Understanding Instructional Quality in English Language Arts: Variations in the Relationship between PLATO and Value-added by Content and Context

Measure for Measure: The Relationship between Measures of Instructional Practice in Middle School English Language Arts and Teachers’ Value-Added Scores

More than Content: The Role of English Language Arts Teachers in Students’ Long-Term Knowledge

Measures of teachers’ “value added” to student achievement play an increasingly central role in k-12 teacher policy and practice, in part because they have been shown to predict teachers’ long-term impacts on students’ life outcomes. However, little research has examined variation in the long-term effects of teachers with similar value-added performance. In this study, we investigate variation ...

English Teachers Professional Development Needs for Web Development Skills: Meeting the Challenges of Teaching English Language in the Information Age

Utilizing the resources of the web in educational practices has made instructional processes more efficient and interesting and has made the learning process on the other hand much easier and attractive. With the web, English language teachers now have the option of engaging learners in online (web-based) instructions in addition to the use of conventional classroom instructions or alternativel...

McDonaldization in Iranian ELT Textbooks: Absence or Presence?

The development of materials for language teaching has been retraced from different perspectives. For example, some have identified influences of a social view on designing course books and compiling materials for language classes. The purpose of this article is to focus on the specific case of ELT material, its design and priorities in the context of Iran. This article also offers a detailed a...

Washback Effect of General English Test of Ph.D. Entrance Exam on Science and Humanities Students: Perceptions and Practices

Testing holds an important place in the Iranian test-oriented context where the entrance examinations have serious educational and occupational outcomes. This study aimed to explore the potential washback effects of the General English Language Test of the Ph.D. (GELTP) as part of the Ph.D. University Entrance Examination (PUEE) on the humanities and science students’ perceptions and practices....