Culture, Learning, and Development and the Natural World: the Influences of Situative Perspectives
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Educational Psychologist ISSN: 0046-1520 (Print) 1532-6985 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/hedp20 Culture, Learning, and Development and the Natural World: The Influences of Situative Perspectives Megan Bang To cite this article: Megan Bang (2015) Culture, Learning, and Development and the Natural World: The Influences of Situative Perspectives, Educational Psychologist, 50:3, 220-233, DOI: 10.1080/00461520.2015.1075402 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2015.1075402 Published online: 29 Sep 2015. Submit your article to this journal Article views: 5 View related articles View Crossmark data Citing articles: 2 View citing articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=hedp20 Download by: [University of Washington Libraries] Date: 01 October 2015, At: 13:38 EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST, 50(3), 220–233, 2015 Copyright Ó Division 15, American Psychological Association ISSN: 0046-1520 print / 1532-6985 online DOI: 10.1080/00461520.2015.1075402 Culture, Learning, and Development and the Natural World: The Influences of Situative Perspectives Megan Bang College of Education University of Washington The study of human learning and development from situative or sociocultural perspectives has had significant impacts on a wide range of scholarship largely driven by the theoretical and methodological focus on understanding the role of activity systems in cognition and development. This article first explores how situative perspectives have advanced fundamental knowledge about how culture and race impact learning and development and works to demonstrate how these understandings have enabled new insights into folk- biological cognition. Traditional cognitive, cross-cultural, and situative perspectives with respect to folkbiology are compared and contrasted to demonstrate how situative perspectives enabled more complete understandings of the complexities of biological cognition. These complexities are conceptualized as the conceptual and epistemological ecologies of activity systems. Implications for education are considered. The study of human learning and development from situa- have expanded our foundational knowledge of human tive or sociocultural perspectives has had significant learning, as well as led to important practice-based innova- impacts on a wide range of scholarship. The expansion of tions in learning environments. knowledge has been largely driven by the theoretical and Differences between traditional cognitive perspectives methodological focus on understanding the role of activity and situative perspectives are often crystallized by an inter- systems in cognition and development, as opposed to focus- est in understanding individuals with a focus on internal ing on individuals in decontextualized contexts or on mental processes in contrast to a focus on individuals in mind alone (e.g., Greeno, 1997, 1998; Greeno, Collins, & interaction and sense-making in localized activity. Although Resnick, 1996). Activity systems are constituted of subjects there are a multitude of influences giving rise to this turn in in specific contexts; are object oriented, meaning they have the field, it has been heavily influenced by neo-Vygotskian an objective or purpose; have discernable configurations or scholars, taking up Vygotsky’s ideas about the acquisition participation structures; employ artifacts, tools, and tool of higher psychological processes occurring in interaction Downloaded by [University of Washington Libraries] at 13:38 01 October 2015 meditation; typically have rules or governing principles with others in the life of one’s cultural community that shape interaction; and have some division of roles (e.g., Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989; Cole, 1995, 1998; (e.g., Engestrom,€ 2001). More simply, to explain why and Gonzalez & Amanti, 2005; Goodenow, 1992; Greeno et al., how people think and act in the world the way they do, 1996; Gutierrez & Rogoff, 2003; Lave, Murtaugh, & de la scholars employing situative perspectives often study and Rocha, 1984; Lee, 2003; Rogoff & Chavajay, 1995; characterize how people in places interact with each other Vygotsky, 1978; Wertsch, 1993). The distinction crystal- toward goals often utilizing materials to mediate and sup- lized when “situative scholars” called into question the ade- port their interactions and goals. Situative perspectives quacy of accounts of individual internal mental processes have been fruitfully taken up across a broad range of phe- separated from the activity systems in which things nomena (e.g., from memory and emotion to decision mak- occurred (e.g., Hutchins, 1995). There remains some dis- ing and language production to the study of domains) and agreement about whether research should be seeking to characterize human universals or the diversity of human Correspondence should be addressed to Megan Bang, College of Edu- sense-making (ojalehto & Medin, 2015); however, it is cation, University of Washington, Miller Hall, Box 353600, Seattle, WA increasingly accepted that what people think and how 98195. E-mail: [email protected] people think are interdependent and sculpted by the daily NATURE CULTURE 221 activities, discursive practices, participation structures, and teaching and learning focused on the natural world typi- interactional processes in activity that shape development cally located in science classrooms. over the life course (e.g., Greeno, 2011). These dimensions are typically not the dimensions of focus in traditional cognitive research engaged to explain the how, why, and SITUATIVE PERSPECTIVES: ADVANCING what of human thought. CONSTRUCTIONS OF CULTURE AND LEARNING In this article I focus on the ways in which situative perspectives have expanded the study of human cogni- Situative perspectives have advanced understandings of tion and development specifically with respect to the culture and learning both conceptually and methodologi- natural world (often called biological or folkbiological cally. For example, a key contribution of situative perspec- cognition) and explore emerging trends and implications tives with respect to culture and race has been the for educational practice. My focus on folkbiology is compelling and empirically supported argument for the intertwined with the critical contributions situative per- need to move away from “box models” approaches to cul- spectives, also called sociocultural perspectives, have ture and race that assign people to discrete categories of made to understanding and studying culture and race. culture, race, and ethnicity, among others (Gutierrez & To begin I review the theoretical and methodological Rogoff, 2003; Lee, 2003), to a view of culture as dynamic advances sociocultural perspectives have made with repertoires of practices (Nasir, Rosebery, Warren, & Lee, respect to culture and learning; these are then taken up 2006). From a sociocultural perspective, culture, learning, in subsequent sections focused on folkbiology. Begin- and development are seen as dynamic, contested, and vari- ning with this is necessary because the situative perspec- ably distributed and transformed within and across groups tives I take up in folkbiology are driven by the and involve a reciprocal and evolving relationship between conceptual progress made in understanding race and cul- individuals’ goals, perspectives, values, and their environ- ture more broadly. ment (Cole, 1998; Rogoff, 2002; Hirschfeld, 2002; Lave, After this broad review, I then explore how tradi- 1988; Lave & Wenger, 1991; Nasir & Hand, 2006; Nasir, tional cognitive perspectives and situative perspectives Rosebery, Warren, & Lee, 2006; Rogoff, 2003). Culture, in have both diverged from and complemented one another this sense, is both historically constituted and dynamically through two groups of studies focused on specific changing through participation in social practices and mak- aspects of biological cognition (anthropocentrism and ing sense of life. More simply put, all people explore, nar- core biological concepts). Through these examples I rate, and build knowledge about their worlds, but they do demonstrate how the situative perspective makes visible so in varied ways that are dynamically linked to particular dynamics in cognition simply not detectable without the contexts. It is important to note that these practices also focus on interaction in activity. I then explore a third reflect epistemic and ontological orientations; thus, particu- group of studies conducted from both cognitive and sit- lar forms of knowing and being in the world are cultivated uative perspectives that propose a focus on conceptual in activity (e.g., Bang, Warren, Rosebery, & Medin, 2013; and epistemic ecologies as a generative direction for Bell, Lewenstein, Shouse, & Feder, 2009; Rogoff & Lave, future research. Conceptual and epistemic ecologies gen- 1984). In short, culture is brought to life in the unfolding erally consist of both what and how people think, what social practices of activity systems, not through assigned is “knowing” and the implications for being and doing stable categorical memberships that are often reflective of in the context of dynamic activity and interaction in cul- dated biological determinism. This complex dynamism of tural practices. From this third group of studies, I argue both individuals and variations across communities has Downloaded by [University of Washington Libraries] at 13:38 01 October 2015 that the study of biological cognition