The integration of digital technologies in Education - in this paper, especially in the language teachers' training - has aroused discussion among Applied Linguistics researchers, mainly when theories which are part of the "mainstream Applied Linguistics" (LARSEN-FREEMAN, 2000) cannot embrace the phenomenon of social relationships on which learning is based. In search of a theoretical approach that can deal thoroughly with the complex behaviors in the educational experience - in which teachers and students are inseparably included - support has been found on the Complex Thought Theory (MORIN, 1995), Chaos Theory (GLEICK, 1989) , the Emergence (JOHNSON, 2003) and the Qualitative Values Theory (PIAGET, 1973). Also, reflections resulting from research on groups of (in-service and pre-service) teachers in an online course through a virtual learning environment (VLE) are related here. It has been noticed that taking these groups as complex systems lets us identify factors that promote their maintenance and allow interactive behaviors to emerge, which are essential for learning in a socio-constructivist perspective.
language teacher education; complex systems; virtual learning environments; socio-interactive entropy