Episode 210: Mimicry, Imitation, and Simulations Oh My! with Bretton Varga & Erin Adams

In episode 210, Dan and Michael chat with Bretton Varga and Erin Adams about their article published in Theory & Research in Social Education, “Theorizing mimesis across social studies contexts of mimicry, imitation, and simulation.”

Transcript 

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Books, Articles and Other Amazing Resources

  1. Varga, B. A., & Adams, E. C. (2023). Theorizing mimesis across social studies contexts of mimicry, imitation, and simulation. Theory & Research in Social Education, 1-25.
  2. Varga, B. A., & Adams, E. C. (2022). Metallurgic matter(ing)s: Mirrored Mandalorian metal-scapes, mining(s), and mimesis. Journal of Posthumanism, 2(2), 167–179. https://doi.org/10.33182/joph. v2i2.1937 
  3. Varga, B. A., & Adams, E. C. (2024). Hang on, so that thing’s a Loki too?”: Mimetic materialities, variants, and villainy. In C. van Kessel & K. Edmondson (Eds.), Teaching villainification in social studies: Pedagogies to deepen understanding of social issues (pp. 95–110). Teachers College Press.
  4. Wright-Maley, C. (Ed.). (2018). More like life itself: Simulations as powerful and purposeful social studies. Information Age.
  5. Varga, B. A., & Adams, E. E. (Eds.) (2024). The theory-story reader for social studies. Teachers College Press. 
  6. Lo, J. C. (2017). Adolescents developing civic identities: Sociocultural perspectives on simulations and role-play in a civic classroom. Theory & Research in Social Education, 45(2), 189–217. https://doi. org/10.1080/00933104.2016.1220877
  7. Chocolate chip mining activity
  8. Manning, E. (2016). The minor gesture. Duke University Press.
  9. Adams, E. C., & Kerr, S. L. (2019). Always already there: Theorizing an intra-disciplinary social studies. Pedagogies: An International Journal, 17(3), 251–270. https://doi.org/10.1080/1554480X. 2020.1870470

Biographies

Bretton Varga is an Assistant Professor of History-Social Science at California State University, Chico. His research and teaching/learning are shaped by a commitment to cultivate hope, imagination, speculation, care, love, respect, and justice across more-than-human contexts. In particular, his scholarship works with(in) critical posthuman theories of race, materiality, and temporality to unveil harmful structures, logics, and practices that perpetuate racial injustice and ecological precarity. Bretton’s academic work has appeared in various scholarly journals including Theory & Research in Social Education, Equity & Excellence in Education, The International Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, Taboo: Journal of Culture and Education, Social Studies and The Young Learner, The Social Studies, Journal of Childhood Studies, and Journal Of Social Studies Research. 

Erin C. Adams is Associate Professor of Elementary Social Studies Education at Kennesaw State University in Kennesaw, GA, USA. Her teaching and research is focused on social education with specific interests in critical theories, economic education, and history of modern economic thought. She enjoys playing soccer, travelling and listening to podcasts. Her work appears in Theory & Research in Social Education, Social Studies and the Young Learner, Social Education, The Social Studies, Journal of Childhood Studies, Journal Of Social Studies Research, Pedagogies: An International Journal, Professional Development in Education, Geography Teacher, Citizenship, Social and Economics Education, as well as numerous edited volumes. Erin’s website; https://erinonecon.net/ and Twitter/X @ECA_Twin

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