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Hi Lawrence, I was really absorbed by your question "How can we influence social formations outside the classroom?" And to be as brief as possible, might I venture the answer "When we acknowledge the influence of social formations *within* the classroom? By this, I mean that we tend to see formal learning as a solitary activity in which we design for an individual and then assess the individual. We use groups but tend to see them as a passive structure to achieve an instructional purpose when those others are actually an active influence on our thoughts and development. There are movements and practices in Education that already seek to explicitly connect the inside and outside world. Reggio Emmilia is perhaps one of the most well known of those. Our social identity approach (SharedThinking) is also one that uses a whole-group approach to reflective practice and connects to other classes as well as to the world beyond through group biographies & group portfolios. I won't expand too much but suffice it to say that I will continue to think about your useful and interesting question. I'm grateful to you. Best Wishes, Nick -------------------------------------- Nicholas Bowskill, SharedThinking The Social Identity Practice for Learning Web:http://sharedthinking.co.uk Nicholas Bowskill is a Kelvin-Smith Scholar at University of Glasgow. He is lead tutor for SEDA online workshop on Introduction to Educational Change and an online tutor (Education) at University of Derby. SharedThinking is an independent consultancy. On 22 April 2013 09:15, Lawrence Martin Olivier <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Hi Geitza > > > > What is happening in your society (and as you say a “so called socialistic > government”!) has huge challenges – in such a context how is it possible to > have an educational influence on the social formation? And so too with > Syria? > > > > What helps me to understand these troubling issues is what Liz Campbell > wrote (in the same paper I referred to below, Jack et al) – Liz on Page 37 > drawing on hook’s (1994) idea of being “part of a larger song” writes “ …. > I discovered and exercised my voice through living theory action research. > I found a way to meaningfully join in the larger song”. I find this very > helpful to understand what we can do as educators in such difficult > contexts – Nelson Mandela from my own country must have understood this! > > > > Lawrence > > > > *From:* Practitioner-Researcher [mailto: > [log in to unmask]] *On Behalf Of *geitza rebolledo > *Sent:* 20 April 2013 04:30 PM > > *To:* [log in to unmask] > *Subject:* Re: Researching Our Own Practice > > > > Hi Jack, Lawrence and all, > Thanks very much for bringing this ideas into the group!! Iliked > Lawrence point concernning , "what one is doing to improve practice extends > into influencing social formations outside the classroom." > I could also add the example of the situation we are facing in > Venezuela. We had presidential ellections in Venezuela, last week,after 14 > years of a so called" socialistic government " that brought to Venezuela > the highest inflation in the world, expropiation of land and propertyes > that distroyed the production industry in the country ,the highest violence > shooting killing in the streets,( the average for las month was 300 > people killed),.. ... and many facts that picture a country in caos .... > Concernning the results of the ellections I could say that the process of > reaching a result was in darkness..... . The board encharged came with a > victory of the government candidate when the evidence was the opposite.More > than 3.000 irregular claims were issued , among them those that included > gun millicias asking the people encharged of the places were the ellection > was taking place to leave and run for their life, also shootings at the > entrance of the voting places... > People went into the streets to protest the results given by the official > board and they were terribly repress by the army !!! More than 8 people > were killed !!! > It made us think also on the values of governments officials when the > main interest is to keep the power !!! .....We try to discuss these > aspects at Universities, but the main question remains how can one help > to influence the development of other values outside formal education ??' > .... greetings,g. > > > Date: Sat, 20 Apr 2013 08:08:34 +0000 > > From: [log in to unmask] > > Subject: Re: Researching Our Own Practice > > To: [log in to unmask] > > > > Hi Jack > > > > Thank you and your co-researchers for making a contribution to "my own > learning" about, "living educational theory", about developing a "culture > of inquiry", and about "the values we believe carry hope for the future of > humanity". I was particularly "energised" by this piece you wrote in a > paper: > > > > " I see the recognition of the significance of expressing and sustaining > a pooling of life-affirming energy within a culture of inquiry, together > with the commitment to sustain this pooling of energy within this > cooperative inquiry, as perhaps our most important contribution to > educational knowledge and to our living legacy. My interest in > understanding sociohistorical and sociocultural influences and integrating > implications of these understandings in what one is doing to improve > practice extends into influencing social formations outside the classroom." > (page 19, "Action research transcends constraints of poverty ..... "). > > > > This seems important for me in a hectic week of key "moments", where I > (living and teaching in Durban, South Africa) have witnessed through the > power of TV : the London funeral service of Margaret Thatcher (and the > reflections on, Thatcherism, the connections to Reagonomics, to neoliberal > ideology and their connections to recent crises in global financial markets > and with banking practices and government/taxpayer bailouts of collapsing > banks; followed by the Boston Marathon bombings, the service in the Boston > Cathedral, the story of the two bombers, one a 19 year old student. There > was also in these moments a strong connection made to matters of religion, > the diversity and similarities of our spiritual beliefs. I learned more > about Religion/Faith, about God,about Death, about Harm, about Evil, about > Good, about Courage, about Humanity. > > > > Are there not lessons to be learned here about what we do in our > classrooms in our schools and in our universities - the "culture of > inquiry"? For example, is the Science of Economics, the curriculum, just > about abstract theoretical laws, unrealistic assumptions and mathmatical > models? Is there a space, a place for a "living curriculum", Economics as > if people matters? Why does a 19 year old student plant a bomb? What are > the influences? > > > > Indeed, how can we influence social formations outside the classroom? > > > > Lawrence > > > > > > > > ________________________________________ > > From: Practitioner-Researcher [[log in to unmask]] > on behalf of Jack Whitehead [[log in to unmask]] > > Sent: 16 April 2013 03:22 PM > > To: [log in to unmask] > > Subject: Re: Researching Our Own Practice > > > > Here are some details of practitioner-researcher contributions to AERA > in San Francisco on the 28 and 29 April 2013 and to the Inaugural > Conference of the Action Research Network of the Americas in San Francisco > on the 2 May 2013. I've put the details in the What's New section of > http://www.actionresearch.net . If you have accounts to share from > researching your own practice do please send the urls to me and I'll add > them to the resources on actionresearch.net. I've still time to modify > the Workshop presentation below so if you have suggestions on how to > strengthen this resource do please let me know: > > > > Workshop at the inaugural conference of the Action Research Network of > the Americas on 2nd May 2013 in San Francisco on 'What could the Action > Research Network of the Americas contribute to and learn from the learning > of others?' at: > > http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/aera13/jwarnawork2013.pdf > > > > An international Round Table discussion on Creativity And Criticism In > The Growth Of Educational Knowledge From Researching One’s Own Practice. at > the inaugural conference of the Action Research Network of the Americas on > 2nd May 2013 in San Francisco at: > > http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/aera13/arnaRTprop2013.pdf > > > > Jacqueline Delong, Elizabeth Campbell & Jack Whitehead, with Cathy > Griffin on 'How are we creating cultures of inquiry with self-studies that > transcend constraints of poverty on empathetic learning? at the American > Educational Research Association Conference in San Francisco on the 28th > April 2013 at: > > http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/aera13/jdlcjwaera13cgopt.pdf > > > > Elizabeth Campbell, Jacqueline Delong & Cathy Griffin, with Jack > Whitehead on 'Action research transcends constraints of poverty in > elementary, high school and post-graduate settings' at the American > Educational Research Association Conference in San Francisco on the 29th > April 2013 at: > > http://www.actionresearch.net/writings/aera13/lcjdcgaera13jwopt.pdf > > > > Love Jack. > > > > ________________________________ > > > > "This e-mail is subject to our Disclaimer, to view click > http://www.dut.ac.za/pages/22414" > > ------------------------------ > > "This e-mail is subject to our Disclaimer, to view click > http://www.dut.ac.za/pages/22414" >