Pensamiento Palabra y Obra (Nov 2010)
Unravelling the internal logic of Vigotsky’s Social Constructivism
Abstract
Cognitive development and learning processes are related in a dialectical way in the individual who is part of a given context; that unity of opposites, product of social interaction, allows thinking the reality and acting upon it until you get to build the history, not only of oneself but also of the context. The internal dialectical logic of Vigotsky’s speech remains in the analysis of relationships such as language and thought, individual and society, culture and biology, community and individual. The social dimension of his constructivist thought and its consequent concept, the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), reinforces the view of his paradigmatic proposal and the many possibilities nowadays acquired in the realm of pedagogy. His constructivism is a coherent thought and is intended as a process in permanent construction, not only because it is built on a collective basis, that is, social interaction, but because it is never a finished product. Learning processes become significant to the extent that such interaction between teachers and students creates a ZPD that facilitates the acquisition and assimilation of new knowledge, if properly articulated to the Prior Knowledge present on each student's cognitive structure. Hence, learning processes can turn into engines of development.
