Lev Vygotsky's Social Development Theory And Zone Of Proximal Development

Within the elementary classroom, there is a copious amount of rules, guidelines and considerations a teacher must take into account. Learning theories such as social, cognitive, and behavioral learning should be implemented to provide framework and boundaries for the children. When incorporating learning theories in the classroom, it is important to have a clear understanding of how they work and how they will benefit the child and the teacher. These particular theories allows the teacher to run an efficient and effective classroom from day one.

The zone of proximal development, often abbreviated as ZPD, is the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she cannot do. The concept was introduced, but not fully developed, by psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zone_of_proximal_development)

However, Vygotsky, on the other hand, mentioned that in order to educate someone it must happen in small groups with one better performing student indicating the importance of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) (Vygotsky, 1978). The ZDP is the difference between a child’s actual development level and potential development level, undertaken by a child performing tasks with assistance from a more knowledgeable/capable peer or teacher (Duchesne & McMaugh, 2016). This notion is both effective on the social and cognitive development of a young child as the theory of play is also interconnected, helping the child to develop. The ZPD is very closely intertwined with the indication of scaffolding where teachers or others provide support towards the learner in order to enable a task to be completed successfully by adjusting to the

Vygotsky’s theory ‘The zone of proximal development’ is also being demonstrated through Ann’s teaching methods for her year five class. The zone of proximal development refers to a conceivable range of learning evolution in regards to the students’ age and the amount of assisted knowledge they are given. This information can be given through direct information, scaffolding or cooperative learning. Ann (as the more knowledgeable) would be required to offer a certain level of information to the children before expecting them to

Lev Vygotsky believed that social and cognitive development work simultaneously to build and evolve on one another. He believed that social, cultural and personal experience cannot be detached from each other and many things influence the way children learn and develop, not just their own experiences, thus Vygotsky’s socio-cultural theory. Vygotsky’s ideas were and remain controversial as he had no specific training in psychology or children’s development. His preeminent contribution to children’s development is his recognition of the value of progressing knowledge by means of interaction with educators, peers and family (Mooney, 2000, p. 83). The major ideas of Vygotsky’s theory are scaffolding and the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). Scaffolding is a process Vygotsky described as the framework or temporary support for children’s learning. In order for scaffolding to be beneficial, it must be responsive to the child’s needs (Coon & Mitterer, 2013, pp. 106-107).

Prompt 1: Learning Theories: Using the learning theorists we have discussed--Piaget, Vygotsky, Kohlberg, and/or Erikson--Explain the behaviors, actions, learning, etc. that you see in your classroom. For example: A la Vygotsky, you might observe the classroom interactions for evidence of how you or a peer or the teacher provided enough scaffolding to improve a child’s performance. Or, you might describe a child according to Piaget’s stages of intellectual development or Erikson’s Psychosocial development. Be specific and provide examples.

When the year is over, I cannot even recognize my students anymore because they have now become confident when they speak; they are not only asking questions, but they are looking at each other for the answers (instead of it coming solely me); they are making insightful observations and analysis on the texts; and classroom management is no longer an issue. I would like to take full credit and say that most of this is due to providing students with “predictable and safe environments so that they can take risks, explore, and grow”, but I know that the child’s development also plays a larger role. When a teacher can incorporate routines in their classroom and foster a positive and welcoming learning environment, they are ultimately “capitalizing” on the students’ developmental

Implementing developmental concepts and theories in a classroom can increase student achievement. Success within a classroom starts with the success of a teacher. According to Barbara Blake and Tambra Pope, “teacher must develop a better understanding of their students’ cognitive development, which will lead to the needs of the whole child being satisfied.” (Blake B. & Pope T., 2008). Educators must comprehend how an individual’s mind processes information from thinking to perceiving to remembering to learning. Grasping the comprehension of a student’s mental process and constructing suitable lessons, “using developmental instructional techniques, teachers have been able to increase the test scores of children in public schools.” (Blake B.

Teachers take on the role of learner as well as instructor and are there to guide the discussion towards learning objectives without just forcing their point of view on students. Another very important part from Vygotsky’s work is the concept of a student’s zone of proximal development (ZPD). Vygotsky (as cited by Eggen & Kauchak, 2011) described it as “the distance between the actual development level…and the level of potential development…under adult guidance…or more capable peers” Once a student is within their ZPD, they can vastly benefit from ‘scaffolding’, this is assistance from either the teacher or from peers in a collaborative group to achieve a level that they would be unable to do independently (Eggen & Kauchak, 2011). This scaffolding can take many forms, using prompts and cues, asking pertinent questions, the most important point is not to do the work for the student but to guide in the right direction.

Vygotsky's Social Developement theory focused on the connections between people and the social and cultural context, in which they act and interact with others. According to Vygotsky, humans use tools that develop from a culture, such as speech and writing, to mediate their social environments. Intinitally children develop these tools to serve solely to communcate needs. Vygotsky believed that the internatlization of these tools led to higher thinking skills.

Vygotsky’s concepts of zone of proximal development and the more knowledgeable other person has led to the idea of scaffolding. Scaffolding, which encompasses both ZPD and MKO, is seen in almost all classrooms in today’s society. Scaffolding is a temporary support mechanism that aids students when they need it and then relinquishes control when the assistance is no longer needed. According to Lipscomb, Swanson and West (2004), scaffolding is used in classrooms by the “development of instructional plans to lead the students from what they already know to a deep understanding of new material,” and “execution of the plans, wherein the instructor provides support to the students at every step of the learning process.” Scaffolding encompasses the role of the teacher. The teacher acts as the most knowledgeable other to the student and then assesses the current knowledge of the students. The teacher decides which knowledge level the students should be performing at, and that gap between current knowledge and abilities and their potential is the zone of proximal development. In order for

Lev Vygotsky founded the social development theory. He is seen as one of the leading psychologists in education. The social development theory basically says that the potential for cognitive development relies mainly on the zone of proximal development, or what we know as ZPD. The ZPD places emphasis on what social interaction and how important it is for the developing child. This paper will go into more depth of what ZPD is, how it benefits children, and opinions on the theory.

My teaching philosophy is based on theorist, Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky. I believe that children benefit from experience. Children are curious from

Russian psychologist, Lev Vygotsky, dedicated his studies to cognitive development. His theory, the Social Constructivist, or Social Development Theory, stresses the importance of social influences, especially through instruction, on children’s cognitive development. This theory suggests that social interaction and community play a large role in “making meaning.” Vygotsky displays his theory using his “Zone of Proximal Development,” or ZPD. The Zone Proximal Development is a term used to describe the range of tasks that are too difficult for a child to master alone, but can be learned with guidance or assistance from adults or more-skilled children. The lower limit of the Zone of Proximal Development is the level reached by children when working by themselves, without assistance from others. Contrary, the upper limit is the level in which tasks become too difficult for a child to work independently, and additional help from a more-skillful adult or peer is needed. The purpose of the ZPD is to recognize where students lie in terms of ability of certain cognitive tasks and skills. It allows monitoring of student progress using scaffolding. Scaffolding is a term that is used to describe the level of support or guidance that is being offered to a student when learning a task. Scaffolding is a large factor of Vygotsky’s theory; when a child is learning a new task, the level of guidance from a more-skilled person is high, often through direct instruction. The child begins to

Lev Vygotsky believed that we base our knowledge on social interaction and this is called social constructivism. Vygotsky believed that when a student is in the “Zone of Proximal Development”, providing assistance and encouragement from a knowledgeable person; parent, teacher, peers, will give the student enough support to better achieve the task at hand. The presence of a support group