Considerações sobre sessões de Teletandem como gênero discursivo: breve estudo e exemplificação

The reflex of social and cultural changes in discursive practices can indicate that language has a fundamental role in transforming the society and attempts of defining the directions of changes must include new forms of language practices. One of these forms concerns to computer media in teaching-learning process, showing how technology and culture interact in a significant way to interfere in language uses. In this context, it has been developed in UNESP/Assis linked to the Center for Language and Teacher Development the project Teletandem Brasil: Foreign Languages for All as a new practice of language teachinglearning through technological resources. The present paper aims to present a description of the teletandem sessions as a discursive gender according to the Bakhtin’s gender theory. The data was collected during the second semester of 2010, in sessions of interaction with an American university. The considerations are directed by the following questions: (a) how are the statements of a session discursively organized; (b) what kind of relationship the partners have with their mother language when they teach it as a foreign language, in this context. The analysis allowed us to conclude that: (a) the sessions can characterize a hybrid and secondary gender in this specific area of human activity, even the partners still find difficulties in this gender domain; (b) the teletandem sessions constitute an important instrument for the critical language awareness between the partners.

On-line collaborative learning for in-service teacher education

This article brings some of the results of a study that analyzes a hybrid course for in-service teachers in the Project Teletandem Brazil: foreign languages for all. In this project, Brazilian teachers of Spanish as a foreign language took part in a blended tandem learning course, communicating via videoconferencing with Uruguayan teachers of Portuguese as a foreign language. The aim of the study was to verify Brazilian teachers' concepts and beliefs concerning language and culture and how the teletandem interactions affected them. After the interactions, teachers' views of culture seemed to also incorporate aspects of culture as an interpersonal process, instead of the factual and static view which was previously predominant. Therefore teacher education programs must consider the possibility of conjugating theory and reflective practice through the use of videoconference tools in order to allow teachers to experience culture rather learn facts about it. © 2011 ACADEMY PUBLISHER.

Teaching and learning data structures supported by computers: An experiment using CADILAG tool

This paper aims to present the use of a learning object (CADILAG), developed to facilitate understanding data structure operations by using visual presentations and animations. The CADILAG allows visualizing the behavior of algorithms usually discussed during Computer Science and Information System courses. For each data structure it is possible visualizing its content and its operation dynamically. Its use was evaluated an the results are presented. © 2012 AISTI.

Conditional reasoning: A key to assessing computer-based knowledge-building communication processes

This article describes a methodological approach to conditional reasoning in online asynchronous learning environments such as Virtual-U VGroups, developed by SFU, BC, Canada, consistent with the notion of meaning implication: If part of a meaning C is embedded in B and a part of a meaning B is embedded in A, then A implies C in terms of meaning [Piaget 91]. A new transcript analysis technique was developed to assess the flows of conditional meaning implications and to identify the occurrence of hypotheses and connections among them in two human science graduate mixed-mode online courses offered in the summer/spring session of 1997 by SFU. Flows of conditional meaning implications were confronted with Virtual-U VGroups threads and results of the two courses were compared. Findings suggest that Virtual-U VGroups is a knowledge-building environment although the tree-like Virtual-U VGroups threads should be transformed into neuronal-like threads. Findings also suggest that formulating hypotheses together triggers a collaboratively problem-solving process that scaffolds knowledge-building in asynchronous learning environments: A pedagogical technique and an built-in tool for formulating hypotheses together are proposed. © Springer Pub. Co.

Computer tools to aid the learning and design steps for photovoltaic systems

This paper presents novel simulation tools to assist the lecturers about learning processes on renewable energy sources, considering photovoltaic (PV) systems. The PV behavior, functionality and its interaction with power electronic converters are investigated in the simulation tools. The main PV output characteristics, I (current) versus V (voltage) and P (power) versus V (voltage), were implemented in the tools, in order to aid the users for the design steps. In order to verify the effectiveness of the developed tools the simulation results were compared with Matlab. Finally, a prototype was implemented with the purpose to compare the experimental results with the results from the proposed tools, validating its operational feasibility. © 2011 IEEE.

Os primeiros contatos de professores de línguas estrangeiras com a prática de Teletandem

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)