On the feasibility of DA-supported transformative education in Iranian EFL setting

Abstract This study aimed to investigate the Iranian EFL students and their teachers’ perceptions of the factors involved in the implementation of Transformative Education (TE). More importantly, the focus was on investigating the feasibility of the integration of TE with Dynamic Assessment (DA) in the Iranian EFL setting. To do so, 105 Iranian university students majoring in the English language were randomly assigned to four different classes, as control and experimental groups. The control groups were instructed based on a pure TE-oriented approach; whereas, the experimental groups were instructed based on the integration of TE with DA. Triangulation of instruments was used to collect the data. Overall, 66.6% of the learners reported that the perspective transformation happened in the classrooms through the students’ support, challenge from teacher, classroom discussion, and dialogue, and class projects. Meanwhile, as indicators of teachers’ perceptions, teachers expressed the highest perception towards the “challenge.” The analysis also expressed that this integration increased critical thinking skills among learners and decreased the level of aggressiveness and anxiety. Last but not the least, the learners expressed similar perceptions as those of the teachers. The findings offer both theoretical and pedagogical insights to the stakeholders.

Parallel to the developments in educational theories and the resultant pedagogical evolution, there has been a paradigm shift from the psychometric testing in education to assessment in general and gradually to the incorporation of Dynamic Assessment in particular. However, rarely one can trace studies trying to implement even each of them separately in Iranian EFL setting, let alone their integration.
As an innovative initiative, this study was designed to investigate the extent to which the integration of Dynamic Assessment and Transformative Teaching is feasible in Iranian EFL situation. The findings, yield support to the fact that this integration not only seems practically feasible but also increases critical thinking skills among learners and decreases the level of aggressiveness and anxiety, which open new promising horizons for the practitioners so that they can get along with the recent theoretical developments in teaching and learning foreign languages.

Introduction
Transformative Education (TE) is associated with the process in which each individual reflects upon previous assumptions or understating, to decide critically whether to challenge or hold those assumptions (Mezirow & Associates, 2000). Mezirow (2003) defined TE as "learning that transforms problematic frames of reference-sets of fixed assumptions and expectations (habits of mind, meaning perspectives, mindsets)-to make them more inclusive, discriminating, open, reflective, and emotionally able to change" (p. 58). In other words, TE, according to Mezirow (1995), deals with a dynamic assessment of adult's meaning structures and how they are transformed through rational discourse, emancipatory action, and reflection. Adult's education is known as an organized activity that facilitates the process of reflection and transformation. The "ideal conditions for reflection, critical reasoning, and discourse in adult's learning suggest that reflective learning society provides the foundation for a philosophy of adult's education" (Mezirow, 1995, p. 39). Accordingly, the learning could be "understood as the process of using a prior interpretation to construe a new or revised interpretation of the meaning of one's experience in order to guide future action" (Mezirow, 1996, p. 162). The underlying concept of TE is that the adult will be enabled to rebuild the new connections through rational discourse, while they are involved in the critical discussion and reflection (Cranton, 1994a). Mezirow (1978) argues that in the course of education there are always unintended impacts on learner's perspectives which are far beyond the objectives, and perspective transformation is the central process that takes place in the course of personal development. Concerning the perspective transformation, Mezirow (1978) asserted that "by recognizing the social, economic, political, psychological, and religious assumptions that shape these [meaning] structures-presuppositions inherited but rarely examined critically-we can reconstruct our personal frame of reference, our self-concept, goals, and criteria for evaluating change" (p. 7).
TE by itself implies dynamicity in education either in teaching or in its assessment process. The term Dynamic Assessment, rooted in Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory of mind (SCT), is the approach that integrates assessment and instruction "as the means to move toward an always emergent (i.e., dynamic) future" (M. E. Pohner, 2005, p. 20). Within this approach, the mediator tries to help the learners not only to perform their actual competence but also what they cannot independently perform and move to the next stage through interaction and mediation. Also, M.E. Pohner (2008) argues that "sensitivity to the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is what differentiates DA from conventional assessment approaches such as formative assessment" (p. 92).
The focus of DA is on the learning process supported by the process of mediation. Mediation is the process within which individuals employ to regulate the world through the use of culturally constructed artifacts, concepts, and activities (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006). Mediation of meaning proposed by Feuerstein (1979) as the major attribute of DA emphasizes that the mediation and instruction would be unsuccessful until they accompany exploiting the relationships and making the connections clear. Meaning is something which the mediator must intend to help the child develop and it is also what enables the child to go beyond the specific Mediated Learning Experience (MLE) to social relations. The trend of teaching is concerned about understanding of the learning process and putting learners at the core of the learning process.
In line with this trend, Transformative Education (TE) rooted in the constructivist view, is based on the belief that meaning is developed and constructed through personal experience and is validated through communication and interaction with others. According to Mezirow (2000), leaning occurs through subjective and objective reframing. The latter deals with critical reflection on other's assumptions and the former deals with self-reflection of an individual's assumption.
According to Mezirow (1995), reflection as a basic principle of the perspective transformation enables people to reassess their existing assumptions that scaffold their actions, beliefs, and attitudes (Mezirow, 2000(Mezirow, , 2009. In this theory, three basic human interests are taken into account: controlling nature, reaching a social agreement, and promoting individual growth, from which communicative, empirical, and emancipatory knowledge derives. In line with Habermas (1971), Mezirow (1991) established three forms of learning which he called as instrumental, communicative, and emancipatory. TE has been the subject of some studies but, according to Taylor (2008), there is a huge lack of quantitative evaluation of tasks that facilitate transformation among the adult learners. Furthermore, the amount of research assessing factors that develop transformation is very few. Then, obviously much remains unknown about the practice of promoting TE by using quantitative methods. Moreover, according to King (1997a), the majority of research on TE has been that of qualitative research design, though they have provided information about perspective transformation experience in the areas of the transformational journey. Previous studies (Fullerton, 2010;Glisczinski, 2005;Harrison, 2008;King, 1997aKing, , 2000LaCava, 2002;Ritz, 2006;Brock, 2007;Wansick, 2007) have stressed on the necessity of conducting research on TE using quantitative research methods or a combination of the two (mixedmethods). Recent research has indicated the contribution of factors that illustrate the interconnectedness of critical reflection and TE. While critical reflection was considered as the predominant approach to TE (Mezirow, 1991, Mezirow, 2000, recent research has shown the contribution of other factors and has indicated their interconnectedness. Taylor (2009) argued that the critical elements of the TE are: "promotion of critical reflection, engagement in dialogue, individual experience, the holistic orientation of teaching, awareness of context, endorsement of authentic relationships with learners, and learner-centered teaching" (p. 14).
The term DA, rooted in Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory of mind (SCT), is the approach that integrates assessment and instruction "as the means to move toward an always emergent (i.e., dynamic) future" (M. E. Pohner, 2005, p. 20). Within this approach, the mediator tries to help the learners not only to perform their actual competence but also what they cannot perform independently and move to the next stage through mediation and interaction. M.E. Pohner (2008) also points out that "sensitivity to the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is what differentiates DA from conventional assessment approaches such as formative assessment" (p. 92).
A comparative study of DA with static assessment leads to a better explanation of DA. In static assessment, the attention is centralized on the result of teaching and learning. On the other hand, in DA, the focus is on the process of learning supported by the process of mediation. Mediation is the process within which humans employ to regulate the world using culturally constructed artifacts, concepts, and activities (Lantolf & Thorne, 2006). According to Sternberg and Grigorenko (2002), in a static assessment approach, the items are provided to learners as a whole and all at once. Learners are not allowed to receive any feedback, and the only feedback at the end of the exam will be a score. In this study, mediation is used as the assistance that the teacher provides for the learners and the interaction along with the closer assessment, which leads to ZPD promotion.
The findings reported by Haynes et al. (2016) that participants attending a training session on CAT-Apps reported a greater willingness to place more emphasis on critical thinking assessments and less on factual knowledge assessments in their courses as a result of participation in training, are also supported. The learners highlighted some of the elements often seen in TE such as feelings of disequilibrium, questioning of assumptions and viewpoints, and the eventual building of competence and confidence based on new understandings (Gravett, 2004). Some of the learners embrace the uncertainty and take on the learning as a journey: others are disquieted by it and seek solace in lots of books on teaching which amount to hints and tips, suggesting that what works in one classroom situation will always work. Many of the learners began the course with positive anticipation, moving into a "survival" phase, then a phase of disillusionment, before entering a period of renewed anticipation (Meijer et al., 2011).
Besides the aforementioned methodological gap, TE and DA have mainly been investigated separately as far as language education is concerned, while these two assumed to share common theoretical origins have rarely been investigated in a single study. On the other hand, no educational measures can entail the expected outcome in the absence or ignorance of the attitude and perceptions of their immediate stakeholders. This means that understanding the respective teachers and learners' perceptions is of great significance.
The primary purpose of the dissertation was to address the current lack of dynamic teaching method as well as diagnostic assessment in the field of EFL. In general, the study attempted to implement TE integrated with DA in EFL classes in Iran. It investigated its possible impact on the development of the speaking and writing skills in the so-called context. The emphasis was on productive skills due to the fact that writing and speaking are complicated skills and there are many reasons for this claim. The main reason is the perceptions developed by the readers and listeners because different people have different understandings about what they read and listen. As a result, the writers and speakers' task is very complex and challenging. Various factors, such as the social context within which something is written or spoken, are needed to be considered. Meanwhile, it seems that the perceptions the learners hold through their learning experiences directly influence their learning and critical thinking. Hence, the aim was to compare the TE approach and TE-integrated with DA-approach with each other plus their possible effects on the productive skills achievement of Iranian EFL learners.
The current study also meant to provide the reader with a thorough explanation of the EFL teachers' perceptions toward TE aiming at providing feed for the syllabus designers and course planners. This research aimed at investigating the learners' perceptions of TE. As per the fact that assessment plays a significant role in evaluating the learners' achievement, their perceptions towards the integration of TE and DA were other main purposes of this study. This study also compared students' performances who received TE with those who received the combination of TE and DA regarding their speaking and writing skills.
Given the mentioned gaps the following research questions set the direction for this study: (1) What are the Iranian EFL teachers' perceptions of the factors contributing to the implementation of Transformative Education?
(2) What are the Iranian EFL learners' perceptions of the factors contributing to the implementation of Transformative Education?
(3) What are the Iranian EFL teachers' perceptions of the integration of Transformative Education and Dynamic Assessment in developing productive skills?
(4) What are the Iranian EFL learners' perceptions of the integration of Transformative Education and Dynamic Assessment in developing productive skills?

Participants
The participants were 105 Iranian mainly Persian university students of English major ranged from 20 to 25 years old who were selected based on convenient sampling but randomly organized in four classes. Given the fact that students initiate their studies at Iranian universities-for bachelor degree-at the age of 18 and there is no age restriction for the enrollment, the students entering the university might be from different age groups, which justifies the attendance of the 18-25 age range in this study. For the purpose of the current study, the students were first conveniently selected from among those who had enrolled for the academic year of 2016-2107. The experimental group consisted of two classes and 55 learners, whereas the control group consisted of 50 learners who, following the initial convenient sampling, were randomly divided into the experimental and control groups.
Another group of the participants was three female instructors holding PhD degrees in TEFL enjoying more than 5 years of experience in TEFL or offering ESP courses at the university level. The instructors were assigned to teach English courses in the mentioned semester by the head of English Department. Prior to the commencement of the semester, 4-hour training workshop was held in order to discuss and brief the instructors on the methods and techniques of the treatment. (I just could not justify the answer to this comment: Is it possible to make a generalization based on the results obtained from these three teachers?)

The learning activities survey (questionnaire and follow-up interview)
2.2. 1.1. Learning activities survey (LAS). The Learning Activities Survey (LAS) originally was developed by King (1996King ( , 1997aKing ( , 1997 with the theoretical foundation of Mezirow. Through this questionnaire each individual was given a scale. This scale "PT Index" (Perspective Transformation Index) determined how participants experienced TE associated with educational and non-educational experiences. The participants who experienced TE associated with education (PT-Index 3) were assigned a score of "3." The participants who experienced TE associated with non-education (PT-Index 2) were scored "2." The participants who did not experience TE (PT-Index 1) were coded with a score of "1." Finally, the one who experienced TE from both educational and non-educational experiences were categorized as PT-Index 3*. The modified version of LAS was implemented in the current research (Appendix A and B).

Learning activities survey-follow-up interviews.
The LAS follow-up structured interview is composed of four questions and all the learners are asked to describe and explain in detail what and how their experiences regarding perspective transformation occurred. The questions were organized in an open-ended and multiple-choice format. Of course, modified versions of Learning Activities Survey and Follow up Interview reviewed by two university TEFL instructors with more than 10 years of experience, were used for the purpose of this study (Appendix C and D).

Field notes
For the purpose of later analysis of the classroom dynamics from the teachers' and learners' probable transformation process, the instructors/researcher took notes of the potentially important classroom interactions. The instructors were also responsible to make notes of their own experiences of TE as well as its integration with DA. The field notes were primarily based on the following ideas: • Describe the event here.
• When did it happen?
• Who was involved?
• Where did it happen?
• In what ways did this event change your life?

Perceptions questionnaire
Additionally, for the purpose of detailed analysis of the perceptions of the learners and teachers towards the integration of TE with DA, the modified version of "Students' Perceptions of the Classroom Activities" generated by Gentry et al., (2002) was used. This instrument contains 31 statements assessing four dimensions (interest, challenge, choice, and enjoyment), using a 5-point Likert-type response format (Never, Seldom, Sometimes, Often, Always). Overall, the instruments applied for each research question are summarized in below Table 1

Procedure
The experimental group -consisting of two classes -was given treatment based on the integration of TE and DA. This group got the benefit of TE as the first group, but the difference in the treatment lied in the assessment procedure, which was DA. For this purpose, Pohner's and Aljaafreh and Lantolf's suggestions were taken into account. Within the present study, the varieties of activities and tasks were offered to students which covered and were relevant to the subject of the session and the students were given the change to collect from them. It is important to mention that the tasks levels of difficulty were the same among all tasks. This accomplishment was facilitated by presenting assignments that can be completed in their own space, selecting assignments in which learners are more interested, presenting various topics and assignment options, giving attention to learner's priorities and interest and finally offering outside classroom assignments where students have more opportunities for self-directed and self-paced learning. One of the main stage within this treatment was developing assessments and evaluations, which were themselves learning experiences. The assessment was not only a test format but also ongoing DA of the learner's progress on their transformational process. For instance, learners were assessed based on their group work, performances in class, assignments, and participation in classroom activities. In addition, the instructor may design exam items that encourage learners to integrate information and to consult with their partners (peer) during exam.
During all treatment, the instructor gave responsibilities to the learners given their interest and priorities and observed their performance and task accomplishment within the groups. The point in this study was not correcting the mistakes directly but through the scale, and mediated the learners to overcome their problem dynamically and critically. The instructor commenced with the asking the learners to independently correct the mistakes and ended with provision of correct patterns and examples.

Phase I treatment
Treatment was implemented with two different groups of students. One group -consisting of two classes -received the treatment based on TE, while the other group consisting of two classes received the treatment of integration of TE with DA. Right after deciding on the control and experimental groups, the treatment began. During each treatment session of the experimental groups, the instructors were implementing the predefined syllabus based on TE and DA. The three instructors were fully informed about the activities and procedures they had to follow during the classes. The second group consisting of two classes was given treatment-based TE instructions. This group got the benefit of TE as the first group, but the difference in the treatment lied in the assessment procedure, which was DA. For this purpose, Lantolf and Pohner's (2004) and Aljaafreh and Lantolf's (1994) scales were taken into account.
TE strategies implemented in the current research were: • Increasing learner's personal development through having them in interdependent teams in where they communicate ideas, share knowledge, exchange responsibilities and solve problems.
• Expanding learner's involvement in shaping the curriculum and content of the course.
• Increasing the time assigned for student's discussion, challenges, views, and perspective exchanges which can be done by role-play interaction and analyzing reactions along with answering the question of the learner's interest.
• Developing assessments and evaluations, which are themselves learning experiences.
Within the control group, during all these stages, the instructor gave responsibilities to the learners given their interest and priorities and observed their performance and task accomplishment. The mediation was offered while they were involved in tasks and whenever needed. The purpose was not correcting the mistakes directly but through the scale and mediated the learners to overcome their problem dynamically and critically. The instructor commenced by asking the learners to independently correct the mistakes and ended with the provision of correct patterns and examples.

Phase II data collection on occurrence of TE
At the end of the course, data were collected from both learners and teachers through the respective questionnaire and the follow-up interview on their perceptions about TE as well as integration of TE and DA.  Table 2 shows the frequency distribution of the participants by the perspective transformation level called as "PT-Index." Two out of three instructors, who were the subject of this section of the study were assigned the score 3 as they noted that the students faced perspective transformation associated with educational factors. One instructor was scored 1 who identified that the perspective transformation did not happen in the classroom. Overall, 66.6% of the participants reported that the perspective transformation happened in the classrooms associated with educational and non-educational factors. Analysis of the data collected on the questions in LAS by the teachers of PT-Index 3, having faced transformation associated with educational factors, is shown in Table 3.

Data analysis
Educational factors that promote transformative learning are the learning activities such as classroom discussions/dialogues, critical thinking, class/group projects, personal self-reflection, mentoring, assigned readings, term papers/essays/compositions, and lab experiences will be addressed as educational factors that promote transformative learning. Non-educational factors that promote transformative learning are the significant changes in life such as marriage, moving/relocation/change of residence, divorce/separation, change of job, loss of job, having to learn a new culture, and death of a loved one will be addressed as non-educational factors that promote transformative learning. According to the analysis of the current study, the major educational factors noted by the instructors that influenced learners to experience TE included classroom activities such as "another students' support, challenge from the teacher, classroom discussions, critical thinking and classroom projects"; whereas, the main non-educational factors causing experiencing TE were namely "change and loss of job" with the highest frequencies.
2.4. 1.2. Qualitative data analysis related to the first research question. In addition to the openended questions in LAS, field notes were employed to gather information on the instructors' perceptions towards TE. The researchers applied the thematic approach for data analysis of the qualitative data and used Atlas.ti software for coding procedure to elicit the main categories and themes of the data. Then, data were coded using open coding process of the software. Accordingly, the data were reduced into general categories and themes using axial coding procedure.
According to the results: 1. The instructor with PT-Index 1 emphasized that the best solution to overcome such problem is revising the textbooks and adjusting the lesson plans to be reviewed each semester. 2. They also suggested that the lack of authentic materials and sources can be considered as the main reason for not experiencing transformation at the university level, on behalf of the learners.
3. Access to native or non-native teacher does not make a significant contribution to the learning experience of the learners.
4. The responses also indicated that there have always been opportunities for changes and experiencing the transformation on the side of the learners which are inhibited by the strict teaching principles posed by each educational department.
The data were imported into the software and the main themes were explored. Table 4 shows the emerged themes from this analysis.
As Table 5 illustrates, the themes were divided into two categories as internal and external features affecting the process of transformation. The first theme explored from the analysis of the data was intrinsic motivation. According to the data collected from the instructors, they had noted that intrinsic motivation was something common between individuals who experienced perspective transformation, which is caused by either the previous exposure they had to the language and culture due to the trips, or nature of their field of study which is the English language. Intrinsic motivation to learning, facilitated the process of transformation.
Instructor 1: " …. the individuals who were eager to be fluent while speaking to foreigners, were the ones who were carefully following the activities in the class and had active roles … ." Instructor 1: " … She said she was very enthusiastic about the new neighbor, who is from another country, as they can be close friends in the future. Every session I could observe that she was critically doing her tasks and was more than happy to welcome new challenges … " Instructor 2: " … .my top student once told me it was her dream since her childhood to be able to talk and behave in a foreign language. It was her way of life. She was always eager to be a part of that … "  The next code explored under the theme of internal features was self-understanding from another perspective.
Instructor 3: " … . This type of exposure facilitates the process of transformation while working in groups and reviewing their beliefs critically which in turn results in selfunderstanding … " Instructor 2: " … … . After 5 sessions of applying TE strategies in the classroom, I think in some controversial issues, different views and aspects can be seen in most students. … ." The next internal factor was personal connection with the teacher. The teachers agreed that one of the main controversial issues in accepting changes and transformation happened through the connections the learners have with their instructors.
Instructor 1: " … I can say the more I get close to the students, the more I understood they are eagerly doing the tasks and increasing their participation … " Instructor 3: ". Although it was difficult for some to raise ideas from the roles they were playing, I think this practice leads to openness to challenging viewpoints" The next emerged theme was external features which were considered as important factors in the transformation process and under which were the codes of challenge from the teacher, exposure to a foreign language, extrinsic motivation, and discussion with another person with a different view. discussion regarding their concern, let the students get more familiar with transformation. … " Instructor 2: " … .What is interesting is that one is not sometimes able to change his/her view individually; rather, it happens while having a discussion or even argument with a peer holding a quite different view … " Based on the analysis of the information received from the questionnaire, some students experienced transformation due to their motivation for getting a perfect job or higher degree.
Instructor 3: " … as the students talked to me, they discussed their intention to achieve their dream job. One said doing the activities carefully and finishing the courses successfully, helps me in getting closer to my ideal job which is being a university professor … " Instructor 1: " … . another student mentioned: my family and I are going to immigrate to Canada in the very near future. I should be practical. I am going to continue my education there and I need to overcome this obstacle … " The challenges from the teacher, critical thinking, and change of job-which as the extrinsic motivation parameters were the main causes of transformation identified by the teachers. In sum, based on both qualitative and quantitative analysis of the data challenge from the teacher, critical thinking, and change and loss of job were the main causes through which learners experienced perspective transformation. Table 5 shows the frequency distribution of the participants by the PT-Index groups. Fifty-three out of 105 students, who were the subject of this section of the study, were assigned the score 3 as they noted that they faced perspective transformation associated with educational factors. Twenty of the students were scored 2 as they had associated the transformation with non-educational factors. Fifteen students were scored 1 who identified that they had not experienced the perspective transformation in the classroom. Seventeen learners were scored PT-Index 3 as they associated the transformation to both educational and non-educational factors.

Addressing the second research question: what are the Iranian EFL learners' perceptions of the factors contributing to the implementation of transformative education? 2.4.2.1. Quantitative data analysis related to the second research question.
Analysis of the data collected on the questions in LAS for the students of PT-Index 2, 3, and 3*, is shown in Table 6.
As the Table 6 illustrates the major educational factors noted by the learners that influenced learners to experience TE included classroom activities such as "another students' support, challenge from the teacher, classroom projects, and personal self-reflection"; whereas, the main noneducational factors causing experiencing TE were, namely, "moving or relocation and change of job" with the highest frequencies.

Qualitative data analysis related to the second research question.
In addition to the openended questions in LAS, field notes were employed to gather information on the learners' perceptions on TE. The researchers applied the thematic approach for data analysis of the qualitative data and used Atlas.ti software for coding procedure to elicit the main categories and themes of the data.
According to the results, the learner with PT-Index 1, mostly complained about the difficulty in raising a new view point toward the tasks and activities. According to the responses elicited from the questionnaire, the students preferred having a non-native teacher as there were chances for them to shift between first and target languages. As per the responses collected from the learners with the PT-Index 2, 3, and 3*, they were analyzed in detail in order to bold the codes for further analysis. The data were imported into the software and the main themes were explored. Table 7 shows the emerged theme from this analysis.
As Table 8 illustrates, the themes were similarly divided into two categories as internal and external features affecting the process of transformation.
The main theme under the category of internal factor which most students revealed during the process of transformation, was intrinsic. Motivation fluctuates during the course and it is a challenge for the teachers to keep learners' motivation at a high level all the time.

Participant 1: " … I can say that I make a decision on what my heart tells me … I always liked English and always want to improve … of course, the teacher is important … but my personal interest and the link I have with the English language is more effective … " Participant 2: " … It is very good I ask the teacher questions. My teacher at schools asked me questions and I never can tell him my problems. In this class, the teacher told me I can discuss or write my concerns. I feel very good. Of course, I am stressful … "
The main codes under the category of external factors that influence the students during the process of transformation were challenges from the teacher, extrinsic motivation, authentic experiences of non-native teachers, and classroom writings and dialogue.

Participant 6: " … I didn't have stress when the teacher gave me responsibilities … because I knew I can speak in my own language if I have a problem and the teacher explains the details … "
Due to the comparison of both qualitative and quantitative data analysis regarding the second research question, the researchers concluded that challenges were offered by the teachers, as well as the classroom projects and dialogues were the main sources which caused perspective transformation for the learners as learners had expressed the same in the LAS questionnaire as well as the open-ended questions were commonly identified in both sections were challenges from teacher and classroom projects and dialogues.

Addressing the third research question: what are the Iranian EFL teachers' perceptions of the integration of transformative education and dynamic assessment in developing productive skills?
2.4.3.1. Quantitative analysis related to the third research question. The third research question explored the Iranian teachers' perceptions toward integration of TE with DA ( Figure 1). The items on the questionnaire are under four main sections which are interest, challenge, choice, and enjoyment. As per the fact that each item was scored based on Likert scale, in order to analyze each section, the scores given by each teacher were cumulated and interpreted. The results of the analysis of each section are as follows. Table 8 displays the descriptive statistics for the teachers' perceptions towards the integration of TE with DA. The results showed that teachers had a highest perception towards the "challenge" (M = 41). This was followed by "interest" (M = 36.50), "enjoyment" (M = 30) and "choice" (M = 27.50). Regarding the variation of responses, "interest" had the highest variance (V = 4.50) which was followed by "challenge" and "enjoyment" (V = 2) and "Choice" (V = .50).

Qualitative data analysis related to the third research question.
At the next stage, the questions were verbally discussed with the instructors to receive their comments on each part of the classroom procedure and method.
Based on the data revealed in Table 9, the main theme centered around the fact that understanding and transformation happen to the students in case there is not aggressiveness toward learning. In other words, they all believed that the main controlling factor in implementing the integration of TE with DA is the attempt the teacher makes in order to increase the involvement of the students which does not happen until the procedure and activities match their level of interest. The teachers agreed that decreasing the level of stress and anxiety among learners increases the chance of increasing the support they offer to other individuals; this would definitely, results in high collaboration and exchange of viewpoints and thus finally transformation.
Instructor 1: " … . DA plays a significant role as the students' progress will be facilitated when they are sure that there is no one criterion against which there are judged. … ."

Figure 1. Means on teachers' perceptions towards integration of TE.
The other theme extracted was the role of integration for the individuals in enhancing their critical thinking. They agreed that it is not just the TE that results in changes and transformation, but the learners will object their viewpoints when they have a method of critically revising their works.

Instructor 1: " … I can see that students are participating in the activities, but I cannot accept that it
is only the teaching that helps them revise their minds … they also active individuals who change when are helped based on the DA … I believe this is the integration that helps … " Instructor 3: " … . comparing how individuals perform when they fulfill a task on their own and when they are supported through DA approach is really different … " Instructor 2: " … .

of course, it is very crucial not to let the individuals become dependent … I can see that when the integration of TE with DA is offered to individuals, they gradually become critical thinkers who are able to challenge their viewpoints in different aspects of their lives … "
In the light of the comparison of both qualitative and quantitative data analysis regarding the third research question, it can be concluded that based on the answers to the perception questionnaire, challenges is the most crucial factor, whereas based on the open-ended questions critical thinking and control over aggressiveness were the main important ones, worthy of attention. Table 10 displays the descriptive statistics for the learners' perceptions towards integration of TE with DA ( Figure 2). The results showed that learners had a highest perception towards the "challenge" (M = 39.01). This was followed by "interest" (M = 34.11), "enjoyment" (M = 30.01) Table 9. Emergent themes and axial codes from qualitative analysis

Themes Codes
External factor Control over aggressiveness in classroom environment Internal Factor Critical thinking

Qualitative data analysis related to the fourth research question.
The results of the analysis of the responses elicited from the learners given to the modified version of the questionnaire emphasized that the learners were highly positive regarding the method of the teaching in the classroom. The main themes and the extracted codes were as follows: As Table 11 illustrates, one of the main codes emerged from the analysis revealed that they were highly motivated by the assessment procedure as the criteria against which they were evaluated were not just the final exam score. The students had mostly complained about their other courses in which they were assessed against their performance of the final exam.

Participant 1: " … I remember I was badly sick on one of my final exams last term … I was in the hospital for two days … I couldn't study for the exam … I didn't perform well … although I was one of the top students in the classroom … ." Participant 2: " … I am always afraid of the exams … I am very active in different classes … . but I am judged just based on the final exam score … but this course was different … "
They also expressed that the thing which disturbs them a lot during their courses at university is that they have no chance of being helped during the process of learning and teachers are just transferring the knowledge without making any changes in the way students are learning.

Participant 3: " … . My previous teachers didn't pay attention if I had any problem while doing an activity … ." Participant 4: " … … what was different in this classroom was that I could always ask my teacher to
come to my desk and answer the questions … sometimes I felt shy to ask the questions in class … so I asked the teacher to come to me and answer the questions in person … ." They also explained that they enjoyed the classroom activities and environment for two reasons; first, they had the chance to argue the topic of the session within the group with their classmates who had the same level of knowledge of the field and so they could easily exchange the idea. Second, during this process, they were scaffolded by the teachers and overcame the difficulties through critical thinking and challenges. In some cases, the students attributed their enjoyment to the chance to choose what subject to study at each session and which one to postpone for other sessions of the class. Overall, the main theme from the responses of the learners was the link they could make with the teaching method in the semester.
Based on the comparison of both qualitative and quantitative data analysis regarding the fourth research question, it can be concluded that based on the answers to the perception questionnaires, challenge is the most crucial factor, whereas based on the open-ended questions classroom discussions, assistance received, and positive connection with the teachers were the main important ones.

Discussion
This study aimed to investigate the Iranian EFL students and their teachers' perception on the factors involved in the implementation of TE education. More importantly, the focus was on investigating the feasibility of integration of Transformative Education (TE) with Dynamic Assessment (DA) in the Iranian EFL setting. To do so, 105 Iranian university students majoring in English language were randomly assigned into four different classes, as control and experimental groups. The control groups were instructed based on pure TE-oriented approach, whereas the experimental groups were instructed based on the integration of TE with DA. LAS questionnaire (King, 2009), follow-up interview, perceptions questionnaire (Gentry, Gable, and Rizza, 2001) were used to collect the data.
The first research question explored the perceptions of the teachers towards TE. Two out of three instructors were assigned the score 3 as they noted that the students faced perspective transformation associated with educational factors. Score 1 was assigned to the instructor who identified that transformation did not happen in the classroom. Overall, 66.6% of the participants reported that the perspective transformation happened in the classrooms associated with educational and non-educational factors. The major educational factors which teachers believed would result in transformation were another students' support, a challenge from teacher, classroom discussion and dialogue and class projects. Moreover, change and loss of job were the two factors which had the highest frequencies. The open-ended questions of the interview were studied and analyzed indepth, and the main themes inferred from such analysis were "internal factors" and "external factors." The codes under the category of internal factors were intrinsic motivation, selfunderstanding from another perspective, personal connection with the teacher. The codes under the category of the external factors were a challenge from the teacher, extrinsic motivation, exposure to foreign language, and discussion with another person with a different view. Elliptically, standing on the depth analysis of the results obtained from qualitative and quantitative data, the dominant factors causing transformation were "challenge from the teacher," "critical thinking," and "change of job"; these findings were both confirmed by the data collected from LAS questionnaire and interview's open-ended questions.
The second research question aimed to explore the perceptions of the learners toward TE. The major educational factors noted by the learners that influenced learners to experience TE included classroom activities such as "another students' support, challenge from the teacher, classroom projects, and personal self-reflection." Moreover, the main non-educational factors causing experiencing TE were namely "moving or relocation and change of job" with the highest frequencies.
According to the analysis of the qualitative data, it was concluded that the code under internal factor was "intrinsic motivation" whereas, extrinsic motivation, challenge from the teacher, authentic experiences of non-native teacher, and classroom writings and dialogues are the external factors that influenced the learners via the process of transformation. In sum, the main causes of the transformation which were commonly identified in both sections were a challenge from teacher and classroom projects and dialogues.
The third research question aimed to examine the perceptions of the teachers toward integration of TE with DA. In order to do so, the modified version of the "Students' Perceptions of Classroom Activities" designed and validated by Gentry and Gable (2011) was given to the teachers and then it was verbally discussed to elicit the related comments. The analysis of the data showed that there are high levels of interest, challenge, choice, and enjoyment. The results showed that teachers had the highest perception towards the "challenge" (M = 41). This was followed by "interest" (M = 36.50), "enjoyment" (M = 30) and "choice" (M = 27.50). The analysis also expressed that this integration increases critical thinking skill among leaners and decreases the level of aggressiveness and anxiety.
The fourth research question examined the perceptions of the learners towards the integration of TE with DA. In order to do so, the modified version of the "Students' Perceptions of Classroom Activities" designed and validated by Gentry and Gable (2011) was given to the students. The results showed that learners had the highest perception towards the "challenge" (M = 39.01). This was followed by "interest" (M = 34.11), "enjoyment" (M = 30.01) and "choice" (M = 23.84). The answers revealed that a high level of interest is the main factor that happens to them during this teaching method integration.
The findings are consistent with the findings of the research conducted by Dorji and Tshering (2018). They investigated the perceptions of the Bhutanese teachers' about TE and reached the conclusion that the instructors had positive perceptions of TE. In the sphere of teaching and learning processes, teachers were of the view that learning becomes engaging, exploratory, and inclusive. They also had the understanding that teaching through transformative pedagogy help students to augment psycho-social skills. Additionally, the findings were in line with the findings of Namgyal (2016) and Samdrup (2016) who reported the potentialities of transformative pedagogies in enhancing students' academic achievement and critical thinking.
However, the results related to the first research question are not corroborated by what Turpen (2004) reported in his study. He concluded that, although individual faculty members played important roles in the adoption and institutionalization process, other changes occurred simultaneously throughout the educational system (i.e. shifts in internal and external funding, as well as expanding partnerships between the physics department, other STEM departments, the School of Education, and other university programs) which inhibited the process of transformation.
Additionally, the findings contradict Stahl's (2012) conclusion that the teacher's personal background, included their present teaching context and focused on real-time applications was considered effective by teachers and thus more likely to affect change in their classroom pedagogy. Also, the findings of this research were in contrast to the findings of Schwartz (2013) who studied the factors that promote TE. She concluded that intrinsic motivation (genuine interests/passion), cultural exposure (active/authentic cultural participation, cultural comparison, travel experiences, movies, contact with native speakers), and personal connection with the target culture (make friends with native speakers, integrated identity) have emerged as factors that promoted a perspective transformation.
However, the findings are in line with the study conducted by Choy and Oo (2012) who focused on the role that learners' self-reflection plays in language learning. The study also highlighted certain perceptions low achieving students have of themselves could influence the strategies they used to learn English. The home and social environments could also play a significant role in this. Similarly, the findings are in line with Glisczinski's (2005) study who assessed and evaluated the extent to which teacher education students were experiencing perspective transformation.
As shown in this study, there are high levels of interest, challenge, choice, and enjoyment as claimed by the teachers and the integration increases critical thinking skill among leaners and decreases the level of aggressiveness and anxiety. These findings yield support to Sanaeifar and Nafari (2018) conclusion that DA of reading comprehension significantly affected intermediate EFL learners' test anxiety reduction. Also, DA of reading comprehension had more effect on intermediate EFL learners' test anxiety reduction.

Conclusion and implications
Critical thinking and critical reflection play a significant role in the process of TE. Meanwhile, besides the fact that there is a significant need to understand the concept of TE, one of the main challenges to TE is that, due to the current trend of training and industrialized lives, there are not encouraging moments for critical thinking and reflection of the adults. This problem may root in the fact that based on modern technology people are communicating limitless information which is a threat to critical thinking and more importantly to TE.
The other major finding of the current study is the role of the teacher as a provider of challenges for the students to experience TE which is mostly facilitated while being integrated with DA. As King (2005) discussed, while instructors can provide strategies and opportunities for transformative learning to occur, it is up to the learner to change or not. As Mezirow pointed out, "One cannot become emancipated through indoctrination" (1991, p. 88). An individual alone chooses how he/ she perceives and makes meaning of the world and his/her experiences within it. Instructors should not force this process, but rather should provide nurturing challenges and support toward this vision. Only in this way can the promise of transformative learning be realized.
Accordingly, college administrators are expected to consider the impact of new and innovative treatment approaches to learning the language and school environment and communication barrier on student transition to academic life. The results implied that service centers should be provided with opportunities to allow students to address some of the challenges they may face while taking classes during the phases of their academic courses. This could be done through the use of academic counseling. Moreover, another educational implication might be that faculties in higher education could practice theories in the classroom as documented in the qualitative and quantitative findings of the current study. This could be accomplished when faculties incorporate classroom activities such as class discussions, class projects, cooperative learning, and critical thinking skills in their instructional delivery so that students would have the chance to participate in the teaching-learning process. This could help them understand concepts from different teaching methods as findings from the study show that classroom activities were highly associated with experiencing TE of learners. Faculties in higher education might have to encourage learners to be involved in the decision-making process in terms of drafting the syllabus, planning for course work, and supporting their research work.

Transformative Learning Experiences
Q1. Thinking about your educational experiences in foreign language courses at University, check off any statements that may apply to the students. (It is okay not to check those items in Q1 that do not apply to them. If no statement applies, check the last statement "I do not identify with any of the statements above," and "No" on Q2.
• They had an experience that caused them to question the way they normally act.
• They had an experience that caused them to question their ideas about social roles.
• They questioned their ideas, they realized they no longer agreed with their previous beliefs or role expectations.
• Or instead, as they questioned their ideas, they realized they still agreed with their beliefs or role expectations.
• They realized that other people also questioned their beliefs.
• They thought about acting in a different way from their usual beliefs and roles.
• They felt uncomfortable with traditional social expectations.
• They tried out new roles so that they would become more comfortable or confident in them.
• They tried to figure out a way to adopt these new ways of acting.
• They gathered the information they needed to adopt these new ways of acting.
• They began to think about the reactions and feedback from their new behaviors.
• They took action and adopted these new ways of acting.
• They do not identify with any of the statements above.
Q2. Since you have been teaching foreign language courses at this University, do you believe your students have experienced a time when you realized that their values, beliefs, opinions, or expectations had changed? (If you checked "I do not identify with any of the statements above" on Q1, your response should be "NO" on this question) • Yes (Please go to Q3 to continue the survey.) • No (Please go to Q14 to continue the survey.) • I gathered the information I needed to adopt these new ways of acting.
• I began to think about the reactions and feedback from my new behaviors.
• I took action and adopted these new ways of acting.
• I do not identify with any of the statements above.
Q2. Since you have been taking foreign language courses at this University, do you believe you have experienced a time when you realized that your values, beliefs, opinions, or expectations had changed? (If you checked "I do not identify with any of the statements above" on Q1, your response should be "NO" on this question) • Yes (Please go to Q3 to continue the survey.) • No (Please go to Q14 to continue the survey.)

Q4.
Was it a person who influenced the change?

5.
Describe how any of the above educational experiences in foreign language courses influenced the change: 6. What could have been differently in the foreign language classes to have helped this change? What specific activities? 7. Thinking back to when you first realized that your views or perspective had changed: a. When did you first realize this change had happened? Was it while it was happening, midchange, or once it had entirely happened (retrospective)?
b. What made you aware that this change had happened? c. What did your being in foreign language course have to do with it? d. What did you do about it? e. How did/do you feel about the change? 8. Does having native or non-native teacher make difference in your learning experience?

Do you have any questions?
Interviewer comments: