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Social development theory was introduced in 1920s and 1930s by Lev Vygotsky, father of social constructivism. This theory gives a framework for cognitive development argues that the key role in cognition development lies in social interactions. In his own words, “every function in the child's cultural development appears twice: first, on the social level, and later, on the individual level; first, between people (interpsychological) and then inside the child (intrapsychological). This applies equally to voluntary attention, to logical memory, and to the formation of concepts. All the higher functions originate as actual relationships between individuals”1).
Vigotsky's theory addresses three main themes2):
Motivation for introduction of ZPD lies in observation that children could often accomplish tasks with the help of others that they could not accomplish alone. According to Vigotsky, two children may be at the same level of actual development, but given the appropriate help from an adult, one might be able to solve many more problems than the other. The zone of proximal development is the difference between a childs current level of development and his or her potential level of development, where full cognitive development is achieved through social interaction.
First implication of Vigotsky's theory comes from the emphasized importance of social interaction. In accordance with that, interaction between learners should be encouraged during the educational process, since it will enhance learning. Another effective form of teaching should be scaffolding - providing learner with help when and as much as needed.