This piece critically follows David Bakhurst's 2009 article "Reflections on Activity Theory" in light of recent developments in the field. It sketches three directions for further research. First, it examines his identification of "two strands" of activity theory (AT)--the philosophical, which he associates with E.V. Ilyenkov…

A survey of Kenyan school leavers (200 responses) and 34 interviews show that the exchange value of school-leaving exams is predominant and the use value of vocational programs has little impact. Apparently, 80% of school effort has actual exchange value for only 20% of school leavers, whereas 20% of effort directed at self-employment has…

The importance of students' views of the kind of work for which they are destined, or to which they aspire, may help to explain their dissatisfaction with school. Students' attitudes and behavior--arising from the social structural characteristics of the secondary school system--raise the question of the appropriateness of applying the Marxian…