# data[].attributes.body
Today we are going to talk about the Socioculture Theory, which is the idea that an individuals mental functioning is related to cultural, institutional, and historical context. Lev Vygotsky introduced the theory in the mid 1900's. We'll now look at the three major themes to this theory.

# data[].attributes.body
Learners who participate in many different collaborations with different people can take in what they observe. These observation can allow an individual to come up with new strategies and knowledge of the world and culture. It is even more beneficial if the interactions are between people of different experience level in the interaction, different ages, and different upbringings.

# data[].attributes.body
Semiotics means that human action is ultimately mediated by tools and signs. These tool help to facilitate the sharing of knowledge as well as independent learning.

# data[].attributes.body
Development can only occur when the child is active in his environment, with other people, and their peers. Being active in your environment activates a variety of internal developmental processes. However, properly organized learning also results in mental development and activates developmental processes that would not activate without formal learning. This brings us to the zone of proximal development, which Vygotsky argued that learning should be matched in some manner with the child's level of development. Actual development is what the child can already accomplish, and potential level of development is what the child can accomplish with further teaching or guided participation.

# data[].attributes.body
This theory is a great tool to use when assessing students. Teachers need to identify the abilities that are being developed, and attempt to predict what the student will do independently outside of class. Dynamic assessment uses guided participation to help predict a students potential for change and ultimate development. Using the sociocultural theory, teachers now understand that learning is a cooperative experience using interaction, negotiation, and collaboration. Understanding the culture and background of their students is also a tool used to understand how they learn and develop.

# data[].attributes.body
Today we are going to discuss the cognitive development theory. What makes this theory different? This theory focuses only on children, it focuses on development rather than learning specific behaviors, and this theory measures the quality of development and not the quantity of learned behaviors.

# data[].attributes.body
The idea that children learn best by actively doing and exploring has changed how we look at our curriculum and how we strategize as educators. Knowing when children are "ready" to take on a certain lesson or concept can greatly impact how effectively they learn. Teachers in the classroom should implement active and collaborative activities to engage students. They should also come up with situations to make the brain accommodate to create stronger development.

# data[].attributes.body
Schemas are the building blocks of knowledge. Think of your brain as like a huge rolodex of information and each card you pull from is a schema. Assimilation in the brain occurs when an existing schema can deal with new information. Accommodation in the brain occurs when an existing schema needs to be changed to deal with a new situation. Equilibrium is achieved when a schema is able to assimilate, however it is also the driving force to accommodate and master a new challenge.

# data[].attributes.body
Stage one is Sensorimotor and occurs from birth to about two years old. It focuses on object permanence, or knowing that an object exists. Stage two is Preoperational and occurs between the age of two to about seven years old. It focuses on the ability of the child to make something, like a word or object, stand for something other than itself. Stage three is Concrete Operational and occurs between the age of seven to eleven. It focuses on the ability of the child to work things out in their head in a logical way. Stage four is Formal Operational and occurs between the age of eleven and into adulthood. It focuses on the ability to think about abstract concepts and the ability to come up with logical hypotheses.

# data[].attributes.body
Zone of Proximal Development can be described as "the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance, or in collaboration with more capable peers" (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 86). An example of this is a young baseball pitcher is learning how to throw a curveball, but he can't figure out why the ball isn't curving. He has great mechanics, great release of the ball but no curve. His coach shows him the proper grip and how to change your wrist when you release and eventually he is throwing a solid curveball. He was in the zone of proximal development and just needed extra coaching from an expert.