in the past couple of decades sociocultural theory of sla and its implications in efl contexts have attracted attentions of research circles worldwide and aroused some controversies. firth and wagner (1997) have questioned the principles of the cognitive view which gives importance to mental constructs in favor of sociocultural view which highlights social and contextual constructs. but if soci...

testing plays a vital role in any language teaching program. it allows teachers and stakeholders, including program administrators, parents, admissions officers and prospective employers to be assured that the learners are progressing according to an accepted standard (douglas, 2010). the problems currently facing language testers have both practical and theoretical implications but the first i...

This research was carried out to determine spatial distribution of heavy metals concentration in soil particle size classes using Landsat ETM+ reflectance in Southern Isfahan city in the vicinity of Bama mine. To fulfill this goal, 100 compound soil surface samples were collected randomly from the area. The samples were air dried and soil particle size classes 250-500, 125-250, 75-125, 50-75 an...

the importance of writing as a complex skill in applied linguistics has drawn the attention of many researchers to evaluate textbooks in order to help learners gain self-sufficiency and autonomy in the field of language use and communication. investigations have shown that developments in textbooks evaluation can promote the quality of pedagogies and consequently the learning. this study attemp...

the aim of the current study was to investigate the relationship among efl learners learning style preferences, use of language learning strategies, and autonomy. a total of 148 male and female learners, between the ages of 18 and 30, majoring in english literature and english translation at islamic azad university, central tehran were randomly selected. a package of three questionnaires was ad...

a semi-empirical mathematical model for predicting physical part of ignition delay period in the combustion of direct - injection diesel engines with swirl is developed . this model based on a single droplet evaporation model . the governing equations , namely , equations of droplet motion , heat and mass transfer were solved simultaneously using a rung-kutta step by step unmerical method . the...

phatic communion is a cultural concept which differs across cultures. according to hofstede (2001), the u.s. tends to have individualistic culture; however, asian countries tend to have collectivistic cultures. these cultures view phatic communion differently. in individualistic cultures like u.s., phatic communion reflects speakers’ socio-cultural relationships in conversations. to see whether...

in this study, scour of mashkid bridge pier located in mashkid river of saravan county has been studied and to measure the scour rate, the numerical model hec-ras 4.0 has been used. upon selection of mashkid river as the case study and whereas the studied zone is important with respect to the climatic conditions and showery monsoon raining and flowing the great and destructive floodwaters, ther...

this thesis attempts to study the representations of the third-world intellectuals in three fictional works by the british-educated trinidadian nobel-winner v. s. naipaul: the mimic men, a bend in the river, and magic seeds. the first one recounts the story of ralph singh’s sense of alienation, his experiences as a colonial politician, and his struggle to give order to his disorderly world thro...