International Journal of Education and Development using ICT

International Journal of Education and Development using ICT > Vol. 11, No. 3 (2015)

The Cyberculture Theories and Teacher Preparation at the LIFE-UFC Project in Brazil

Eduardo S Junqueira, Universidade Federal do Ceará, Brazil

Abstract
This paper analyses the experience of pre-service teachers enrolled in a course at a Brazilian university that was guided by three Cyberculture Laws formulated by Lemos (2004) – which entail "transmitting connecting and reconfigurating" information and practices – and by Connectivism's concept of "relevance" (Siemens, 2004). They interacted with a high school class as they collaborated to develop networked learning materials based on quality resources gathered on the internet on a topic of the students' choice. Pre-service teachers worked in teams and searched, selected and customized online resources and developed related technology-based learning materials and activities. These materials were made available on a online web interface. Instructor facilitation was a key element of the process as it helped pre-service teachers develop a better understanding about cyberculture as they applied it to teaching and learning guided also by the interests and feedback provided by school students. This experience indicated the importance of instructor's explicit guidance to help pre-service teachers incorporate cyberculture laws in their teaching in meaningful ways, i.e. how to engage in dialogue with their students, how to select quality learning resources from the internet and how to transform them to develop learning materials that are appealing to the students.

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