> actor-networks continue to grow, in many instances cutting through the
> human hierarchies we think of as so large or influencing through their
> 'leverage' (cf. Latour) the scalar
> hierarchies that some elites may attempt to control but yet which can
> not be controlled in the way they think.
was really the point that, in a pretty murky way, I was groping for in my
examples. I think the spheres or settings that we think of as distinct are
much closer together and have many more connections than we may assume --
although some are certainly farther apart than others through systemmatic
exclusion. When I'm in my literary mode I want to write an essay entitled
something like, "when worlds collude and collide." I also think that the
examples may suggest some of the problems inherent in the connections
between research and practice. How do we translate what we know (or think
we know) to others? Louise's comments were helpful in how she pointed out
that school administrators have a discourse of their own and, most likely,
serious constraints that shape their understanding of what researchers are
saying -- and vis versa. However, I think that in some situations dialogue
is not possible when there is no good faith. And then one has the
responsibility to engage in struggle, however uncomfortable. Maybe it's
kind of old fashioned. I do think that research can represent data in
artful, and dialogic ways, which can make it more accessible and inclusive.
I'm very interested in the discursive potential of representation in this
regard, probably because the thought of writing my dissertation is looming.
Anyway, thanks for asking for my comments.
Sara