Pragmatist ontology

Whilst I'm starting to feel that epistemology, conceptual framework, and other technical terms are starting to make sense, offering to do a small input to Ed D colleagues has put me into a bit of a spin about ontology or more specifically , what pragmatist ontology might be.

Ontology is concerned with ‘what is’- the structure of reality – and  informs the theoretical perspective of the researcher. For example,  that digital technologies are here to stay, are fast moving, that youth workers are informal educators, that digital technologies are being used as educational tools and that the two concepts are compatible. 

Dewey's ontology centres on experience, something that is constantly changing as we interact with the world.

"Because every experience is constituted by interaction between “subject”
and “object,” between a self and its world, it is not itself either merely physical
nor merely mental, no matter how much one factor or the other predominates.
. . . [experiences] are the products of discrimination, and hence can be understood only as we take into account the total normal experience in which both inner and outer factors are so incorporated that each has lost its special character. In an experience, things and events belonging to the world, physical and social, are transformed through the human context they enter, while the live creature is changed and developed through its intercourse with thingspreviously external to it. "(Dewey, 1981:251)

Dewey’s ontology  is 'transactional' (Clandinin, D & Rosiek, J.  2006:39) because it looks at the interaction between the subject and the environment in order to look at how the dynamics change and  “makes possible a new way of dealing with them, and thus eventually creates a new kind of experienced objects, not more real than those which preceded but more significant, and less overwhelming andoppressive” (Dewey, 1981: 175) . Here it can be said that knowledge, that 'which is' comes from our experiences and that these must be revisited in order to affirm our thoughts. This is where reflection plays its part, revisiting through reflection, processing that learning through experience, leads to knowledge creation. 

Have I got my head around it? Perhaps - feels ok...

 Clandinin, D &  Rosiek, J. 2006. Mapping a Landscape of Narrative Inquiry Borderland Spaces and Tensions. http://www.american-philosophy.org/events/documents/SIAP_2009_Clandinin_Proof-Ch2.pdf  accessed 20.11.2011

Dewey, J. (1981). The later works, 1925–1953: Vol. 10. Art as experience (J. A. Boydston, Ed.).
Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press.

Thank God for that....!!

I've been caught by structure rather than creativity and have now found what I need to liberate my thoughts!

Within a pragmatic approach, the researcher does not have to start out by identifying set methods which are followed through systematically. Pragmatism allows for ‘the truth’ to be determined by what emerge as the best methods at the time, thus avoiding conflicts for the researcher about what they intend to do and what actually happens.

This is backed up by my experience of finding the ‘’right’’ methods, methodology and approach throughout this assignment . Whilst it was necessary for me to start out with a framework based on methods that I felt comfortable with and that I thought would work, my original thoughts were to use concept mapping as a mucn more dominant part of the process, the analysis of which being supported by some form of discourse analysis. However, the more I researched these methods, particularly having carried out my research, the more I realised that the concept mapping process could not be a primary focus, nor could what I discovered be analysed through discourse analysis in a way that would produce the meaning that I was trying to find. This journey eventually led me to the CHAT framework and pragmatism via social constructionism and constructivism. This also support the concept of ‘agency’ which surfaces in much of the discourse about CHAT, that of my ability to choose and act upon issues, both structural and theoretical within my  field of research. 

Wish I could say that Vygotsky's 'double stimulation' technique was in my master plan originally, but hey, I can now say that this is what I've done! And it is pragmatism that allows me to focus on 'what works' rather than sticking to what would have been a  flawed and 'dishonest' process perhaps..

Seeing is believing?

“If a man is offered a fact which goes against his instincts, he will scrutinize it closely, and unless the evidence is overwhelming, he will refuse to believe it. If, on the other hand, he is offered something which affords a reason for acting in accordance to his instincts, he will accept it even on the slightest evidence. The origin of myths is explained in this way.” Bertrand Russell

Where does pragmatism fit with this view? I'm not sure it's just about instinct. There's also something about being able to visualise how something might work, what it would look like in practice. Pragmatism then allows for experimentation along the way in order to find what works, acknowledging that learning takes place even when things don't work so well. 

Myths are different because we all know really that they are just stories, don't we? It's surely about taking the lessons and then applying them that makes them endure? So, a common myth held within youth work currently is that young people don't want adults/youth workers in their digital space. For some, this myth is a convenient truth because it's tied up with their own interests and confidence in relation to digital tools. However, pragmatism would tell us to think about the possibilities and to give it a go, seeing what works and what doesn't. This also tied up with Dewey's idea of transactions: that a dialogue between all players enables the learning to be identified and shared, and the chance for innovation and creativity to flourish. His externalism - the view that mental events and acts are essentially dependent on the world external to the mind - links also to Vygotsky's social constructivism. The digital tools that we have access to as educators  cultural history, social context, and language and can be used as conduits to transact with young  people as well as enhancing how we engage. .