Contexts for Learning: Sociocultural Dynamics in Children's Development (Book)

We look across two studies, conducted within the current new managerialist policy context in Australia, which capture the construction of social spaces mediated through the nexus of material, activity, and discursive space. The focus of the first study is the negotiation of identities for a second language (Indonesian) teacher and his Indigenous and non-Indigenous students. The social space of their classroom is carnivalized, parodying traditional teacher/student relationships, and stripping the teacher of his authority. The students position the teacher as Other and, in the process, map the border of "white" space, temporarily allowing Aboriginal students access to dominant discourses. The second study documents strategies for reengaging young people who are not enrolled in mainstream schools. While policy makers have not articulated processes for reengagement, the default or implicit strategy of organizations that fund programs to reconnect young people in learning or earning pathways emphasizes information dissemination, or reengagement as contact. However, some youth workers are remaking the social space of school, enacting a strategy that prioritizes reengagement as commitment. These studies highlight the way processes of schooling dis/place both teachers and students. Our response is to consider ways of dis/placing school.