Assistant Professor
University of Isfahan, Faculty of Foreign Languages
University of Isfahan
Assistant Professor
m1rezazadeh@gmail.com
Mohsen's home page:
fgn.ui.ac.ir/~rezazadeh
University of Isfahan
Assistant Professor
m1rezazadeh@gmail.com
Mohsen's home page:
fgn.ui.ac.ir/~rezazadeh
Dr Mohsen Rezazadeh is an assistant professor of Applied Linguistics at the University of Isfahan. He received his Master's and Ph.D. degrees in TESOL from the University of Isfahan, and holds a Bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature from Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman. His primary areas of teaching are language testing and assessment, research methodology, and language teaching methodology. His main research interests are in the areas of EFL teaching and learning, second language writing, fixed and growth language mindsets, cognitive aspects of L2 acquisition, students' pair work and collaboration. He has published several articles in his areas of interest.
University of Isfahan, Faculty of Foreign Languages
University of Isfahan, Faculty of Foreign Languages
Islamic Azad University, Shahreza Branch, Department of English
Ph.D. in Teaching English as a Foreign Language
University of Isfahan, Iran
M.A. in Teaching English as a Foreign Language
University of Isfahan, Iran
B.A in English Language and Literature
Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Iran
Given my teaching experience, virtually all my research studies have been aimed at enhancing teaching efficiency and covering the lacuna between theory and practice. As the list of my publications reveals, my primary research goals are directed toward TESOL and Task-based Language Teaching and Learning (TBLT). I have managed to publish my research output in peer-reviewed journals. I am currently working on a project focusing on the role of language mindsets.
In addition to practice-oriented research, I am very much interested in conducting cognitively oriented research which enjoys transdisciplinary relevance and allows for pursuing and generating knowledge that can be seen as relevant across many disciplinary boundaries - my recent article which is recently published in Discourse Processes is a case in point. My future research will focus on EFL/ESL teachers' implicit theories of intelligence (fixed and growth teaching mindsets).
The following Complexity Analyzers, are developed by Professor Xiaofei Lu at The Pennsylvania State University.
Web-based Lexical Complexity Analyzer The web-based interface to the Lexical Complexity Analyzer allows you to analyze 25 measurements of lexical complexity, covering (1) lexical density, (2) lexical sophistication, and (3) lexical variation or range.
Web-based L2 Syntactic Complexity Analyzer The web-based interface to the L2 Syntactic Complexity Analyzer allows you to automatically analyze 14 different measures of syntactic complexity, covering (1) length of production units, (2) amounts of coordination, (3) amounts of subordination, (4) degree of phrasal sophistication and overall sentence complexity.
My PhD Dissertation: The Effects of Direct Corrective Feedback and Metalinguistic Explanation on Iranian EFL Learners' Implicit and Explicit Knowledge of Linguistic Structures in Their Writings: Focusing on Feedback Type, Linguistic Error Categories, and Learners' Individual Differences.
My MA Thesis: The Effects of Individual and Collaborative Planning on Fluency, Complexity, and Accuracy in L2 Written Production of Iranian EFL Learners: Focusing on the Relationship among Planned Conditions, Language Proficiency, and Task Type.
1. The Effects of Pre-Task and Post-Task Metalinguistic Explanation on the Implicit and Explicit Knowledge of English Articles: Focusing on Iranian EFL Learners’ Written Productions
2. Developing Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency in Spoken English of Iranian EFL Learners: Classroom vs. Online Instruction
3. The Effects of Learner vs. Teacher- Generated Task Contents on Iranian Intermediate EFL Learners’ Task Engagement, Task Motivation, and Task Value
4. The Combined Effect of Task Repetition, Post-Task Transcribing, and Feedback through Social Media on L2 Speaking Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency
5. A Threat or a Chance: Iranian EFL Learners and Instructors' Attitudes Toward Online Learning During COVID-19
6. Task Repetition Spacing and Working Memory in the Second Language Acquisition of English Grammar
7. The Relationship between L2 Motivational Self System and High School Students' Reading Proficiency and Reading Anxiety in an Iranian EFL Context
8. Effects of Extensive Reading and Task-Based Extensive Reading on Iranian EFL Learners’ Reading comprehension and Reading Fluency: Anxiety and Perceived Fluency in Focus
9. FRD and SFL Evaluation and Culture Analysis of Local and Global Textbooks
10. Effects of Pressured and Unpressured Planning Conditions on Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency in L2 Argumentative Writings of Iranian Upper- intermediate EFL Learners: Focusing on Creativity
11. A Structural Relationship Model for Resilience, Motivated Behavior, and L2 Proficiency of Iranian EFL Learners at Different Proficiency Levels
12. The Effect of Teacher on Developing Students’ Willingness to Communicate in Iranian Intermediate EFL Context
13. A Structural Relationship Model of Teachers' Implicit Theories of Intelligence, Self-Efficacy, and Emotional Experiences and Iranian EFL Learners' Willingness to Communicate and L2 Motivational Self System
14. Teachers’ Perceptions of Task-Based Language Teaching in Persian Classrooms with Foreign Learners
15. EFL Learners’ and Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Classroom Tasks and Their Effects on Task Outcome: The Case of L2 Writing Performance
16. The Effect of Extensive and Intensive Reading on Introvert/Extrovert learners' Self-Efficacy and Reading Comprehension in Iranian EFL Context
17. The Effect of Task- based Approach in Teaching Reading Comprehension Skill to Intermediate Armenian Learners of Persian Language
18. The Effects of Linguistic and Non-linguistic Feedback on Iranian FEL Learners’ Achievement Emotions, Achievement Goals, and General Language Proficiency
19. The Effect of Awareness Training on the Consecutive Interpretation of Numbers from English to Persian
This study examined the role of need for closure and need for cognition in predicting second language (L2) writing-specific psychological factors, namely, self-efficacy, anxiety, motivation, and self-regulation. To do this, we collected self-report data from 186 undergraduate learners of English. Results of path analyses revealed that both need for closure and need for cognition predicted writing self-efficacy, anxiety, motivation, and self-regulation. In addition, mediation analyses showed that different aspects of need for closure predicted the psychological aspects of L2 writing indirectly through need for cognition. The findings highlight that learners’ cognition and their tendency toward information processing and willingness to engage in effortful thinking play an essential role in their perception and emotions toward L2 writing. It is recommended that teachers pay particular attention to learners’ need for cognition, need for closure, and the aforementioned writing-specific psychological factors in L2 writing classrooms.
We argue that growth (vs. fixed) mindsets are important for positive emotions and self-development because growth mindsets can foster adaptability, referring to the ability to adjust oneself in different circumstances. This study examines the role of mindsets in adaptability and whether adaptability, in turn, predicts learning emotions (anxiety and enjoyment), self-concept, and self-efficacy. The data were collected through self-report questionnaires from 211 (141 females and 70 males, Mage = 17.2 years, SDage = 6.8) Iranian intermediate language learners. The path analysis results showed that fixed mindsets negatively predicted anxiety, enjoyment, self-concept, and self-efficacy through the mediation of adaptability, whereas growth mindsets positively predicted enjoyment, self-concept, and self-efficacy and negatively predicted anxiety through adaptability. The results held even after accounting for ideal L2 self and perceived competence. These findings highlight that growth mindset is an essential factor for developing positive learning emotions and self in foreign language classrooms.
Recent developments regarding mindsets have led to interesting findings in respect to language learning. Despite this interest, no one to the best of our knowledge has investigated individuals’ mindsets regarding the learnability of second language (L2) pragmatic norms. This study was set out to explore the structural relation between L2 learners’ belief systems -fixed and growth mindsets- and their L2 pragmatic norms including recognition, evaluation, perception, and conformity. Questionnaire data were collected from 213 learners of English as a foreign language in the context of Iran. The participants were asked to respond to questionnaire items on pragmatic norms, competence, motivation, and mindsets. Results of path analysis revealed that fixed and growth mindsets and L2 pragmatic competence positively predicted evaluation, perception and conformity to L2 pragmatic norms via the mediation of motivation. Our findings indicate that language mindsets play an important role in learners’ motivation to learn and use the pragmatic norms of the language they are learning. Results also imply that growth mindset should be encouraged among both language teachers and learners in order to achieve better outcomes in teaching pragmatics.
This study sought to investigate the relationship between language mindsets and grammar learning strategies and grammatical performance among English as L2 and L3 learners. Moreover, this study examined fixed and growth language mindsets across gender and language groups. The sample included 320 (NL2 = 160, NL3 = 160) intermediate Iranian EFL learners who responded to self-report scales ta as well as a grammar test. Independent samples t-tests indicated that there were significant differences between mindsets scores of male and female L2 learners. The results also revealed that L2 learners endorsed more growth mindsets than L3 learners. Finally, path analysis showed that language mindsets significantly predicted grammar learning strategies and grammar scores of both L2 and L3 learners.
Task-based language teaching is defined as learning by doing or self-motivated learning. Instances regarding TBLT capabilities include team work,workshops, and constructivism . The current research is an attempt to scrutinize the upshots of EFL teachers and learners' mind-sets for classroom assignments in the form of writing skills in terms of structure and content. Due to this, 60 Iranian EFL learners were decided on from a language institute in Isfahan, Iran via convenience sampling. An Oxford Placement Test, the Oxford Attitude Questionnaire , and the Assignment Questionnaire were employed to amass data and firm up participants' levels. To categorize the assignments, learners were demanded to write a text on the submitted topics. The assignments were divided into three sets as per learners' opinions: The assignments deemed appropriate by the learners, by teachers and by no one special (control group) .Afterward, the topics separately chosen by the learners and the teachers were imparted to the participants in distinct groups. Besides, the control group was given a distinctive group of topics. Then, the completed assignments were corrected via Liao and Wang scoring scale and the results were evaluated through one-way analysis of variance. The results revealed a significant difference between the performance of learners in the three groups in terms of writing proficiency. This means that the group who received their assignments based on the teachers' attitude, outperformed the other two groups. Research applications are postulated at the end of the article.
This study investigated the effects of teachers’ immediacy, self-disclosure, and technology policy on developing students’ willingness to communicate (WTC) in an Iranian EFL classroom context. The sample included 220 EFL learners in a private language institute in Isfahan, Iran. Four questionnaires were administered to assess the participants’ WTC as well as their teacher’s immediacy, self-disclosure, and technology policy. The collected data were then analyzed through structural equation modeling (SEM). The results of SEM showed that teacher immediacy, self-disclosure, and technology policy positively predict students’ WTC. This study has some pedagogical implications for teaching English to EFL learners.
Amirian Z., Rezazadeh M., & Rahimi-Dashti M. (2021). Teachers’ Immediacy, Self-disclosure, and Technology Policy as Predictors of Willingness to Communicate: A Structural Equational Modeling Analysis. In N. Zarrinabadi & M. Pawlak (Eds.), New Perspectives on Willingness to Communicate in a Second Language. Second Language Learning and Teaching (pp. 219-234). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67634-6_11
This study investigated the relationship between need for closure and need for cognition and foreign language anxiety and enjoyment. The participants of the study were 232 EFL learners at a university in Iran. Self-report questionnaires on need for closure, need for cognition, foreign language classroom anxiety and foreign language enjoyment were administered. The results of path analysis indicated that different aspects of need for closure and need for cognition predicted foreign language anxiety and enjoyment both directly and indirectly. The findings of the study highlight that the ways in which language learners’ approach or avoid language knowledge and information play an important role in their emotions toward foreign language learning.
This study examined the effect of feedback, feed up (comments on goals and students’ success in achieving goals) and feed forward (comments on the next step in learning during the semester) on writing motivation, writing self-efficacy, and writing anxiety. Two hundred and ten female intermediate language learners (agemean = 17.2) were assigned to seven experimental conditions: feedback, feed up, feed forward, feedback + feed up, feedback + feed forward, feed up + feed forward, and feedback + feed up + feed forward (n = 30 for each group). Based on group assignment, the participants received feedback, feed up, and feed forward for 12 sessions and took writing motivation, writing self-efficacy, and writing anxiety scales as pretest and posttest. The results of MANOVA and paired samples t-test comparisons indicated that groups that received feedback significantly improved in terms of self-efficacy. In addition, groups who received feed up and feed forward significantly improved in terms of writing motivation. The results also showed that the combination of feedback, feed up and feed forward could decrease learners’ writing anxiety. Based on the findings of the study, it is recommended that teachers present feed up and feed forward along with feedback to improve non-linguistic aspects of L2 writing among their students.
This study investigated the effects of two types of written feedback – direct corrective feedback (DCF) and metalinguistic explanation (ME) - on Iranian EFL learners’ implicit and explicit knowledge of English definite and indefinite articles. Assigned to three groups of DCF, ME, and control groups, the participants took four tests in three testing phases: pretest, posttest, and delayed posttest. Four testing instruments measured the two knowledge types: narrative writings, speeded dictation, untimed grammaticality judgment, and error correction tests. Results indicated that both treatments were effective in the immediate posttests. However, the ME proved to have longer lasting effects than the DCF as the improvement of both knowledge types were sustained after a three week period in the ME group. According to the obtained findings, it is argued that the description of the rules and the examples given explicitly in a ME handout might be more beneficial in promoting learners’ implicit and explicit knowledge of English articles than the DCF.
English for the Students of Humanities adopts a content-based approach to satisfy the needs of university students of humanities in their academic English learning. The primary goal of the book is to familiarize students with elementary level of English in an interactive and enjoyable way. The textbook includes sixteen units. Each unit contains five main sections. The first section starts with some warm up questions. Students are asked for their general idea or information in order to be engaged in the topic. Section two presents an authentic reading text which is followed by some comprehension questions to develop reading skills of students. Having studied the reading text, students are supposed to test their comprehension by doing reading comprehension exercises. The next section is vocabulary on which the particular emphasis is placed. This section, containing different exercise types, offers a rich source of vocabulary in fun and interactive ways. The last section teaches grammar by short and clear explanations followed by some grammatical exercises. We hope that English for the Students of Humanities helps students to improve their English proficiency and academic performance.
Research on pre-task planning has revealed that planned conditions have produced more fluent and complex language than unplanned conditions. To date, most of these studies have investigated the effects of individual planning on language production while collaborative planning has received scant attention. To determine the effects of pre-task planning on second language written production, the present study examined Iranian EFL learners’ argumentative writings under the conditions of individual and collaborative pre-task planning. The participants’ written productions were analyzed using three measures of fluency, complexity, and accuracy. The performance of individual planners and collaborative planners were compared using a series of one-way ANOVAs. Results indicated that collaborative planning promoted more accurate textual output while individual planning resulted in greater fluency. The results obtained from one-way ANOVAs also revealed that neither type of planned conditions benefited complexity. Possible explanations are provided and the implications of the findings for the applicability of collaborative planning are discussed.
The study reported in this paper aimed at examining the role of creativity in L2 learners’ individual and collaborative written narrative task performance, with the sociocultural theory of mind as a frame of reference. To this end, a sample of 92 intermediate university EFL learners in Isfahan, Iran, participated in this study. The participants were homogenized and divided into two groups: one group performing individually and the other group performing collaboratively. The study involved the measurement of the learners’ creativity using the Abbreviated Torrance Test for Adults (ATTA) in terms of features of fluency, elaboration, flexibility and originality as well as the elicitation of learners’ individual and collaborative written narrative task performance in terms of three measures of task performance, i.e. Complexity, Accuracy, and Fluency (CAF). The results showed (a) significant advantages regarding the CAF of collaborative writings in comparison with that of individual writers in terms of accuracy; (b) significant correlations between creative fluency and learners’ fluent performance in individual, but not paired, task performance; and (c) negative relationships between creative originality and learners’ fluent performance in both individual and paired task performance. The implications of the study are discussed.
This study explores the differential role of creativity in Iranian EFL learners' performance on argumentative and narrative written tasks. The study involved the measurement of learners' (N=70) creativity using the Abbreviated Torrance Test for Adults (ATTA) in terms of features of fluency, elaboration, flexibility and originality as well as the elicitation of the complexity, accuracy, and fluency of their performance on written narrative and argumentative tasks. Whereas the argumentative task required that learners wrote an argumentative essay giving their opinions concerning the effect of technology on human's life, the narrative task involved learners in narrating a story based on a picture as a visual cue. With regards to the argumentative task, the results shows negative relationships between two measures of argumentative task fluency and students' creative originality score. However, the syntactic complexity of argumentations was affected by creative elaboration. Concerning the narrative task, significant positive correlations were observed between creative fluency and the three fluency measures of narrations. Besides, all three fluency measures correlated positively with the total creativity score. Yet the number of words was found to be negatively correlated with the creative originality. The findings are discussed in the context of language teaching and learning.
The present study aimed to examine the issue of production of requests by Iranian EFL learners, native speakers of Persian, and native speakers of English; exploring the type, frequency, and the content of semantic formulae with regards to the status of the interlocutors (higher or of equal power). For the purpose of this study, 30 Persian speaking learners of English were asked to fill out a Discourse Completion Test (DCT), consisting of 12 situations regarding the speech act of request. In addition, 30 native speakers of Persian were also asked to fill out the same DCT, rendered into Persian, for the purpose of investigating L1 transfer. For a cross-linguistic comparison the DCTs were sent to 30 Canadian native speakers of English through e-mail for completion and were then sent back to the researchers after completion. All 90 participants were female ranging between the ages of 20 to 23. The EFL learners were seniors majoring in English. However, the native speakers of Persian were from different majors excluding English. All data were coded and analyzed based on Hudson et al.'s (1995) model. The results revealed that there were differences in the frequency and type of strategies used in requests made by the three groups. For instance, while all three groups used opener (RSM strategy) such as hello, hi, excuse me, and sorry, the native speakers of English used it the most. On the other hand, some strategies were only used by the native speakers of English such as introducing themselves categorized under RSM strategies. In line with Eslamirasekh's (1993) findings, the results revealed the Persian speakers to make requests with less use of supporting strategies (direct strategies) whereas the English speakers produced more supportive strategies (indirect strategies). Overall, the results of this study indicate that making requests is a complex, multi-causal task as it requires the acquisition of the socio-cultural values of the L2 culture.
This study investigated the cognitive strategies used by Persian EFL (English as a foreign language) graduate students while reading a hypermedia text. Prior to the start of the study, the Nelson-Denny Reading Test was used in order to measure the reading ability of the students. Data was collected through think-aloud protocols, and the strategies used by the proficient group and the less-proficient group were compared. A semi-structured interview was also conducted. Results indicate that there was a considerable difference in the strategies used between the two groups; strategies used by the proficient group were mainly skimming and using prior knowledge. In contrast, the less-proficient group mostly used paraphrasing, translation into L1, and referring to the dictionary as major cognitive and metacognitive strategies.
My current students can access additional course information from the learning management system (LMS) of the University of Isfahan.
Via LMS
Via LMS
Via LMS
Via LMS
Via LMS
Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA), Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA - International students), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Idioms and Expressions in Translation (BA)
Language Teaching Methodology (PhD), Theories and Methods of Language Teaching (MA), Language Testing and Assessment (BA), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA)
Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA), Language Testing and Assessment (BA), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Seminar (MA)
Language Testing and Assessment (BA), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Theories and Methods of Language Teaching (MA), Letter Writing (BA)
Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA), Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA - Online), Language Testing and Assessment, Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Idioms and Expressions in Translation (BA)
Language Testing and Assessment (BA), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Theories and Methods of Language Teaching (MA), Research in Language Educaion (MA - Online)
Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA), Instructional Phonetics and Phonology (MA - Online), Language Testing and Assessment, Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Idioms and Expressions in Translation (BA)
Language Testing and Assessment (BA), Techniques and Principles in Research (BA), Theories and Methods of Language Teaching (MA), Research in Language Educaion (MA - Online)
English for Specific Purposes (MA), Techniques and Principles in Research, Audiovisual Translation, Idioms and Expressions in Translation, General English: Humanities
Language Testing and Assessment, Reading Newspaper Texts, Study Skills, Geneal English: Electrical Engineering, General English: Computer Engineering
Audiovisual Translation, General English: Humanities, General English: Economics
Reading Newspaper Texts, Reading Comprehension (I), Letter Writing
Idioms and Expressions in Translation, Audiovisual Translation
Study Skills, Letter Writing, Oral Translation (II), Translation of Simple Texts
Idioms and Expressions in Translation, Audiovisual Translation, Advanced Translation (II)
I would be happy to talk to you if you need my assistance in your research or whether you need any statistical consultation. You can select the most convenient method from the right side to contact me.
In the Fall semester of 2021, I am at my office from 10:00 to 12:00 on Mondays and from 8:00 to 10:00 on Wednesdays, but you may consider an email to fix an appointment. Notice: Due to COVID-19 I may not be available during these hours.
Room 310, Department of English Language, Faculty of Foreign Languages, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
