The Sociocultural View in Grade Two

Deep Question #1: With the knowledge of both of these theorists (Vygotsky and
Piaget) in mind, if you were to choose only one theorist to apply to your
classroom (pick any grade K-12), which would it be and for what reasons would
you choose to implement their way of thinking to your classroom?

I would choose to implement Vygotskys theories of learning and child

development in my grade two classroom. These theories recognize multiple
modes of cultural tool transmission including imitative, instructed and
collaborative learning. Vygotsky emphasized the assistance of discovery by
scaffolding (Interim KSA 6) primarily communicated through language. In this
framework, human activities take place in cultural settings and our mental
structure and processes can be traced to interactions. He did not believe that
children can or should be expected to rediscover knowledge already
available. As acknowledged in Interim KSAs 5, 9, 10 and 13, teachers are to
assist learning by adapting materials and problems, demonstrating skills and
thought processes, and giving feedback. Although open discussions are far
more productive than teacher-dominated discussion, childrens cognitive
development is fostered by interactions with people more capable or
advanced in thinking.
A classroom based around Vygotskys sociocultural theories fosters
cooperative and inquiry based learning in which both independent problem
solving and cumulative sharing work together to increase students abilities
to participate in culture. Rather than forcing students to reinvent the wheel
or sweat over pages of challenging problems, teachers provide optimal
learning environments by presenting applicable materials and allowing for
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exploration with mentorship that creates what Vygotsky termed the Zone of
Proximal Development. I think that this type of classroom allows students to
work within a system that broadly reflects real-world conditions in which
knowledge can be sought out and interests pursued by building upon society
and culture beginning at a young age and also applies Interim KSAs 5, 9, 10,
12 and 13.
Vygotskys emphasis on discovery through language also promotes a
classroom in which literacy becomes a tool for representation. This can take
many forms and can be used for formative and summative assessment.
Students can use language arts to write reflections, reports and stories,
communicate questions, opinions and knowledge, self-talk through processes
and principles, and represent feelings and learning in audio and visual
mediums (Interim KSAs 5, 9 and 10).
Vygotskys cognitive theories form a foundation for engaging,
collaborative and meaningful learning in the classroom, especially for early
childhood education.

Smoothing Turbulent Transitions

Deep Question #5: Mrs. Smith, a new secondary teacher has noticed that her
adolescent students are entering a stage in their life when they are trying to find
themselves. She feels this is difficult for students and would like to help students
make the transition as smoothly as possible. Discuss and list ideas below for
Mrs. Smith.

In order to aid her adolescent students transitions into a new stage of life
as smooth as possible, Mrs. Smith should recognize the context of their
developmental period as well as some strategies to support them
individually and together. Some of Mrs. Smiths students may not have
successfully resolved the crisis or turning point of the stage that they are
transitioning from, while others have had healthy and adequate closure and
are ready for their next psychosocial conflict. All of them need to be prepared
over the next few years to encounter the stage of young adulthood and the
crisis therein.
For the students who have not found closure for their childhood stage,
Mrs. Smith will need to apply Interim KSA 7 by providing opportunity for
learning and applying new skills within an encouraging environment. This is
important for any classroom, but these students in particular need to find
approval and acknowledgement of their effort. They need to know that they
can be competent and productive through their own effort and willingness to
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try (Interim KSA 8). Specifically, Mrs. Smith should create opportunities to
give individual responsibilities within the classroom, help her students set
goals, and support positive self-esteem.
In addition to supporting the closure of her students childhood stage, Mrs.
Smith should facilitate the exploration and solution of their adolescent stage.
Her students need to be given freedom to explore themselves and recognize
their unique identity, but they will also need the assurance of security as
reflected in Interim KSAs 7 and 8. During this stage, students will look many
places for approval, one of the most prominent places being their peers. Mrs.
Smith should be very observant and careful to eliminate comparisons and
facilitate a positive, accepting and caring classroom climate. Mrs. Smith can
moderate the exploration of perspectives and self-reflection in various
mediums throughout the curriculum applying Interim KSA 9. In Social
Studies, perspectives can be explored in mock elections or debates; in
Health, students can identify new aspects of their character through
personality quizzes; in English, reflections in chosen modalities can look back
on childhood and recognize patterns in students lives. This learning can help
to teach her students to identify how others view them, acknowledge whose
opinions matter (valuing Interim KSA 12) and build self-confidence. Like
childhood, adolescents need help to make goals. Healthy resolution to this
phase will help her students address the challenges of young adulthood well.
Mrs. Smith is already on the right track to being an effective partner and
practicing Interim KSA 1 as she is aware of the transitional nature of her
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students development. As she seeks to smooth their change, she should

encourage student responsibility and learn about their backgrounds. This
intentional classroom climate should make it a healthy and positive place to
be for all students as they work through challenges and resolve personal and
relational conflicts.

References
Buchmann, L., Laplante, J., Reil, S., & Sommerfeldt, K. (2015). Vygotsky &
Piaget [prezi]. Retrieved from https://prezi.com/zfj9wxjxiryr/untitledprezi/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy
Church, L., Steeves, P., Thompson, C., & Visser, K. (2015). Erik Eriksons
Stages of Development for Teachers [prezi]. Retrieved from
https://prezi.com/y1oow_qherta/erik-eriksons-theory-of-childdevelopment-for-teachers/#