Educational Anthropology : a guide to library resources

Contents:

• Starting points
• Finding books
• Finding journal articles
• Web resources 

Starting Points

The guide to Anthropology dictionaries/encyclopedias will help if you need explanations of anthropological terminology or theory.

To find overviews/introductory texts on educational anthropology topics try the following:

Ethnography and schools (2002) [print]
[Traces both traditional and new approaches to the study of schools and their communities. A book review is linked here]

Debates and developments in ethnographic methodology (2002) [print]
[Presents a diversity of views on the current debates and developments in ethnographic methodology. A book review is linked here]

Highlights and overview of the history of educational ethnography (2003) [electronic]
[An overview of the key trends and theoretical orientations that have shaped the field of educational ethnography. Published in vol.32  of the Annual Review of Anthropology.  Also available in print format]

Fifty years of anthropology and education (2000) [electronic]
[George & Louise Spindler are prominent in the field of educational anthropology. This is a collection of their seminal work. A book review is linked here]

Innovations in educational ethnography : theory, methods, and results (2006) [print]
[Focuses on how ethnography  can shed light on educational processes]

Finding Books Using The Library Catalogue

Books on applied anthropology can be found by searching the library catalogue. Keyword searching is probably the best way of identifying material, and your results will be maximised by using keyword searching techniques such as truncation and Boolean operators and by incorporating subject headings into your search where appropriate. Here are some examples:

"educational anthropology"

"educational anthropology" and "united states"

schools and (anthropol? or ethnograph?)

In addition, the web site Anthropology and education lists books on educational anthropology topics.

Finding Journal Articles Using Databases & Bibliographies

Journal articles can be found through databases listed in the Databases for Anthropology guide - Sociological Abstracts, Academic OneFile and Academic Search Premier are probably the best starting points for finding articles written on educational anthropology topics.

Also worth considering are two key education databases - the Australian Education Index covers Australian educational topics, and ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) has international coverage

For earlier material try Education and anthropology [print only] - an annotated bibliography which covers material from the 17th century to the 1970's

Web Resources

Council on Anthropology & Education
[A section of the American Anthropological Association that aims to advance and stimulate scholarship on schooling in social and cultural contexts and on human learning both inside and outside of schools]

Last update: 4 June 2009  Helen Attar