Intercorporeality and ethical commitment: An activity perspective on classroom interaction

In this article, we present a sociocultural alternative to contemporary constructivist conceptions of classroom interaction. Drawing on the work of Vygotsky and Leont'ev, we introduce an approach that offers a new perspective through which to understand the specifically human forms of knowing that emerge when people engage in joint activity. To this end, duce an approach that offers a new perspective through which to understand the specifically human forms of knowing that emerge when people engage in joint activity. To this end, we present two concepts: space of joint action and togethering. The space of joint action allows us to capture the collective and sensuous or intercorporeal dimensions of thought and feeling in interaction. We resort to the concept of togethering to capture the ethical commitment participants make to engage in and produce activity. These concepts are illustrated through a discussion of concrete episodes from an elementary mathematics classroom. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.