Tópicos de Geometria Plana Com o Software Geogebra: Proposta de sequências Didáticas

De acordo com a realidade das escolas em que trabalho, o ensino da geometria plana está deficitário, fazendo com que os alunos esqueçam com facilidade certas definições e propriedades. Um recurso que pode (e deve) ser usado é o que essa dissertação propõe: softwares educacionais para o estudo da geometria plana. Para ser mais objetiva é proposto o uso do software GeoGebra, que é gratuito, para mostrar alguns tópicos da geometria plana. A ideia é levar cada aluno a assimilação de definições e propriedades através de construções geométricas, usando-se o GeoGebra em sequências didáticas. Estas sequências didáticas poderão ser usadas inclusive em qualquer série do Ensino Médio, pois um dos objetivos do projeto é dar suporte para os alunos, independentemente da série que estão cursando. As primeiras sequências têm o objetivo de mostrar alguns recursos do software e as demais, construções geométricas e propriedades envolvidas

Designing Year 12 strategy training in listening and writing: from theory to practice

This article outlines some of the key issues involved in developing a programme of strategy training for learners of French, in listening and in writing. It highlights the theoretical perspectives and research findings on listening and writing that informed the selection of strategies to teach learners and thence the development of appropriate materials. Examples of these materials are given as well as advice regarding their use. The article concludes with suggestions for how strategy training might be incorporated into teachers' own work with learners

Transition from Secondary school CLIL to EMI at University: Initial evidence from research in Italy

Through vocabulary tests, interviews with students and recordings of classes/lectures, we measured students' English vocabulary knowledge against the vocabulary in the teachers' talk, the nature of classroom interaction in the two settings and the students' approaches to their learning in general and their in-class listening strategies in particular. In this way we aimed to identify the challenges students faced in English-medium education in the secondary and tertiary educational phases

Designing and Piloting a Tool for the Measurement of the Use of Pronunciation Learning Strategies

What appears to be indispensable to drive the field forward and ensure that research findings will be comparable across studies and provide a sound basis for feasible pedagogic proposals is to draw up a classification of PLS and design on that basis a valid and reliable data collection tool which could be employed to measure the use of these strategies in different groups of learners, correlate it with individual and contextual variables, and appraise the effects of training programs. In accordance with this rationale, the present paper represents an attempt to propose a tentative categorization of pronunciation learning strategies, adopting as a point of reference the existing taxonomies of strategic devices (i.e. O'Malley and Chamot 1990; Oxford 1990) and the instructional options teachers have at their disposal when dealing with elements of this language subsystem (e.g. Kelly 2000; Goodwin 2001). It also introduces a research instrument designed on the basis of the classification that shares a number of characteristics with Oxford's (1990) Strategy Inventory for Language Learning but, in contrast to it, includes both Likert-scale and open-ended items. The findings of a pilot study which involved 80 English Department students demonstrate that although the tool requires considerable refinement, it provides a useful point of departure for future research into PLS

Adult beginner distance language learner perceptions and use of assignment feedback

This qualitative study examines perceptions and use of assignment feedback among adult beginner modern foreign language learners on higher education distance learning courses. A survey of responses to feedback on assignments by 43 Open University students on beginner language courses in Spanish, French, and German indicated that respondents can be classified into three groups: those who use feedback strategically by integrating it into the learning process and comparing it with, for example, informal feedback from interaction with native speakers, those who take note of feedback, but seem not to use it strategically, and those who appear to take little account of either marks or feedback. The first group proved to be the most confident and most likely to maintain their motivation in the longer term. The conclusion discusses some of the pedagogical and policy implications of the findings

Facilitative effects of learner-directed codeswitching : Evidence from Chinese learners of English

This study examines the interaction between learner-oriented codeswitching (CS) practices and the degree to which intermediate Chinese L2 learners of English engage in classroom interaction. The guiding questions are whether the teacher's CS use facilitates classroom interaction at moderate L2 proficiency, and if so, at which specific stages of the lesson, and to what extent. A systematic comparison of two classroom types was carried out in the same Chinese secondary school, with English-only instruction versus with English–Chinese CS. A combination of quantitative and qualitative analyses was based on class observations (two classes per type) and subsequent teacher interviews. CS behaviour was analysed in relation to the particular teaching focus of the task at hand. Interviews included a stimulated recall technique using selected CS extracts to enrich insights from the teachers' perspective. The results showed a higher student response frequency as well as a longer mean utterance length in CS classes. Overall, codeswitches were systematically distributed across lesson stages and were closely related to changes in the teaching focus. These findings call for an optimal use of CS in instructed environments so as to maximise its benefits via a sensitive adjustment to specific pedagogic aims

Designs for Heritage Language Learning: A Photography project in the UK Supplementary Education

Supplementary Schools in the UK offer educational opportunities for children and young people outside mainstream school provision. The paper reports an enquiry undertaken by practitioners in Greek Supplementary Schools in the UK to explore how features of mobile technologies may be leveraged to foster heritage language learning. It draws on the view that mobile learning can be a way for learners to explore the language informally and direct their own development (Kukulska-Hulme, 2015) and may also shape the learners’ ‘habits of mind’ (Wong, 2012, p.22) in learning—and consequently their language competencies. The project #ItsAllGreekToUS set to investigate how to create learning designs to incorporate effective use of mobile technologies within language learning and teaching. It draws on action research orientation and uses the idea of ‘Bring Your Own Device’ (BYOD) (JISC, 2013) in educational settings. The study involved several sessions around the concept of ‘loanwords’ and representations of this vocabulary in artefacts created with the use of mobile phones and a popular photography application (e.g. Pinterest). The participants were fourteen students (12-13s) attending a pre-GCSE class in a Greek School in London and nine students (12-14s) attending a GCSE class in a Greek School in Leicester. Evidence from user-generated content, the pupils’ views around the project and the practitioners’ observations are considered. The paper will discuss how students’ practices associated with mobile technologies are integrated into teachers’ practice. Particular attention will be drawn to designing language learning by blending traditional language classroom practices along incorporating the practices of sharing and curating content, as well as allowing ‘visibility’ through artefacts created by the learners

Giving up on modern foreign languages? Students' perceptions of learning French

This article reports on the findings of an investigation into the attitudes of English students aged 16 to 19 years towards French and how they view the reasons behind their level of achievement. Those students who attributed success to effort, high ability, and effective learning strategies had higher levels of achievement, and students intending to continue French after age 16 were more likely than noncontinuers to attribute success to these factors. Low ability and task difficulty were the main reasons cited for lack of achievement in French, whereas the possible role of learning strategies tended to be overlooked by students. It is argued that learners' self-concept and motivation might be enhanced through approaches that encourage learners to explore the causal links between the strategies they employ and their academic performance, thereby changing the attributions they make for success or failure