In their description of the conceptualizing knowledge process, Kalantzis and Cope (2010) explain, “specialized disciplinary knowledge is based on the finely tuned conceptual distinctions typical of those developed by expert communities of practice and characteristic of bodies of academic knowledge. In the case of teaching writing, for instance, students develop a metalanguage with which to describe how texts work…” (p. 209). The example of a metalanguage, used to illustrate the process of conceptualizing through classifying and defining terms (p. 208) reminds me of the love/hate relationship art school students have to artspeak. I remember sarcastically (and of course, sincerely) throwing out words like didactic, postmodern, ephemeral and quotidian. In the first year, each class isn’t complete until everyone has communally complained about the complicated and ‘pretentious’ use of language, but by fourth year, we are all fluent in some form of artspeak.
I explored the readings looking for common terms, considering not just what has been assigned this week, but words that have been relevant throughout my experience in this program. What words form education academia’s metalanguage? I collected several that I may return to in future keyword discussions: participatory, collaboration, differences, collective, agency – but I stopped on a word that I see repeatedly and have come to associate with education theory: Citizenship.
I know by its frequent and shared usage that it means more than to hold legal citizenship to a country (though that interpretation alone is packed with layers of significance). Considering other education theories, I can guess it relates to one’s sense of belonging to different spaces or groups, or their “lifeworlds” (p. 215). I connect citizenship to Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory: one’s learning is directly acquired through their social interactions, and perhaps their sense of citizenship is a factor that mediates (facilitates or hinders) this process. Searching outside of the readings, I came across Meira Levinson’s (2014) definition/explanation of citizenship and civic education:
It can cover solely the specific rights and duties of legal citizens, but usually it is used more capaciously to indicate the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that children are expected to learn to be virtuous and civically productive members of society. Citizenship and civic education are key concepts in philosophy of education because their meanings, aims, and practices are so contested, both among philosophers and among actors on the ground like parents, educators, politicians, students, and members of diverse cultural groups (p. 1).
The New London Group (NLG) (1996) calls for a new way of activating citizenship. They state that, “effective citizenship and productive work now require that we interact effectively using multiple languages, multiple Englishes, and communication patterns that more frequently cross-cultural community and national boundaries” (p. 64). This expanded perception of citizenship reflects and supports NLG’s concept of multiliteracies: one’s sense of self and sense of place in the world – or – their sense of citizenship is enriched when cultural and technological multiliteracies are engaged. Kalantzis and Cope (also members of NLG) thread this perspective into their 2010 article The Teacher as Designer: pedagogy in the new media age and provide a framework and direction for real world applications and examples of education designed with the inclusion of multiliteracies.
What lifeworlds am I a citizen of, and how do I engage in my own identity of citizenship? Surely, I am/we are on the periphery of one associated with education academia, and the exploration of the metalanguage is one way towards a deeper understanding.
References
Kalantzis, M., & Cope, B. (2010). The teacher as designer: Pedagogy in the new media age. E-Learning and Digital Media, 7(3), 200–222. https://doi.org/10.2304/elea.2010.7.3.200
Levinson, M. L. (2014). Citizenship and civic education. Encyclopedia of educational theory and philosophy. (D. Phillips, Ed.). Sage. http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:12701475
The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review, 66(1), 60-93. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.66.1.17370n67v22j160u