This highly accessible guide to the varied aspects of Vygotsky’s psychology emphasises his abiding interest in education. Vygotsky was a teacher, a researcher and educational psychologist who worked in special needs education, and his interest in pedagogy was fundamental to all his work. Vygotsky the Teacher analyses and discusses the full range of his ideas and their far-reaching educational implications. Drawing on new work, research and fresh translations, this unique text foregrounds key Vygotskian perspectives on play, imagination and creativity, poetry, literature and drama, the emotions, and the role of language in the development of thought. It explains the textual issues surrounding Vygotsky’s publications that have, until recently, obscured some of the theoretical links between his ideas. It underlines Vygotsky’s determination to create a psychology that is capable of explaining all aspects of the development of mind. Vygotsky the Teacher is essential reading for students on education and psychology courses at all levels, and for all practitioners wanting to know more about Vygotsky’s theories and their roots in research and practice. It offers a unique road map of his work, connecting its different aspects, and placing them in the context of his life and the times in which he lived.

Analyzes the educational implications and applications of Soviet psychologist L.S. Vygotsky's ideas.

The first book to present the contemporary Vygotskian approach to learning and development from birth through adolescence to English-speaking educators.

The theories of Vygotsky are central to any serious discussion of children's learning processes. Vygotsky argues that children do not develop in isolation, rather learning takes place when the child is interacting with their social environment. It is the responsibility of the teacher to establish an interactive instructional situation in the classroom, where the child is an active learner and the teacher uses their knowledge to guide learning. This has many implications for those in the educational field. This book explores the growing interest in Vygotsky and the pedagogic implications of the body of work that is developing under the influence of his theories. It provides an overview of the ways in which the original writing has been extended and identifies areas for future development. The author considers how these developments are creating new and important possibilities for the practices of teaching and learning in school and beyond, and illustrates how Vygotskian theory can be applied in the classroom. The book is intended for students and academics in education and the social sciences. It will be of interest to all those who wish to develop an analysis of pedagogic practice within and beyond the field of education.

Vygotsky and the Promise of Public Education recontextualizes the scholarship of educator and psychologist Lev Vygotsky, highlighting its relevance to contemporary issues in public education. Emphasizing the historical, social, and cultural formation of conscious awareness, Jennifer A. Vadeboncoeur advances Vygotsky's project with current research in psychology, enabling the redefinition of central concepts such as learning, teaching, and developing. This attention to how we conceptualize learning and teaching is vital to the project of crafting schools to fulfill the promise of public education. Written for teacher candidates, educators, researchers, and policy-makers, this book both recognizes the complications of teaching and learning in public schools and contributes to the scholarship on the critical possibilities of schools as social institutions. The significance of public education for each and every child and teacher, and the future that is created in each student-teacher relationship, is re-centered as, perhaps, the most worthwhile project of our time.

This 2003 book comprehensively covers all major topics of Vygotskian educational theory and its classroom applications. Particular attention is paid to the Vygotskian idea of child development as a consequence rather than premise of learning experiences. Such a reversal allows for new interpretations of the relationships between cognitive development and education at different junctions of the human life span. It also opens new perspectives on atypical development, learning disabilities, and assessment of children's learning potential. Classroom applications of Vygotskian theory are discussed in the book. Teacher training and the changing role of a teacher in a sociocultural classroom is discussed in addition to the issues of teaching and learning activities and peer interactions. Relevant research findings from the US, Western Europe, and Russia are brought together to clarify the possible new applications of Vygotskian ideas in different disciplinary areas.

An edited collection of original essays by teacher educators, Vygotsky in the Classroom shows teachers how to apply Vygotsky's ideas to literacy instruction and assessment. The text examines Vygotsky's theories and classroom applications, and relates them to specific problems in literacy instruction.