Dra. Badilla-Quintana, María Graciela

Considering multi difficulties that determine the labor of rural teachers who perform their teaching practices in semi-isolated contexts, it is necessary to provide them a supportive system which favors their pedagogical performances to benefit rural students’ education. The aim of this phenomenological study is to describe and analyze how e-mentoring can strengthen pedagogical performances of primary rural teachers with complex geographical accesses in Chile, exploring the subjective experiences of four couples of teachers and mentors that take place in this process by e-mail relationship. Results show the necessity of considering the accompaniment as a horizontal pedagogical assistance which can be influenced by the technological resources availability, identifying an adequate profile of e-mentor to influence teacher adherence to the process, such as his communicative style, empathy, pedagogical and cognitive skills. Finally, this investigation allows projecting a viable model to be applied as support for rural education with access to Internet resource.

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the involvement showed by 190 students who participated in an introduction to Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) project, in public schools from Spain. By means of an Internet browsing test, access and information selection processes were afforded. The purpose of the study was to explore whether students who usually worked with ICT in their classrooms, had better knowledge and management with computing tools, and if they are better prepared to research and select information. Results show that students of elementary and secondary education, who have a greater contact with ICT, but not specifically introduced to searching for information on the Internet, know how to use the technology. All these students show better knowledge and control of the computer as well as presenting better Web literacy skills. Although they found, organized, used and assessed the information better their literacy in Web information is missing key skills, especially in analyzing, assessing and summarizing information.