The present study addresses the issue of task difficulty which is a major challenge for those concerned with task-based language teaching and syllabus design. The main focus of the study is on identifying possible sources and factors as the determinants of L2 task difficulty. The various taxonomies identifying a range of factors contributing to task difficulty will be discussed and some models of taxonomies and criteria of task difficulty will be proposed which will be of particular relevance and help for both pedagogic and research purposes.

The present study was an attempt to investigate the comparative effect of consciousness-raising tasks and managed output tasks on EFL learners’ speaking. Accordingly, 66 female English language learners selected out of an initial 91 intermediate EFL learners based on their performance on a sample piloted PET took part in the study. Both groups were taught by the same teacher and they used the same course book. Moreover, they received the same hours of instruction and teaching aids in the same physical environment; therefore, the most significant point of departure in the two experimental groups in the present study was the form of speaking practices presented in the classroom. Each group enjoyed its own specific speaking development procedure throughout the treatment period. The findings of this study revealed that the participants’ speaking improved significantly in the consciousness-raising group compared to the managed output group. The findings of this study could be used by EFL teachers and syllabus designers to develop more efficient second language speaking courses.

Research into translation has recently focused on incorporating findings from other disciplines into the field of translation studies. The present study, as an initial attempt in the context of Iran, set out to compare the effectiveness of form-focused instruction with translation, form-focused instruction without translation, and meaning-focused instruction on vocabulary retention and active recall. In so doing, a total of 79 male Iranian high school students from Quchan participated in this study. For the purpose of this study, they were divided into three educational classes where each received a different treatment in accordance with the experimental conditions. The results of the study showed that the students in the form-focused instruction with translation performed significantly better than the other students both on avocabulary retention test, and on an active recall translation test. The findings of the study are discussed in light of attention theory and involvement load hypothesis. Pedagogical implications are also explained.

The present study was an attempt to investigate the effects of consciousness– raising tasks and input enrichment tasks on learners’ grammar acquisition. To this purpose, two intact groups (number of each was 17) were chosen. One group was considered as the experimental group and the second group was considered as the control group of the study. Some grammatical features were taught through consciousness– raising tasks to the experimental group and the control group was taught the grammatical structures through input enrichment tasks. The results of statistical procedures and Independent pair T-test showed no significant difference between the means of the groups. The findings support the arguments regarding the importance of both tactics in grammar learning but they had different impacts on learners. Consciousness-raising involves an attempt to equip the learners with declarative or explicit knowledge. Input enrichment task equipped learners with procedural or implicit knowledge. The researchers suggested other researchers and teachers applying these approaches in order to promote learners’ grammar and to achieve further findings.

Computers and networks provide an environment in which information for civil engineering tasks can be managed effectively on a scientific basis. The primary aims are to make engineering knowledge operationally beneficial in everyday practice and to reduce the complexity of civil engineering projects through controlled access to appropriate information and methods. A common software technology consisting of general tools as well as special methods, models and processes is used in all branches of civil engineering to achieve these goals. It is taught at German Universities under the name of Bauinformatik (Computational Civil Engineering).