Vygotsky's Developmental Theory: An Introduction (Davidson Films, Inc.) [MUSIC PLAYING] DEBORAH LEONG: Vygotsky argued that learning impacts development. With early math, for instance, learning skills can hasten development. Rather than viewing this early counting as just rote reciting, Vygotsky would argue that it nudges a child towards a concept of the symbolic nature of number. Children construct knowledge. Learning can lead development. Development cannot be separated from its social context. Language plays a central role in mental development. Vygotsky envisioned a more complex relationship between development and learning than either the young Piaget or the elderly Pavlov had conceived. As we will see, Vygotsky gave great value to assisting children to use strategies to further their intellectual capacities. TEACHER: Next time we count them, I'm going to help you. STUDENT: OK. TEACHER: Put your finger out and we'll count each one, 1, 2. I'm going to help you point. STUDENT: 1, 2. DEBORAH LEONG: It is in this context that we will discuss the best known part of Vygotsky's work, the zone of proximal development. TEACHER: Point to each one close to the bear and count loudly. STUDENT: 1 2, 3. DEBORAH LEONG: But when the teacher structures the activity differently, the same child can perform at a higher level, counting meaningfully to 17 without missing any bears. STUDENT: 15, 16 17. TEACHER: Great job, Quentin. DEBORAH LEONG: The area between the level of independent performance and the level of assisted performance is the zone of proximal development. It is here where the teacher must focus attention. ELENA BODROVA: Lev Vygotsky was born about 100 years ago, in 1896, in tsarist Russia. As Jews, the Vygotsky family, however prosperous, were outsiders in Russia under Czar Nicholas [AUDIO OUT] limits on how many could be formally educated. The odds were great, but miraculously, Vygotsky gained a place. He also became interested in psychology and began to research in his field. He also managed to write seven books and dozens of articles before dying at age 37 in 1934. DEBORAH LEONG: For Vygotsky, the social context influences more than just attitudes and beliefs. It has a profound influence on how we think as well as what we think. Vygotsky he and his colleagues witnessed the rapid social changes in the Soviet Union that occurred when non-technical cultures did to participate in the quite technically advanced Western culture of the new empire. Vygotsky's work reminds us of the processes necessary for children to regulate their own internal and external behavior. Encouraging children to draw what they are experiencing, to talk to each other about it, to write about it, and even to talk to themselves about it, enables them to move towards being independent learners. - Good job, Alex.