Why Zone of Proximal Development is Important in Education
The Zone of Proximal Development is the sweet spot of education; this is where meaningful learning happens. If you are an educator, you are bound to come across Vygotsky’s ZPD and Social Development Theory. A theory that is based on performance-based learning, individualized learning, and customized learning. What Is the Zone of Proximal Development? The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), or zone of potential development is a learning or cognitive development theory developed by psychologist Lev Vygotsky. The ZPD is the range of abilities a student can perform with the guidance of an expert or teacher, but still not have the proficiency to perform it by themselves. Vygotsky (1978) believed that “what the child [or learner] is able to do in collaboration today, he will be able to do independently tomorrow.” There are three separate stages a student may fall in terms of their skill set and for learning to take place, the teacher must be able to understand and identify the student’s ZPD