Despite English teachers' acknowledgement of the plurality of English and the emergence of different varieties of the language, the actual manifestations of this plurality and the associated principles do not seem to be equally embraced in their classroom approach. Against this background, this study investigated Iranian English teachers'…

Within the last two decades, theorizing and research on language teaching and teachers have witnessed a fundamental shift of attention and orientation towards socio-cognitive aspects of teaching. This epistemic shift has been paralleled by the global reach of the English language, inspiring scholars to call for a paradigm shift in Applied…

Language knowledge is not limited to linguistic competence; cultural norms of a society affect the way people communicate. In fact, culture, tradition, and values are realized and manifested through language and the use of units known as speech acts. The current study sought to explore the strategies used by 200 native Iranian speakers of Persian,…

One of the challenging issues that has gained much attention, and has in fact sparked much debate, within the emergence and acquisition of World Englishes, is the Native- Non-native accent, especially its relationship with teachers' and learners' identity and selection of an appropriate pedagogic model. This paper investigates the attitudes of 260…

This article reports on a qualitative study that investigated English learners' attitudes toward English as an International Language (EIL). Four major findings were identified in the current study. First, majority of the participants thought that English belongs to all its users, regardless of being its native speakers or not. Second, lack of…

A concise but strong review of the literature on bilinguals' perception of "self" led to the question of whether bilinguals perceive themselves as different or the same people when they function in different languages. 183 participants (N = 183) randomly assigned to two half-groups took both the English and Persian versions of the Self…

The development of speech-act theory has provided the hearers with a better understanding of what speakers intend to perform in the act of communication. One type of speech act is apologizing. When an action or utterance has resulted in an offense, the offender needs to apologize. In the present study, an attempt was made to compare the apology…

This study was an attempt to investigate the functional role of textual and interpersonal metadiscourse markers in English and Persian Economic news reports. To this end, 10 news articles, 5 in each language, were randomly selected from the Economic sections of the leading newspapers published in 2013-2014 in Iran and the United States. Based on…

Granted the fact that different cultures have different speaking styles, knowledge of these styles can help people grasp the essence of social cultural knowledge to communicate with others more successfully. In this regard, the present paper aims at comparing the use of speech act of gratitude in Persian and Chinese EFL learners and English native…

This essay traces the development of the Zarathushtrian (Zoroastrian) priesthood from the time of the prophet Zarathushtra, through the Median priestly tribe as Magi, and the Macedonian and Arab invasions. This sets the stage for the separation of the Zarathushti priesthood between Iran and India and the generation of independent training methods.…