A textual analysis of papers about virtualization of pedagogical experiences in Ecuadorian universities in the context of COVID-19

A textual analysis is presented of a corpus of papers available in the document Proceedings of the Academia Online Meeting: New Ways for Academic Practice, Research, and Linking in Times of Social Distancing. The textual analysis is based on Roland Barthes' theory on the denotation-connotation relationship that guides a process of identifying denoted meanings and postulating their possible meanings. The methodology of the textual analysis elaborated from this theoretical foundation proceeds in the following steps: a) the clarification of the denoted meaning of relevant terms and repeatedly used in the papers; and b) the explanation of the classification strategy of terms associated with ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) that are used in papers with relative semantic rigor. For this purpose, explanatory paraphrases are developed of the definitions available in specialized sources. Next, the meaning of such terms in the original discursive line is clarified in order to understand the communicative intention of the authors. The results are organized around the following interpretation: the novelty attributed by the authors to ICT-supported resources and methodologies is relative to their experience and does not, however, imply a substantial modification of pedagogical practices widely disseminated in Ecuadorian universities.