencing motivation and the tendency to use AI in writing. Furthermore, motivation in writing was identified as a significant partial mediator between self-efficacy and AI acceptance. This suggests that while teachers' confidence directly encourages AI use, a portion of its influence works by first boosting their motivation to write. The results of the study are analyzed in the light of the available literature and suggestions for further studies have been presented.