Praxis

"Occupy has been criticised for a lack of organisation and ideological direction, its persistent failure to articulate practical reforms and its anarchism. Occupy's extensive influence calls for scholarly analysis of its underlying ideas and its praxis. This article develops a conceptual understanding of the movement and argues that the criticisms above overlook both how the movement's participants rationalise its praxis and the consistently anarchist forms of this praxis. The article draws on recent scholarship that distinguishes between ideological anarchism and anarchical forms of praxis inspired by anarchist principles. It argues that Occupy's praxis is anarchical. Though not ideologically anarchist, Occupy expresses a commitment to anarchist ideals. The article develops a particular conception of anarchism and in this context, discusses Occupy's anti-capitalist position, reflected in its catchcry ‘we are the 99 per cent’. It concludes by explicating the anarchical elements of Occupy's praxis.

This is an Author's Accepted Manuscript of an article published in The Australian Journal of Political Science, Volume 48, Issue 3 [copyright Taylor & Francis]. Available online at: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10361146.2013.820687#.UnGmIOKbH1E "

Despite the fact that the environmental event is one of the most debated issues in contemporary life, and that environmental education undoubtedly occupies a central place in educational agendas worldwide, we can state that, in most cases, the reality of schools are still far from the ideals of environmental education, especially in early childhood education. Therefore, the aim of this paper, result of theoretical research, is to highlight the important synergies between environmental education and early childhood education in contemporary times. Thus, the text was organized into three parts: the first provides a brief conceptual history of environmental education, aiming to understand the trajectory of contemporary concepts; the second part seeks to understand the integration of environmental education in preschool; the final considerations bring the possibilities brought forward by the synergy between preschool education and environmental education, seeking meeting points between theoretical approaches and educational practices.

The North American Anarchist Studies Network (NAASN) has positioned itself within the continental anarchist milieu as a network of idea producers, activists, theorists, historians, critics, students and teachers. Some of us are entrenched in universities, others with independent writing and research endeavors, but the thread that runs throughout remains stable—anarchist studies. Whilst some of us identify chiefly as activists and others as academics, we are all anarchists. Borrowing from Barbara Epstein, David Graeber writes in Fragments of an Anarchist Anthropology that anarchism has replaced Marxism as the discipline of critical scholarship, whilst lamenting the lack of anti-Statists within the academy. If Graeber’s account is correct, and Marxist scholars are moving aside for a new generation of anarcho-academics, how does this assertion compare to counterpoints proclaimed by other portions of our movement that scorn our studious eye?...Since the anarchist movement is fluid, amorphous, and more of a ‘network of networks’ than anything else, it is sometimes hard to pinpoint where there borders start and end. What are the boundaries of our movement? Can Ted Kaczynski, Noam Chomsky, the Conspiracy of Fire Cells, and the NAASN membership ranks really exist within a singular label? Amongst this taxonomic challenge, one can easily locate numerous anarchist-linked individuals and projects that have explicitly “anti-academic” tendencies and thus exhibit categorical ideological cleavages...

This study discusses the anthropological implications of the concept of thaumaston (astonishing, astonishment) in Aristotle's Poetics. The astonishment caused by the works of art does not end in stable knowledge (differently from the case of theoretical sciences). We cannot have any total knowledge about the praxis represented by mimesis - just it is the attractiveness of art.

There is increasing recognition among human geographers that conceptualizing the spatiality of peace is a vital component of our collective disciplinary praxis. Within this emergent literature, I seek to position anarchism as an ethical philosophy of nonviolence and the absolute rejection of war. Such an interpretation does not attempt to align nonviolence to any particular organized religious teaching, as has recently been advocated by Nick Megoran (2011). Instead, I argue that the current practices of religion undermine the geographies of peace by fragmenting our affinities into discrete pieces. Advancing a view of anarchism as nonviolence, I go beyond religion to conceptualize peace as both the unqualified refusal of the manifold-cum-interlocking processes of domination, and a precognitive, pre-normative, and presupposed category rooted in our inextricable entanglement with each other and all that exists. Yet far from proposing an essentialist view of humanity or engaging a naturalized argument that reconvenes the ‘noble savage’, I contextualize my arguments within the processual frameworks of radical democracy and agonism in seeking to redress the ageographical and ahistorical notions of politics that comprise the contemporary post-political zeitgeist.

"In this short paper I attempt to explain ‘praxis event’ guided by the theoretical advancements of Deleuze, Delanda, Badiou and Bourdieu. ‘Praxis event’ is discussed because it is the propellant of becoming and unbecoming (Madhu 2005). I have elaborately discussed praxis as event in an earlier paper on rethinking praxis intervention (Madhu 2011). In this paper I distinguish praxis event from non-events and counter-events. This paper is inspired by the ongoing ‘Praxis Intervention’ research project among Christian Dalits of Manjadikkari, Kerala, India


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Abstract: This article relates common ways of conceptualising action research as “intervention”, “collaboration”, “interactive research”, “applied research”, and “practitioner research” to a number of different ways of knowing extracted from the works of Aristotle. The purpose is not to disavow any of these practices but to expand the philosophical, methodological, and theoretical horizon to contain the Aristotelian concept of praxis. It is claimed that praxis knowing needs to be comprehended in order to realize the full, radical potential in action research providing real “added value” in relation to more conventional social research approaches. Praxis knowing radically challenges the divisions of labour between knower-researchers and the known-researched. Thereby it also challenges both the epistemologies and institutionalisations dominating both conventional research and conventional ways of conceptualising action research.

""This book takes the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze and applies it to educational practice. To understand how and why to do this, David R Cole puts forward the notion of educational life-forms in this writing, which are moving concepts based on Deleuzian principles. This book turns on and through the construction of the philosophy of life in education. The life-forms that will come about due to the philosophy of life in education rest on epiphanies, the virtual and affect. The author looks to infuse educational practice with the philosophy of life, though not through simple affirmation or a construction of counter metaphysics to representation in education. This book uses Deleuze for practical purposes and sets out to help teachers and students to think otherwise about the current praxis of education.         



"With this book Educational Life-Forms which is an examination of the significance of the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze for education, David R Cole proves himself to be one of the very small number of philosophers of education who has provided intelligent commentary of Deleuze's difficult corpus. Cole keenly appreciates the conceptual creativity of Deleuze especially in relation to the concepts of 'life forms' and 'body without organs' and effectively demonstrates its practical implications for education." - Michael A. Peters Professor, Educational Policy Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.



“David R Cole's, Educational Life-Forms: Deleuzian Teaching and Learning Practice is a profound, speculative work that offers both new ways of thinking about the philosophy of Gilles Deleuze (as a practical thinker with ideas that can be applied at the 'coal face', as it were) and new ways of thinking about teaching and learning. It engages with actual policy debates as they are played out in the complex reality of the classroom situation and brings to them a fresh perspective developed through a close reading of Deleuze. This is an exciting new work which will be rewarding reading for both Deleuzians and non-Deleuzians and is sure to win converts amongst the latter.” - Ian Buchanan, Editor Deleuze Studies Professor of Critical Studies, Dean of research in the Arts and Social Sciences University of Woolongong.



In this thoughtful and engaging book, David R Cole has given us an answer to the important question of how Deleuze's philosophy enters into the practice of education. Cole situates this philosophy within existing debates around teaching and learning not only through a very lucid account of Deleuze's work and current theory, but also through highly effective and often moving examples of practice. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in Deleuze and education - James Williams Professor of European Philosophy, University of Dundee.""

This chapter aims to provide a critical and evidence-based account of the discourses and practices of diversity management in the UK context. The chapter presents an analysis of qualitative and quantitative evidence from two field studies, which were conducted with the diversity managers of public and private sector organisations. The first part of the chapter provides a background to the development of the diversity management discourse and structures in the UK through a review the evolution of the UK equality legislation as well as the scholarly debates on equality and diversity. In the second part, organisational equality and diversity discourses and practices are explored. The exploration is informed by original empirical evidence, which include the individual accounts of 11 diversity managers from large public and private sector organisations in the UK collected through semi-structured interviews and quantitative data from an online survey which produced 285 completed questionnaires from diversity managers in the UK. The complex and contested nature of diversity management processes are unpacked by presenting compelling empirical evidence against simplistic, a-historical, a-contextual and apolitical notions of diversity management in the mainstream literature.

"The riot grrrl movement of the early 1990s is frequently linked with the emergence of "third wave" feminism. In formulating a response to endemic discrimination and harassment within punk scenes, its participants echoed the new demands of a feminism increasingly concerned with queer theory, issues of race and class, cultural subversion and sex positivity.

This presentation will explore how participants in the contemporary British underground feminist punk network similarly reference and contribute to the development of militant ideas, ideals and tensions within feminism. Drawing informally upon artwork, music and my own experiences as a performer and attendee, I will reflect upon how (and why) particular bodies, identities and pop culture icons are (and aren't) offered a platform at feminist punk events."