Lifespan development formal writing number two The Zone of Proximal Development Andrew J. Terry Jr.

The University of Memphis

The Zone of Proximal Development An article by Angela Lui In this article by Angela Lui educators are the primary targets of her discussions. She gives a definition of Zone of Proximal Development, We can think of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) as the difference between what a child can do independently and what he or she is capable of doing with targeted assistance (scaffolding). What the child is able to do in collaboration today, he will be able to do independently tomorrow (Lev Vygotsky). She is explaining how students have independent skills that they have mastered but there are some shills that are too advanced for them to master on their own. The Zone of Proximal Development can help them and their teachers to achieve the goal that is desired by giving help but just enough to get the student to thinking independently towards completing the task at hand. Each student has his or her on ZPD and the educator has to locate where each students ZPD is, and the instruction that is given to them is not too easy or not to difficult but its in that comfort zone that makes the student put on his or her thinking cap. The ZPD has to be challenging enough to cause the student to develop new skills and build upon the ones that he or she have developed already. Vygotskys research focused on the role of social interactions in human development. In his investigation he examined the significant relationships between language and thought as well as learning and play. What he found was that childrens social interactions with significant people in their lives such as parents, peers, teachers, and other adults greatly enhance their knowledge of the world and a higher order of thought processes followed. An extension of this concept, (Wood, Bruner, and Ross) used the term scaffolding to refer to the given and supportive ways and social interactions that occur between the child and other individuals as they guide and give constructive learning and development in the ZPD Scaffolding may include skill modeling,

starting and maintaining interest and motivation, and simplifying problems to a level that the student understands (Wood, Bruner, & Ross, 1976). In class we talked about how the Zone of Proximal Development is and always will be a significant tool for teaching but social interaction is giving way to the high technology of todays world. With todays world so fast and demanding the emphasis on computer-based learning, technology use, and distance learning (computers at home, and learning channels on TV) social interactions may not be as plentiful as they used to be. As children master these skills they become a part of their actual development level. Some things that the child cannot accomplish even with assistants can be considered part of the childs future development, because there are things that children will learn as they continue to develop. When teachers, parents, and other experienced peers attempt to help a child learn within the ZPD it is called scaffolding. This is when a teacher, parent, or more experience person acts as a resource and offers help to an individual in order for them to learn how to perform a specific task. Scaffolding may be used to work through a problem together with a child, giving examples or providing suggestions that he or she can use to learn the content of the problem. These are three aspects of scaffolding 1. Once a child is able to accomplish the task alone, it becomes part of his or her Zone of Actual Development, this is what a child can already accomplish on his or her own, without the assistance from more experienced people. 2. The Zone of proximal Development what the child can accomplish with the help from a more knowledgeable peer, adult, or teacher. 3. The Zone of Eventual Development, is what the child cannot yet accomplish, even with the help of someone else. Vygotsky suggested that teachers try always to be aware of what is and is not within the ZPD of students, which may differ from one student to another. Its also important to use a

variety of ways for scaffolding. Some students may respond better to computer-based modules while some learn best from direct, one-on-one instructions. While I was reading in chapter 7 and listening to Professor ODells, Lecture on Sigmund Freuds Theory of Personality she and the class began to talk about Freuds theory he believed that the human psyche which is defined as the mental force of a person, was broken into three parts; id, ego, and super ego. The id is defined as the libido. This is the part of the personality that is based on pleasure. The id is the part of the mind that says, I want what I want and I want it now! The ultimate goal of the id is to seek pleasure by any means necessary. The ego deals with reality. Here is an example thats in the chapter, a preschool teacher working with a group of two year olds, Johnny is one of the students and he brings a new toy to school. Billy, Johnny friend, walks over and takes Johnnys toy. Johnny begins to cry and it is up to the teacher, her job, to console Johnny and explain to Billy that he cannot take another persons toy. I saw this as what could fall under the ZPD, because Billy is under the influence of the id and he needs some reinforcement from the teacher as well as help in learning that this behavior is not acceptable. As well the teacher has to console Johnny this is a difficult task to get a two year old to understand this concept. In Freuds Psychosexual Stages of Development, in stage two the Anal Stage, the anus tends to be the erogenous zone, and potty training is an important aspect of the childs life. Freud believed that parents plays an important role in this stage. Potty training is important here because the child needs to develop a sense of control over his or her bladder and bowels. If the parent is too lenient, then the child may develop anal-expulsive personality and if to hard it may take much longer to potty train the child. This is in The Zone of Proximal Development and has to be handled with sensitive maneuvers, in order to make the child and feel proud of himself.

Ive learned that a teacher has to be crafty and that their job is not an easy one at all. The Zone of Proximal Development is a stage that can happen at any stage in your life. There are times in peoples lives no matter how old you are that the ZPD is necessary. There is no way that individuals can get around the zone if you are trying to learn something new. There was this college student that wanted to play tennis, so she enrolled in a class. The class spends each week learning a new shot weeks go by and they learn how to properly serve and hit a backhand she was doing very well until the week of learning how to hit the forehand, the instructor notices that she was getting frustrated because she kept hitting her forehand shots either into the net or far past the baseline. The instructor watches her preparation swing. He notices that her stance is perfect, she prepares early, she turns her torso, and she hits the ball at the right height. However she is still griping the racket as if she was she was going to hit her backhand, so he goes over to talk her and shows her how to reposition her hand to hit a proper fore hand. He models for her a good forehand and then assists her in changing her grip. With a little practice her forehand turns into a lethal weapon for her. As we can see from this example that ZPD is not just for young children and adolescence teens it is for anyone that maybe trying to accomplish a new task. The Zone of Proximal Development has been defined as the distance between the actual development level as determined by independent problem solving of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more peers (Vygotsky, 1978, p86). The ZPD has become synonymous with the term scaffolding. However, it is important to know that Vygotsky never used this term in his writing and it was introduced by Wood et al. 1976. Once the student, with the benefit of scaffolding, masters the task, the task scaffolding can them be removed and the student will then be able to complete the task at hand on his or own

With Lev Vygotskys theories on The Zone of Proximal Development I totally agree with him. When a student is in the ZPD for a particular task intervention with the appropriate assistance will give the student or child enough boost to achieve the task at hand. As I spoke about Sigmund Freuds anal stage in this chapter we can see that with proper assistance the child will become proud and this achievement boosts his ego. When a person needs assistance with a project and the correct kind of reinforcement and assistance is given it causes the person not to be frustrated and he or she wants to finish the task at hand. Once the task has been completed the person is filled with joy and pride knowing that they accomplished the task with help but now the person knows that they can do the project without any help in the future. If there is another task that he or she purses and there are similar steps to it they may be able to aggressively attack the project without any help. I can see the ZPD working in my youngest grandson, he and I built this race car for the Pinewood Derby its a project that the Boy Scouts have every year. He came home and went into his I want I want to ask you something mode, he says granddad how was your day? and how are you feeling? I answer the two questions and there is silence then I ask Theo what do you want from me today, then he tells me. We built the car and to my surprise we won overall second place in the Derby. He was so proud when he got a trophy almost as tall as he was, I thought that he was going to faint of course I lost every button on my shirt because I was bursting with pride also. So all in all I totally agree with Lev V ygotskys The Zone of Proximal Development because it enhances your ability to comprehend a learning experience even if you had to have help to experience it. It is very important to realize that the ZPD is a moving target and as the learner gains new skills and abilities, this Zone of Proximal Development moves progressively forward.

Theorist Lev Vygotsky The Zone of Proximal Development Angela Lui, Childrens Progress Saul McLeod The class textbook