In experimental research, a pretest–posttest design is often used to examine the effect of treatment or intervention. Establishing equivalency across tests essential for this type research ensure validity study results. However, studies that explore test/task are scarce in second language research. This investigates seven picture-based narrative tasks such as those commonly and tests. The oral ...

Many differences in brain activity have been reported between persons who stutter (PWS) and typically fluent controls during oral reading tasks. An earlier meta-analysis of imaging studies identified stutter-related regions, but recent studies report less agreement with those regions. A PET study on adult dextral PWS (n=18) and matched fluent controls (CONT, n=12) is reported that used both ora...

One way to develop intercultural sensitivity in learners is through the inclusion of intercultural training in ELT and teacher training courses. This study aimed at enhancing the intercultural sensitivity of EFL pre-service teachers through interactive culture-focused speaking tasks. Therefore, a task-based syllabus was designed based on the principles of constructivism and intercultural themes...

Accumulating evidence suggests that some degree of attentional control is required to regulate and monitor processes underlying speaking. Although progress has been made in delineating the neural substrates of the core language processes involved in speaking, substrates associated with regulatory and monitoring processes have remained relatively underspecified. We report the results of an fMRI ...

Pre-operative determination of the dominant hemisphere for speech and speech associated sensory and motor regions has been of great interest for the neurological surgeons. This dilemma has been of at most importance, but difficult to achieve, requiring either invasive (Wada test) or non-invasive methods (Brain Mapping). In the present study we have employed functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging...

Task variation is an integrative method aiming at the importance of learner-to-learner interactions in a wide range of learning contexts and fostering authentic use of language and meaningful communication. This study investigated the impact of task variation on the accuracy and complexity of Iranian EFL learners’ oral speech. In so doing, 80 intermediate EFL learners, majoring English at the I...

This study sought to test Robinson’s (1995, 2003b) cognition hypothesis by investigating the effects of cognitive task difficulty on ESL learners’ written and oral task performance. 1 Ten exchange students at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa were given four sets of picture-based narrative tasks: a simple writing task, a difficult writing task, a simple speaking task, and a difficult speaking ...

Objective: Many studies have suggested that there is a relationship between coherence and cognitive processes. This study aims at investigating this hypothesis through assessing the relationship between cognitive variables and coherence in the discourse of two groups of Persian-speaking younger and older adults. Methods: In order to evaluate our participants' cognitive capabilities, we recrui...

this study intended to develop a model describing speaking strategies for efl learners by taking into account the effects of learners’ gender and proficiency on the application of strategies. accordingly, this study was planned to have two main analyses, namely qualitative and quantitative. in this respect, 30 efl learners' viewpoints were sought, and then, based on the elicited responses, a 21...

Pre-operative determination of the dominant hemisphere for speech and speech associated sensory and motor regions has been of great interest for the neurological surgeons. This dilemma has been of at most importance, but difficult to achieve, requiring either invasive (Wada test) or non-invasive methods (Brain Mapping). In the present study we have employed functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging...