Making Meaning Informal craft communities as sites of learning and identity development Miriam Gibson A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Otago Aotearoa New Zealand 2020 i ABSTRACT Situated in the field of adult learning, this thesis examines why individuals choose to engage in non-credentialed learning outside of formal education institutions, and explores how the individual’s sense of self is affected by participation in a Community of Practice where activity is the mediating factor. The study focuses on soft material craft activity, specifically, how learning is accessed and mediated in online and physical craft groups. This study seeks to both respond to, and advance, existing research into adult learning and making communities. The study is located within a social constructivist paradigm, drawing on Anna Stetsenko’s Cultural Historical Activity Theory, Etienne Wenger’s Communities of Practice, and Barbara Rogoff’s model of Learning by Observing and Pitching In. The study contains four data sets. The first focuses on the intra-personal effects of learning a new activity in an unfamiliar context through analysis of an autoethnographic narrative detailing the researcher’s personal experience learning traditional crafts in Peru. The remaining three data sets examine the inter-personal aspects of group learning. These include in-depth interviews with eight participants in online and physical craft groups, analysis of 345 posts and 2038 comments harvested from two online craft groups, and field notes detailing participant observations of four physical craft group meet-ups. Constructivist Grounded Theory and a General Inductive approach are employed in the analysis of data. Analysis of the four data sets resulted in three key findings. Firstly, that participants are motivated to engage in non-credentialed learning activity by a desire to align with desirable social narratives. Secondly, that previous experience in related Communities of Practice, particularly formal education, influences how individuals respond to, and make meaning from, unfamiliar ii activities. Thirdly, that the boundaries between Communities of Practice are critical to the development and performance of identity. These findings lead to the development of a holistic model for adult learning which articulates the multiple and overlapping contexts in which learning occurs, and the role these contexts, and the boundaries between them, play in the development of identity and the qualified self. I argue that participation in formal education results in the construction of meaning schema that influence how individuals make meaning from experience and I consider how this impacts on the learning that occurs in informal and non-formal contexts. The thesis concludes by considering the implications for adult learners, tertiary education institutions and education policy makers and suggesting directions for future research. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis has been the process through which I have navigated the boundaries between my identities as a maker and an academic. Writing it has changed the way I see myself and interpret the world around me. While I know the journey will never end, I would like to take this opportunity to thank those that have travelled with me and helped me to reach this point. To Dr Russell Butson, thank you for believing in me, for teaching me to question and for letting me chart my own course knowing you were always there to guide me. Our conversations have often taken me out of my comfort zone, but through them I have discovered my voice as an academic and the confidence to write a thesis that explores the issues that really matter to me. I will forever be grateful for your generosity and support. To Professor Rachel Spronken-Smith, thank you for your wisdom, kindness, and optimism. Your pragmatic guidance has kept me going throughout my thesis journey and your experience as an academic has brought clarity and focus to my work. Thank you for your hospitality when I have visited Dunedin, and for welcoming me into the Otago University post-graduate community. My thanks go to my interview participants who so generously shared their personal experiences with me and welcomed me into their homes and craft groups. Thanks also to my fellow Puchka Peru tour participants and our wonderful teachers. The time we shared together was a true journey of discovery and I will never forget it. Thank you to everyone at the Higher Education Development Centre at University of Otago. As a distance student I really appreciated how welcoming you were during my visits, and although I couldn’t participate in most of the post-grad activities, I always felt part of the HEDC community. Thank you to my friends and colleagues at New Zealand Fashion Tech, ServiceIQ and the Ministry of Education. My doctoral journey has run parallel to my professional journey into education and I am extremely grateful for all I have learned from you, and for the many conversations about education, learning and making we have had along the way. iv Thank you to my friends who have patiently sat through many explanations of my thesis and always shown an interest in my work. Your support and the times spent away from my thesis have been invaluable. Vee, we never did go on that stationary shopping trip you promised when you talked me into doing my masters with you! Thank you for introducing me to HEDC and for sharing the ride. Finally, my heartfelt thanks go to Bohdan, Lily, Bryan, Kat, Chris and Peta, and the rest of my whānau for your constant, unwavering support of everything I do. Bohdan, we met the day before you handed in your PhD thesis over 20 years ago, and it feels like now we have come full-circle. I could never have done it without you – thank you for all the cups of tea! Miriam Gibson June 9th, 2020 v TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 The relationship between social learning and formal education .............................................. 2 Flexible, adaptable, lifelong learners ............................................................................................................ 3 Adult Community Education ......................................................................................................................... 4 1.2 Why study craft learning? ............................................................................................................ 5 1.3 Locating the study ........................................................................................................................ 8 1.4 Situating the researcher ............................................................................................................... 9 1.5 Some notes on terminology ........................................................................................................ 12 Formal, non-formal and informal learning .................................................................................................. 12 The qualified self ......................................................................................................................................... 14 1.6 The structure of this thesis ......................................................................................................... 15 CHAPTER 2 – THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MAKING AND LEARNING ..................................................................... 17 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 17 The Arts and Crafts movement ................................................................................................................... 18 2.2 Categories of knowledge ............................................................................................................ 19 2.3 The transformative power of activity ......................................................................................... 20 2.4 Activity as a means of individual and social change .................................................................. 21 2.5 Learning in a Community of Practice ......................................................................................... 23 2.6 Craft and education .................................................................................................................... 24 2.7 Craft as social subversion ........................................................................................................... 25 2.8 New models of craft, new models of learning ............................................................................ 27 2.9 The future relationship of craft and education .......................................................................... 29 2.10 Summary .................................................................................................................................. 30 CHAPTER 3 – EPISTEMOLOGICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL INFLUENCES ON THE STUDY ............................................. 32 3.1 Comparing epistemological perspectives ................................................................................... 32 Qualitative approaches ............................................................................................................................... 32 Social Constructivism .................................................................................................................................