UNIT 2: DEVELOPMENTAL THEORIES AND OTHER RELEVANT THEORIES

Lesson 9: Vygotsky’s Socio-Cultural Theory

- Maria Rita D. Lucas, Ph.D.

“What a child can do in cooperation today, tomorrow
she/he will be able to do alone”.
-Lev vygotsky

LEARNING OUTCOMES: At the end of the lesson, the students should be able
to:

1. Explain why Vgotsky’s theory is called “Socio-cultural” theory.

2. Differentiate Piaget and Vygotsky’s views on cognitive development.
3. Explain how scaffolding is useful in teaching skills.

INTRODUCTION

The key theme of Vygotsky’s theory is that social interaction plays a very important role
in cognitive development. He believed that individual development could not be understood
without looking into the social and cultural context within which development happens.
Scaffolding is Vygotsky’s term for the appropriate assistance given by the teacher to assist the
learner accomplishes a task.

ACTIVITY:

1. As a child, recall a skill that you wanted to learn and eventually learned well, through the
help of another person. (Like swimming, riding a bike, playing the piano, etc.)
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2. What made you interested to learn the skill? __________________________________.
3. Who taught or assisted you? _______________________________________________
4. Describe how you went about learning the skill. Describe what steps or actions the person
did in order to help you learn. ______________________________________

ANALYSIS:

1. What factors in the environment influenced you to learn the skill?

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 2. Did the person who taught or assisted you make use of scaffolding? If yes, How?
_______________________________________________________________________

ABSTRACTION/ GENERALIZATION:

 When Vygotsky was a young boy he was educated under a teacher who used the Socratic
Method. This method was a systematic question and answer approach that allowed
Vygotsky to examine current thinking and practice higher level of understanding.
 This experience, together with his interest in literature and his work as a teacher, led him
to recognize social interaction and language as two central factors in cognitive
development. His theory became known as the Socio-Cultural Theory of Development.

VIEWS OF PIAGET AND VYGOTSKY ON CONGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT

PIAGET VYGOTSKY
 More individual in focus  More social in focus
 Believed that there are universal  Did not propose stages but emphasized
stages of cognitive development on cultural factors in cognitive
development
 Did not give much emphasis on  Stressed the role of language in
language cognitive development

 Social Interaction. Piaget’s theory was more individual, while Vygotsky was more
social. Piaget’s work on Piagetian’s tasks focused heavily on how an individual’s
cognitive development became evident through the individual’s own processing of the
tasks. Vygotsky, on the other hand gave more weight on the social interactions that
contributed to the cognitive development of individuals. For him, the social environment
or the community takes on a major role in one’s development.

 Cultural factors. Vygotsky believed in the crucial role that culture played on the
cognitive development of children. He looked into the wide range of experiences that a
culture would give to a child. Piaget believed that as a child develops and matures, he
goes through universal stages of cognitive development that allows him to move from
simple exploration with senses and muscles to complex reasoning.

 Language. Language opens the door for learners to acquire knowledge that other already
has. It helps the learner to regulate and reflect on his own thinking. Children talks to
themselves, for Vygotsky, this is “talking-to-oneself” is an indication of the thinking goes
on in mind of the child. This will eventually lead to private speech. Private speech is a
form of self-talk that guides the child’s thinking and action. He believed in the essential
role of activities in learning. Children learn best through hand-on activities than when
listening passively. Learning by doing is even more fruitful when children interact with
knowledgeable adults and peers.

 Zone of Proximal development. When a child attempts to perform a skill alone, she may
not be immediately proficient at it. So, alone she may perform at a certain level of
competency. We refer to this as the zone of actual development. However, with the
guidance of a More Knowledgeable Other (MKO), competent adult or a more
advanced peer, the child can perform at a higher level of competency. The difference
between what the child can accomplish alone and what she can accomplish with the
guidance of another is what Vygotsky referred to as zone of proximal development. The
support of assistance that lets the child accomplish a task he cannot accomplish
independently is called scaffolding. As a learner becomes more proficient, able to
complete tasks on their own that they could not initially do without assistance, the
guidance can be withdrawn. This is called scaffold and fade-away technique.
 WORKSHEET NO. 9
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APPLICATION: An exercise in scaffolding: Determine how you will use scaffolding. Describe
the specific actions you will do to scaffold.

1. Choose a skill you are good in.

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2. Identify an individual to whom who can teach this skill. Somebody who will benefit from
scaffolding.
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3. Break down the steps you will take in teaching the skill.
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