The concept of 'communities of practice' (Lave and Wenger 1991, Wenger 1998) has become an influential one in education, management, and social sciences in recent years. This book consists of a series of studies by linguists and educational researchers, examining and developing aspects of the concept which have remained relatively unexplored. Framings provided by theories of language-in-use, literacy practices, and discourse extend the concept, bringing to light issues around conflict, power, and the significance of the broader social context which have been overlooked. Chapters assess the relationship between communities of practice and other theories including literacy studies, critical language studies, the ethnography of communication, socio-cultural activity theory, and sociological theories of risk. Domains of empirical research reported include schools, police stations, adult basic education, higher education, and multilingual settings. The book highlights the need to incorporate thinking around language-in-use, power and conflict, and social context into communities of practice.

Since the turn of the century the phenomenon of learning has received increasingly more attention. Within the theoretical field, a variety of theories of learning have evolved. The field of research on learning has become very complex, with different foci, founders and proponents, schools, and disciplinary approaches. This book is a first publication in the On the definition of learning network. The network arose out of the aspiration to study the phenomenon of learning in depth and to understand its complex relationship to empirical investigation and teaching. Based on the assumption that it is important to be sensitive to the variety of concepts and theories of learning in the field, and to continue to cultivate that variety, the book takes a step towards actively and critically engaging the various approaches in the field of learning theory. At the same time it emphasizes the complex relationships that exist between conceptualizations of learning and the empirical phenomenon of learning and teaching. It discusses how conceptualizations of learning are put to work in educational contexts and how the normative aspects of learning in relation to discussions of what is considered worth learning influence the formative processes of human development.

This book is a systematic introduction to learning psychology. It describes, analyzes and explains learning by means of 19 scenarios from everyday situations. The reader may therefore connect theoretical considerations with experiences he or she can easily follow. Several scenarios stem from family situations, others from school and business, and still others refer to very individual learning processes: modification of one's own behavior, acquisition of motor skills, or elaborating one's knowledge structures or problems solving abilities. Having worked through the 19 scenarios the reader will be acquainted with the important learning theories: behavioristic, cognitive, social-cognitive as well as the Gestaltists'.