M.Ed. (Education) / This study focuses on the teaching of linguistic rules and structures in rural informal Settlement Schools. The inquiry was undertaken with the aim of determining what the nature of instruction of grammar, specifically tense, is and what teachers' conceptions of the pedagogy of grammar are. The rationale for the study was that there is virtually no research on the language pedagogy knowledge of practice of unqualified teachers in community schools. Teachers in this type of setting needed to be exposed to contemporary theory of Second Language instruction with the view of improving their pedagogy. This also needed to be researched in order to contribute to the body of knowledge..The rural settlement schools where semi-qualified teachers are still found in increasing numbers, need competent teachers who can teach students to function socially as well as linguistically. For relevant teacher education curricula research is needed to inform policy. Literature review was done and field investigation was conducted to determine teachers' conceptions of grammar and tenses. Data were collected through interviews and observations. These data were consolidated and clustered across five sources of different methods. The categories of data indicated that teachers' knowledge of rules was limited. The research was concluded with suggestions pertaining to the researcher's experience of semi-qualified teachers. It was suggested that teachers should not only concentrate on grammar knowledge but also on the knowledge about pedagogy and linguistics. The involvement of INSET programmes in this respect was strongly recommended.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of a professional development intervention conducted with mainstream middle school teachers of English language learners (ELLs) in a North Texas school district. Teacher change was examined in the context of this intervention. Three groups of teachers participated in this study. Group 1 (n= 4) consisted of teachers returning to the intervention for a second year. Group 2 (n= 12) consisted of teachers new to the intervention. Group 3 (n = 16) served as the control group and consisted of teachers who were not part of the intervention. Mixed methods were utilized, including a self-assessment questionnaire, an observation tool, and data from the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. Statistically significant differences were found between teachers in Group 1 and teachers in Group 2 in the perception of self-efficacy. Statistically significant differences were also found for Group 1 and Group 2 teachers between the beginning and the end of the year. Group 3 teachers experienced a decrease in their perception of self-efficacy between the beginning and the end of the year. A statistically significant difference in the use of interaction was found across time for teachers in Group 1 and Group 2. The interaction of ELLs decreased between the beginning and the end of the year for teachers in Group 3. The use of modifications increased significantly for teachers in Group 1 and Group 2 and remained stable for teachers in Group 3 between the beginning and the end of the year. In the area of high expectations, no statistically significant difference was found between intervention teachers and the control group across time. An analysis of data for the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test revealed a statistically significant difference in the percentage of All Students Commended for the writing test and in the percentage of All Students Met Standard in the social studies test between intervention and non-intervention classrooms.

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar como se dá a integração da tecnologia, ou melhor, CALL – Computer Assisted Language Learning – na sala de aula dos cursos de licenciatura em Letras do estado do Paraná. A Teoria da Difusão de Inovações e o Modelo Esférico de Integração de CALL foram os modelos teórico e analítico que respectivamente nortearam a pesquisa. Este estudo é uma pesquisa de métodos mistos e foi adotado um delineamento explanatório sequencial composto de duas fases distintas: uma primeira fase com abordagem quantitativa e uma segunda fase com abordagem qualitativa. As inferências finais foram feitas a partir dos resultados de ambas as fases do estudo. Analiticamente, o uso da tecnologia na sala de aula não foi considerado um construto unitário, mas sim multifacetado. Com relação ao contexto foram estudadas diferentes instituições de ensino superior, e não apenas uma ou duas universidades. Buscou-se evitar, assim, as limitações metodológicas, analíticas e contextuais comumente encontradas em estudos sobre a integração de CALL. Para a primeira fase quantitativa foi desenvolvido um questionário para coleta de dados. O instrumento foi validado por um painel de especialistas, testado em um estudo-piloto e, por fim, administrado a uma amostra constituída de 152 professores de 33 cursos de Letras de instituições públicas e privadas de todo o estado do Paraná. Análises estatísticas foram feitas para examinar a relação entre os três conjuntos de fatores do Modelo Esférico de Integração de CALL e os usos multifacetados da tecnologia pelos professores dos cursos de licenciatura em línguas do estado do Paraná. Os resultados identificaram quatro usos diferentes e também a influência sobre eles dos fatores individuais, contextuais e da formação prévia em CALL/TICs, mostrando que os fatores individuais e os fatores contextuais são importantes preditores da integração de CALL/TICs. Com base nos resultados da fase quantitativa e fazendo uso da Teoria da Inovação Individual foram selecionados os participantes para a segunda fase. Foram conduzidas 16 entrevistas individuais semiestruturadas. A fase qualitativa aprofundou os resultados quantitativos e explicou os resultados inesperados e sem resposta da fase quantitativa. A integração dos resultados mostrou que além dos fatores individuais e contextuais, aparentemente a formação prévia dos professores em CALL/TICs não deve ser descartada como preditor da integração de CALL/TICs. Foi possível também traçar o panorama atual de CALL nos cursos de Letras do estado do Paraná. CALL ainda está distante da normalização. Descobertas adicionais foram obtidas nas duas fases do estudo. No contexto internacional, assim como no contexto brasileiro, apesar das inúmeras pesquisas sobre CALL, ainda existem lacunas significativas em algumas áreas e percebe-se a necessidade de mais estudos que aprofundem o tema da integração e ajudem a elucidar a relação entre os fatores que levam ou não a integração de CALL. Esta pesquisa sobre a integração de CALL no contexto brasileiro buscou contribuir para que se tenha uma compreensão mais ampla de como lidar com CALL e mostrar caminhos para que a integração ocorra em outros contextos. / The objective of this study was to analyze the integration of technology, or rather CALL – Computer Assisted Language Learning – in the classroom of Modern Languages courses in the state of Paraná. The Diffusion of Innovations Theory and the Spherical Model of L2 Teachers’ Integration of CALL Technology into the Classroom were the theoretical and analytical models that respectively guided the research. This is a mixed methods study that adopted a sequential explanatory design that consisted of two distinct phases: a first phase with a quantitative approach and a second phase with a qualitative approach. The final inferences were made from the results of both phases of the study. Analytically, the use of technology in the classroom was not considered a unitary construct, but rather multifaceted. Contextually, different higher educational institutions, not just one or two universities were investigated. The purpose was to avoid methodological, analytical and contextual constraints commonly found in studies on the integration of CALL. For the first quantitative phase a questionnaire was developed to collect data. The instrument was validated by a panel of experts, tested in a pilot study and, finally, applied to a sample of 152 teachers from 33 Modern Languages courses from public and private institutions throughout the state of Paraná. Statistical analyzes were performed to examine the relationship between the three sets of factors from the Spherical Model and the multifaceted uses of technology by the teachers of undergraduate language courses in the state of Paraná. The results identified four different uses and also the influences of individual factors, contextual factors and prior CALL/ICTs education on the uses of technology, showing that individual factors and contextual factors are important predictors of CALL/ICTs integration. Participants were selected for the qualitative phase according to the results of the quantitative phase and to Rogers’ Individual Innovativeness Theory. Sixteen semi-structured individual interviews were conducted. The qualitative phase deepened the quantitative results and explained the unexpected results and the results that could not be answered in the quantitative phase. The integration of the results showed that in addition to individual and contextual factors, apparently prior CALL/ICTs education should not be dismissed as a predictor of CALL/ICTs integration. It was also possible to provide a clearer picture of CALL in the Modern Languages courses in the state of Paraná. CALL is far from normalization. Additional findings were obtained in the two phases of the study. In international and Brazilian contexts, despite extensive research on CALL, there are still significant gaps in some areas. There is the need for more studies to further investigate the issue of integration and help elucidate the relationship between the factors that lead to CALL integration or not. This research on the integration of CALL in the Brazilian context sought to contribute to a broader understanding of CALL and to show ways for integration to take place in other contexts.

O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar como se dá a integração da tecnologia, ou melhor, CALL – Computer Assisted Language Learning – na sala de aula dos cursos de licenciatura em Letras do estado do Paraná. A Teoria da Difusão de Inovações e o Modelo Esférico de Integração de CALL foram os modelos teórico e analítico que respectivamente nortearam a pesquisa. Este estudo é uma pesquisa de métodos mistos e foi adotado um delineamento explanatório sequencial composto de duas fases distintas: uma primeira fase com abordagem quantitativa e uma segunda fase com abordagem qualitativa. As inferências finais foram feitas a partir dos resultados de ambas as fases do estudo. Analiticamente, o uso da tecnologia na sala de aula não foi considerado um construto unitário, mas sim multifacetado. Com relação ao contexto foram estudadas diferentes instituições de ensino superior, e não apenas uma ou duas universidades. Buscou-se evitar, assim, as limitações metodológicas, analíticas e contextuais comumente encontradas em estudos sobre a integração de CALL. Para a primeira fase quantitativa foi desenvolvido um questionário para coleta de dados. O instrumento foi validado por um painel de especialistas, testado em um estudo-piloto e, por fim, administrado a uma amostra constituída de 152 professores de 33 cursos de Letras de instituições públicas e privadas de todo o estado do Paraná. Análises estatísticas foram feitas para examinar a relação entre os três conjuntos de fatores do Modelo Esférico de Integração de CALL e os usos multifacetados da tecnologia pelos professores dos cursos de licenciatura em línguas do estado do Paraná. Os resultados identificaram quatro usos diferentes e também a influência sobre eles dos fatores individuais, contextuais e da formação prévia em CALL/TICs, mostrando que os fatores individuais e os fatores contextuais são importantes preditores da integração de CALL/TICs. Com base nos resultados da fase quantitativa e fazendo uso da Teoria da Inovação Individual foram selecionados os participantes para a segunda fase. Foram conduzidas 16 entrevistas individuais semiestruturadas. A fase qualitativa aprofundou os resultados quantitativos e explicou os resultados inesperados e sem resposta da fase quantitativa. A integração dos resultados mostrou que além dos fatores individuais e contextuais, aparentemente a formação prévia dos professores em CALL/TICs não deve ser descartada como preditor da integração de CALL/TICs. Foi possível também traçar o panorama atual de CALL nos cursos de Letras do estado do Paraná. CALL ainda está distante da normalização. Descobertas adicionais foram obtidas nas duas fases do estudo. No contexto internacional, assim como no contexto brasileiro, apesar das inúmeras pesquisas sobre CALL, ainda existem lacunas significativas em algumas áreas e percebe-se a necessidade de mais estudos que aprofundem o tema da integração e ajudem a elucidar a relação entre os fatores que levam ou não a integração de CALL. Esta pesquisa sobre a integração de CALL no contexto brasileiro buscou contribuir para que se tenha uma compreensão mais ampla de como lidar com CALL e mostrar caminhos para que a integração ocorra em outros contextos. / The objective of this study was to analyze the integration of technology, or rather CALL – Computer Assisted Language Learning – in the classroom of Modern Languages courses in the state of Paraná. The Diffusion of Innovations Theory and the Spherical Model of L2 Teachers’ Integration of CALL Technology into the Classroom were the theoretical and analytical models that respectively guided the research. This is a mixed methods study that adopted a sequential explanatory design that consisted of two distinct phases: a first phase with a quantitative approach and a second phase with a qualitative approach. The final inferences were made from the results of both phases of the study. Analytically, the use of technology in the classroom was not considered a unitary construct, but rather multifaceted. Contextually, different higher educational institutions, not just one or two universities were investigated. The purpose was to avoid methodological, analytical and contextual constraints commonly found in studies on the integration of CALL. For the first quantitative phase a questionnaire was developed to collect data. The instrument was validated by a panel of experts, tested in a pilot study and, finally, applied to a sample of 152 teachers from 33 Modern Languages courses from public and private institutions throughout the state of Paraná. Statistical analyzes were performed to examine the relationship between the three sets of factors from the Spherical Model and the multifaceted uses of technology by the teachers of undergraduate language courses in the state of Paraná. The results identified four different uses and also the influences of individual factors, contextual factors and prior CALL/ICTs education on the uses of technology, showing that individual factors and contextual factors are important predictors of CALL/ICTs integration. Participants were selected for the qualitative phase according to the results of the quantitative phase and to Rogers’ Individual Innovativeness Theory. Sixteen semi-structured individual interviews were conducted. The qualitative phase deepened the quantitative results and explained the unexpected results and the results that could not be answered in the quantitative phase. The integration of the results showed that in addition to individual and contextual factors, apparently prior CALL/ICTs education should not be dismissed as a predictor of CALL/ICTs integration. It was also possible to provide a clearer picture of CALL in the Modern Languages courses in the state of Paraná. CALL is far from normalization. Additional findings were obtained in the two phases of the study. In international and Brazilian contexts, despite extensive research on CALL, there are still significant gaps in some areas. There is the need for more studies to further investigate the issue of integration and help elucidate the relationship between the factors that lead to CALL integration or not. This research on the integration of CALL in the Brazilian context sought to contribute to a broader understanding of CALL and to show ways for integration to take place in other contexts.