ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on Basil Bernstein's notions of 'recontextualisation' and the 'region', identifying these as socio-epistemic phenomena through which specialised occupational knowledge is constituted. As part of a discussion on 'pedagogising knowledge', Bernstein introduces three 'performance modes', each of which have distinct forms of 'knowledge base, focus and social organisation'. The first mode is the 'singular', roughly equated to a 'pure' discipline. The second mode is the 'region', which is 'constructed by recontextualising singulars into larger units. The third and final mode, the 'generic' is also important. To better understand the forces that may affect the development of a region and related recontextualisation processes, it is important to conceptualise the relationship between regions, singulars and the field of occupational practice. The chapter concentrates on some brief examples of regions and recontextualisation processes, with a principal emphasis on 'professionalising' occupations, particularly those that are strongly affected by market logics, governmental intervention or intra-sectoral dynamics.
