VYGOTSKY THEORY OF CONSTRUCTIVISM
Constructivism is simply a theory of how the people learn through interaction with their social environment. Lev Vygotsky is a Russian developmental psychologist, he is also a lawyer from Moscow University and a Ph.D. on the study of literature and linguistic approach (Miller S.A. 1995) he died in tuberculosis at the age of 37 year of 1934. His theory focuses on the fundamental role of the society and its people, he believed that the society plays a major role in the learning process of people.
According to him the society has led its people to learning and learning is universal that is why social learning theories or constructivism have been developed. The Principles has been developed because of their present political and social environment. He worked as a psychiatrist during the Russian Revolution and during those times their status including physical, monetary and achievements should be given out to the society to share and enjoy by other people these practices was highly encourage. The success of a particular person will be the success of the society.
Vygotsky have incorporate his model in the development of his constructivism theory that he included the mental development such as language and reasoning ability in a humanitarian approach in his theoretical studies that has been called the socio-cultural approach and it is evident that the theory is the result of their culture. He saw that a child goes through series of stages while they grow and develop, these stages includes the infant, early childhood, school boy or school girl and their puberty stage in life. He stressed in his theory the developmental structure of the child can be manifested as they grow their social and mental condition will be developed through stages in life and this transformation will surely take place. Basically the child will gain their knowledge then the child will process their thinking from their surrounding, languages and culture or in better terms the society will be the one to provide the means of what to think and how they think.
To understand his principle he stressed that The More Knowledgeable Other (MKO) means that the adult must be the one to educate the children so as to transfer more knowledge and experiences but they do not necessarily have to be a teacher nor a person of knowledge as long as they have something to contribute to a child they can be considered an adult, that a child can also be an adult if they have the necessary knowledge to share.
The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is another principle learning process that a given task or knowledge of a person is limited but can be increased through proper sharing with adults guidance example is Marry knows how cook a little but she doesn’t know how to bake in order to sustain her talent she would be taught to bake with adult supervision and she will also be taught learn to cook more food. Her proximity of knowledge expands even more using this principle.
Vygotsky’s key concept is included in the book and divided into major ideas that 1. Children construct knowledge, while during his childhood he created most of his learning materials to aid his study. 2. Learning leads to development, teachers and adult must learn to develop methods that work best for children 3. The society and the development cannot and should not be separated that all human must share their own ideas, wisdom and possession to others 4. Language can play a central role in the development of mankind as written in his book “Thinking and Speaking” published in 1934.
Psychologist find it very important to learn and study the life, concept and theories of Lev Vygotsky’s in Constructivism because of its relevance to real life when he promoted learning and the society through communication integration of children and adults shows a good family relation to favor its principles. He even promote justice, peace, orderly manner of thinking, and adulthood to love children so as they grow to become a vital part of the society and most of all he also promoted education as a part of development. There is so much to learn in all his writings.
In all forms of society Lev Vygotsky has established a pattern of humanitarian approach in many ways and this alone has its own advantage. Selfishness and greed is not to be tolerated in the society, in his theories he even concludes a very healthy development of the society, this kind of concept and theory if adopted in our present time will create a better world rather what we are experiencing today and there will be no more war among nation.
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