[Xmca-l] The Annotated Bibliography Project (ABP)

[Annalisa Aguilar]

Esteemed discussants!


The Annotated Bibliography Project

Helena and I have decided as a part of the Newcomer's Project to compile a list of important sociocultural texts and incorporate annotations to these entries (ideally to host in the wiki??).


So I'm initiating a request: Would you kindly offer up texts (APA format is gratefully accepted). This project is deemed The Annotated Bibliography Project or possibly The ABP, or just The AB, or perhaps affectionately "the alpha-beta"!!


Then in addition, if you please, submit with your entry(ies) a small comment explaining the text(s) and why it(they) is(are) important (We'll keep your name attached, but if this is problematic, email your list privately to me and your name will be removed from the entry). Any comment should be 100 words or less, this will be adhered to as strictly as possible.


Helena and I will be working together to edit these entries and their comments (initially anyway) just to be certain there is some cohesion.


Designations for Reading Level

Please provide a designation for the text as to whether it is a beginning or advanced text.


We might use a grading system of 1 through 5 along these lines:

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1. Introductory (no previous exposure to texts by Vygotsky, et al is expected)

2. Beginning (some familiarity with introductory texts and themes).

3. Intermediate (quite familiar with introductory and beginning texts and themes).

4. Advanced (quite familiar with intro, beginning, and intermediate texts and themes).

5. Master (requires mastery of full gamut of texts and themes).


More About Comments

The idea beyond a compiled list, is also to create a comment context (how, TBD) with each text possessing a cluster of comments. List members visiting the wiki page may post comments concerning the text (100 words or less). This would be a space in which controversial aspects of the text might be noted, or other histories to consider.


Comments are to provide sense to novices and experts alike; they are a means for setting context for any given text-item. Further, by having pluralities of comments (again, each comment 100 words or less), deeper contexts will likely emerge and provide a different quality of access to novices, by revealing deeper understandings usually lost to novices, who can only note surface features.


"Expansions"

Thinking out loud, it is entirely possible that substantial debates might ensue about contexts of a text. This would entail a requirement to "take it outside." In that case, this should (ideally) manifest in a separate wikipage and that could be linked to from the ABP wikipage. So anyone who has to air something out will have the space to do so.


What Goes In

Since this list will be authored by the community, it is assumed that this list will be sanctioned by the community as important texts to the community here.


Helena thought we could do a top 100, which is a good large number. However, I have a sense that spots will fill quickly, so I'd prefer to see what happens. Regardless, 100 is a good number to shoot for! I don't think debating over what should be put in or taken off the list would be fruitful, so if it grows beyond 100, the more the merrier. And, in that case of a large and long list, annotations (comments) will enable a visitor to decide for oneself after evaluating said comments what is worth reading.


Reading as a Community Effort

One aspect of being a member of xmca is the READING involved!!! It is my experience that academics are faced with little time to read, though this is not restricted to academics. :) Annotations can assist in breaking down the chore of reading by providing some "pre-reading" content, which might save time over all for everyone. Of course, those who are retired have more free time and can annotate away!


Thusly: from each according to his ability, to each according to his need. :)


With this in mind, who knows, the annotated bibliography may become as valued by experts as it would by novices!!! Imagine that!


To The Task; Take Action: The Takeaway

So if you would like to send (or post to the list) your choices and the accompanying (1-5) reading level designation, with your comment (100 words or less), I will start collecting entries and post to the list as it grows by 10s.


If you don't have time to submit comments, we will try to farm out the comments to someone else, but at least the text will make the list, so don't restrain yourself from making a submission because you don't want to comment. The inversion of this is feel free to submit if you already see a text on the list, just submit your comment and indicate its text, and your comment will be added to the entry.


The Final Form

Once the list is launched, there will the text in APA, the abstract, page length or word count (if that makes sense), and links pointing where to find these texts (such as marxists.org or perhaps a storage bin at XMCA, but also perhaps to the publisher's pages). This will be hosted at the wiki, I anticipate.



Kind regards,


Annalisa