Vygotsky's Socio-Cultural Theory

of Cognitive Development

Presented By: ODDESSA D. CASASUS

BPED 1-A
Russian Psychologist named,Lev Vygotsky's
develop a theory of cognitive development in
children known as Lev Vygotsky's Sociocultural
Theory of Cognitive Development
Bolshevik revolution in 1917 led to the hiring of
psychologist Lev Vygotsky by the Soviet government.
Vygotsky developed a unique theory of child
development.
His work remained largely unknown outside the
Soviet Union due to his death in 1938 and historical
events like WW II and the Cold War.
Recently, developmentalists have shown interest in
Vygotsky's ideas about the impact of cultural forces
on individual development.
Vygotsky's socio-cultural theory emphasizes that complex thinking originates from social interactions, not individual exploration like Piaget believed.
Vygotsky posits that children learn cognitive skills with the guidance of a more skilled person, such as an adult or older sibling, a process known as "scaffolding."
Scaffolding involves gaining and maintaining the child's attention, modeling effective strategies,
and adjusting to the child's developmental level within the "zone of proximal development."
The zone of proximal development refers to tasks that a child can't perform alone but can
manage with assistance.
An example is parents helping a beginning reader sound out new words to provide a scaffold.
Vygotsky introduced the concept of the "zone of proximal development" to explore a child's
potential for intellectual growth.
The zone of proximal development forms the basis for the application of scaffolding in teaching,
where a teacher adjusts support as the child learns a skill, withdrawing it once the skill is acquired.
This approach is similar to the ideas of reciprocal instruction, where learning
happens through community interaction, and guided participation, which focuses on
cognitive development through active engagement in cultural activities.
Vygotsky's theory has significant educational implications, emphasizing the
importance of active exploration and assisted discovery in the classroom.
Social interaction is central to Vygotsky's theory, as it
assumes that internalized thought processes result from
interactions in the social environment.
The development of intellectual capacities is closely tied
to the use of symbols and language and the progression
from elementary to higher mental functions.
Two Principles of Cultural Influence in
Vy- gotsky's Theory
First, cultures are varied. They use different ways, tools and settings to facilitate children's development.

Second, variations in culture as well as cultural con texts must be considered in assessing children's
cognitive development.
Thinking and problem solving according to Vygotsky have three categories:

I. some can be performed independently by the child

2. others cannot be performed even with the help from others
3. between the 1st two are tasks that can be performed with help from others
T ask sw ith in th ezo n eo fp ro x im ald ev elo p m en tareh o seach ild can p erfo rm w ith asitn cefro m teach ers,p aren ts,o rp ers.
C o lab o rativ efo rtsin th estak sh elp d ev elo p th esk ilsan d ab iltesn ed ed fo rin d ep en d en tp ractie.
V y g o tsk y 'sid eaisth atw h atch ild can d o w ith h elp to d ay,th ey w ilev en tu aly ach iev ein d ep en d en tly.
In th eco n tex to fread in g in stru ctio n ,term slik ein d ep en d en tlev el,in stru ctio n alev el,an d fru straio n lev elco resp o n d to V y g o tsk y 'szo n es,w ith th ein stru ctio n alev elaig n in g w ith th ezo n eo fp ro x im ald ev elo p m en t.