my developmental psychology assignment (lev vygotsky)

The social development of Lev Vygotsky states that social interaction precedes development. Lev Vygotsky stressed in his theories that social interaction set the foundation for cognitive development.

Lev Vygotsky believed that humans are born with basic abilities for cognitive development, these abilities are

·         Attention

·         Sensation

·         Perception

·         Memory

Later on after interaction this basic abilities develops into complex mental process, Lev Vygotsky talked about the intellectual tools like memory mnemonics and memory maps which allow children to use basic mental functions more effectively and this is determined by culture.

Social influences on cognitive development

Lev Vygotsky believed that even cognitive task that are performed alone is influenced by beliefs, values and intellectual tools provided by the cultural background that the individual is exposed to. Lev Vygotsky said that important learning by a child is as a result of social interaction with a skilful tutor, this could occur through verbal instruction or actions of the tutor then internalised the information using it to guide or regulate their performance.

More Knowledgeable Other(MKO)

The term More Knowledgeable Other(MKO) refers to the person that has more knowledge about a particular topic, aspect or concept than the learner. The MKO doesn’t necessarily be an older person, it just has to be a person with more knowledge than the learner.

Zone of Proximal Development

Zone of proximal development is another concept of Lev Vygotsky, it deals with the difference between what a child can achieve independently and what he can achieve with some guidance. Lev Vygotsky believed that the zone of proximal development is where sensitive instruction should be given.

 Lev Vygotsky believed that interaction with peers is an effective way of developing skills and strategies, Lev Vygotsky believed that language develops from social interactions and communication purpose.

Vygotsky viewed language as a man’s greatest tool, a means for communicating with the outside world. Lev Vygotsky believed that language plays two important roles in cognitive development.

·         It is the main means by which adults transmit information to children.

·         Language itself becomes a very powerful tool of intellectual adaptation.

Lev Vygotsky said there are three forms of language

·         Social speech which is external communication used to talk to others, this happens from 2yrs old

·         Private speech, which is directed to the self and serves an intellectual function, this is from 3yrs old

·         and finally private speech goes underground, diminishing in audibility as it takes on a self-regulating function and is transformed into silent inner speech this occurs from age 7

When i grow up

What is it you want to be? This is a question a friend of mine asked and nobody in the room could give an answer , and mind you we were all in the university. I know you might think we are some kind of irresponsible, lazy, carefree people, but truth is we are as responsible as responsible can get, we are hard working, smart, intelligent and creative( i dont mean to brag). we put our hearts to what ever we find ourselves doing but the problem is we don't seem to find that thing we want to be, what we are going to specialise in and put all our hard work and talent into. This as become a case of ' jack of all trades master of none'.
In schools we were thought variety of subjects and decipline which were meant  to build us to survive in this world, and for those who are all round good find it the hardest to find or discover what they want to be. In secondary school they have to battle with the stereotypes that the smartest students are to go to the science class, because science were seen to be more challenging than the other classes, and since they were good all round its only logical they go for the more challenging class, neglecting the fact that they can strive in other classes or enjoy the other classes more .
The truth is, there is nothing wrong with the education system or the way we grew up. The only loop hole is that we were put under pressure to find what we want to be before we found ourselves and the irony is as we grew and began to grow and spread our wings, we discovered that there is more to us and we are capable of a whole lot more than we thought,  we start getting confused and instead of having a thing we want to be we have
a lot of things we can be or do that we have a problem choosing one.      
But the only advice i can give people like me is to keep working hard in whatever they find themselves doing and leave things to sort itself  out.

first day in school

           oh God!!! here we go again, its like being between the devil and the deep blue sea, I don't want to stay at home and  don't really want the stress of school and face all the things left unsolved.
         people who the holidays help you avoid, you are gonna come face to face with them and start looking for reasons to give on why you didn't call or keep in touch, its the day you start thinking about the exam you wrote last year , its the time you come to know your fate, whether you are on good standing and you can continue to chill or your CGPA is drowning and you have to do something drastic to save it.
          its also the day to make a good impression for the new year, and also a new beginning , a chance to change people's perception towards you, its a chance for a fresh start, a chance to set new goals and make new promises to yourself. just hope there is no disappointments this time.