Professor Sam Roodi

One of the major areas of interest in SLA research is the study of the ways in which expert and non-expert readers respond to L2 texts and the fundamental changes that can be brought about in their L2 reading processes through formal instruction. In line with this research tradition, the present quasi-experimental study investigated the effects of formal training in figures of speech on university EFL learners' appreciation of an unseen literary text, Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" in the case of this study. Understanding literature requires knowledge of figures of speech. An experimental group (n=29) and a control group (n=26) of intermediate 3 rd year EFL learners, studying English for a B.A. degree at Kashan University, Iran, participated in the study. The participants were first pre-tested and matched for their level of proficiency in English and their initial reading comprehension ability. In addition to the normal curriculum content, the experimental group received instruction in figures of speech through a course called "Fonun va Sana'at" (Figures of Speech). The control group did not receive this instruction. Both groups were post-tested on their ability to read a literary passage and to appreciate it. The results of t-test analysis of the resulting data revealed significant differences between the means of the two groups. The experimental group that had received instruction in figures of speech significantly outperformed the control group. The findings of the study have practical implications for material development, curriculum planning, teaching English through literature, and second language acquisition.

This study seeks to examine the nexus between the perceptions of 202 adolescent Iranian traditional classroom‐based college students of their classroom learning environments conceived as autonomy‐supportive and their self‐regulated learning. Data were gathered through hand‐out questionnaires and passed through Pearson product‐moment correlation and linear stepwise regression analysis. The autonomy supportive classroom perception was found to be positively correlated with self‐ regulated learning strategy use. The results provide corroboration for erstwhile research in traditional classrooms signifying that use of Self‐Regulated Learning (SRL) strategies and motivational beliefs of students about a learning task are associated. Additionally, the findings obtained via regression analyses unveiled that teachers' answering of students' questions and acknowledging confidence were significant positive predictors of students' use of various self‐regulated learning strategies. Further regression analysis unveiled teachers' answering of students' questions as the stronger predictor of self‐regulated learning. Keywords: Classroom learning environment, self‐regulated learning, autonomy support, self‐efficacy, control of learning beliefs Introduction Social cognitive theorists postulate that social experiences of students in learning milieu, particularly their interactions with teachers, can affect their self‐regulated learning (Zimmerman, 1989). Paris and Paris (2001) maintain that the concurrence of a bolstering context and experience, which spontaneously galvanizes autonomy, broadens self‐regulated learning. They identify self‐regulated learning in the triad of the words: the mobilization of autonomy and control by the individuals, steering and regulating their actions toward attainment of the goals.

James Fenimore Cooper’s The Last of the Mohicans can be read as an outline for the contact (or clash) of many
diverse cultures. This novel may also be seen as a story of the development of American national-racial identity. The
present paper aims at examining Cooper’s classic novel in order to reveal the underlying discourse of race and
nationhood. The paper will discuss Cooper’s idea of historical change and human progress, and will show how the
teleological, stage-by-stage passage of history from savagery to civilization, from tribal communities to a unified
nation, empowered by cultural appropriation, resulted in the formation of a fresh and inevitably hybrid American
national identity

This research was an attempt to address the question how important communication skills are from the view point of employers and managers. We interviewed many managers in our city, London, Ontario, to find out what managers and employers think about good and poor communication skills. The results show that, according to the managers and employers who took part in this study, both written and oral communication skills are of fundamental importance in the workplace.  The ability to communicate well in both written and oral form was said to be an essential skills sought by employers in the hiring process. The employers who were interviewed unanimously agreed that good written and oral communication skills are a great asset and a quality that all their candidates who apply for a job in their companies should possess.