15.2: Vygotsky’s Sociocultural Theory of Cognitive Development

Learning Objectives

1. Define the zone of proximal development (ZPD) and describe how scaffolding supports learning within it.
2. Differentiate between Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s interpretations of self-directed speech.
3. Compare Piaget’s emphasis on discovery learning with Vygotsky’s focus on guided instruction.

As introduced earlier in the text, Lev Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, argued that culture has a significant impact on a child’s cognitive development. He believed that the social interactions with adults and more knowledgeable peers can facilitate a child’s potential for learning. Without this interpersonal instruction, he believed children’s minds would not advance very far, as their knowledge would be based only on their discoveries. Let’s review some of Vygotsky’s key concepts.

Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding

Vygotsky’s best-known concept is the zone of proximal development (ZPD). Vygotsky stated that children should be taught in the ZPD, which occurs when they can perform a task with assistance, but not quite yet on their own. With the right kind of teaching, however, they can accomplish it. An effective parent, caregiver, or professional identifies a child’s ZPD and helps the child learn within it. Then the adult gradually withdraws support until the child can then perform the task unaided. Researchers have applied the metaphor of scaffolds (the temporary platforms on which construction workers stand) to this way of teaching. Scaffolding is the temporary support that parents or teachers give a child to do a task.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Zone of proximal development. Image by Dcoetzee is licensed under CC0 1.0

Private Speech

Do you ever talk to yourself? Why? Chances are, this occurs when you are struggling with a problem, trying to remember something, or feeling very emotional about a situation. Children talk to themselves, too. Piaget interpreted this as egocentric speech or a practice engaged in because of a child’s inability to see things from another’s point of view. Vygotsky, however, believed that children talk to themselves to solve problems or clarify thoughts. As children learn to think in words, they do so aloud before eventually closing their lips and engaging in private, or inner, speech.

Thinking out loud eventually becomes thought accompanied by internal speech, and talking to oneself becomes a practice only engaged in when we are trying to learn something or remember something. This inner speech is not as elaborate as the speech we use when communicating with others (Vygotsky, 1962). ¹⁰

Contrast with Piaget

Piaget was highly critical of teacher-directed instruction, believing that teachers who take control of the child’s learning place the child into a passive role (Crain, 2005). Furthermore, teachers may present abstract ideas without the child truly understanding them, and instead, they simply repeat back what they heard. Piaget believed children must be given opportunities to discover concepts on their own. As previously stated, Vygotsky did not believe children could reach a higher cognitive level without instruction from more learned individuals. Who is correct? Both theories certainly contribute to our understanding of how children learn.

References, Contributors and Attributions

10. Lifespan Development - Module 5: Early Childhood by Lumen Learning references Psyc 200 Lifespan Psychology by Laura Overstreet, licensed under CC BY 4.0