Theory and Educational Research: Toward Critical Social Explanation (Critical Youth Studies) Review

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Theory and Educational Research: Toward Critical Social Explanation (Critical Youth Studies) ReviewThis is an excellent discussion of how to effectively use critical social theory in a dissertation or other research. Most of the book consists of thoughtful descriptions by 6 of Anyon's former doctoral students of how they used theory in their dissertation research; Anyon provides a valuable introductory chapter, and Michelle Fine's epilogue gives a useful commentary on the the 6 dissertation chapters. Two comments: 1) the book focuses almost exclusively on what's called critical social theory (Marxist, feminist, postmodern, critical race theory, and other "progressive" theories), although many of the points made are applicable to using theory in general. A book that provides a good discussion of using a broader range of theories is Mark Dressman, Using social theory in educational research: A practical guide. 2) I would have liked to see more critique of the theories used; this is something that Dressman's book devotes more attention to.
For a longer discussion of the book, see my review on Gene Glass's website Education Review; the URL is [...] (Amazon apparently won't let me insert a link to this).Theory and Educational Research: Toward Critical Social Explanation (Critical Youth Studies) Overview

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The Social Life of Information Review

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The Social Life of Information ReviewIf you would like proof of the authors' thesis in the Social Life of Information, all you have to do is read all the reviews for the book. Take a moment and do that, then come back here...
Finished? Any thoughts?
Okay, here's their basic thesis: most interesting information is socially situated, socially constructed, or otherwise impossible to tear from its human roots and package into transferrable units of "knowledge". This has major implications for the viability of certain kinds of information systems, educational programs, and the evolution of an "information society". Yet, most information workers and information products appear to be oblivious to these implications.
The proof? Ask yourself how you feel when you read a book review on-line. How do you feel when one review raves about the book and another review lambasts it? How do you feel when a reviewer gives you instructions that he expects you to follow, as I just gave? Do you follow them? What point is there to my asking "any thoughts?" when obviously you can't answer?
You don't know me. You can't trust me. I'm not a part of your social system. The only way I can participate in your learning at all is if you see in these words something that touches you... and if so, that is little more than a happy coincidence: neither of us could have planned it.
My point is that these reviews offer an illusion of a social system, but there's nothing much behind that illusion. It's cool write one, yes, in the way that scratching my name on a tree used to feel cool. But I find it very difficult to put these reviews to any practical use. I can't know who to trust. Isn't that how you feel, too? Consequently, these reviews are not capsules of knowledge pouring into your thirsty head. This review system is an example of the sort of shallow informationism that the authors complain about in their fascinating book.
So why am I writing a review if I don't think it's likely that you'll find what I say useful? Well, I'm really writing to my students and colleagues, with each of whom I already have a connection. You know who you are. I teach software quality assurance and testing. This is a wonderful book that I recommend as a tool for making sense of how a process specialist's place in the social order influences his prospects for getting anything useful done.
This book drove the final nail in the coffin of my hope that if I could only write a good enough process document, someone would follow the processes I prescribe. Now I know better. Not because Brown and Duguid say so (I don't know them, either) but because what they say rings so true to my *own* experience. People learn primarily by doing and experiencing in a system that includes other people. We are not merely information consumers. Process standardization, in the knowledge world, is therefore a fruitless or dangerous pursuit without considering the social context of practices.
Thanks for reading. (why am I thanking you? I'm stuck in this illusion of online society!)
For more on this, see my review of Cognition in the Wild. I can't promise that will help, but you might get lucky.
-- JamesThe Social Life of Information Overview

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