Independent Responses to Paul Carter’s Theory

The term ‘material thinking’ is addressed in each essay in this volume. It is an awkward term that resists simple definition, but it is conditioned here by different author’s preoccupations, which serve to qualify their different interpretations and reveal subtle nuances of meaning. The common touchstone is Paul Carter’s book Material Thinking: The Theory and Practice of Creative Research, published by Melbourne University Press in 2004. It was the initial source of inspiration. This collection of papers was subject to an innovative open peer review process through a public workshop reading and critique of papers at the ConnectED conference in Sydney, 2007. In form, this workshop was a model of real-time peer reviewing. Prior to the workshop, participants had each completed a draft of their submission, which was assigned to two other participants to critically assess. At the workshop, the peer reviews were presented verbally and discussed by the group. At the conclusion of the workshop, comments from the floor were invited.