The Tailored Practice of Hobbies and Its

The Tailored Practice of Hobbies and Its Implication for the Design of Interest-Driven Learning Environments Azevedo

Also running through the arguments in Lave and Wenger (1991) and Rogoff et al. (2003), and originating in Vygotsky’s (1978) work (Leont’ev, 1995; Scribner, 1985), is the central role of mediational means in shaping the very nature of one’s practice, affording some while constraining other opportunities for growth and development in the practice. Similarly, following activity theory (e.g., Engeström, 1999; Nardi, 1996; Wertsch, 1981, 1985) and distributed frames of cognition (Hutchins, 1995, 1998), norms and values of practice in different communities of amateur astronomers, as well as the division of labor in such communities (e.g., Stevens, 2000), create the conditions for and shape individuals’ forms of participation.

Tools, artifacts, and materials in general are just as critical mediational means and have received great attention in studies of learning and development that tie such processes to culture and society (e.g., Saxe, 1992, 2002). Conveniently, tools and artifacts are highly prominent in technoscientific practices (Hall, 1999; Latour & Woolgar, 1986), and presumably in amateur astronomy as well, and thus provide a tangible way for tracing a hobbyist’s motivations for engaging the practice in the short and long run. Elaborating the nature of tools/artifacts available in the hobby and their role in shaping interest-based engagement is one of the contributions of this work.