Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP), Brazil
2010-2014
The State University of São Paulo (UNESP) houses its teacher education program for EFL and world languages in the town of Assis, in the rural western part of the state of São Paulo. The students I worked with at UNESP-Assis were generally pre-service English teachers preparing for careers in Brazilian elementary, middle, and secondary schools.
Most of these students do not have the opportunity to live and study in a country where English is spoken as the official language. Language practice with a native speaker through online telecollaboration, or teletandem, is indispensable for them.
Activities
My partnership with the teachers and students at Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) in Assis, Brazil, began when I met Dr. João Telles at Georgetown University in 2009 after he presented a paper on the telecollaboration program he founded in 2006 at UNESP, Teletandem Brasil: Foreign Languages for All.
I had just completed my Ph.D. comprehensive exams and explored topics for my dissertation prospectus. After meeting Dr. Telles and seeing his presentation on Teletandem, I felt that Teletandem was a relevant, innovative, and worthy topic that fits well with my interdisciplinary background.
September 2011
I submitted the final draft of my prospectus on Teletandem to my dissertation committee in the School of Education at VCU. The prospectus was approved, and I became a Ph.D. candidate on September 13th. The IRB application was approved on October 14th (IRB-HM13976).
October 2011
I visited UNESP-Assis for the second time to observe the VCU-UNESP sessions from UNESP and collect data for my research. During this visit, I met and collaborated with other teletandem researchers from UNESP campuses in Marilia and São Jose do Rio Preto.
November 2011
I returned to VCU to collect data from the VCU participants and observe the sessions from VCU. Transcription of the data will be completed by December 12th.
December 2011
I will meet with my dissertation Chair to develop a framework for analyzing and reporting on the research data.
January 2012
Dr. Telles provided intensive mentorship in helping me to develop of Analysis and Discussion chapters of my dissertation.
April 2012
I successfully defended my dissertation at Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Education.