Vygotsky

Lev Vygotsky.

A theorist that believed that children actively construct their own knowledge.

Vygotsky's Assumptions:

1. Learning occurs according to a developmental pathway.- It must start with a strong foundation which builds over time.
2. Cognitive Skills are structured by Language- Through language we think, learn, and know, and without language there is no cognition.
3. Cognitive skills are originated social relations and are embedded in a socio-cultural backdrop.- One cultural way of learning might not be the same as another culture.
4. Learning is situated and collaborative - That people learn based on an apprenticeship relation. Teacher to Student, Coach to Player.

Zone of Proximal Development:

This is the space or skill level that is set just beyond the level that which the student knows, and the student can do it but only with the help of the mentor. This is important because if the bar is set too low the student is never challenged and doesn't learn new material. They will only get better at what they know to be true.

Scaffolding:

Is the support the Teacher provides in order for the student to reach the Zone of Proximal Development. As the students reaches and understands the new material, the scaffold can then be raised to a new zone of proximal development, in this way the student will always be challenged but has the support of the teacher or master.

Dialogue and Rational Organization:

With the use of language our thoughts become more organized. What we think can be pieced into what we say, being able to have an idea and explain what we know. Dialogue can give the mentor a background to the students level they are at, and can intern decide the Zone of Proximal Development. Teacher's can guide students in the right direction, because for an example if the student doesn't know addition the teacher will not make the student learn multiplication.

• This point really interests me, because we don't always say what we believe to be true, our thoughts are always picked apart and scattered. It's almost reversed in a way, the ability to speak disorganizes our thoughts because we think about every detail that comes out of our mouths and try to figure out how it will be taken. The more we think about what we want to say, lots of the mental organization is lost. Sometimes it is hard to put together what are mind and mouth are saying in uni-sen. What people are saying is not always what are mind is thinking, it is as if it's a lie. Might have gone off on an idea there, but i hope its of some relevance, but what i was trying to say is that dialogue can also leave people with rational disorganization.

Comparison between Vygotsky and Piaget.

Piaget who I have mentioned in the previous blog and Vygotsky have very distinct ideas about how students and children learn. Both theorist agree that the student cannot advance from one stage of learning or skill till they have completed the previous one. The age limitations of Piaget can be hard to believe but they in fact make sense when thinking of the average age, some may grow learn faster and others slower but in general true. While in the case of Vygotsky he states that cognitive skills are structured by language, and with out it there is no cognition this point is one which needs clarification, does Vygotsky mean only the verbal language? If so why doesn't it include body language or any other form of recognition. Just because one person cannot speak does not mean they cannot think, reason, or remember. Piaget's theory is not very detailed in this way because he does not incorporate the use of language into his theory. Both theory's have there good point and bad points, Vygotsky seems to be more modern, while Piaget is more concrete and to the point. There is not right or wrong path to follow but we might want to take all of it and use it simultaneously. One can use the idea of cognitive stages but at the same time use the scaffolding technique and if the time comes where the student reaches an age but Piaget thinks at that point they cannot succeed, the teacher can still push the to success and maybe past the boundaries set out. All people are different so each person has there own path of development no matter what Piaget or Vygotsky may think, the only thing to worry about is reaching your potential.