Scholarship
Two decades of scholarship on critical thinking, emotional development, and language learning.
Research Philosophy
My academic journey began in English language teaching and applied linguistics — language acquisition, discourse analysis, corrective feedback, emotional intelligence, critical literacy. Over time, my research expanded into critical thinking, educational assessment, emotional development, equity, human flourishing, and the opportunities and challenges presented by artificial intelligence.
Although these areas may appear diverse, they are connected by a common purpose: understanding how education can support the development of the whole person. Today, this work continues through the Meta-Self Learning Initiative™ — an interdisciplinary educational ecosystem integrating language education, human development, assessment, creativity, and AI.
Research Areas
The Journey
Not just publications by year — how the questions themselves grew.
2011 – 2015
Corrective feedback, discourse analysis, applied linguistics — how language moves between teacher and learner.
2016 – 2019
Mastery learning, the 3CA Model, emotional climate, educational assessment — and the beginning of the collaboration with Professor Edmund W. Gordon.
2020 – 2023
Affirmative assessment, artificial intelligence, and interdisciplinary education — from measuring learning to serving it.
2024 – Present
Whole-person learning, Beyond Borders: Humanity, AI integration, educational technology, music, multimedia, and curriculum innovation — one integrated vision.
Selected Publications
Read or download every paper — 14 peer-reviewed works, organized by theme, in the Publications Library.
Open the Publications Library Google Scholar ↗Conference Presentations
Work presented at national and international conferences on critical thinking, educational assessment, multilingual education, pedagogical analytics, AI in education, and whole-person learning.
The 3CA Model presented with Prof. Ernest Washington: concept maps, critical thinking, collaboration, and assessment in the ESL classroom.
Research poster: emotional intelligence and teachers' corrective feedback — recast & elicitation in second-language learning.
Six more complete teaching & workshop decks — Meta-Self strategies, Persian vs. English, formative assessment, critical thinking, and the 3CA classroom guides.
Browse on Teaching ResourcesResearch Collaborations
My work has been shaped through collaboration with educators, researchers, institutions, and multilingual learners from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds.
One of the most influential collaborations has been my work with Professor Edmund W. Gordon, whose scholarship on educational assessment, affirmative development, equity, and human development continues to inspire many aspects of my research — including our ongoing work on Pedagogical Analytics and Analysis, focusing on assessment that supports learning, diversity, and affirmative development.
I also value interdisciplinary collaboration across education, psychology, language learning, technology, environmental science, and the arts — complex educational challenges require diverse perspectives.
Reading the Field
The model emerged through sustained engagement with several disciplines — see the curated Selected Intellectual Foundations and Inspirations below.
The Ideas Behind the Model
Informed by scholarship, books, films, teaching experience, professional collaboration, and reflection — across education, applied linguistics, psychology, cognitive science, artificial intelligence, assessment, human development, health, and society. These works have not influenced the model in identical ways: some provide theoretical or pedagogical foundations, others inspired questions and new directions. This is a selected list, not a complete bibliography.
Broader inspiration: Tony Robbins & Peter H. Diamandis, with Robert Hariri — Life Force (a personal inspiration rather than a central academic foundation).
Although The Imitation Game is a dramatized film rather than a scholarly account of Alan Turing's life, it has been meaningful to Dr. EZ's thinking about the sociocultural domain. Its portrayal of isolation, difference, trust, recognition, and collaboration is a reminder that intelligence alone is not sufficient — human survival, development, creativity, and meaningful achievement also depend on relationships, cooperation, shared purpose, and the willingness to support one another.