Re: David Kirshner <CIKIRS who-is-at LSUVM.SNCC.LSU.EDU>
vera p john-steiner (vygotsky who-is-at unm.edu)
Mon, 22 Dec 1997 23:07:19 -0700 (MST)
Dear David,
I appreciate your careful reading of our article and your response.
Although we rely very heavily on Vygotsky's original texts, most
of us also have used it as a starting point to develop additional
notions and concepts. Cooperative learning was not as common in
Vygotsky's time as it is now. They faced the challenge of teaching
literacy to millions of people whose parents were unschooled. This created
a different set of learning
and teaching challenges than what we face to-day. I think the difference
between our interpretations of sc theory and that of its critics is that
we try to put some of these concepts into historical perspective.
That is not always easy as psychology has traditionally been an
ahistorical field.
As my work focuses on creativity and collaboration I had to come
to terms and overcome the narrow, modeling interpretation of ZPD,
I see the construction of the new as linked(among other things) to
complementarity between peers, and the dynamics of co-construction.
So in my work both horizontal and vertical interactions are critical.
I attempt to deal with these issues in a chapter as part of a volume that
Peter Smagorinsky is editing. (If you are interested I will send it to
you once I have finished editing it.)
RH joins me in wishing you a good and interesting 1988,
Vera
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Vera P. John-Steiner
Department of Linguistics
Humanities Bldg. 526
University of New Mexico
Albuquerque, NM 87131
(505) 277-6353 or 277-4324
Internet: vygotsky who-is-at unm.edu
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