More than just story‐telling: cultural-historical activity theory as an under‐utilized methodology for educational change research

摘要

Sociocultural theory is increasingly popular as a paradigm for research in education. A recent member in this family of theories is introduced—cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT)—that shows much promise to complement and invigorate the field of educational change, a large, multi‐faceted, and persistent problematic. In particular, CHAT‐based research can address five areas where educational change research experiences weaknesses and shortcomings: (1) the failure to fully analyse the context; (2) a tendency towards reductionism rather than embracing complexity; (3) low sensitivity to the effects of power and politics; (4) lack of concern with emotions and identity; and (5) the rapidity at which new innovations are often introduced. These arguments are exemplified with a case study of a secondary school in Singapore that had devised a new inquiry‐based science curriculum. The paper concludes with some implications for promoting CHAT‐based research in educational change.View full textDownload full textKeywordseducational change, cultural‐historical activity theory, research methods, science educationRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220272.2010.513069