Who?

Lev Vygotsky (1896-1934) was a Soviet psychologist who believed children learn through social interaction with more knowledgeable others, such as parents, teachers, and peers. He pioneered the socio-cultural theory of cognitive development.

What?

Social interaction and collaborative learning: learning is predominantly a social activity and social interactions with others play a crucial role in learning and the construction of knowledge.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): the range of tasks or skills that a learner is not yet able to do independently, but can achieve with the support of someone more knowledgeable, such as a parent, teacher, or peer.

Cultural-historical theory: society provides the tools, symbols, and systems that children use to understand the world. Cultural tools, such as language, directly shape how children behave, think, and learn. Learning is an activity that is mediated by culture.

Why?

Vygotsky’s work has transformed:

• social and collaborative learning

• learner scaffolding

• play-based learning

• language and literacy development

• culturally-responsive pedagogy