ZPD


 * Zone of Proximal Development** refers to the space where learning is maximized. It is uniquely individual, based on one's learning needs and potentials.


 * ZPD= The Zone of Proximal Development
 * The Differemce between what a learner can do with help and what the learner can do without help.
 * Lev Vygotsky came up with the term ZPD
 * "the distance between the
 * developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more capable peers" - Lev Vygotsky
 * Below is a chart explaining when the zone of proximal development occurs within Vygotsky's stages.



The ZPD works in close conjunction with the use of scaffolding.

SCAFFOLDING: The role of teachers and others in supporting the learner's development and providing support structures to get to that next stage or level (as defined by Vygotsky). - Provides individualized support based on the learner's ZPD - "An important aspect of scaffolding instruction is that the scaffolds are temporary. As the learner's abilities increase the scaffolding provided by the more knowledgeable other is progressively withdrawn. Finally the learner is able to complete or master the concepts independently ([|Van Der Stuyf article])."

The scaffolds provided are activities and tasks that: models, cues, prompts, hints, partial solutions, think-aloud modeling, direct instruction
 * Motivate or enlist the child's interest related to the task
 * Simplify the task to make it more manageable and achievable for a child
 * Provide some direction in order to help the child focus on achieving the goal
 * Clearly indicate differences between the child's work and the standard or desired solution
 * Model and clearly define the expectations of the activity to be performed
 * EXAMPLES***

VIDEO: A great video explaining ZPD and SCAFFOLDING

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXl7PP3bBKE

[|Zone of proximal development in the classroom] In a classroom setting, the teacher is responsible for structuring interactions and developing instruction in small steps based on tasks the learner is already capable of performing independently — an instructional strategy known as scaffolding. The instructor is also charged with providing support until the learner can move through all tasks independently.

In order for teachers to guide learners through the tasks associated with learning a concept, they must “understand how cognitive tasks fit into the child’s cultural activities.” These tasks are called “scaffolds,” which are tasks or levels on which the teacher builds to develop learners’ zones of proximal development. According to John Zeuli, “Instruction should emphasize connections to what the learner already knows in other familiar, everyday contexts.”

Vygotsky (1962) suggests that these connections do not have to take place immediately, but that “in the course of further schoolwork and reading,” learners can make the association between concepts and experience. Vygotsky describes the teacher’s role as assisting students in the recognition of decontextualized, systematic concepts. Vygotsky contends, “instruction cannot be identified as development, but properly organized instruction will result in the child’s intellectual development, will bring into being an entire series of such developmental processes, which were not at all possible without instruction.” Accordingly, the teaching methodology that aligns with the zone of proximal development “integrates several approaches to form a comprehensive agenda for research of the genesis, development, function, and structure of the human psyche.”

Within the classroom, the person who is more knowledgeable is not always the teacher; students can also be placed in collaborative groups with others who have demonstrated mastery of tasks and concepts.