Education, technology and the sociological imagination: Lessons to be learned from C. Wright Mills

As part of the Learning, Media Technology series on `Key Thinkers and Theoretical Traditions , this paper explores the relevance of C. Wright Mills much lauded book `The Sociological Imagination . The argument is made that we would do well to take heed of many of the central tenets of Mills call to arms for a historically aware, politically focused and carefully crafted social science. These include Mills concerns over the dominance of abstract empiricism, being beholden to the demands of`bureaucratic research agendas, a tendency towards psychologism and/or resorting to default explanations of the apparent failings of individuals and institutions in terms of a cultural/technological `lag . The paper argues how Mills writing should inspire researchers to think beyond the realms of their own experiences, interests and passions, to look beyond the shallow allure of the latest `new technology, and to critically engage with the social, historical, biographical and political dimensions of education and technology.