By applying cultural-historical activity theory and expansive learning theory to educational research, this volume illuminates new forms of educational activities as collaborative interventions in schools and communities where learners and practitioners generate expansive learning so that they can collectively transform their activities and expand…

Worldwide, access to higher education is still a privilege. This unique volume recounts the experiences of students from two rural provinces -- one in Pakistan, one in the Republic of Ireland -- who have struggled to undertake graduate studies. Seeking to understand why some are able to persevere with studies against enormous odds, the authors…

"Risk Society and School Educational Policy" explores the impact of risk society on policy in the US, UK and Australia through both practical and theoretical perspectives. The book develops an in-depth understanding of risk society itself, and guides the reader in applying this knowledge to the problem of how this impacts policy and…

Globalization has become one of the most recurrent concepts in social and political sciences. More often than not, however, the concept is handled without much of a properly articulated theory capable of explaining its historical origin and expansion. For education researchers attempting to elucidate how global changes and processes affect their…

Description Contents Resources Courses About the Authors Understanding Sociological Theory for Educational Practices introduces readers to the contemporary classroom through the lens of sociological theory. By compelling readers to think critically and reflexively this book helps future teachers create a welcoming and equitable learning…

This book responds to growing recognition by international education professionals, policy makers, and funding partners of the need for qualified teachers and interest in the subject of teacher professional development (also referred to as "teacher behavior change"). The book responds to important questions that are fundamental to…

Today, millions of students cross geographic, cultural, and educational borders for their higher education. Trends of international student mobility are significant to universities, educators, business leaders, and governments to increase revenue and campus diversity in the global marketplace. As such, it is vital to examine recent trends in…

The "tribes and territories" metaphor for the cultures of academic disciplines and their roots in different knowledge characteristics has been used by those interested in university life and work since the early 1990s. This book draws together research, data and theory to show how higher education has gone through major change since then…

It is now nearly thirty years since sociocultural theories of learning created great excitement and debate amongst those concerned with learning in diverse contexts. Since that time significant advances have been made in sociocultural theory and research. Various sociocultural approaches to the understanding of learning (for example, sociocultural…

This important, timely, and thought-provoking reader is a collection of original chapters by authors from five different countries, each of whom explores a facet of transformative leadership. Transformative leadership is fundamentally a critical approach to leadership that goes well beyond the tenets of most current leadership theories to focus on…

Cognitive capitalism--sometimes referred to as "third capitalism," after mercantilism and industrial capitalism--is an increasingly significant theory, given its focus on the socio-economic changes caused by Internet and Web 2.0 technologies that have transformed the mode of production and the nature of labor. The theory of cognitive…

Issues and themes in the contemporary social sciences are explored in a collection of papers by South African scholars. Thirty-five papers are organized by 10 themes. The first theme, metatheory in the social sciences, includes: "Beyond Relativism in the Natural and Social Sciences" (M. Hesse); and "A Critique of Bhaskar's…

The 11 papers in this book address, from a sociological perspective, a variety of contemporary educational reform issues in Great Britain. The papers examine the direction and role of sociological research in education. Sociology education has an important role to play in raising questions about the British educational system and its premises. The…

This cross-cultural investigation of racism in the lives of black women explores everyday manifestations and perceptions of racism. The daily experiences of individuals are combined with a structured account of racism in an interdisciplinary framework. Empirical data consist of verbal accounts gathered in 1985 and 1986 in non-directive interviews…

This book examines some of the main problems arising in the sociology of education, and seeks to shed light on the methods that are frequently employed to study them. An attempt is made to distinguish the formal level of education from the real level of education. On the basis of the formal level of education researchers can divide populations…