O USO DE AVATARES EM PROTÓTIPOS PEDAGÓGICOS ESTRUTURAIS PARA O DESENVOLVIMENTO DE DISCIPLINAS DISPONIBILIZADAS EM AMBIENTES VIRTUAIS DE APRENDIZAGEM

Abstract

The term avatar, derives from Sanskrit, meaningthe incarnation of God on Earth. In virtual environments itassumes a new signification; it constitutes an identityrepresentation of emotional character, and therefore, due toempathy, can make the interactive experience moreimmersive, pleasant and significant. The avatar caninfluence the quality of the relation established between thetutor and his students in learning processes mediated bycommunication technologies since, partially, they exploreelements of interpersonal identification. Based on thesepresuppositions, a course structure for learning virtualenvironments was constructed, considering different rolesfor the avatar, as well as the exploration of distinct mediaticresources. This model was used for the development ofbeginner graduate course disciplines for a privateuniversity, offered in the distance learning format. Themodel was later evaluated in relation to its contribution tothe construction of knowledge and its effectiveness as adistance education proposal.Index Terms ⎯ avatar, pedagogical prototypes, virtuallearning environment, immersion.