Vygotsky and the Zone of Proximal development was something that I did not learn until college. Ever since I’ve been to college I have heard about all I need to hear about Vygotsky and ZPD. From my understanding, the zone of proximal development is the area or zone where a learner is able to do something with the help or guidance of somebody and what the learner is able to do without the help of somebody. For example, a student can read a passage at a 4th grade level with the help of the teacher, but when the student is on her own she can only read at a 3rd grade level. Vygotsky would say that if this student would read at a 4th grade level with the teacher over and over again, eventually this student would read at a 4th grade level by herself. This process leads into scaffolding. Scaffolding occurs when person A, with a greater understanding of a certain subject matter, guides person B, who has a lesser knowledge of the same subject matter. If the person A guides person B, eventually the person B will gain a better understanding of the subject matter. Eventually guidance will be unnecessary from person A because person B will be able to perform the task or they will have understood the concepts on their own.
I think ZPD and scaffolding happens to me every day. For example, in my math methods course I usually do not get some things right away. We sit at tables with 3 other students and chances are someone at the table has a pretty good idea of what we are doing. This person will help me and the others understand what we are doing, until we are capable of doing it on our own. In a lot of ways I think this is a huge part of being a teacher. Some of our future students will already be advanced or knowledgeable on certain subjects while others will be behind. Ideally the teacher could help each child who is behind, but in reality there isn’t enough time in the day. However, thanks to Vygotsky and ZPD, we don’t have to help every student who needs help at once. We can instead designate a time for students to help each other learn. I think the idea of ZPD has been around for a while, but Vygotsky was the first to put a label on it.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Aimee Frantzen - Vygotsky & ZPD
Vygotsky is a name I have been hearing since my sophomore year of high school when I first decided to take a child development class. This name, along with Montessori and Piaget came up often within class discussions in my two year-long child development classes I took over the course of my high school years. Along with the name Vygotsky we often talked about scaffolding and more importantly Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). For years ZPD was something I heard about often but never understood EXACTLY where it could be applied until now.
To start out, Vygotsky defines ZPD as the "distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined though problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers," (Vygotsky, 86). To make this more clear, Vygotsky is essentially saying ZPD is the difference between what the child can accomplish on his or her own, and what the child has potential to accomplish with a teacher, tutor, or peer working with them. Interestingly enough ZPD intertwines in a sense with the idea of scaffolding - and I believe all of these ideas tie in very well together. When looking at ZPD and scaffolding broken down into steps it appears like this: step 1) modeling step 2) working with the teacher, tutor, or peer step 3) working alone with available help and step 4) working alone with no help (at step 4 the child has mastery of the topic being taught). This process of scaffolding as seen in the steps leads learners to the higher level of development in which potential is reached.
With that said, I have come up with a bizarre idea of where ZPD may fit in perfectly. In a number of other classes taken in the IU school of Education we learn a lot about a new "scientific based research" method of identifying and preventing LDs called Response to Intervention (RtI). Maybe it is because I have been reading so much about RtI lately for my other classes but I feel like ZPD and scaffolding could be woven into the first tier of RtI quite perfectly. Given the idea that the first tier is a general education classroom, in RtI the teacher or instructor would go through the 5 steps of scaffolding I have listed above - if a child was failing to respond upon reaching step 4 and then 5 where they are left to problem solve a little more independently then the child would be evaluated and moved up to the second tier for more intensive reading, writing, or mathematics practices (whichever subject is being taught). Once moved to the second tier the child would be put through these same 5 steps again this time with steps 1-3 being a little more intense. Another thing to think about here would be the students that benefit from instruction just on the first tier - these students will eventually (and likely more quickly than their classmates deemed "at-risk") reach the "potential" Vygotsky talks about when he states "the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers," (Vygotsky, 86). Please keep in mind that this is all my opinion but in my knowledge of scaffolding, ZPD, and RtI this is how I am able to connect to my own learning on these topics.
To start out, Vygotsky defines ZPD as the "distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined though problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers," (Vygotsky, 86). To make this more clear, Vygotsky is essentially saying ZPD is the difference between what the child can accomplish on his or her own, and what the child has potential to accomplish with a teacher, tutor, or peer working with them. Interestingly enough ZPD intertwines in a sense with the idea of scaffolding - and I believe all of these ideas tie in very well together. When looking at ZPD and scaffolding broken down into steps it appears like this: step 1) modeling step 2) working with the teacher, tutor, or peer step 3) working alone with available help and step 4) working alone with no help (at step 4 the child has mastery of the topic being taught). This process of scaffolding as seen in the steps leads learners to the higher level of development in which potential is reached.
With that said, I have come up with a bizarre idea of where ZPD may fit in perfectly. In a number of other classes taken in the IU school of Education we learn a lot about a new "scientific based research" method of identifying and preventing LDs called Response to Intervention (RtI). Maybe it is because I have been reading so much about RtI lately for my other classes but I feel like ZPD and scaffolding could be woven into the first tier of RtI quite perfectly. Given the idea that the first tier is a general education classroom, in RtI the teacher or instructor would go through the 5 steps of scaffolding I have listed above - if a child was failing to respond upon reaching step 4 and then 5 where they are left to problem solve a little more independently then the child would be evaluated and moved up to the second tier for more intensive reading, writing, or mathematics practices (whichever subject is being taught). Once moved to the second tier the child would be put through these same 5 steps again this time with steps 1-3 being a little more intense. Another thing to think about here would be the students that benefit from instruction just on the first tier - these students will eventually (and likely more quickly than their classmates deemed "at-risk") reach the "potential" Vygotsky talks about when he states "the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers," (Vygotsky, 86). Please keep in mind that this is all my opinion but in my knowledge of scaffolding, ZPD, and RtI this is how I am able to connect to my own learning on these topics.
vygotsky, zpd, e342monday
Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is a practice we continue to use today. The Zone of Proximal Development theory is the relationship between the actual developmental level found by solving solutions independently, and the developmental level when guided by an adult or peer to solve a problem. It helps show the process of learning. For instance teaching something today which the student cannot do independently and expanding the child’s understanding, in which the student will then learn with guidance and will be able to do by themselves tomorrow.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
vygotsky, zpd, e342monday
Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is a practice we continue to use today. The Zone of Proximal Development theory is the relationship between the actual developmental level found by solving solutions independently, and the developmental level when guided by an adult or peer to solve a problem. It helps show the process of learning. For instance teaching something today which the student cannot do independently and expanding the child’s understanding, in which the student will then learn with guidance and will be able to do by themselves tomorrow.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
vygotsky, zpd, e342monday
Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is a practice we continue to use today. The Zone of Proximal Development theory is the relationship between the actual developmental level found by solving solutions independently, and the developmental level when guided by an adult or peer to solve a problem. It helps show the process of learning. For instance teaching something today which the student cannot do independently and expanding the child’s understanding, in which the student will then learn with guidance and will be able to do by themselves tomorrow.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
This theory is used constantly. Reflecting back, I can say I was taught using Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development. An example of this was in math class in eighth grade. My teacher wrote on the board five problems every day to start class. Then she would give us fifteen minutes to solve them. Two were review problems, two were about what we were in the middle of learning, and the last one was a problem which expanded the ideas that we were learning. She would then call on five people to go to the board and solve them for the class.
Every day, when I would do the problems on the board, I would understand the first two problems. They would be easy to do because they were a review for me. Then I would spend the most time working on problems we were learning. Most of the class got the first two problems correct, because those were the building blocks of the new unit. On the other hand, if people were stuck, our teacher would show us how to do the one we were not sure about by using one of our peer’s solutions on the board. She would walk through it by calling on students who did not go to the board and add in where she felt was necessary. She would also stop at every step to allow time for questions.
In my experience, the Zone of Proximal Development helped me expand my math skills. It gave me a chance to use the steps I had already known and provided a way to expand my knowledge of math. By constantly reviewing and discussing each step, my teacher was able to teach me. What were unfamiliar at first had become a piece of cake and just another skill I now know how to use. Vygotsky’s Zone of Proximal Development is how I was able to learn and relate known knowledge to the unfamiliar.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
vygotsky erin baxter e342wednesday
The Zone of Proximal Development encompasses the space between the actual developmental level and the level of potential development as a result of guided teaching. A child's actual developmental level is based on what she already knows. Through life experiences she has learned quite a bit and through independent problem solving her actual developmental level is affected. The ZPD shows what she is capable of on her own and where she should be in the future after being guided by a teacher. I like the idea of of underdeveloped functions as "buds," in the "embryonic state." The ZPD evolves with the child; eventually, with guidance, a student's ZPD will become her actual developmental level. As teachers, being aware of the ZPD will help us understand where are students are now and where they could potentially be after working with them.
When I started elementary school, I had a lot of experience reading with my family and on my own. But when I began reading in the classroom, the speed of my learning increased. With only a year or two of guidance, I had significantly improved my skills. It is inspiring to see how far we can come with a little expertise and keeps me interested in furthering my education because although we can learn a lot on our own, being open to learning from others will take us further on our quest for knowledge.
When I started elementary school, I had a lot of experience reading with my family and on my own. But when I began reading in the classroom, the speed of my learning increased. With only a year or two of guidance, I had significantly improved my skills. It is inspiring to see how far we can come with a little expertise and keeps me interested in furthering my education because although we can learn a lot on our own, being open to learning from others will take us further on our quest for knowledge.
Lauren Schraut ZPD
Along with many of my peers, the first time I had heard of good old Vygotsky was here at IU. I believe my first encounter with Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) was in my Children’s Psychology class my sophomore year. ZPD is seen whenever someone is learning something new for the first time (this can be academic or not). It can start with modeling something, then the student working on it with the teacher, followed by the student working on it alone but with help available (worksheet), and finally the student works on it all alone with no help (exam).
I was trying to think of a time in which ZPD was relevant in my life that did not correspond to my academic life and I could clearly think of when I was in a beauty pageant in high school. Oh, the joys of learning the “beauty pageant” turn. The first time I was encounter with it was when my agent was demonstrating to me how to properly turn. Following her modeling this for me, we taped off X’s on the floor so I knew exactly where to stop and where my next step was supposed to be. She and I practiced in from of mirrors for hours, yes simply for just a turn that took about seven seconds. Then we removed the X’s and I did the turns on my own with her watching in case I forgot what was supposed to happen. Finally, there was the “exam” where I had no help and no X’s on the floor, the pageant!
As a teacher, I think it is critical to keep Vygotsky’s ZPD in mind while teaching; more importantly, I think it is important (especially as a special educator) to remember that not all student’ ZPDs are the same. While in the classroom, I must know that I should be readily available when students need me to be there in order for them to succeed.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)