We are a group of graduate students and early career researchers, all of whom are still developing our understanding of Cultural-Historical Activity Theory (CHAT). The group is open to questions and new individuals joining the group. We read and discuss a couple of articles and then ask questions and discuss them. We are also joined by an expert who can help provide guidance on the articles.
Time: 9:30AM-11:00AM Pacific Daylight Time (UTC-7:00) on Monday, May 4, 2026
Speaker: Michael Cole, University of California San Diego
Discussion leader: Shaffiq Welji, University of Georgia
Reading to discuss: “A Reflection on CHAT’s History and Direction: Interview with Michael Cole”
Citation: Dionne, P., & Jornet, A. (2023). A Reflection on CHAT’s History and Direction: Interview with Michael Cole. In P. Dionne & A. Jornet (Eds.), Doing CHAT in the Wild: From-the-Field Challenges of a Non-Dualist Methodology (pp. 244–261). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004548664_010 [doi.org]
Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/92457031049?pwd=w0L5es0uQXyqFs7iU0c1WbPjmwxvEL.1 [zoom.us]
Meeting ID: 924 5703 1049
Passcode: vygotsky
Join us for a new, monthly reading and discussion group aimed at graduate students and early career researchers on Cultural-Historical Activity Theory. The group is open to questions and multiple theoretical perspectives from the group, and we draw on the members of Cultural Praxis to help guide the discussion. The readings and discussions will cover the foundations and different perspectives on activity theory and its applications to different areas of research. Future topics of discussion will be determined by the interests of those in attendance. Discussions will be led by rotating graduate students and emphasize answering questions and collaboratively making sense of ideas.
Our first series of discussions will be an introduction to cultural-historical activity theory, and the pre-reading will be “A Reflection on CHAT’s History and Direction: Interview with Michael Cole” before we start reading selected chapters from Cole’s book Cultural Psychology: A Once and Future Discipline. During our first series, we will discuss CHAT’s relationship to the social sciences, Cole’s theoretical framework for understanding the role of culture in understanding learning and activity, and examples from his research.
Please sign up for additional details, calendar invite, and the offline discussion platform at: https://tinyurl.com/rgCHAT [tinyurl.com]