There is an expectation that university teachers have a good understanding of the value of educational technologies in learning and teaching as well as be able to incorporate them effectively into their teaching (Carter et al, 2011, Higher Education Academy, 2011; Sharples et al, 2016). However, according to key literature (Conole, 2004; Kennedy et al, 2011; Laurillard, 2007; Selwyn, 2007; Walker et al, 2016) the extent to which educational technologies have impacted on teaching and learning practices is considered to be minimal. While universities have invested heavily in educational technologies for teaching purposes, institutional virtual learning environments are predominately being used as a vehicle for information transmission and document repository (Armellini et al, 2012; Walker et al, 2016). The research I report here investigated the thinking and conceptions behind how Bryn, a university teacher, used educational technologies to optimise the quality of his students’ learning. I also report on the thinking and decision making behind how 15 of his students used educational technologies to optimise the quality of their university learning. The analysis of the data collected suggests that there is an evolution occurring in how university teaching staff are thoughtfully integrating educational technology into programmes and satisfying the majority of students with this development. It was also identified that influences of educational technology on student learning are mediated by students’ disposition towards learning and the task and social contexts of their learning. It is recommended that those students who are pioneer users of educational technology and ahead of the university teacher’s curve be incorporated into the planning and evaluating of experiences of learning and teaching in educational technology-mediated classroom contexts and be appointed as learning coaches to those students who are somewhat bewildered and frustrated by educational technology use.

The internet is fundamentally a large storage unit for immense amounts of data. Consequently, the majority of online users log on to the internet in order to find information. Innovations in technology continue to make both the production and consumption of this information an easily achieved endeavor, resulting in high expectations for instantaneous answers via immediate search results. While a plethora of information is not difficult to find, knowing what to do with that information is often problematic. To turn information into knowledge requires an ability to contextualize it and critically engage with it. WebMD is a highly recognizable health information database that often runs into information overload problems with its users. This thesis will examine the information that the WebMD website provides, as well as its usability. The goal is to investigate, firstly, the importance of context for knowledge-forming when users perform online information research and, secondly, the critical literacy required to use such information.

This thesis investigates the vocabulary learning behavior of Romanian high school students in a digital context. The research identifies the vocabulary learning strategies used by EFL high school students and focuses on how the choice of vocabulary learning strategies varies across four independent variables: students' age, gender, academic profile (math-ICT, humanities, science and economic-technical) and language program (intensive English, bilingual, normal). These variables are hypothesized to influence learners' vocabulary behavior. Furthermore, the study examines the technology enhanced tools (computer and mobile assisted language learning tools) used by these students in their vocabulary learning as well as their attitudes towards using technology in vocabulary learning. Likewise, the study analyzes how students' choice of technology enhanced tools and their attitudes towards them vary across the four independent variables. The study is a mixed methods investigation with 1,239 participants (60% female, 40% male, aged 14-19 years old) learning English as a foreign language in nine Romanian secondary schools. Of the 1,239 participants who filled in the self-reported questionnaire, 43 also participated in focus group discussions prior to the administration of the questionnaire. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics procedures whereas the qualitative data were analyzed thematically. The results from both phases were integrated in the results chapter. The main findings indicated that Romanian high school students prefer social strategies, followed by determination, metacognitive, cognitive and memory strategies. However, the usage of the strategies in these categories is medium towards low. As for individual vocabulary learning strategies, the participants reported that the impact of a new word, English media, guessing from context, associating the word with a picture and using cognates are frequently used strategies. The results also indicated that students' use of vocabulary learning strategies varies across the four independent variables. As far as the use of digital tools for vocabulary learning, the findings indicated that the students in this particular cultural context use few available digital tools with a preference for online dictionaries, games and social networking web sites. The results showed that overall Romanian students are not very familiar with computer and mobile assisted language learning tools, their attitudes towards the use of digital tools for vocabulary learning are neutral and they mostly associate the use of personal devices with their personal space, suggesting that they may not want to embed learning in their everyday activities. The results enrich existing knowledge of vocabulary learning strategies in a Romanian cultural context and they also give us an insight into how high school students use computer and mobile assisted language tools in their vocabulary learning. Implications for theory and practice are also discussed.

A partir de inquietações pessoais sobre a profissão e a orientação pedagógica do professor realizada em uma escola, estabelece-se a problemática da formação dos professores de matemática sob uma perspectiva múltipla, em que a qualificação técnica não se separa dos aspectos sócio-culturais e éticos. Elementos de uma história pessoal, envolvendo a escolha da carreira, a formação acadêmica e o exercício docente em uma escola de educação básica dão o contexto à formulação dessas questões. A metodologia de trabalho é variada, envolvendo desde a análise de textos oficiais, documentos legais e instrumentos normativos, até a apresentação de propostas institucionais e a discussão de textos acadêmicos e outras publicações de interesse educacional. O relato dos princípios que regem o trabalho em uma instituição confessional de ensino ilustra o âmbito em que surgiu e se desenvolveu boa parte do interesse da presente dissertação. Um breve histórico da formação inicial dos professores de matemática no Brasil abre um questionamento sobre a necessidade e as dificuldades, vividas em diversos períodos de nossa história recente, de se compor uma formação conceitual em matemática, com as qualificações gerais demandadas pela função docente. São, em seguida, analisadas diversas proposições relativas ao trabalho do professor em geral e do de matemática em particular, no sentido de compatibilizar conhecimento disciplinar, capacitação pedagógica, valores humanos e visão de mundo. Concepções amplas sobre educação e conhecimento, em que a idéia de ordenamento seqüencial linear é superada por uma estrutura de rede, dão margem a se pensar a matemática mais interconectada transversalmente com outros saberes e domínios do conhecimento. O tipo de aprendizado em contexto, assim propiciado, encontra eco em diversas propostas envolvendo a educação de base e a correspondente formação docente; em uma e outra a idéia de projeto se mostra um recurso essencial. Revela-se de que forma a reformulação das bases da educação nacional situa, na última década, novos desafios também para a formação docente, convergindo com os pressupostos humanistas aqui defendidos, em que as disciplinas, como a matemática, são ensinadas tendo como centro as necessidades, competências e interesses dos alunos, no contexto social e produtivo contemporâneo. Mostra-se então que a entre as qualificações essenciais desejadas do professor de matemática, além do bom domínio conceitual em sua área, estão um compromisso ético e afetivo com a promoção do aluno, nas suas circunstâncias, uma identificação construída em torno de objetivos comuns com a instituição em que atua e uma compreensão do sentido social, político e filosófico de sua função, não somente, mas também consubstanciada nas diretrizes educacionais que presidem seu trabalho. / Personal doubts concerning the profession of being a teacher and the work as a teacher advisor at a school elicited different general questions about the formation of mathematics teacher. This questioning is made within a multiple approach, in which technical skills are not considered apart of the social, cultural and ethical qualifications. The effective choice of the carreer, the academic formation and the work as a school teacher give context to these questions. The methodology of the work includes since the analysis of official texts, legal documents and instructions norms to the presentation of institutional proposals and the discussion of academic papers besides other educational publications. The description of the principles that rule the work in a religious educational institution shows the environment in which most of the interest of the present work has started and developed. A short historical review of the initial formation of mathematics teachers in Brazil presents the necessities and difficulties felt in different periods of our recent history to conceive a formation in mathematics, with the general qualifications required to teach. Different propositions are then considered, concerning the work of the teachers in general and of mathematics teacher in particular, trying to combine knowledge of the subject, pedagogical skills, human values and world vision. Broad conceptions on education and knowledge, in which linear sequences are exchanged by network structures, allow an approach to mathematical knowledge transversely interconnected with other fields. Learning in context is the common feature of several proposals, that envolves fundamental education and the corresponding formation of teachers, and which makes use of project approach. It is then shnow how the reform of the basis of Brazilian education in the last ten years places new challenges also for teachers formation, that is convergent with humanistic milestones that guide this work. School subjects as mathematics are thaught in terms of needs, skills and interests of the students, in the context of contemporany society and productive system. As a conclusion, it is revealed that, besides a good conceptual understanding of this area, it is essential for the mathematics teacher construct an identification with the institutional goals of the school where he/she teaches, as well as a perception of his/her social, political and philosophical role.

A partir de inquietações pessoais sobre a profissão e a orientação pedagógica do professor realizada em uma escola, estabelece-se a problemática da formação dos professores de matemática sob uma perspectiva múltipla, em que a qualificação técnica não se separa dos aspectos sócio-culturais e éticos. Elementos de uma história pessoal, envolvendo a escolha da carreira, a formação acadêmica e o exercício docente em uma escola de educação básica dão o contexto à formulação dessas questões. A metodologia de trabalho é variada, envolvendo desde a análise de textos oficiais, documentos legais e instrumentos normativos, até a apresentação de propostas institucionais e a discussão de textos acadêmicos e outras publicações de interesse educacional. O relato dos princípios que regem o trabalho em uma instituição confessional de ensino ilustra o âmbito em que surgiu e se desenvolveu boa parte do interesse da presente dissertação. Um breve histórico da formação inicial dos professores de matemática no Brasil abre um questionamento sobre a necessidade e as dificuldades, vividas em diversos períodos de nossa história recente, de se compor uma formação conceitual em matemática, com as qualificações gerais demandadas pela função docente. São, em seguida, analisadas diversas proposições relativas ao trabalho do professor em geral e do de matemática em particular, no sentido de compatibilizar conhecimento disciplinar, capacitação pedagógica, valores humanos e visão de mundo. Concepções amplas sobre educação e conhecimento, em que a idéia de ordenamento seqüencial linear é superada por uma estrutura de rede, dão margem a se pensar a matemática mais interconectada transversalmente com outros saberes e domínios do conhecimento. O tipo de aprendizado em contexto, assim propiciado, encontra eco em diversas propostas envolvendo a educação de base e a correspondente formação docente; em uma e outra a idéia de projeto se mostra um recurso essencial. Revela-se de que forma a reformulação das bases da educação nacional situa, na última década, novos desafios também para a formação docente, convergindo com os pressupostos humanistas aqui defendidos, em que as disciplinas, como a matemática, são ensinadas tendo como centro as necessidades, competências e interesses dos alunos, no contexto social e produtivo contemporâneo. Mostra-se então que a entre as qualificações essenciais desejadas do professor de matemática, além do bom domínio conceitual em sua área, estão um compromisso ético e afetivo com a promoção do aluno, nas suas circunstâncias, uma identificação construída em torno de objetivos comuns com a instituição em que atua e uma compreensão do sentido social, político e filosófico de sua função, não somente, mas também consubstanciada nas diretrizes educacionais que presidem seu trabalho. / Personal doubts concerning the profession of being a teacher and the work as a teacher advisor at a school elicited different general questions about the formation of mathematics teacher. This questioning is made within a multiple approach, in which technical skills are not considered apart of the social, cultural and ethical qualifications. The effective choice of the carreer, the academic formation and the work as a school teacher give context to these questions. The methodology of the work includes since the analysis of official texts, legal documents and instructions norms to the presentation of institutional proposals and the discussion of academic papers besides other educational publications. The description of the principles that rule the work in a religious educational institution shows the environment in which most of the interest of the present work has started and developed. A short historical review of the initial formation of mathematics teachers in Brazil presents the necessities and difficulties felt in different periods of our recent history to conceive a formation in mathematics, with the general qualifications required to teach. Different propositions are then considered, concerning the work of the teachers in general and of mathematics teacher in particular, trying to combine knowledge of the subject, pedagogical skills, human values and world vision. Broad conceptions on education and knowledge, in which linear sequences are exchanged by network structures, allow an approach to mathematical knowledge transversely interconnected with other fields. Learning in context is the common feature of several proposals, that envolves fundamental education and the corresponding formation of teachers, and which makes use of project approach. It is then shnow how the reform of the basis of Brazilian education in the last ten years places new challenges also for teachers formation, that is convergent with humanistic milestones that guide this work. School subjects as mathematics are thaught in terms of needs, skills and interests of the students, in the context of contemporany society and productive system. As a conclusion, it is revealed that, besides a good conceptual understanding of this area, it is essential for the mathematics teacher construct an identification with the institutional goals of the school where he/she teaches, as well as a perception of his/her social, political and philosophical role.

This essay examines Swedish nursery children’s oral vocabulary knowledge in English. The aim is to investigate what they know and find the source to their knowledge. This essay will focus on the receptive and productive knowledge the children know based on the categories tested, how much children learn in their Zone of Proximal Development, how much they learn from context and how much does media and electronic devices influence their learning. The data of this essay were collected from interviews of 25 children and from questionnaires answered by their parents. The results of the study indicate that the children have more receptive knowledge of the English words tested. It also suggests that the productive knowledge they have is connected with the words that sound similar in Swedish and that children learn English from their surroundings such as siblings and parents, and from games on iPads and video clips from YouTube.

Submitted by admin tede (tede@pucgoias.edu.br) on 2018-04-19T18:14:24Z No. of bitstreams: 1 ROSA DOS SANTOS RIBEIRO.pdf: 2046252 bytes, checksum: 1af2c676c027800b94a447116d3f3715 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-04-19T18:14:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ROSA DOS SANTOS RIBEIRO.pdf: 2046252 bytes, checksum: 1af2c676c027800b94a447116d3f3715 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-02-24 / The present research is theoretical-bibliographical and aimed to map the published researches in the Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (BDTD) that approached the affectivity in the educational context. The theoretical basis is based on two theorists of great importance for education and for the development of teaching-learning, Piaget (1993, 1986) and Wallon (2010, 2008). Both were based on the affective and cognitive aspects of the individual, and sought to demonstrate step by step how the development of the human being. Thus, the present work aims to find, in the educational and pedagogical works of these theorists, concepts about affectivity in the process of cognitive development of the individual, listing positive contributions of the affective relationship between teacher and student for the school learning process. It also sought to answer the question: what is the view of the researchers in the contemporary scenario about affectivity and learning in the school context, in relation to the teacher and elementary school student? Thus, we seek to respond to this questioning based on the results of the researches that were published in the BDTD, from 2009 to 2014, and that addressed this theme. Therefore, to carry out this research, we used the virtual environment, that is, the digital library of the thesis and dissertation bank, where the following descriptive words were chosen: affectivity and education; affectivity and teaching-learning; affectivity and school context; and affectivity and fundamental education, to better guide our search and, consequently, our work. It is important to highlight that we have been able to prove that the affective and cognitive aspects are seen as a pedagogical practice that promote teachinglearning in the school. We come to this understanding by working according to the following categories of analysis: affective dimension in pedagogical practices; affectivity in the process teaching learning; teacher conception on affective and cognitive aspects; and teacher-student relationship in elementary school. These categories, especially for their pertinence, were valuable for the analysis of five researches that contemplated the theme under study, namely: The teacher of the 6th grade and his conceptions about affectivity: effects on teaching practice and learning (SILVA, 2011); The affective dimension in the pedagogical practices of literacy teachers in the initial years of Elementary Education (ANDRADE, 2014); Affectivity and literacy in the early years of elementary school (PINHO, 2014); The affective relationship in the teaching and learning processes between teachers and students in literacy classes (CERCE, 2013); And A small child in a large school: feelings and emotions at the entrance of the Elementary School of 09 years (GARCIA, 2012). / A presente pesquisa é teórico-bibliográfica e teve como objetivo mapear as pesquisas publicadas na Biblioteca Digital de Teses e Dissertações (BDTD) que abordaram a afetividade no contexto educacional. A fundamentação teórica baseia-se em dois teóricos de grande importância para a educação e para o desenvolvimento do ensino-aprendizagem, Piaget (1993; 1986) e Wallon (2010; 2008). Ambos se pautaram nos aspectos afetivo e cognitivo do indivíduo, e buscaram demonstrar passo a passo como acontece o desenvolvimento do ser humano. Sendo assim, o presente trabalho objetiva encontrar, nas obras educacionais e pedagógicas desses teóricos, conceitos sobre a afetividade no processo de desenvolvimento cognitivo do indivíduo, elencando contribuições positivas da relação afetiva entre professor e aluno para o processo de aprendizagem escolar. Buscou também encontrar resposta para a questão: qual a visão dos pesquisadores no cenário contemporâneo sobre a afetividade e a aprendizagem no contexto escolar, em relação ao professor e aluno do ensino fundamental? Assim, buscamos responder a esse questionamento com base nos resultados das pesquisas que foram publicadas na BDTD, no período de 2009 a 2014, e que abordaram essa temática. Portanto, para a realização desta pesquisa, usamos o ambiente virtual, ou seja, a biblioteca digital do banco de teses e dissertações, onde foram eleitas as seguintes palavras descritoras: afetividade e educação; afetividade e ensino-aprendizagem; afetividade e contexto escolar; e afetividade e ensino fundamental, para melhor nortear nossa busca e, consequentemente, nosso trabalho. É importante destacar que pudemos comprovar que os aspectos afetivos e cognitivos são vistos como uma prática pedagógica que promovem o ensino-aprendizagem na escola. Chegamos a essa compreensão ao trabalharmos de acordo com as seguintes categorias de análises: dimensão afetiva nas práticas pedagógicas; afetividade no processo ensino-aprendizagem; concepção docente sobre os aspectos afetivos e cognitivos; e relação professor-aluno no ensino fundamental. Essas categorias, sobretudo por sua pertinência, foram valiosas para a análise de cinco pesquisas que contemplaram a temática em estudo, a saber: O professor do 6º ano e suas concepções sobre afetividade: efeitos na prática docente e na aprendizagem (SILVA, 2011); A dimensão afetiva nas práticas pedagógicas de professoras alfabetizadoras dos anos iniciais do Ensino Fundamental (ANDRADE, 2014); A afetividade e alfabetização nos anos iniciais do Ensino Fundamental (PINHO, 2014); A relação afetiva nos processos de ensino e aprendizagem entre professores e alunos das classes de alfabetização (CERCE, 2013); e Uma criança pequena em uma escola de grandes: sentimentos e emoções no ingresso do Ensino Fundamental de 09 anos (GARCIA, 2012).

This thesis examines the potential of a learning outcome-led model of curriculum design to influence how students perceive learning in education studies within a modular context of a new university. It identifies and compares the conceptions of learning held by students and lecturers on traditional and outcome-led modules, and it explores and specifies the design factors which shape these conceptions. The issue is located within the interpretivist paradigm for the research seeks understanding which derives from the perceptions, attitudes and beliefs that students and their lecturers hold about learning in a given context. But the methodology employed is not wholly consistent with this paradigm, for a qualitative approach is complemented by the use of factor analysis techniques to facilitate the identification of the design features which influence how students perceive learning. The approach is thus eclectic drawing on quantitative methods to examine what is essentially qualitative data. An innovative model of learning outcome-led design is proposed, implemented and modified as a result of the research. The learner is placed at the centre of the learning experience which is defined as incorporating three domains: the teaching context; the assessment régime; and the directed learning undertaken by students outside of taught sessions. The model incorporates a trichotomy of outcomes which define the subject -specific, the transferable skills and the generic academic outcomes which influence directly both the content and process of learning, and which successful students are expected to achieve on completion of a module. The findings show that five design features influence how students perceive learning: the clarity of expectations; congruence between the content and process of each domain of the learning experience; direction in respect to the learning activities which should be undertaken in each domain to achieve the outcomes; and the content and process of the teaching context. The data suggest that a much higher profile should be given to metacognitive skills in curriculum development in HE because how students perceive both the process and the content of learning profoundly influences their conception of learning and, consistent with the underpinning theory, how they approach learning and therefore ultimately the kind of outcomes they achieve. The research leads to recommendations for the modification of the three models of learning in context; Ramsden (1988), Biggs (1990b) and Prosser (1995), which are presented and analysed in the thesis. The findings suggest that the learning experience should be redefined to specify the three domains - the teaching context, assessment régime and directed learning - and that clarity of expectations, metacognitive skills and congruence between the content and process of learning in each of the domains should be articulated as directly influencing students' conceptions of learning. The models should also seek to indicate that learning outcomes influence how students perceive learning, and that therefore they feature both at the starting point and as the end product of a contextualised learning process. The findings relating to students' conceptions of learning show that the study of outcome-led modules has resulted in a much greater degree of congruence between how lecturers and students perceive learning in a given module and that fewer students studying outcome-led modules hold a quantitative conception of learning. This suggests that the outcome-led model does have the potential to improve teaching and learning and consequently that there is an educational rationale for curriculum development premised on this model.

This study explores storybook illustrations in learning word meanings among English learners in a university intensive language program. The impact of children’s literature on the comprehension and vocabulary development of second language children is well-documented. However, the use of the literature with adults still needs to be researched. Therefore, a mixed-method study was designed (1) to investigate whether readers who read an authentic illustrated story differed from those who read the same story without illustrations; and (2) to learn more about the readers’ process of learning words from storybook illustrations. Results suggest that illustrations play an important role in both comprehending the text and learning individual words, however issues related to the accessibility of the text and readers’ ability to use context should also be taken into consideration. The findings support prior research that the benefits of learning from context take time to become robust. The study suggests that illustrated storybooks provide a rich context for adults to infer word meanings and recommends children’s literature as an alternative source of reading in programs serving adult English learners.

Tato práce pojednává o vytvoření mobilní aplikace zvažující kontext zařízení, která vybírá a doporučuje hudební skladby dle aktuálního stavu kontextu zařízení. Kontext je získáván na základě naměřených hodnot, které jsou získány z vestavěných senzorů mobilního zařízení a z ostatních systémových hodnot zařízení. Výběr konkrétní skladby je poté založen na výstupu modelu strojového učení, který klasifikuje kontext na základě aktuálních získaných dat a následně zvolí skladbu připadající k danému kontextu.