From Inquiry to Academic Writing A Practical Guide, 3rd edition

120 ChAPTer 5 | From FormulATing To DeVeloPing A Thesis

communities are characterized as static and unchang-

ing and general traits of individuals are attributable

categorically to ethnic group membership.

In my work (Gutiérrez, 2002; Gutiérrez & Rogoff,

2003), I have argued the importance of moving beyond

such narrow assumptions of cultural communities by

focusing both on regularity and variance in a com-

munity’s practices (as well as those of individuals).

Employing a cultural-historical-activity theoretical

approach to learning and development (Cole & Enge-

ström, 2003; Engeström, 1987; Leontiev, 1981) is one

productive means toward challenging static and a his-

torical understandings of cultural communities and

their practices, as this view focuses attention on varia-

tions in individual and group histories of engagement

in cultural practices. Variations, then, are best under-

stood as proclivities of people who have particular his-

tories of engagement with specific cultural activities,

not as traits of individuals or collections of individu-

als. In other words, individual and group experience in

activities-not their traits-become the focus.

Within this view, it becomes easier to understand

the limitations of learning styles approaches in which

individuals from one group might be characterized as

“holistic learners” — where individuals from another

group may be characterized as learning analytically

or individuals may be divided into cooperative versus

individualist learners on the basis of membership in

a particular cultural group. Such methods ignore or

minimize variation and focus on perceived or over-

generalized regularities. Further, learning styles ped-

agogical practices have been used to distinguish the

learning styles of “minority” group members and to

explain “minority” student failure (see Foley, 1997;

Kavale & Forness, 1987; Irvine & York, 1995 for

reviews). Of consequence, addressing learning styles

as traits linked to membership in cultural communi-

ties also seems to be a common way to prepare teach-

ers about diversity (Guild, 1994; Matthews, 1991).

Understandably, teaching to a difference that can

be labeled (e.g., learning modalities) may be appeal-

ing to teachers who have limited resources, support,

or training to meet the challenges of new student

She cites her own

work to support

her argument

and then reviews

relevant studies to

challenge approaches

to teaching and

learning that fail to

conceptualize the

notion of culture

adequately.

Gutiérrez reframes

the way educators

should view culture

and this new frame

is the lens through

which she develops

her argument.

Through this new

conception of

culture, Gutiérrez

defines what she

sees is a gap in what

educators know and

need to know. She

attributes this gap

to what educators

have ignored and cites

additional research

to make her point.

3

4

05_GRE_60141_Ch5_106_128.indd 120 11/11/14 2:56 PM