AARE seminar - Impact of Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) on STEM

I learned a lot from attending the Australian Association of Research in Education (AARE) seminar titled "Impact of Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) on STEM (Science, technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Research and Education Practice from Early to Primary years" 

Here is the description: 

STEM education research has received enormous attention all over the world because the 21st century requires STEM-skilled humans. CHAT emphasises that children’s learning and development process, from lower form to higher mental functions, requires valued social or cultural experiences (Vygotsky, 1997). While STEM education has been researched in many ways, CHAT offers a unique/ valuable theoretical perspective because it helps to understand children’s conceptual (STEM) learning and development as a dynamic process (Vygotsky, 1987) where conceptual learning occurs in everyday contexts. To provide participants with insight into the value of using CHAT in STEM education research, this seminar (finishing with a Q&A), will provide: a background on CHAT examples of how this theory can be used when researching STEM education. The seminar combines presentations from a research expert and two PhD students to offer diverse perspectives on using CHAT in STEM education research. 

• Presentation 1: Laureate Professor Marilyn Fleer, Monash University, Australia Rising to the concrete: Concept development of children from infancy to end of primary school in Conceptual PlayWorlds (Laureate Professor Marilyn Fleer) 

 

 

• Presentation 2: Ms Jenny Dwyer, Charles Sturt University, Australia How can children’s mathematical graphics provide a steppingstone for children’s development of everyday and scientific (mathematical) concepts? (Ms Jenny Dwyer, PhD Candidate) 

• Presentation 3: Ms Winnie Chen, University of Canterbury, New Zealand Exploring the potential use of cultural-historical activity theory to unpack early childhood teachers pedagogical practices regarding children’s digital play. (Ms Winnie Chen, PhD Candidate) 
• Moderators: Dr Shukla Sikder, Senior Lecturer, Charles Sturt University, Australia and Dr John Cripps Clark, Senior Lecturer, Deakin University, Australia 
  

Shared knowledge and mutual respect: Enhancing culturally competent practice through collaboration with families and communities

The following article has just been accepted for publication.  It is the final paper to be published from Sarah's PhD.
Verdon, S., Wong, S., & McLeod, S. (2015, in press November). Shared knowledge and mutual respect: Enhancing culturally competent practice through collaboration with families and communities. Child Language Teaching and Therapy. 
Here is the abstract:

Collaboration with families and communities has been identified as one of six overarching principles to speech and language therapists’ (SLTs’) engagement in culturally competent practice with children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (Verdon et al., 2015a). The aim of this study was to describe SLTs’ collaboration with families and communities when engaging in practice to support the speech, language and communication of children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. The study also aimed to identify the benefits and tensions related to such collaborations and to describe opportunities for SLTs to enhance their cultural competence through engagement with families and communities. The current study drew upon three data sources collected during the Embracing Diversity – Creating Equality study: field notes, narrative reflections by the researcher, and semi-structured interviews with SLTs. This study was conducted in 14 international sites across five countries (Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, Italy and the US) representing a diverse range of cultural and practice contexts. Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT, Engeström, 1987) was used as both an heuristic framework though which the study was conceptualised and as a tool for analysis to describe the varied nature of collaboration in different cultural contexts, the benefits of collaborating with families and communities, and the tensions that can arise when engaging in collaborative practice to support multilingual children’s learning and education. The results illuminate the importance of SLTs’ collaboration with families in order to gain an understanding of different cultural expectations and approaches to family involvement, and to build partnerships with families to work towards common goals. Collaboration with communities was highlighted as important for its ability to both facilitate understanding of children’s cultural context and build respectful, reciprocal relationships that can act as a bridge to overcome often unspoken or invisible tensions arising in cross-cultural practice. The findings of this study highlight opportunities for professionals involved in supporting children’s development to enhance the cultural competence of their practice through engagement with families and communities.

First publication for 2015

Here is our first publication for 2015:

Verdon, S., McLeod, S., & Wong, S. (2015). Reconceptualizing practice with multilingual children with speech sound disorders: People, practicalities and policy. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders, 50(1), 48-62. doi: 10.1111/1460-6984.12112
It is available here

Background: The speech and language therapy profession is required to provide services to increasingly multilingual caseloads. Much international research has focused on the challenges of speech and language therapists’ (SLTs) practice with multilingual children.
Aims: To draw on the experience and knowledge of experts in the field to: (1) identify aspirations for practice, (2) propose recommendations for working effectively with multilingual children with speech sound disorders, and (3) reconceptualize understandings of and approaches to practice.
Methods & Procedures: Fourteen members of the International Expert Panel on Multilingual Children's Speech met in Cork, Ireland, to discuss SLTs’ practice with multilingual children with speech sound disorders. Panel members had worked in 18 countries and spoke nine languages. Transcripts of the 6-h discussion were analysed using Cultural–Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as a heuristic framework to make visible the reality and complexities of SLTs’ practice with multilingual children.
Outcomes & Results: Aspirations and recommendations for reconceptualizing approaches to practice with multilingual children with speech sound disorders included: (1) increased training for working with multilingual children, their families, and interpreters, (2) increased training for transcribing speech in many languages, (3) increased time and resources for SLTs working with multilingual children and (4) use of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF-CY).
Conclusions & Implications: The reality and complexities of practice identified in this paper highlight that it is not possible to formulate and implement one ‘gold standard’ method of assessment and intervention for all multilingual children with speech sound disorders. It is possible, however, to underpin practice with a framework that ensures comprehensive assessment, accurate diagnosis and effective intervention. This paper proposes that by working towards the aspirations of the Expert Panel, SLTs can be empowered to facilitate appropriate services for multilingual children regardless of the context in which they live and the languages they speak.

International Society for Cultural and Activity Research Conference

This week Sarah Verdon is presenting two papers from her PhD at the International Society for Cultural and ActivityResearch Conference in Sydney.

• Verdon, S., McLeod, S., & Wong, S. (2014, September). Using CHAT to explore speech-language pathology practices from around the world with culturally and linguistically diverse children. International Society for Cultural and Activity Research Conference, Sydney, Australia.
• Verdon, S., McLeod, S., & Wong, S. (2014, September). Imagining new possibilities for embracing cultural and linguistic diversity in children with communication difficulties. International Society for Cultural and Activity Research Conference, Sydney, Australia.

The continued mobility of people across geographic boundaries has made the world a melting pot of people from diverse linguistic and cultural backgrounds. As a result, monolingual and monocultural approaches to supporting the needs of children with communication difficulties are not effective among diverse populations. To address this issue, the International Expert Panel on Multilingual Children’s Speech was assembled in 2012. Fourteen members of this panel met in Cork, Ireland to discuss future aspirations for the transformation of the speech-language pathology profession in its provision of services to children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Six hours of discussion were recorded and transcribed. Analysis of the transcribed data was undertaken using Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) as heuristic framework. The individual components of CHAT (object, subject, mediating artefact, rules, community and division of labour) were considered in relation to the panel’s discussion. This analysis revealed that within each component tensions existed between what panel members imagined as the ideal enactment of speech-language pathology practice, and the current reality of service provision. The findings of this analysis reflected a need to view children holistically, by acknowledging and incorporating their individual culture and exposure to language(s) into all aspects of planning and implementing strategies to support them to prosper in the context of their daily lives. Members of the panel advocated the use of the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health - Children and Youth version (ICF-CY). This framework was seen by panel members as a transformative tool which could be used to empower speech-language pathologists in their practice by facilitating consideration of the many internal and external factors that may influence children’s speech and language development. This presentation will highlight the productivity of using CHAT to identify possibilities for influencing changes to complex activity systems by identifying inhibitory processes occurring within the system and identifying means to affect these changes. In making achievable changes to everyday practices, speech-language pathologists have the potential to challenge the existing constraints of practice and influence the transformation of the profession in working towards positive outcomes for culturally and linguistically diverse children.