Zone of proximal development

The zone of proximal development, often abbreviated as ZPD, is the difference between what a learner can do without help and what he or she can do with help. It is a notion introduced, yet not fully established, by Soviet psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1896–1934) during the last ten years of his life. Vygotsky identified that a child follows an adult's example and gradually develops the ability to do certain tasks without assistance. Vygotsky and some other educators believe that the role of education is to give children experiences that are within their zones of PD, thereby encouraging and advancing their individual learning.

The concept of the ZPD was originally developed by Vygotsky to argue against the use of academic, knowledge-based tests as a means to measure students' intelligence. He also created ZPD to further develop Jean Piaget's theory of children being independent learners. Vygotsky spent a lot of time studying the influence of school instruction on children and noted that children grasp language concepts quite naturally, but that maths and writing don’t come naturally, that these are concepts taught in schools and tend to come along with some struggle, while Piaget believed that there was a clear division between development and teaching. He said that “development is a spontaneous process that is initiated and completed by the children, stemming from their own efforts.” Piaget was a supporter of independent thinking and critical of the standard teacher-led instruction that is common practice in schools today.

 

-WIKIPEDIA INFO ALTERED