abstract: Writing is an intricate cognitive and social process that involves the production of texts for the purpose of conveying meaning to others. The importance of lower level cognitive skills and language knowledge during this text production process has been well documented in the literature. However, the role of higher level skills (e.g., metacognition, strategy use, etc.) has been less strongly emphasized. This thesis proposal examines higher level cognitive skills in the context of persuasive essay writing. Specifically, two published manuscripts are presented, which both examine the role of higher level skills in the context of writing. The first manuscript investigates the role of metacognition in the writing process by examining the accuracy and characteristics of students' self-assessments of their essays. The second manuscript takes an individual differences approach and examines whether the higher level cognitive skills commonly associated with reading comprehension are also related to performance on writing tasks. Taken together, these manuscripts point towards a strong role of higher level skills in the writing process and provide a strong foundation on which to develop future research and educational interventions. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Psychology 2014

abstract: Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of the EMBRACE Spanish support intervention for at-risk dual language learners and to determine which verbal and nonverbal characteristics of students were related to benefit from the intervention. The first study examined oral language and reading characteristics and the second study examined motor characteristics in predicting the children's outcomes on a reading comprehension intervention. Method: Fifty-six participants in 2nd-5th grade were randomly assigned to one of two groups: 1) Spanish-support intervention, or 2) Spanish-support control. Outcome measures included performance on comprehension questions related to intervention texts, questions on the final narrative and expository text without strategy instruction, and difference scores on alternate forms of the Gates-MacGinitie (GMRT-4, MacGinitie, MacGinitie, Maria, & Dreyer, 2002) reading comprehension subtest administered pre- post-intervention. Multi-level hierarchical linear models were used to account for nesting of question within child within classroom. Regression models were used to examine the power of motor predictors in predicting Spanish and English language performance. Results: Results from study 1 indicated that the intervention was most effective for narrative (vs. expository) texts and easy (vs. more difficult) texts. Dual language learners (DLLs) with lower initial English reading comprehension abilities benefitted more from the intervention than those with stronger reading skills. Results from Study 2 indicated that oral fine motor abilities predicted Spanish (but not English) oral language abilities in the expected direction (i.e. faster performance associated with higher language scores). The speed of /pata/ productions predicted reading comprehension during the intervention, but not in the expected direction (i.e. slower speeds associated with higher accuracy). Manual fine motor performance on tapping tasks was not related to language or reading. Conclusions: The EMBRACE intervention has promise for use with at-risk DLLs. Future research should take care to match text difficulty with child skills so as to maximize benefit from the intervention. Oral fine motor abilities were related to language abilities in DLLs, but only for the native language. Slower oral fine motor performance predicted higher accuracy on intervention questions, suggesting that EMBRACE may be particularly effective for children with weak fine motor skills. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Speech and Hearing Science 2017

Det globaliserade samhället vi lever i idag ställer höga krav på vår läskompetens. Läraren och dennes undervisning utgör en av de viktigaste faktorerna för att utveckla god läsförståelse. Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur lärare i årskurs 1 använder och synliggör lässtrategier för elever i undervisningen. Genom semistrukturerade intervjuer undersöks hur lärare säger att de arbetar med läsförståelse och vad de menar utvecklar god läsförståelse. Genom observationer med hög grad av struktur undersöks vilka lässtrategier som kommer till uttryck i undervisningen och hur strategianvändningen skiljer sig i olika undervisningsmoment. Studien fann att bland annat högläsning värderas högt för betydelsen av läsförståelse. Studien fann också att det flest lässtrategier kom till uttryck under textsamtalen. Slutsatsen är att läsförståelse är komplex och att lärarens kompetens är avgörande för undervisningens kvalité. / The globalized society we live in today poses high demands on our literacy skills. The teacher and the way he or she teaches are one of the most important factors for developing good reading comprehension. The purpose of the study is to investigate how teachers in year 1 is using and visualize reading strategies for students in the classroom.  Semi-structured interviews investigate how teachers say they work with reading comprehension and what they think develop good reading comprehension. Through high-level observations the study aims to investigate which strategies that are expressed in teaching and how the use of strategies differs in different teaching situation. The study found that the teachers think that reading aloud is one important part of the development of reading comprehension. The study also found that most reading strategies were expressed during the textual conversation. The conclusion is that reading comprehension is complex and that the teacher's competence is crucial to the quality of teaching.

This study is about teachers’ read-aloud in the classroom. Reading comprehension is important in all subjects of the school and a recurring knowledge requirement throughout the compulsory school. The purpose is therefore to investigate how teachers in grades 1 – 2 describe their read-aloud. The following questions have been the starting point of this study: What purpose do teachers have with their read-aloud? How do teachers work with read-aloud? Which advantages and disadvantages do teachers see with read-aloud? This study is based on the sociocultural theory assuming that people develop through social activities where scaffolding is important for development. Semi-structured interviews have been used and six teachers have been interviewed. The material has been analyzed and discussed in relation to the field. The result shows that the teachers have several different purposes of read-aloud. The purpose can be to create a mutual reading experience or increase pupils’ interest in reading. Also, the purpose can be to develop pupils’ reading comprehension. How and how much the teachers use read-aloud differs. According to the teachers there are major advantages of read-aloud while the disadvantages are few. / Studien behandlar lärares arbete med högläsning i sin undervisning. Läsförståelse är en viktig grund i skolans alla ämnen och ett återkommande kunskapskrav genom hela grundskolan. Syftet är därför att undersöka hur lärare i årskurs 1 – 2 beskriver sitt arbete med högläsning. Dessa frågeställningar har varit utgångspunkterna för studien: Vilket syfte har lärare med sin högläsning? Hur arbetar lärarna med högläsning i sin undervisning? Vilka för- och nackdelar ser lärarna med högläsning? Studien har sin utgångspunkt i den sociokulturella teorin som utgår från att människor utvecklas genom sociala aktiviteter där stöttning är viktigt för att utvecklas. Semistrukturerade intervjuer har använts och totalt har sex lärare intervjuats. Materialet har analyserats och diskuterats i förhållande till forskning inom området. Resultatet visar att lärarna har flera olika syften med högläsning. Den kan syfta till att skapa en gemensam läsupplevelse eller öka elevers läsintresse, men syftet kan också vara att utveckla elevers läsförståelse. Hur och hur mycket lärarna använder högläsning i sin undervisning skiljer sig åt. Enligt lärarna är fördelarna med högläsning många medan nackdelarna är få.

Submitted by Fernando Souza (fernando@biblioteca.ufpb.br) on 2017-09-29T13:36:25Z No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 16645778 bytes, checksum: 8ea4dd419c7c4da42dd2ac1c65b9c5bd (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-09-29T13:36:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 16645778 bytes, checksum: 8ea4dd419c7c4da42dd2ac1c65b9c5bd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-04-10 / The present work proposal has the concern of discussing the practice of reading the students of the 5th year of elementary school, considering the understanding and meaningful learning in the classroom of what is proposed by the Genre News. For this, it was hypothesized that the continuous use of the News in the formation of readers could minimize the difficulties of reading and understanding found among the students of Elementary School. In order to prove this hypothesis, we considered as theoretical contributions on strategies of reading authors such as Solé (1998); Marcuschi (2002), Kleiman (2013), Koch; Elias (2014) and the official PCN documents (1997, 1998, 2001). The methodology adopted in the research was action research, because it is relevant to use a pedagogical intervention proposal divided into two parts: one, of a theoretical nature to base a work practice for the Basic School; And another, of a practical nature - a proposal of intervention work using the Genre News to the students of the 5th year of Elementary School. The result that has been reached indicates that the continuous use of the News Genre in Elementary School contributes positively to minimize the difficulties found in the reading formation and the significant learning of the students. / A presente proposta de trabalho tem a preocupação de discutir a prática da leitura dos alunos do 5° ano do Ensino Fundamental, considerando a compreensão e a aprendizagem significativa em sala de aula do que propõe o Gênero Notícia. Para tal, partiu-se da hipótese de que o uso contínuo da Notícia na formação de leitores poderá minimizar as dificuldades de ler e compreender encontradas entre os discentes do Ensino Fundamental. Para comprovar tal hipótese, considerou-se como aportes teóricos sobre estratégias de leitura autores como Solé (1998); Marcuschi (2002), Kleiman (2013), Koch; Elias (2014) e dos documentos oficiais dos PCN (1997; 1998; 2001). A metodologia adotada na pesquisa foi a pesquisa-ação, por ser relevante utilizar uma proposta de intervenção pedagógica, dividida em duas partes: uma, de caráter teórico para fundamentar uma prática de trabalho para a Escola Básica; e outra, de caráter prático – uma proposta de trabalho de intervenção com a utilização do Gênero Notícia aos discentes do 5º ano do Ensino Fundamental. O resultado a que se chegou indica que o uso contínuo do Gênero Notícia no Ensino Fundamental I contribui positivamente para minimizar as dificuldades encontradas na formação leitora e na aprendizagem significativa dos discentes.

Submitted by JOYCE FERNANDA BONFIM PEREIRA null (joycefpereira@hotmail.com) on 2017-01-11T12:24:05Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertação Final Joyce.pdf: 1486490 bytes, checksum: cfc759eb67b64bd996cbd8ccd1f2c566 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by LUIZA DE MENEZES ROMANETTO (luizamenezes@reitoria.unesp.br) on 2017-01-12T13:31:20Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 pereira_jfb_me_mar.pdf: 1486490 bytes, checksum: cfc759eb67b64bd996cbd8ccd1f2c566 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-01-12T13:31:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 pereira_jfb_me_mar.pdf: 1486490 bytes, checksum: cfc759eb67b64bd996cbd8ccd1f2c566 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-12-21 / Habilidades complexas como vocabulário, habilidades metalinguísticas, memória de trabalho fonológica e nomeação automática rápida estão relacionadas com a compreensão leitora. Os objetivos deste estudo foram caracterizar, comparar e relacionar o desempenho de escolares do 3º ao 5º com bom desempenho acadêmico em vocabulário, nomeação automática rápida, habilidades metalinguísticas, memória de trabalho e compreensão leitora. Participaram deste estudo 90 escolares do Ensino Fundamental I, de ambos os gêneros, na faixa etária de oito anos a 10 anos e 11 meses de idade, divididos em três grupos: Grupo I (GI), composto por 30 escolares do 3º ano, Grupo II (GII), composto por 30 escolares do 4º ano e Grupo III (GIII), composto por 30 escolares do 5º ano. Os escolares foram submetidos à aplicação do teste de desempenho escolar (TDE), teste de vocabulário por figuras (TVF-USP), prova de nomeação automatizada rápida (RAN), protocolo de habilidades metalinguísticas e de leitura (PROHMELE) e à prova de compreensão de leitura (PROCOMLE). Os resultados mostraram que houve desempenho semelhante entre os escolares do 3o ao 5o ano na prova de vocabulário. Todos os grupos apresentaram menor tempo na execução das provas de nomeação rápida de letras e maior tempo de execução na prova de objetos, foi possível verificar desempenho superior nas habilidades silábicas em relação às habilidades fonêmicas. Os escolares do GII apresentaram diferença estatisticamente significante no texto narrativo e os escolares do GIII apresentaram diferença significante no texto expositivo. Ocorreram correlações positivas entre as provas de vocabulário e texto narrativo nos escolares do GIII, nomeação automática rápida e textos narrativos e expositivos no GII, habilidades fonêmicas e repetição de não palavras com textos narrativos nos escolares do GI e GII. Como conclusão houve desempenho semelhante entre os escolares na prova de vocabulário. No que diz respeito às provas de nomeação automática rápida foi possível observar que conforme aumentou ano de escolarização diminuiu o tempo de execução das provas. Em relação as provas de habilidades metalinguísticas, foi verificado que houve desempenho superior nas provas silábicas quando comparadas as provas fonêmicas, evidenciando desempenho superior nas provas de identificação de sílaba inicial, identificação de sílaba final, identificação de sílaba medial e segmentação silábica. Foi evidenciado neste estudo relação entre as habilidades de vocabulário e a compreensão leitora apenas entre os escolares do 5º ano, enquanto que entre as provas de nomeação automática rápida e as habilidades metalinguísticas com a prova de compreensão leitora foi verificada relação em todos os anos escolares. Os escolares do 3º e 4º ano apresentaram relação entre as provas de memória de trabalho fonológica e a prova de compreensão leitora. / Complex skills such as vocabulary, phonological processing, and work memory, and rapid automatized naming are all related to reading comprehension. The aims of this study were to characterize, compare and relate the performance of students from 3rd to 5th grade level with good academic performance in vocabulary, rapid automatized naming, metalinguistic skills, working memory and reading comprehension. 90 students of both genders, ranging from 8 years to 10: 11 months years old, divided into three groups participated trhis study: Group I (GI), composed by 30 students of the 3rd grade level, Group II (GII), composed by 30 students from the 4th grade level and Group III (GIII), composed by 30 students from the 5th grade level. The students were submitted to the application of the test of school performance (TDE), vocabulary test by figures (TVF-USP), rapid automatized naming test (RAN), metalinguistic and reading skills protocol (PROHMELE) and reading comprehension test (PROCOMLE). The results showed that there was a similar performance between students in 3rd to 5th grade level in the vocabulary test. All the groups presented less time in the execution of the rapid naming of letters and greater time of execution in the rapid naming of objects, it was possible to verify superior performance in the syllabic skills in relation to the phonemicskills. The students of the GII presented a statistically significant difference in the narrative text and the GIII students presented significant difference in the expository text. There were positive correlations between vocabulary and narrative text in GIII, rapid automatized naming and narrative and expository text in GII, phonemic skills and repetition of non-words with narrative text in GI and GII. There was a similar performance among the students in the vocabulary test. With regard to rapid automatized naming tests, it was possible to observe that as the grade level increased, the time for the tests was shortened. Regarding the metalinguistic skills tests, it was verified that there was superior performance in the syllabic tests when comparing the phonemic tests, evidencing superior performance in the tests of identification of the initial syllable, identification of the final syllable, identification of the syllable medial and syllabic segmentation. It was evidenced in this study relationship between the vocabulary skills and the reading comprehension only among the students of the 5th grade level, whereas between the rapid automatized naming tests and the metalinguistic skills with the reading comprehension test was verified relation in allgrade level. The students of the 3rd and 4th grade level presented a relation between the phonological work memory test and the reading comprehension test.

O objetivo deste estudo é o de propor princípios de transposição didática, para professores de língua materna, do Modelo teórico-metodológico para a descrição semântico-argumentativa do discurso, de Tânia Maris de Azevedo, com vistas à otimização do desenvolvimento das habilidades pressupostas pela compreensão leitora de alunos da Educação Básica e do Ensino Superior. Para tanto, é utilizada a Teoria dos Blocos Semânticos, de Ducrot e Carel, bem como a Teoria da Polifonia, de Ducrot e Anscombre, ambas integrantes da Teoria da Argumentação na Língua, fundamento teórico-metodológico do referido Modelo. Inicialmente, faço uma análise da questão da leitura no Brasil, a partir dos resultados apresentados pelo PISA, de 2012, com relação à avaliação realizada entre alunos na faixa etária de 15 anos, resultados esses que demonstram que boa parte dos alunos não avança além do nível da decodificação. Em seguida, apresento de que maneira o aporte teórico escolhido poderia cooperar no processo de compreensão em leitura. Finalmente, trago à discussão alguns paradigmas epistemológicos, as abordagens de transposição didática, de Chevallard e Álvarez, e a proposição de princípios para transposição didática do Modelo. / Submitted by Ana Guimarães Pereira (agpereir@ucs.br) on 2016-05-12T12:18:41Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Carina Maria Melchiors Niederaurer.pdf: 1837734 bytes, checksum: 591fa75e6d26f31edca72dedd5861ed8 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-05-12T12:18:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Carina Maria Melchiors Niederaurer.pdf: 1837734 bytes, checksum: 591fa75e6d26f31edca72dedd5861ed8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-04-12 / L´objectif de cette étude est celui de proposer des principes de transposition didactique, pour les professeurs de langue maternelle, du Modèle théorique-méthodologique pour la description sémantique-argumentative du discours, de Azevedo, en vue de l’optimisation du développement des habilités présupposées pela compréhension de lecture des élèves de l´Education Basique et de l’Enseignement Supérieur. Pour cela, on a utilisé la Théorie des Blocs Sémantiques, de Ducrot et Carel, aussi bien que la Théorie de la Polyphonie de Ducrot et Anscombre, les deux intégrantes de la Théorie de l’Argumentation dans la Langue, fondement théorique-méthodologique de ce Modèle. Initialement, je fais une analyse de la question de la lecture au Brésil, d’aprés des résultats présentés par le PISA, de 2012, concernant l’évaluation menée auprès des éléves âgés de 15 ans. Ces résultats ont montré qu’une bonne partie des élèves n’arrive qu’à un niveau de décodification. En suite, je présente de quelle manière l’apport théorique choisi pourrait coopérer dans le procès de compréhension de lecture. Finalement, je mets sur le tapis quelques paradigmes épistémologiques, les approches de transposition didactique, de Chevallard et Álvarez, et la proposition de principes pour la transposition didactique du Modèle.

A cultura gauchesca tem vínculos estreitos com a formação geográfica do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul (RS) e isso é representado, por exemplo, em canções gauchescas, quando as formas geotopológicas (relevo, vegetação e hidrografia) são mencionadas para referir ao estado como um todo. Da mesma forma, os recortes geopolíticos são referidos pela menção a cidades, ao próprio RS ou à sua posição cardeal em relação ao Brasil. Nesse âmbito, o objetivo geral desta tese é examinar as construções de sentidos e interpretações de designadores espaciais (DE) de letras de canções gauchescas, a partir da leitura por parte de duas categorias de leitores: os vinculados a movimentos tradicionalistas e os não vinculados a esses movimentos. O problema que guia esta pesquisa é: que construções de sentidos e interpretações são revelados nas designações espaciais relativas ao RS nas letras de canções gaúchas, verificadas por meio da leitura de certas categorias de público receptor? Trabalhamos, então, com a ideia de leitura como interpretação, buscando subsídios na Linguística Cognitiva para refletir sobre como indivíduos interpretam vocábulos diferentes em canções regionais, quando dispostos em enunciados diferentes, com base nas pesquisas de Barcelona (2003), Evans (2009), Fillmore (2009), Geeraerts (2009), Panther e Thornburg (2007), Panther (2006), Silva (2010), Taylor (2009; 2010) e Teixeira (2001).Para a consecução de nosso objetivo geral, esta investigação é construída por uma pesquisa sobre a história da musicografia gauchesca (para contextualizar, selecionar e justificar o conjunto de canções utilizadas), pesquisa lexicográfica (para verificar como os sentidos dos designadores são registrados nos dicionários), pesquisa de campo (por meio de questionário e entrevistas, para levantar como os informantes-leitores interpretam os vocábulos), análise introspectiva (na perspectiva do pesquisador) e análise das respostas do questionário e das entrevistas. A partir desse conjunto de pesquisas e análises, constatamos que os DEs são interpretados, em grande parte, como processos metonímicos em que as PARTES do RS representam o TODO. Respondendo à questão de pesquisa, a categoria de sujeitos ligados a movimentos tradicionalistas demonstrou maior sensibilidade em suas interpretações, conferindo aos DEs pormenores e traços de afetividade, enquanto a categoria não vinculada a esses movimentos apresentou uma tendência a construir sentidos mais genéricos. / Submitted by cmquadros@ucs.br (cmquadros@ucs.br) on 2018-02-20T12:32:44Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Odair José Silva dos Santos.pdf: 3841720 bytes, checksum: 6d0ded47c195d77b45b6e48535a5bbe4 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-02-20T12:32:44Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Tese Odair José Silva dos Santos.pdf: 3841720 bytes, checksum: 6d0ded47c195d77b45b6e48535a5bbe4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-02-20 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, CAPES / Gauchesque (or gaucho) culture has close links with the geographic formation of the state of Rio Grande do Sul (RS) and this is represented, for example, in gauchesque songs, when geotopological forms (such as relief, vegetation and hydrography) are mentioned to refer to the state as a whole. Likewise, geopolitical contours are referred to as cities, as the state itself or its cardinal position in Brazil. The general aim of this thesis is to examine the construction of meanings and interpretations of spatial designators (DE) of lyrics of gaucho songs, as evidenced from the reading of two categories of readers: those related to traditionalist movements and those not related to them. The problem that guides this investigation is: what constructions of meanings and interpretations are revealed in spatial designators related to RS in gaucho song lyrics, as observed in certain categories of readers? This thesis deals with the idea of reading as interpretation, based on Cognitive Linguistics to reflect on how individuals interpret different words in regional songs, when arranged in different statements, using data from researches by Barcelona (2003), Evans (2009), Fillmore (2009), Geeraerts (2009), Panther and Thornburg (2007), Panther (2006), Silva (2010), Taylor (2009) and Teixeira (2001). In order to achieve it main goal, the investigation includes research on the history of gaucho musicography (in order to contextualize, select and justify the set of songs used), lexicographic research (in order to check how the meanings of designators are registered in dictionaries), field research (by means of a questionnaire and interviews, in order to analyze how the informants-readers interpret the words), introspective analysis (from the perspective of the researcher) and analysis of the answers to the questionnaire and interviews. This set of researches and analyses has evidenced that DEs are seen, mostly, as metonymic processes in which the PARTS of the state of RS represent the WHOLE. In addition, as an answer to the question of this investigation, the individuals related to traditionalist movements have shown greater sensitivity in their interpretations, assigning DEs more details and traces of affection, while those in the category not related to traditionalist movements tended to construct broader generic meanings.

Thesis (MEd (Education))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2016. / According to the White Paper for Post-School Education and Training Act (2013), only 15 percent of students in higher education complete their studies successfully. This is well below the international standard of 25 percent for students within a three-year degree course in contact education (residential education). The challenge facing universities is to ensure a higher throughput rate. This study aims to investigate a potential solution to one of the facets of this challenge. One such an initiative is Leesnet, an academic reading comprehension programme, which was implemented within the CPUT, Wellington campus since 2010. It is a reading comprehension strategy programme which aims to promote general academic performance in all content areas. The purpose of this research study is to explore and describe the nature and extent of transfer of reading comprehension strategies from Leesnet to a content area, Geography. A mixed method methodology was used. The qualitative research approach was used to explore and describe participants' descriptions of the nature of transfer of reading comprehension strategies and the quantitative data to explore and describe the extent of transfer of reading comprehension strategies. The study indicated that a degree of positive transfer occurred. It comments on the nature and purpose of the Leesnet programme, but also provides valuable information on participating students' metacognitive processes, highlights the conscious use of reading comprehension strategies and the context under which reading comprehension strategies were transferred. Conclusions and recommendations were made to identify focus areas for further research, to potentially improve transfer of reading comprehension strategies in the existing programme and to offer possible guidelines for the development of similar programmes.

O uso da língua materna (LM) faz parte dos exames do conhecimento de uma língua estrangeira (LE) tomados como instrumentos de avaliação em cursos de pós-graduação no Brasil que, em sua maioria, constam de tradução e compreensão leitora de um texto em Inglês. Porém, as abordagens adotadas em cursos de Inglês tendem a deixar a LM de fora do processo de ensino- aprendizagem. Outra questão importante inclui a qualidade e a abrangência da atenção dada à compreensão leitora, embora saiba-se que os cursos de Inglês trabalhem as quatro habilidades (falar, ouvir, ler e escrever) em sala de aula. Diante desse cenário, este estudo busca avaliar a percepção do percurso da aprendizagem de língua inglesa de treze participantes, quando confrontados com a necessidade de realizar provas de LI como parte da seleção para cursos de Mestrado e Doutorado. Aqui, voltamos nosso olhar sobre objetivos de uso do idioma especialmente para compreensão leitora, uma das possíveis ramificações do quadro teórico do Inglês para Fins Específicos (IFE). Neste sentido, apoiamo-nos em Hutchinson & Waters (1987, p. 19), que nos falam em aprendizagem centrada no aluno, nas necessidades trazidas por ele em determinado momento de sua vida profissional ou acadêmica.Para tanto, coletaram-se as percepções de treze participantes, por meio da técnica de Grupo Focal, a respeito do modo como aprenderam a língua inglesa ao longo de suas trajetórias. Utilizamo-nos, para analisar as realizações destes sujeitos, do Sistema de Avaliatividade, proposto por Martin & White (2005) dentre outros, no escopo da Linguística Sistêmico-Funcional, valendo-nos especialmente do domínio semântico de Atitude para investigar as opiniões expressas. Apesar de os participantes terem feito uso de todas as categorias do subsistema da Atitude, Afeto e Apreciação foram as mais recorrentemente utilizadas, já que suas falas revelam não apenas o modo como os sujeitos se sentiam e ainda se sentem quando no papel de alunos sob os métodos vigentes no mercado, mas também suas críticas aos métodos de aprendizagem de inglês. Obtivemos 10 índices de Apreciações Negativas aos cursos de idiomas a respeito da exclusão quase completa da LM em aulas, além de 11 Apreciações Negativas ao modelo de ensino de língua inglesa na esfera escolar. / Mother language use (ML) plays a role in proficiency exams of Foreign Language (FL) which are taken as evaluation tools in graduate degrees in Brazil as they make use to a great extent of translation and reading comprehension of a text written in English. However, English courses tend to leave ML out of teaching-learning process. Another important issue lies on the quality and comprehensiveness paid to reading comprehension, although it is known that English courses teach the four skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) in classrooms. In light of this scenario, this study aims to appraise the perception of the English learning process of thirteen students when they faced the need of undergoing English exams as part of Masters and Doctoral degree selection. Here, we turned our attention to the use of language concerning the objective of reading comprehension, one of the possible branches of the theoretical background of English for Specific Purposes. In this sense, we have taken support from Hutchinson & Waters (1987, p. 19), once they focus on learner-centered approach as well as on the needs the student brings at some moment of his/her professional or academic life. In order to do so, thirteen participants perceptions were collected by means of Focus group technique, concerning the way they have learnt English language over the years. The Appraisal System, proposed by Martin & White (2005) and others, was employed to analyze their realizations, under the scope of Systemic-Functional Linguistics, particularly the semantic domain of Attitude to investigate their opinions. Despite students performed all the categories over Attitude sub-system, Affect and Appreciation were the most frequently used, once their speeches reveal not only the way they felt and still feel when playing the part of students under the current available methods, but also their criticism regarding English learning methodologies. We observed 10 negative Appreciations concerning debarment of ML from the part of language institutes besides 11 negative Appreciations in relation to English language teaching at schools.