Vygotsky, conflict, dialectic, growth
stephanie spina (sspina who-is-at email.gc.cuny.edu)
Tue, 7 Oct 1997 11:37:48 -0400 (EDT)
I would like to explore some of the relationships between Vygotskiian
theory and critical pedagogy in general, and specifically as they relate
to the issues of conservatism, multiculturalism, and the host of other
issues raised in the stories recently posted.
My interpretation of Vygotsky may not be "mainstream" on this list - but
I'd like to engage in a dialogue (not a polarizing debate) around some of
these ideas (on or off list) with anyone interested. Perhaps conflict
may be an appropriate starting point.
Conflict, to Vygotsky, was critical to growth. For example,I do not see
the ZPD as just a technique to systematically lead children from one level
of skill to another. The ZPD is not a "place" or a "thing." It is not a
technique for learning/teaching. It is a reorganization through conflict
to create new meaning. The ZPD works by creating a tension between
present and future capabilities; the intersection of external needs and
internal possibilities. The dialectical character of the process has been
frequently neutralized in the West where its conflictual aspects, so
critical to Vygotsky's conceptualization, are glossed over, leaving no
room for concepts like agency and resistance, which are central to
critical pedagogy. Western views seem to have shifted Vygotsky's notion by
an emphasis on the interaction between a child and adult through the
process of negotiating meaning, assuming reciprocity and positive,
cooperative interaction.
Vygotsky's strength is his unique integration of (historical) psychology,
Marxist philosophy, and social semiotic analysis to create a theory based
on, in, and of culture. Critical pedagogy shares these roots and exploring
this may provide insights relevant to both.
Your thoughts?
Stephanie
Stephanie Urso Spina
City University of New York
sspina who-is-at email.gc.cuny.edu