Purpose:

To analyze the characteristics of hypermedia notes during tutoring by committees and to know the attributions that students give them in the accompaniment of their learning and reflection.

Methodological design:

From a sociocultural discourse analysis approach, 106 hypermedia notes from 39 tutoring sessions are analyzed as a discursive genre. A focus group with students is analyzed to find out their reading practices and opinions about hypermedia notes.

Results:

Hypermedia notes are structured with the use of headings and according to the development of tutoring session. Schemes, arrows, and boxes are incorporated to provide hierarchy to the text and to connect information. The students' reading strategies are analytical and are accompanied by other actions such as the comparison of their own and their tutors’ notes and reflection on their performance in the tutoring sessions. Students consider hypermedia notes as an aid for reflection and decision-making in their research.

Research Limitations:

Further studies are needed to fully understand students’ reflective thinking. The study is carried out in only one postgraduate group; therefore, it is only possible to generalize in relation to the group studied.

Findings:

Hypermedia notes are a cultural artifact for the mediation of thought and the formative accompaniment of the graduate student.