The major aim of this study was to analyze the metaphors language teachers in Iranian High Schools and Language Institutes use to describe the current and ideal conditions of teaching and learning in English educational system. In this study, teachers were to select their preferred metaphors among the 27 metaphors of the checklist about teachers and 18 metaphors about learners to remark their ideas of the present and ideal English teaching condition. The metaphors were then categorized based on the metaphor typology laid down by the scholars in the field. The results showed that teachers at language institutes are ahead of teachers at schools regarding teaching and learning beliefs. Finally, the results were discussed in the context of formal and informal education in Iran.

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