Essay Lev Vygotskys Theory on Cognitive Development

Lev Vygotsky was a Russian developmentalist who believed that adults in all societies â€Å"foster children’s cognitive development in an intentional and somewhat systematic manner† (Ormrod, 2011, pg.39). Vygotsky sociocultural theory focused on what a child could do merely with an adult’s assistance. Nature is the emphasis of this theory highlighting children’s cultural and social environmental experiences that influence cognitive growth. Two main terms that are of uttermost importance in this principle are a child’s zone of proximal development (ZPD) and scaffolding (Ormrod, 2011, pg.39). Zone of proximal development will first be defined and explained to better understand and comprehend what is entailed within this popular method of†¦show more content†¦By using thee ZPD as a guide this gives the child an opportunity to work towards their level of potential development which is tasks they are unable to achieve with substantial adul t assistance. These can more positively be viewed as future goals. To summarize, it is the challenges in life, rather than the simple victories that stimulate cognitive development (Ormrod, 2011, pg.41). Introduction of the second key concept is scaffolding. According to Jeanne E. Ormrod’s book Educational Psychology Developing Learners, scaffolding can be better understood by describing two contexts that scaffolding can be inserted. The first would be a structure to where construction workers can stand until a building is sturdy enough to embrace their weight (Ormrod, 2011, pg. 45). The second meaning or contextual use defined by About.com author Beth Lewis: â€Å"Scaffolding refers to the idea that specialized instructional supports need to be in place in order to best facilitate learning when students are first introduced to a new subject† (Lewis, 2013). The key word in scaffolding is support. Support is given until the student is able to accomplish the tasks independently. Scaffolding is used to help individuals execute tasks in their zone of proximal development. With both definitions of scaffolding unveiled it is established that both educational scaffolding are temporary structures that are meant to be removed after stability is obtained (Ormrod, 2011, pg. 45). NowShow MoreRelatedLev Vygotsky s Influence On Development920 Words   |  4 PagesLev Vygotsky Introduction Lev Vygotsky was a Russian psychologist during the Soviet Union. He was the founder of cultural-history psychology. His work concentrated on development psychology with children from an early age. He came from a Jewish family and attended Moscow State University for medical school. After time, he transferred to Law school and got interested in arts to become a literary critic. Then, he became a psychology instructor at a University as his theories came into place. 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