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Newcomer/EL/ELD/ESL Picture Word Inductive Model Freebie

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What's a Picture Word Inductive Model for newcomers and English Learners? The Picture Word Inductive Model (PWIM) is used to generate oral language prior to writing.This scaffolds the writing process for students who need additional support. Students can label pictures in order to generate personal...

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Video Explanation of the Zone of Proximal Development

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Video Explanation of the Zone of Proximal Development

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Janet from Youtube's Sharp Cookie channel is a tutor and coach in learning and development. This video explains how we all experience the zone of proximal development inside and outside of school. It gives real world representations that help explain how the zone works.

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Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding EXPLAINED!

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The Secret to Better Learning in the Classroom highlights what ZPD is, how we use it in the classroom, and how scaffolds have helped minimize the out of reach zone and increase the zone of proximal development.

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The Secret to Better Learning in the Classroom

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In this video, we will describe Vygotsky’s Theory, including the zone of proximal development. We will also explain the implications of both for classroom teaching.

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In this video, we will describe Vygotsky’s Theory, including the zone of proximal development. We will also explain the implications of both for classroom teaching.

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The zone of proximal development (ZPD), also known as the zone of potential development, is a concept often used in classrooms to help students with skill development.

The core idea of the ZPD is that a more knowledgeable person can enhance a student's learning by guiding them through a task slightly above their ability level.

As the student becomes more competent, the expert gradually stops helping until the student can perform the skill by themselves.

The idea of the ZPD came from a Russian psychologist named Lev Vygotsky in the early 1900s. Vygotsky believed that every person has two stages of skill development:

1. a level they can achieve by themselves

2. a level they can achieve with the help of an experienced mentor or teacher

He referred to the level an individual can achieve with help as their ZPD.

The idea of pairing instruction with a student is known as scaffolding, which is one of the core concepts of Vygotsky's idea of the ZPD. The person performing the scaffolding can be a teacher, a parent, or even a peer.

Scaffolding and the ZPD are often used in preschool and elementary classrooms, but the same principles can be applied outside of a school setting.

A parent teaching a child how to ride a bike or a coach walking an athlete through how to throw a ball are also an example of these concepts.

In this article, we'll break down the different stages of the ZPD and explain how the ZPD and scaffolding can be practically applied to help an individual's learning.

The ZPD can be broken into three stages. Think of them as a series of overlapping circles:

1. Tasks the learner can do without assistance. This category includes everything a person can do without help from a more experienced individual.

2. Tasks the learner can do with assistance. This category includes tasks a person can't work through by themselves but can work through with help, also known as their ZPD.

3. Tasks the learner can't do with assistance. The final category includes tasks that are too difficult to perform even with an instructor's help. For example, a young child might be able to spell out their own name by themselves but might need help from someone else to write the complete alphabet. The task is above their skill level and outside their ZPD.

Instructional scaffolding is a method of teaching that helps a student learn a new skill.

It involves a more knowledgeable person guiding a student through a task that's in their ZPD. As a learner's ability to complete a skill improves, the instructor should lessen the amount of aid they provide.

The concept can be applied in the classroom to a variety of subjects, including language, math, and science.

Teachers can use scaffolding by using techniques like:

modeling

providing examples

working one-on-one with students

using visual aids

Scaffolding can also be used outside the classroom. Many coaches may use scaffolding in sports to teach athletes new motor skills.

Scaffolding provides a student with a supportive learning environment where they can ask questions and receive feedback. The following are some benefits of scaffolding a student:

motivates the learner

minimizes frustration for the learner

allows the learner to learn quickly

provides a personalized teaching experience

allows for efficient learning

The following are examples of questions you could ask a learner while scaffolding them to help them with their learning:

What else could you do here?

When you do this, what happens?

What do you notice?

What could we do next?

Why do you think that happened?

Who can be a 'more knowledgeable other'?

In Vygotsky's framework, the "more knowledgeable other" is a term for someone who guides a learner through a new skill.

This can be anybody with a mastery of the skill being taught. In a classroom setting, it's often a teacher or tutor.

However, even a peer with mastery of the subject could potentially scaffold another student.

When performed properly, the concept of the ZPD and scaffolding can help students solve problems that would otherwise be beyond their capability. Here are a couple examples of how it could be used in the classroom.

Example 1

A kindergarten student is learning how to add two numbers together. They can successfully add numbers together that are less than 10 but have trouble with bigger numbers.

Their teacher shows them an example of how to solve a problem using large numbers before getting them to try a similar problem themselves. When the student gets stuck, the teacher provides hints.

Example 2

A child in preschool is trying to learn how to draw a rectangle. Their teacher breaks down the process for them by first drawing two horizontal lines and then drawing two vertical lines. They ask the student to do the same.

Even though scaffolding has many benefits for learners, there may also be some challenges in a classroom setting.

To properly scaffold, the teacher needs to have an understanding of a student's ZPD to make sure the student works at an appropriate level.

Scaffolding works best when a student is working within their skill level. If they're working above their ZPD, they won't benefit from scaffolding.

The following are also potential problems in the classroom when it comes to scaffolding:

It can be very time consuming.

There may not be enough instructors for each student.

Instructors need to be properly trained to get the full benefit.

It's easy to misjudge a student's ZPD.

Teachers need to take an individual student's need into account.

The ZPD and scaffolding are two concepts that can efficiently help someone learn a skill.

Scaffolding involves an experienced instructor guiding a learner through a task that's in their ZPD. An individual's ZPD includes any task that can only be completed with help.

When scaffolding a learner, the goal isn't to feed the learner answers but to aid their learning with certain techniques, like prompting, modeling, or giving clues.

As a learner starts to master a skill, the amount of support given should be reduced.

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Zone of Proximal Development Relation to Children's Education

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The zone of proximal development (ZPD), also known as the zone of potential development, is a concept often used in classrooms to help students with skill development. The core idea of the ZPD is that a more knowledgeable person can enhance a student's learning by guiding them through a task slightly above their ability level.

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SplashLearn Blog - Educational Resources for Parents, Teachers & Kids

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How to Deploy Zone of Proximal Development In Your Class: 4 Ways

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The zone of proximal development shows what students can grow individually & in isolation. Learn how the 'zone' works & how you can use it in the classroom!

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In this article we'll discuss the Zone of Proximal Development, its importance for classroom instruction, and how we apply this concept within Happy Numbers.

Are you looking for a new tool in your teacher toolbox for teaching maths in a fun, engaging way that builds a deep understanding of the subject?
Try Happy Numbers (it's free to try!) and watch your students grow 1.5 grade levels in just one school year!

Let's first imagine a typical classroom situation: Mary is a 1st grade student. She is good at mental addition and subtraction of numbers to 20 without crossing a ten (12 + 5 = ?), but struggles every time she needs to add across ten (8 + 7 = ?). She could have solved this problem using counting on, but this method takes too much time and often leads to mistakes. The "making a ten" method definitely seems to be a gap for her.

In today's lesson, Mary's teacher introduced the addition of numbers to 40 with and without crossing a ten. Attention was focused on operating with greater tens, and the "making a ten" method was considered as already mastered. Mary realized that this was too hard for her and felt frustrated.

What happened here can be explained in terms of the ZPD concept. The new topic (addition to 40 with and without exchange) was not proximal to Mary, or in other words, it was something she couldn't do without assistance provided.

In general, for a student to learn in the ZPD, we should offer a problem that is:
- not too hard, so that he or she could do it with a moderate amount of assistance from the teacher or other resources;
- not too easy, so the problem brings out some new concepts for the student.

This will let the student work at his or her comfort level with maximum motivation.

Empirical observation of ZPD

The ZPD concept is a powerful and thoughtful theory, developed by Lev Vygotsky at the beginning of the 20th century. Unfortunately, Lev Vygotsky lived a short life (1896 - 1934) and left many questions unanswered. One of them is, How can we empirically observe ZPD? Since then, numerous experiments have been conducted to answer this question.

One of them (C. Ruiz-Hernández, 2017) [1] was designed as an arithmetic worksheet offered to a group of as many as 80 college students. The questionnaire contained a pair of problems, which authors labeled as P and P', where P' was relatively more difficult than P. Half of the students (the control group) got the test without any clues, while the other had a clue in the heading to problem P' (experimental group). All students first attempted problem P and then proceeded to P'.

In the control group (with no hints provided), there were 10 students who solved the harder problem (P'), and all of them got the easier task (P) correct as well. There were no students in this group who struggled with the easier problem (P) but solved the harder one.

In the experimental group (which had a hint to the more difficult problem), 19 students solved the harder problem (P'), and only 9 of them got the easier one (P) correct. Thus, the authors conclude that 19 - 9 = 10 students took the advantage of the help provided. This result enables us to empirically observe the phenomenon similar to the ZPD in the context of a test. Namely, we observe that for these 10 students the harder problem (P') was in their ZPD: they could not solve it independently, but managed to do it with a hint.

Application of ZPD in the classroom

Another question that bothers the researchers is how the concept of ZPD may be applied to classroom instruction.

There are two key points here:
1. Providing assistance for students when learning a new concept. It can be done in several ways, such as:

a. Formulas or key words written on the board while discussing a challenging problem;
b. Posters or illustrations placed around the classroom;
c. Printables with a plan of action, models, or answer structure;
d. Direct teacher guidance;
e. Peer-to-peer interaction.

2. Constantly monitoring each student's level followed by further material adaptation and applying different teaching techniques, so that each student stays within his or her ZPD. This can be done with the help of:

a. Assessments;
b. Analysis of practice work;
c. Open discussions in the classroom.

As a core of the ZPD, the idea of a teacher's constant assistance has also been a common topic for discussion among scientists. A number of experiments have considered the effect of different ways assistance can be provided in the classroom. Here are some important points that a teacher may find useful for his or her practice:

- If no kind of feedback is provided, then working in pairs is more beneficial than working alone, particularly for those students who are paired with a more competent partner.
- However, more advanced students might improve while sharing understanding with lower-level partners, but in some cases these "expert" students may regress, particularly if a lower-level partner is confident in her/his error solution. Feedback from the teacher or other materials (clues or models) are significant in preventing the higher-level student from regression.
- All in all, most researchers agree that student collaboration may be beneficial under certain conditions, but some of them insist that appropriate feedback from a teacher or the materials (if available) have a greater influence on the effect of the learning process in the ZPD.

The role of mistakes

So, feedback is a great instrument for effective learning in the ZPD, and the way adults react to student mistakes is just as important.

Children who get negative feedback may start to avoid any situation in which they can make a mistake. Therefore, they won't attempt a problem that is proximal to them until they get strong assistance from the teacher or other resources.

To support a struggling student, a teacher may:
- Admit that making a mistake indicates that the student is really learning, which is great. We can evaluate the level of brain activity judging by the mistakes we make. In fact, the brain really develops new connections mostly when we struggle with solving difficult tasks.
- Move the emphasis in the feedback from points lost to recommendations that should be followed to improve.
- Recognize each (even minor) improvement that has taken place.

ZPD in HappyNumbers

Happy Numbers is designed to provide each student with a learning experience that lies within his or her ZPD. There are several ways in which we determine it and incorporate it into our lessons.

Placement Test

Upon entering Happy Numbers, all K-5 students automatically take the Happy Numbers Placement Test. There is no placement test in PreK at the beginning of the school year, since these students will all start their learning pathway from the beginning of the curriculum.

The test consists of a wide range of problems that adapt to the student's level as he goes through it. The results of the test show a student's current readiness for mathematics instruction depending on grade-level skills and concepts. It also helps place the student at the appropriate starting point in the Happy Numbers curriculum and create an individual learning pathway for him or her.

In other words, we place the student in her/his ZPD or a little before that, and our responsive technology provides all the necessary assistance needed to improve his or her skills.

Mid-Year Test

Each student progresses through the curriculum at an individual pace and has his or her own unique struggles while learning. The Mid-Year Test was designed to adjust the learning pathway by determining the topics the student has mastered more quickly than the curriculum suggests. These topics will be skipped to let the student focus on what is in her/his ZPD at the moment.

Feedback from interactive model

We've seen that appropriate feedback is extremely important while learning in the ZPD. Such feedback may be provided by the problem itself, if it contains a picture or a model students can interact with to check understanding. Like in this Happy Numbers' exercise where students have to manipulate the shapes to represent a given portion:

Hints and Let's do it together

If students struggle with a problem on Happy Numbers, they receive different levels of assistance depending on their personal needs.

A student doesn't stay one-on-one with his or her misunderstanding. Happy Numbers will provide a comment, a hint, or additional animation to support the student. If this is not enough, we will simplify the problem by dividing it into several steps and move through the solution together.

Below is the example of how Happy Numbers helps to find neighboring hundreds for a number, first, showing a number line, and then giving detailed instructions on how to work on it.

Beads system

To ensure that a student moves on to the next concept only after he or she has mastered the previous one, Happy Numbers uses a clear and visual scoring system. As shown below, there are green beads (or fruits) at the top of the screen for every task. When a student enters a correct response, one green bead moves from left to right on the counter. If a student enters an incorrect response, one bead moves from the right back to the left. The goal is to move all the beads from the left to the right to advance to the next task.

Therefore, a visual scoring system helps adapt the number of problems a student must solve correctly to show mastery.

For students who can't read fluently yet, the text might prevent them from learning in their ZPD even if the math concept is reachable. For such students, a natural human voiceover is available on all PK-5 tasks in Happy Numbers.

These are just a few examples of tactics that Happy Numbers uses to carefully guide students through each step of the learning process and keep them within their personal Zone of Proximal Development at the same time. Set up your first class with Happy Numbers for free to find out more about how we apply this rule to the teaching process and see the results for yourself!

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The Zone of Proximal Development in the classroom and on HappyNumbers - Math Blog for Differentiation

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In this article we'll discuss the Zone of Proximal Development and how we apply this concept within Happy Numbers.

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By Senior Program Associate Elsa Billings and Senior Research Scientist Aída Walqui at WestEd. The Zone of Proximal Development: An Affirmative Perspective in Teaching ELLs brief was written for and published by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Office of Bilingual Education and World Languages. The brief is adapted and posted here with permission.
What is the Zone of Proximal Development?

The zone of proximal development (ZPD) is perhaps one of the most commonly used terms in the field of education. Yet, as often happens, we use terminology with a limited understanding of the concepts involved. The ZPD was a key construct in Lev Vygotsky's theory of learning and development (Vygotsky, 1978). Vygotsky defined the ZPD as:
"[T]he distance between the actual developmental level (of the learner) 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). Two critical elements in Vygotsky's definition of ZPD are the notions of potential development of the learner and the role collaboration plays in the learning process.
A Student's Potential Development

The concept of a learner's potential development refers to the space beyond a learner's current capabilities and understandings. It is that which a learner is capable of, but has yet to achieve. In the case of English Learners and Multilingual Learners, the immense potential that they bring to our classrooms is comprised of their intellectual, linguistic, and creative strengths that are waiting to be built upon. Our responsibility as educators is to provide students appropriate learning experiences and support to help them realize their potential development. The goal of instruction is to foster our English Learners' and Multilingual Learners' autonomy and their ability to engage in activities that enable them to apply and modify what they have learned to new situations.

This process entails a pedagogical balance of high challenge and high support in which we take a future-oriented perspective of learning. This means that we recognize that, accompanied by deliberate pedagogical supports, learning takes place in advance of the development we wish to see. In this way teaching precedes development. When we view education as future-oriented, we simultaneously build on students' backgrounds while we are considering their next levels of development and emerging capacity. This space of potential development is the ZPD and it is the space in which learning occurs, thus where teaching needs to be situated. What this means for our English Learners and Multilingual Learners is that we do not have to wait until their English is perfect to engage them in intellectually stimulating and demanding tasks. On the contrary, learning can only occur when it is constructed in advance of development in the ZPD.

Learning as a Social Process

How does this learning in advance of development occur? Collaboration is an essential element of productive work in the ZPD, as Vygotsky viewed learning as a social process. With learning taking place in the ZPD, the area beyond a student's level of independent skill or knowledge, Vygotsky realized that we learn through our dialogic interaction with others. When students perform in their ZPD for a given task, they are apprenticing and consequently unable to engage in the task on their own. They need appropriate guidance, modeling, and assistance, all of which are provided through collaboration with peers or teachers. Thus, teachers have to deliberately construct these collaborative structures, ensuring that they invite students to participate in worthwhile conceptual and analytical practices while at the same time developing the English necessary to accomplish them. In this way the student moves through their zone of proximal development and ultimately into the space of internalization and autonomy, which is the goal of learning. More than a simple process of partnering students, learning in this "construction" zone takes place through the construction and enactment of invitations to interact in intellectually stimulating tasks. These invitations are premised on in-depth understanding of our students, which requires formatively assessing them to determine where the next learnings should be placed and combined with careful and contingent scaffolding. Scaffolding thus simultaneously considers our students' current understandings and interests along with their future potential for development.

Scaffolding¹

Scaffolding involves both the structural and procedural supports that guide and enable learners to work within their ZPD so that they may develop their full, yet unrealized, potential. The structural element of scaffolding refers to those planned, ritualized structures that surround learning tasks. An example of structural scaffolding is the step-by-step guidelines used in a Think, Pair, Share (TPS) task. ² There are three moments in a TPS task:

Think: The teacher asks one or two questions for students to consider. In order to see what students are thinking, as well as to provide additional scaffolding as needed, the teacher asks students to record key elements of their answer using words or phrases, but not complete sentences. Depending on the complexity of the questions, the teacher may assign between three and five minutes for students to jot down their ideas. Meanwhile, the teacher circulates around the classroom to monitor and check what students have written. An empty piece of paper may be an indication that the student needs further support from the teacher.

Pair: Students are asked to form dyads. There are many ways of doing this, depending on time available, the nature of the questions, or even what time of the day it is (classes immediately after lunch may require opportunities for movement).

Share: Dyads orally share their responses with each other. All students should be ready-if called upon-to present to the class their partner's responses first, and then their own.

The TPS provides a scaffolded structure for students to orally request ideas from a partner, listen to their peers' ideas, and ask and respond to questions, thus contributing to and gaining new perspectives on the topic at hand. The result is that both students are enabled to co-construct meaning. Scaffolding structures must maintain a careful balance of providing support to the learner without being so rigid or limited as to stifle the learner. They are simultaneously constant and flexible. For example, within a TPS, the structure remains constant while the focal theme or question of the TPS task is flexible and changes each time. In this way, English Learners and Multilingual Learners do not experience cognitive overload by having to understand and enact a new structure for sharing ideas and can mentally tend to the central theme or question of the TPS task, allowing them to genuinely participate in the task. After participating in a TPS a few times, students become familiar with this collaborative structure for sharing ideas so that it becomes automated. Eventually, the teacher can add flexibility to the TPS structure itself with slight alterations such as including a drawing or a writing option to the steps.

The procedural aspect of scaffolding emerges through the unplanned support that occurs in-the-moment and in response to something new the learner introduces in classroom interactions. The on-the-spot nature of procedural scaffolding makes it contingent on the learner and the particular situation in which it occurs. This means that in addition to continually monitoring students' understanding, the teacher is also assessing their own structural scaffolds so as to be able to quickly modify them in order to support students' progression to the ZPD. It is thus through the planned structure together with the contingent, in-the-moment process of scaffolding that the teacher creates both the circumstances and supports that permit students to enter into and engage in their ZPD and that promote their autonomy as learners. We must take care to fully understand that our goal is learner autonomy. Eventually, our students should proceed through their ZPD to self-regulation in which they no longer need the scaffolds we provided earlier. Indeed, if our scaffolded instruction does not develop autonomy, it is not productive work in the ZPD.

Expanded Understandings of the ZPD

Vygotsky's theory of learning advanced the field's understanding of the learning process. Since Vygotsky's initial conceptualization of the ZPD, researchers have expanded to further elaborate upon the collaborative nature of the learning process. This work recognizes that learning is not limited to interactions between the learner and an adult or "more capable" peer (Vygotsky, 1978, p. 86). In addition to expert-novice interactions, the ZPD can also be supported through interactions between:

Equal peers (peers with the same levels of knowledge) (Donato, 1994 in Walqui & van Lier, 2010). When learners with relatively equal levels of knowledge work together they can create zones of proximal development for each other as their interactions give rise to ideas, which are then shared with peers and which are then further advanced and developed through collaboration.

Less capable peers (a novice supporting another learner) (van Lier, 1996, 2004 in Walqui & van Lier, 2010). When a novice learner teaches another learner who has slightly less knowledge, the interaction supports both learners working in the zone of proximal development; as the novice articulates, expands, and clarifies ideas, both learners simultaneously are expanding their knowledge.

Working alone (van Lier, 1996, 2004 in Walqui & van Lier, 2010). Learners can work within their zone of proximal development when they use "learning strategies, inner speech, resources in their environment, and experimentation" that they have internalized (Walqui & van Lier, 2010, p. 31).

The visual below depicts this expanded notion of the ZPD as articulated by van Lier (2004, p. 158). Understanding that learning is a social process that can be facilitated through numerous interactions, and is not limited solely to expert-novice interactions, creates limitless possibilities as we think about how we can best support English Learners and Multilingual Learners in our classrooms through scaffolded interactions with peers and teachers.

The Expanded ZPD and Language Learning

For many well-intentioned teachers of English Learners and Multilingual Learners, a common misconception exists; this is the notion that English Learners and Multilingual Learners must perfect their English before they are capable of engaging with grade-level content. This misconception leads many teachers to spend critical instructional time focusing on isolated linguistic activities that are "free of content."

Too often English Learners and Multilingual Learners are removed from heterogeneous classrooms and isolated in English as a Second Language or English Language Development courses, rendering students devoid of contact and interaction with English Learners and Multilingual Learners who have better command of English or native English-speaking peers. As a result, they are provided very narrowly focused education in which grammar and vocabulary, not content, are the focus and where language is "curricularized" (Valdés, 2001).

However, what Vygotsky's and other researchers' work shows us is that by identifying the skills, knowledge, and practices that are on the edge of development (i.e., the ZPD), teachers can provide targeted support or scaffolds for students to reach the desired level of skill/knowledge and thus move toward autonomy in that area. It is in this space that a teacher's role is to recognize and integrate the exact pedagogical scaffolds that support students' ripening of linguistic, conceptual, and/or academic potential. For English Learners and Multilingual Learners to reach their potential, it is essential that we provide them access to content, as well as regular and consistent opportunities to engage with their peers in a heterogeneous classroom setting.

The implications of this understanding are exciting in that it frees teachers from the instructional restraints that come with the belief that English Learners and Multilingual Learners can only learn content that is within or below their language level. Essential to such learning is the deliberate, thoughtful planning and scaffolding of tasks that the teacher provides via structured heterogeneous classroom interactions so that the English Learner or Multilingual Learner is guided through their linguistic and academic zone of proximal development, learning grade-level content and developing language in the process.

Back to the Future

Key to this discussion is the notion that the ZPD is a future-oriented approach that begins from an understanding of students as inherently capable. A future-oriented approach is especially important as we work with our English Learners and Multilingual Learners. Often viewed from a deficit perspective, English Learners and Multilingual Learners can be perceived as fundamentally lacking in the skills and knowledge necessary to complete tasks or access texts. A future-oriented approach instead sees English Learners' and Multilingual Learners' future potential and thus presents an affirmative stance that sets them up for success. It is a teacher's expertise, knowledge, and concomitant pedagogical action that is responsible for making every English Learner's and Multilingual Learner's potential a reality. Walqui and van Lier (2010) summarize this future-oriented approach stating:
English language learners, like all students, arrive in our classrooms with immense potential, strengths to build on, and dreams for their future. It is our job as education professionals to help them realize that potential and to provide them with the right learning opportunities so that they can address rigorous academic content in a language they have yet to master. (p. 1)
We hope you found the ideas in this blog post informative and useful. Download other briefs in this series produced by the New York State Education Department:
Aída Walqui directs the National Research and Development Center for Improving the Education of English Learners in Secondary Schools at WestEd, where she started one of the agency's signature programs, the Quality Teaching for English Learners (QTEL) initiative. Elsa Billings works closely with educators at the school, district, and state levels to improve education for English Learners and Multilingual Learners.
Footnotes

1 For more information on scaffolding for English Learners and Multilingual Learners, please refer to the New York City Department of Education brief, Scaffolding, by Walqui and Strom.

2 The TPS is one of the most misunderstood and mispracticed tasks.

3 The Brain Lesson (WestEd, 2008) comes from a secondary level unit that uses personal recounts to illustrate cause and effect of traumatic brain injuries and disease.

Quality Teaching for English Learners (QTEL) Summer Institutes develop educator expertise to provide high-challenge, high-support instruction that helps English Learners succeed in a rapidly changing world.
Register today!

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Spotlight on English Learners: Zone of Proximal Development-An Affirmative Perspective in Teaching English Learners

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By Senior Program Associate Elsa Billings and Senior Research Scientist Aída Walqui at WestEd. The Zone of Proximal Development: An Affirmative Perspective in Teaching ELLs brief was written for and published by the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Office of Bilingual Education and World Languages.

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This podcast by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of English Language Acquisition (OELA) features Maha Abdelkader, Education Program Specialist from OELA, Roger Rosenthal, attorney with the Migrant Legal Action Program and Lissette Colon Collins, Assistant Superindendant for Language... This podcast features a listening session moderated by Montserrat Garibay, the Assistant Deputy Secretary & Director of OELA.

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https://blog.heinemann.com/reflections-on-learning-more-support-for-multilingual-learners

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Reflections on Learning: Multilingual Learners

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What myth about multilingual learners do you most want to bust, and what truth would you like to replace it with?

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This product contains 7 slides. Four slides include sentence stems for use with fiction and nonfiction. There is one slide that has sentence evidence for using when stating evidence used from text.

There are three mostly blank slides to notate Spanish cognates, new vocabulary words, and to write instructions for a writing activity. This product is great for English learners.

****All fonts used in previews, thumbnails and most products

are from the BN Font Collection TPT seller: Biliteracy Now

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English Language Development/ Sentence Stems

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This product contains 7 slides. Four slides include sentence stems for use with fiction and nonfiction. There is one slide that has sentence evidence for using when stating evidence used from text.There are three mostly blank slides to notate Spanish cognates, new vocabulary words, and to write inst...

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9 Examples of Embracing ZPD to Advance the Learning Process

In the realm of educational psychology, the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is a concept that has been embraced by educators and learners alike. It's a theoretical space where learners can achieve more with guidance and support than they could independently. Here are nine fictional examples of how ZPD can be utilized to advance the learning process:

1. Mathematics Class: A teacher introduces a new concept of algebraic equations. She starts with simple equations that students can solve independently. Then, she gradually introduces more complex equations, providing guidance and support as needed. The students are working within their ZPD, moving from what they can do independently to what they can do with assistance.

2. Language Learning: In a Spanish class, students are learning to conjugate verbs. The teacher first models the conjugation, then students practice with common verbs. As they become comfortable, the teacher introduces irregular verbs, providing support as students navigate these more challenging examples.

3. Science Experiment: A science teacher guides students through an experiment on chemical reactions. Initially, the teacher demonstrates the experiment, then students replicate it with the teacher's guidance. Eventually, students design and conduct their own experiments, applying what they've learned.

4. Literature Study: In an English class, students are studying symbolism in literature. The teacher first explains the concept and provides clear examples. Students then analyze a familiar story for symbolism, with the teacher providing guidance as needed. Finally, students analyze a new story independently, demonstrating their understanding of symbolism.

5. Art Class: An art teacher introduces a new painting technique. After demonstrating the technique, the teacher provides guidance and feedback as students practice. As students become more comfortable, they apply the technique in their own creative projects.

6. History Lesson: In a history class, students are learning to analyze primary sources. The teacher models the analysis process with a familiar source, then guides students as they analyze a new source. Eventually, students analyze new sources independently, applying their understanding of historical context and source analysis.

7. Coding Class: In a computer science class, students are learning to write code. The teacher first demonstrates a simple program, then guides students as they write their own simple programs. As students become more comfortable, they write more complex programs with less guidance.

8. Physical Education: In a PE class, students are learning a new sport. The teacher first demonstrates the basic skills, then provides guidance and feedback as students practice. As students become more proficient, they play the sport with less guidance, applying their skills in a game situation.

9. Music Lesson: In a music class, students are learning to play a new instrument. The teacher first models how to play a simple tune, then guides students as they practice. As students become more comfortable, they play more complex tunes with less guidance.

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The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD), a concept frequently referenced in academic circles and lecture halls, holds immense significance for classroom teachers seeking to foster skill development in their students. At its core, the ZPD posits that an individual with a greater level of knowledge or expertise can effectively support a learner's growth by guiding them through tasks that lie just beyond their current abilities. As the learner gradually gains competence and confidence, the expert progressively withdraws guidance until the student can independently complete the task.

In this article, we will explore the profound implications of the ZPD for the modern classroom, demonstrating that, through strategic adult guidance, educators can not only enhance access to education but also significantly improve learning outcomes for students of varying abilities. We will delve into the critical role of scaffolding in the learning process, as well as discuss the importance of peer collaboration and the role of the teacher as a facilitator of knowledge.

Furthermore, we will examine the diverse strategies educators can employ to identify each student's unique ZPD, enabling them to tailor instruction and support to effectively bridge the gap between a learner's current abilities and their potential for growth. By harnessing the transformative power of the Zone of Proximal Development, classroom teachers can cultivate an environment that nurtures the development of critical thinking, problem-solving, and lifelong learning skills in all students, regardless of their starting point or aptitude.

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The zone of proximal development indicates the difference between what a student can do without guidance and what he can achieve with the encouragement and guidance of a skilled partner. Therefore, the term " proximal" relates to those skills that the student is " close " to mastering. This theory of learning can be useful for teachers.

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Reflective Questions
1. How does ZPD relate to other concepts such as scaffolding or peer tutoring?

2. Why are some students better at using this approach than others?

3. Can you think of any situations where it would be useful for teachers to use this strategy?

4. Is there anything else we should know about ZPD?

5. Do you have any ideas on how to implement this strategy into your own teaching practice?

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History of Zone of Proximal Development

In the 1900s, Russian PsychologistLev Vygotsky proposed the idea of the ZPD. Vygotsky acknowledged that every individual has ' 2' stages of skill development:

A level that can be achieved by one's self.

A level that someone can achieve by seeking help from an experienced person or teacher.

Vygotsky named the level a person can achieve through help as his ZPD. Vygotsky suggested that when a learner is in the ZPD for a specific task, offering the appropriate guidance will give the learner enough of a " boost" to accomplish the task. However, if the learner lacks sufficient experience, then the instructor must provide additional support so that the learner can reach the next stage of mastery.

This process continues until the learner reaches the highest possible level of proficiency.

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How Does It Work?
When a learner needs assistance, they ask their peers or instructors for advice. The instructor provides feedback based on the learner's performance. This helps them learn new strategies and techniques. As the learner masters these new skills, the instructor gradually reduces her involvement until she no longer offers direct instruction. At this point, the learner is capable of performing the activity independently.

Zone of Proximal Development in the Classroom

To help a student to move through the zone of proximal development, teachers must focus on three essential components that facilitate the learning process:

The presence of another person with skills and knowledge beyond that of the student (a more skilled other). The more knowledgeable other is relatively self-explanatory; it shows a person with a higher ability level or more knowledge than the student, concerning a specific task or concept.

A learner's social interactionwith a skilled educator enables the learner to observe and apply their knowledge. Vygotsky (1978) believes that a child's more important learning occurs using a social interaction with a skilled mentor. The instructor may provide verbal instructions or model certain behaviours for the child. Vygotsky termed this as collaborative or cooperative The child strives to recognize the instructions or actions provided by the more skilled person (mostly the teacher or parent) then internalizes the knowledge, using it to regulate or improve his performance.

Scaffolding, or helpful workouts provided by the instructor, or more knowledgeable peer, to guide the student as he moves through the ZPD.

The zone of proximal development (ZPD), is an educational notion constantly restated by the professors in the lecture halls. However, why is it so crucial in a classroom setting for a childs mental development? The crux of the zone of proximal development is that a child with more skills and mastery (the skilled partner), can be used to enhance the potential level of knowledge and another individual.

These type of social interactions can be used to enhance educational outcomes in problem-based learning activities. The level of challenge can be incrementally increased with appropriate levels of scaffolding in a way that neither individual feels overwhelmed by the complexity of the task.

This type of social interaction can be used as a catalyst for critical thinking. The interaction with peers enables children to engage cognitively at much higher levels.

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The implications for classroom practice are profound. If we can scaffold the cognitive function of a child at an appropriate level, we can enable them to advance their learning and develop new skills. In a classroom setting, we want to improve both access to the curriculum and the level of challenge. Our alternative approach to lesson planning and delivery using the universal thinking framework enables educators to fully embrace this philosophy.

The Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding

The concept of pairing guidance with a student is termed scaffolding. The ZPD is frequently used in the literature as the term scaffolding. But, it is must be remembered that Vygotsky never used this word in his writing, and it was first used by Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976). The individual performing the scaffolding can be a peer, a teacher, or even a parent. To help students gain independence, Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) defined support and supervision offered by a more capable or knowledgeable person (instructor or parent) to perform a task that the child would not be able to perform independently.

Students take easy and manageable steps to achieve a goal. Working in partnership with more knowledgeable peers or a skilled instructor will help learners in making connections between different concepts.

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As students thrive within their zone of proximal development and come to be more confident, they perform new tasks using the social support that exists around them. Vygotsky proposed that learning takes place using meaningful and purposeful interactions with others. We have been embracing this learning theory within our concept of mental modelling. This collaborative learning approach enables students to take their thinking out of their head where they have more capacity.

Using brightly coloured blocks, students organise their thoughts and develop new ideas.Uses of this methodology take their current knowledge and build on it with others (quite literally). Their previous knowledge acts as a foundation for increasing their conceptual understanding of the topic in question. The students level of knowledge is reflected within the sophistication of the structure of their build. When students are in the 'zone', their learning potential is significantly increased.

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This approach to classroom learning makes activities such as language learning more engaging and at the same time more challenging. The incremental nature of block building means that a student working memory is rarely overloaded. The level of flexibility within the strategy means that it can be used for discovery learning or at the other end of the spectrum, direct instruction approaches.

The blocks can be used to make abstract concepts more concrete. The connections between concepts can be illustrated using the connections between the blocks. This visual queue acts as a 'memory anchor' that serves as a retrieval aid. This process is a perfect example of the concept of scaffolding.

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ZPD for lesson planning

Classroom learning should be challenging enough to be engaging and the concept of proximal development comes in very useful when thinking about activities such as lesson planning. If we can break classroom tasks down into manageable chunks, with the correct adult assistance, we can enable a pupil to think their way through most challenges. Improving access to education is a global goal we all share.

Our community of practice has demonstrated how this can be achieved by utilising the latest thinking in cognitive science. You don't need to be a professor of education to embrace powerful psychological principles of the mind. Instructional concepts such as dual coding, mind-mapping and oracy all enable children to push the boundaries of what they are capable of. The adult becomes the facilitator instead of the deliverer of knowledge construction.

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The Zone of Proximal Development in the Classroom

Theory of Assisted Problem Solving

Wood and Middleton (1975) examined the interaction between 4-year-old children and their mothers in a problem-solving situation. The children had to use a set of pegs and blocks to create a 3D model using a picture. The task was too difficult for these children to complete on their own.

Wood and Middleton (1975) evaluated how mothers assisted their children to create the 3D model. Different kinds of support included:

Direct demonstration (e.g., by placing one block on another, and showing it to the child)

General encouragement (g., by saying 'Now you must try.')

Specific instructions (e.g., by saying 'get two small blocks.'

This study revealed that no single strategy was sufficient to help each child to progress. Mothers, who modified their help according to their children's performance were found to be the most successful. When these mothers saw their children doing well, they reduced their level of help. When they saw their child began to struggle, they increased their level of help by providing specific instructions until the child showed progress again.

This study illustrates Vygotsky's concept of the ZPD and scaffolding. Scaffolding (or guidance) is most beneficial when the support is according to the specific needs of a child. This puts a child in a position to gain success in an activity that he would not have been able to do in the past.

Wood et al. (1976) mentioned some processes that help effective scaffolding:

Increasing and upholding the learner's interest in the task.

Explaining the task.

Highlighting some aspects that will guide the solution.

Controlling the level of frustration in the child.

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The Zone of Proximal Development is an important classroom concept

Implications of the Zone of Proximal Development for Teachers

Vygotsky argues that the role of education is to provide those experiences to children which are in their ZPD, thereby advancing and encouraging theirknowledge. Vygotsky believes that the teachers are like a mediator in the children's learning activity as they share information through social interaction.

Vygotsky perceived interaction with peers as a helpful way to build skills. He implies that for children with low competence teachers need to use cooperative learning strategies and they must seek help from more competent peers in the zone of proximal development.

Scaffolding is a significant component of effective teaching, in which the more competent individual continually modifies the level of his help according to the learner's performance level. Scaffolding in the classroom may include modelling a talent, providing cues or hints, and adapting activity or material. Teachers need to consider the following guidelines for scaffolding instruction.

Assess the current ability level of the learner for creating the academic content.

Relate content to what learners already know.

Divide a task into small, simpler tasks with opportunities for regular feedback.

Use vocal prompts and cues to help students.

Scaffolding not only generates quick results but also instils the abilities needed for autonomous problem-solving in the upcoming time.

A current application of Vygotsky's concepts is " reciprocal teaching," used to enhance students' ability to memorize from the text. In this type of teaching, educator and learners collaborate to memorize and practice four major skills: predicting, clarifying, questioning, and summarizing. The role of a teacher in this process is decreased over time.

Vygotsky's theories also address the recent interest in collaborative learning, implying that group members mostly have different levels of talent so more advanced peers must help less advanced students within their zone of proximal development.

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9 Examples of Embracing ZPD to Advance the Learning Process

In the realm of educational psychology, the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is a concept that has been embraced by educators and learners alike. It's a theoretical space where learners can achieve more with guidance and support than they could independently. Here are nine fictional examples of how ZPD can be utilized to advance the learning process:

1. Mathematics Class: A teacher introduces a new concept of algebraic equations. She starts with simple equations that students can solve independently. Then, she gradually introduces more complex equations, providing guidance and support as needed. The students are working within their ZPD, moving from what they can do independently to what they can do with assistance.

2. Language Learning: In a Spanish class, students are learning to conjugate verbs. The teacher first models the conjugation, then students practice with common verbs. As they become comfortable, the teacher introduces irregular verbs, providing support as students navigate these more challenging examples.

3. Science Experiment: A science teacher guides students through an experiment on chemical reactions. Initially, the teacher demonstrates the experiment, then students replicate it with the teacher's guidance. Eventually, students design and conduct their own experiments, applying what they've learned.

4. Literature Study: In an English class, students are studying symbolism in literature. The teacher first explains the concept and provides clear examples. Students then analyze a familiar story for symbolism, with the teacher providing guidance as needed. Finally, students analyze a new story independently, demonstrating their understanding of symbolism.

5. Art Class: An art teacher introduces a new painting technique. After demonstrating the technique, the teacher provides guidance and feedback as students practice. As students become more comfortable, they apply the technique in their own creative projects.

6. History Lesson: In a history class, students are learning to analyze primary sources. The teacher models the analysis process with a familiar source, then guides students as they analyze a new source. Eventually, students analyze new sources independently, applying their understanding of historical context and source analysis.

7. Coding Class: In a computer science class, students are learning to write code. The teacher first demonstrates a simple program, then guides students as they write their own simple programs. As students become more comfortable, they write more complex programs with less guidance.

8. Physical Education: In a PE class, students are learning a new sport. The teacher first demonstrates the basic skills, then provides guidance and feedback as students practice. As students become more proficient, they play the sport with less guidance, applying their skills in a game situation.

9. Music Lesson: In a music class, students are learning to play a new instrument. The teacher first models how to play a simple tune, then guides students as they practice. As students become more comfortable, they play more complex tunes with less guidance.

These examples demonstrate the power of the ZPD in facilitating learning across a range of contexts. By providing the right level of support at the right time, educators can guide learners to new levels of achievement.

Key Insights:

The ZPD is a powerful tool for guiding learners to new levels of achievement.

By providing the right level of support at the right time, educators can facilitate learning.

The ZPD can be applied across a range of contexts, from academic subjects to physical education and arts.

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Assessing Learners' Progress through the Zone of Proximal Development

Assessing learners' progress through the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) requires a nuanced understanding of each student's developmental level, taking into account their potential development as well as their current level of competence. Rooted in sociocultural theory, the ZPD concept emphasizes the dynamic interplay between a child's individual mental development and their social environment, particularly in a classroom setting.

To effectively evaluate childhood learning and growth within the ZPD, teachers must first determine a student's level of knowledge and skill in relation to the learning task at hand. This assessment should consider the level of difficulty a student can manage independently, as well as their potential level when guided by a knowledgeable peer or adult. By identifying this range, educators can design learning tasks and scaffold instruction to maximize each student's potential development.

It is important to recognize that the ZPD is not static; rather, it evolves as a student's learning outcomes and level of competence change. Therefore, ongoing assessments should be implemented to monitor progress and adjust instructional strategies accordingly. Teachers can utilize a variety of assessment methods, such as formative assessments, observation, and student self-assessments, to gauge a student's current level and potential within the ZPD.

By thoughtfully assessing learners' progress within the Zone of Proximal Development, teachers can create a classroom environment that fosters optimal mental development, empowering students to thrive as they navigate new challenges and acquire increasingly complex skills.

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Statistics relating to the Zone of Proximal Development

Researchers in the 1960s and 1970s argued that Piaget may have underestimated children's abilities by using confusing terms and particularly difficult tasks in his observations. (healthline.com)

According to Vygotsky (1978), much important learning by the child occurs through social interaction with a skillful tutor.

According to Schwartz (2001), the Zone of Proximal Development can be extended through four different scenarios of supporting children in their learning: (thempra.org.uk)

References

Vygotsky, L. (1978). Interaction between learning and development. Readings on the development of children, 23(3), 34-41.

Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of child psychology and psychiatry, 17(2), 89-100.

Wood, D., & Middleton, D. (1975). A study of assisted problem‐solving. British Journal of Psychology, 66(2), 181-191.

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The Zone of Proximal Development: A teacher's guide

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What is the Zone of proximal development and how can teacher's use this concept to promote learning outcomes?

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Lev Vygotsky was a Russian social psychologist who studied child development in the 1920s and 1930s. Vygotsky holds a sociocultural perspective on language learning and teaching. He believed that a child's knowledge and language are acquired and constructed through social interactions and collaboration with adults and more skillful peers; especially in a supportive interactive environment (Wright, 2019, p. 58-59). It is in this environment that language develops as a tool for making meaning. Therefore, Vygotsky identified the zone of proximal development (ZPD), as a domain or metaphoric space, in which children can reach a high level of knowledge with the support of adults or more knowledgeable people (Wright, p. 59). The Zone of Proximal Development is defined by Vygotsky 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”.

ZPD can be depicted in learning to ride a bike. At the start of learning a new task, you need assistance, like an adult balancing a bike and pushing the bike. After a few attempts, then you can complete the task with some assistance, like training wheels. After practicing, the training wheels come off and you can do the task without any assistance.

Researchers that have applied concepts of the ZPD and scaffolding for multilingual learners have identified five core communication skills that are a necessity, and can be developed within academic conversations using the ZPD. These five core skills are elaborating and clarifying, supporting ideas with evidence, building on or challenging ideas, paraphrasing, and synthesizing (Wright, p.59). Speaking and collaboration in learning a second language are the keys to language learning and teaching.

Educators play a vital role as skilled experts who interact and collaborate with students, and carefully plan and scaffold instruction within the ZPD of their students. The Zone of Proximal Development alludes to finding the perfect learning zone where instruction is most beneficial. It focuses on the skills that students can attain with the help of support. The word proximal refers to the fact that students are close to attaining an objective but require help from an appropriate assistant.

References:

Wright, W. E. (2015). Foundations for Teaching English Language Learners: Research, Theory, Policy and Practice, 3rd Edition, Philadelphia: Caslon Publishing ISBN-13: 978-1934000366