Challenge Accepted: Sociocultural Theory a (this) dummies guide

"I've looked at life from both sides now From up and down, and still somehow It's life's illusions I recall I really don't know life at all"

Songwriters: Joni Mitchell, Both Sides Now lyrics © Crazy Crow Music

Perspective!

So what? I hear you say, has Joni Mitchell and 'Both Sides Now' have to do with the theories of Socioculturalism and Sociocultural practices. Well I would argue a lot!

For most of us the theories on socioculturalism are not easy to navigate. Most of us have after-all been brought up to value concepts such as right and wrong, black and white. Humans in general do not do well with ambiguity and multiple perspectives.

Some of the core texts such as; Rogoff's 'Apprenticeship in thinking', Wenger's 'Communities of Practice', Vygotsky's 'Mind in Society', Wertsch's 'Mind in Action' and Lave & Wenger's 'Situated Learning' to mention a few, can at best challenge the novice reader such as me.

However even from the title of their respective works, there are clues. Clues to the concept of how society shapes us; clues to the concepts of communities and participation; clues to learning, knowledge and identity and clues to action, doing and engagement.

So how do I internalise the core concepts of socioculturalism and how do I understand these as impacting on my worldview and identity at this time?

Drawing on the aforementioned theorists here are the key points as I currently view them:

• Socioculturalism is about a constant interplay of engagement and reflection on the interaction of the personal, interpersonal and community (Rogoff, 2008). But what does this actually mean? Well for me it means my interaction with my own identity, with my colleagues and family and with my organisation and wider society is constantly shaping and evolving what I am and what I believe.

• ‘Situatedness’ (Wenger, 1998, pp. 144-159) within context is a critical shaping and influencing factor to understanding, learning and identity. These are all created in what might be described as a sort of response to the stimulus we experience within context.

• Wenger’ concept of a ‘nexus of multi-membership’ (1998, p.105) summarises this engagement and how we draw on the reifications (the values, norms and things of the community) of the communities to which we belong. These help us understand, navigate and learn, to become part of that community and this in-turn shapes our practice in other communities. Linked to this is the concept that is all evolutionary and thus reality as we perceive it is as ‘temporal’ (pp. 149-155).

• Thus in the wider sense reality and understanding of such concepts influenced by our history and society (Willig, 2008, p. 7). Or to paraphrase Wertsch, (2008) reality is something that is experienced uniquely through interaction with cultural, institutional and historical context . This means we all have a somewhat unique understanding of life, reality and knowledge.

So, coming back to Joni, how has she anything to do with all of this. For me her 'life's illusions' is a useful means of capturing the temporal, multi perspective and interpretative view of context that features within socioculturalism. The illusions we interpret as reality, being no more than the limits of our current understanding grounded in our historical, structural and cultural understanding.

For me the verse is also useful to remind me that if I am to be true to my sociocultural perspective, I need to ensure a wider perspective, embrace Rogoffs three planes of analysis and truly Incorporated Wenger's concepts if community and participation or I will be in danger of falling into the trap like Joni of accepting just the illusion.

I am of course not claiming this to be a theoretical definition of Socioculturalism. Please take it for what it is and no more. That is my current understanding of some of its key features.

I suspect, no I am confident that this will evolve as my research progresses.

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• Lave, J., 1988. Cognition in practice; mind, Mathematics and culture in everyday life. 2003 Digital edition ed. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press .

• Lave, J. & Wenger, E., 1991. Situated Learning; Legitimate peripheral participation. 20th (2009) ed. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press .

• Rogoff, B., 2008. Observing Sociocultural Activity on Three Planes: Participatory Appropriation, Guided Participation and Apprenticeship. In: Hall, K., Murphy, P. and Soler, J. ed. Pedagogy And Practice: Culture And Identities. London: Sage Publications.

• Vygotsky, L., 1978. Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processess. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

• Wenger, E., 1998. Communities of practice. New York: Cambridge University Press.

• Wertsch, J., 2008. From Social Interaction To Higher Psychological Processes A Clarification And Application Of Vygotsky’s Theory. Human Development , Volume 51, pp. 66-79.

• Willig, C., 2008. Introducing qualitative reserach in psychology. 2nd ed. Maidenhead: Open University Press.