Learning and Socio-cultural Theory: Exploring Modern Vygotskian Perspectives International Workshop 2007

Towards Inclusive Schools: An Examination of Socio-cultural Theory and Inclusive Practices and Policy in New South Wales DET Schools

R. M. Dixon — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:22:09 PDT

The purpose of this paper is to consider the relevance and consistency of socio-cultural theory to inclusive practices and the implementation of current government policy on inclusion. The policies of the NSW DET for the development of inclusive schooling will be examined. The implications of recent legislation as well as the recent initiatives such as Special Education initiative, curriculum changes, and collaborative processes will be analysed. A brief review of the major tenets of social cultural theory that relate to special education is presented. An analysis is made as to how socio-cultural theory can serve as a theoretical framework to address the needs of teachers and students and enhance the development of inclusive schools in New South Wales. The discussion will centre on the implications of this synthesis for policy, practice in special education and theory, which may then be fed back into further development of the policy.

Institutional Collaboration, Context and Learning

H. Bound — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:22:08 PDT

Collaboration between institutions is inherently difficult; requiring working across different worlds. In this paper collaborative activity between institutions is conceived of as an actualisation of context in the social relations of production of the evolving collaborative activity. The paper draws on the work of Marx in unfolding the social relations of production of a Marine ICT Cluster and three main institutions involved in the evolution of the Cluster. As the Cluster evolves perceptions of tensions and contradictions is an inevitable process of the mediation of context embedded in the social relations of production. Learning is inherent in these social relations. Using these core concepts, this paper aims to bring together a conceptual framework developed in my PhD thesis.

University Student Learning in Everyday Life Activity: Place, Time, and Media

H. Takahashi — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:22:07 PDT

A lot of Japanese universities introduce some e-learning systems into their education. In this paper, we ask 22 female university/college students to report when, where, and what they do, and which kind of media/tool they use for their everyday life activities. We asked them to do this, every 15 minutes for a week. We also interview the students after their reporting everyday life activities, and analysis the log data of the system use. We describe students' activities in their everyday life and learning. We discuss the meaning of students' learning activities, especially activities using the e-learning system and other information and communication technology in their everyday life from the perspective of Vygotsky's ideas of media/tool. Some implications for future research are outlined.

Intercultural Internet Chat and Language Learning: A Socio-cultural Theory Perspective

S. E. Pasfield-Neofitou — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:22:06 PDT

Chat can create a natural context for learner independence and second language acquisition. However, as a developing variety of interaction, Internet chat has unique linguistic and interactional features that are distinct from either oral or written communication. This study uses Socio-cultural theory, in particular, Activity theory, to examine the characteristics of Japanese – English intercultural Internet chat, the ways in which learners use this medium as an opportunity to communicate in their target language, and the strategies chat participants utilise. Naturalistic data was gathered from five Australian advanced learners of Japanese, and their five Japanese chat partners, in the form of chat logs, collected over the period of a month, and follow-up interviews, both face-to-face, and over the internet. Participants identified turn management, code switching, error correction, issues of identity, computer literacy and symbolic interaction, among others, as areas of concern or interest. Conversation analysis was used to discover numerous linguistic and interactional features in the ten chat logs collected, in terms of turn taking, language features, and features linked to computer literacy and amount of experience in using chat. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of these findings for learners, teachers and researchers

Applying Communities of Practice to the Learning of Police

M. Campbell — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:20:57 PDT

This paper presents an argument for the application of Wenger’s (1998) theory of a community of practice to develop understanding of the learning that occurs in early-career police. The focus of this research is on the ways that early career police learn the craft of policing. Early career police are defined as police in their first three years of service. This definition is formed from the general requirements of the New South Wales Police for the completion of one year probation and two further years as a general duties constable prior to application to transfer or specialise. During the probation year police officers continue to undertake further formal university-based study. Police learning experiences will be investigated using Lave and Wenger’s social theory of learning and the notion of communities of practice, applied within a para-military police culture. The argument is that a community of practice can be used to explore, and better understand, the impact of field experience on the learning of police post their compulsory recruit training. At present there is only a few studies of this issue, such as Chan et al. (2003), Fielding (1988) and van Maanen (1978); these studies tend to cease at the conclusion of the probation year, are not set within the recent context of a university provided education, as is the case in New South Wales, and there exists no research applying community of practice theory in this context. It is intended that in exploring the learning and socialisation process, this research will contribute to the understanding and realisation of professionalism in policing, facilitate the improved design of the Associate Degree in Policing Practice (ADPP) and lead to better understanding of how police learn to be police, thus contributing to the design of training and education that can target their development.

Learning What Is Not Yet There: Knowledge Mobilization in a Communal Activity

A. Kazlauskas — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:20:56 PDT

Professionals at the cutting edge of their field are often faced with problems for which there is currently no solution. As learners, they are challenged to learn “what is not yet there” (Engeström, 1991, p. 270) and to pass this new knowledge on to others. This research into the work of a group of expert scientists investigated how one particular community of scientists generated, developed and implemented robust and reliable solutions for application in a demanding, high-profile context. The concepts of expansive learning, negotiative knotworking and the shared object of third generation activity theory, together with co-configuration assisted the identification and explication of the elements of the knowledge mobilisation process within this global community. The research also identified the key role in the complex task of knowledge creation for a trusted, shared private space that could be visited regularly by these scientists.

First Year in Higher Education: New Tools to Support Students in Transition

P. Lysaght — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:20:55 PDT

The focus of this paper is the development of a CD-ROM as a means of supporting undergraduate students beginning their first year of study in the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong. The CD, entitled Dive In: A Guide for Beginning Students, has been developed as a tool to support the engagement of students during their transition to university life. From a Vygotskian perspective, effective learning is more likely to take place when individuals are afforded opportunities to grow into the culture that surrounds them (Vygotsky, 1978). The CD supports this objective by providing relevant information in ways that allow new students to engage with the culture of the university and the demands that this entails. One of a number of innovative features of the CD is the degree of involvement of experienced students at every level of its development. By drawing on the wisdom of continuing students as well as staff within the faculty and across the university, it has been possible to develop a comprehensive body of information to support the needs of new students. The result is a portable resource using informal language and engaging graphics that makes the information presented both relevant and readily accessible to students in transition.

Vygotsky Goes Online: Learning Design from a Socio-cultural Perspective

A. Hall — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:19:47 PDT

Student centred online learning courses are often designed according to a socioconstructivist approach. Socio-constructivist approaches are proposed to be a blend of the theories of constructivism as well as those of socio-culturalism. Although this is a commonly held view, Vygotsky proponents believe that the two approaches are fundamentally different. According to Vygotsky environment should be the starting point for learning, and that the student-centred learning should be designed within the Zone of Proximal Development. Vygotsky theories are the basis of problem based learning, cognitive apprenticeships which are frequently used in online courses, but there is very little in the literature that provides practical examples of how fully online courses can be structured based on these sociocultural theories. This paper proposes how this can be done and provides examples from an online course.

E-Learning Practices: Exploring the Potential of Pedagogic Space, Activity Theory and the Pedagogic Device

I. Robertson — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:19:47 PDT

In conceptualising e-learning as a new pedagogic space, this paper builds on work which argues that the theoretical frameworks of Activity Theory and Bernstein can be brought into a productive relationship (Daniels, 2001a, 2001b, 2004). Using Activity Theory (Engestrom, 1999, 2001; Engestrom, Miettinen, & Punamaki, 1999) and Basil Bernstein’s pedagogic device (Bernstein, 1996, 2000), an examination of the dynamics that shape practice when e-learning technology is introduced into face-to-face teaching practice is undertaken. Activity Theory is shown to be successful in identifying the tensions/contradictions that emerge when the two activity systems of face-to-face teaching and e-learning technologies come into juxtaposition. The possibility for expansionist learning through reflection, discussion and critical analysis is examined. Bernstein’s pedagogic device is found to be useful in examining the means through which pedagogic discourse is established and maintained. Specifically, the notion of recontextualisation is shown to provide the opportunity to operationalise the mechanics that shape pedagogic practice when e-learning is integrated into teaching. It is concluded that the two frameworks provide different lenses for research that are complementary in examining the dynamics that shape teaching practice.

The Development of Expertise Within a Community of Practice of Scrabble Players

E. Okulicz — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:19:46 PDT

This research examines the ways that highly ranked, competitive Scrabble players develop their skills and expertise. It focuses on the role of social interactions in the development of their expertise as members of the community of practice of Scrabble players. Using nine case studies and semi-structured interviews as a primary source of data, the research seeks to explore the range of interactions of the experts with other Scrabble players and the curriculum of knowledge that facilitated their journey from novice to expert. The professional interactions among peers in reference to tournaments, the bonds and friendships that have developed in the social sphere that accompanies club and tournament play, and specific relationships within the community such as rivalries, alliances and mentor/protégé relationships have been identified. In addition, the development and maintenance of cognitive and metacognitive skills of the experts, both inside and outside of the community, are explored.

Young Children Thinking and Talking: Using Sociocultural Theory for Multi-layered Analysis

J. Robbins — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:18:40 PDT

Traditionally in science education, research on young children’s thinking about the natural and physical worlds is categorised and explained in terms of the mental models or schemes they purportedly hold. Frequently informed by Piagetian or constructivist paradigms, their ideas are commonly described as being alternative, naïve, untutored, erroneous - or other deficiency model terms. However, when sociocultural theory is used to inform data generation and analysis, a different and more positive explanation of their thinking can be made. This paper will present a study that used firstly Rogoff’s (2003) three foci of analysis followed by aspects of Vygotsky’s (1987, 1997, 1998, 1999) theorising to inform the analysis of conversations with young children about the sun and rain. This provided an innovative way for considering how children develop ideas about the world. It also revealed that their thinking is often complex and powerful. Some implications for science education and for research with young children will be briefly addressed.

Mapping the Relations Between Everyday Concepts and Scientific Concepts Within Playful Learning Environments

M. Fleer — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:18:40 PDT

This paper presents the findings of a study which sought to map the relations between everyday concepts and scientific concepts within situated playful encounters in early childhood settings. Video and transcript data were gathered from one preschool over a four-week period. All free play and organised play activities were captured. The study found that children’s investigative probes were mostly random when teacher knowledge of the concepts was limited. The findings add to Vygotsky's theoretical work on complexive thinking and provide new insights into how play-based contexts generate or minimise concept formation in early childhood.

Constructing Identities - Developing Skills: Cases of Workers with Poor Literacy Skills

M. Kell — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 19:17:34 PDT

The Vygotskian concept of a Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) has been explored extensively in school education settings as a means of determining cognitive change. Evidenced in settings characterised by social activity ZPDs are present in the cognitive process that occur when humans interact in and with their natural or man made environments. While most research around ZPDs concerns classrooms, particularly in the early years, this paper reports on a study of nine workers who self-report literacy difficulties. The study investigated whether the artefacts of as well as the human interactions that take place in the workplace merged in ZPDs to enhance the cognitive process. Results demonstrate a quite particular set of human and man made factors that result in new skills in solving novel problems in the workplace. Further the study illustrates how cognitive skills develop into adulthood and result in enhanced concepts of identity. Implicit in this process is recognition of a range of multiple literacies. The study concludes that Vygotsky’s notion deserves reconceptualisation for learning settings that Vygotsky did not consider.