Introduction : exploring activity across education, work and everyday life / Peter H. Sawchuk, Newton Duarte & Mohamed Elhammoumi -- Is there a Marxist psychology? / Mohamed Elhammoumi -- The cultural-historical activity theory : some aspects of development / Joachim Lompscher -- Epistemological scepticism, complacent irony : investigations concerning the neo-pragmatism of Richard Rorty / Maria Célia Marcondes de Moraes -- The importance of play in pre-school education : naturalisation versus a Marxist analysis / Alessandra Arce -- Estranged labor learning / Ray McDermott and Jean Lave -- "Our working conditions are our students' learning conditions" : a CHAT--analysis of College Teachers Helena Worthen and Joe Berry -- Contradictory class relations in work and learning : some resources for hope / D.W. Livingstone -- From labor process to activity theory / Paul S. Adler -- Values, rubbish and workplace learning / Yrjö Engeström -- Education as mediation between the individual's everyday life and the historical construction of society and culture by humankind / Newton Duarte -- Activity & power : everyday life and development of working-class groups / Peter H. Sawchuk.