2. Language is a social concept that
is developed through social
interactions. According to Lev
Vygotsky, a 20th-century Soviet
psychologist, language
acquisition involves not only a
child's exposure to words but
also an interdependent process
of growth between thought and
language. Vygotsky's influential
theory of the "zone of proximal
development" asserts that
teachers should consider a
child's prospective learning
power before trying to expand
the child's grasp of language.
3. Vygotsky's theory of language
is based on constructivist
learning theory, which
contends that children acquire
knowledge as a result of
engaging in social experiences.
"Through social and language
interactions, older and more
experienced members of a
community teach younger and
less experienced members the
skills, values, and knowledge
needed to be productive
members of that community,"
says Harry Daniels, author of
"An Introduction to Vygotsky."
4. According to Vygotsky,
words are signals. Rather
than engage children in a
primary signal system, in
which objects are referred
to merely as themselves,
adults engage children in
a secondary signal
system, in which words
represent objects and
ideas.
5. A child's intellectual
development is crucial to his
language development. By
interacting with his
environment, a child
develops the ability to
develop private, inner
speech. "Inner speech is
thinking in pure meanings;
it is the link between the
second signal system of the
social world and the thought
of the individual,"
6. Through the
development of inner
speech, children
straddle the divide
between thought and
language, eventually
being able to express
their thoughts
coherently to others.
7. The language learning process
occurs as a result of give and take.
Parents and teachers usher a child
through a process of guided
discovery, addressing her learning
potential. Eventually, children
internalize language skills. As
young learners experience
language development, they "can
reflect better on their own
thinking and behavior and reach
greater levels of control and
mastery over their own behavior,"
according to Adam Winsler, co-
editor of "Private Speech,
Executive Functioning, and the
Development of Verbal Self-
Regulation".
8. Vygotsky's constructivist
language theory exists in
opposition to Jean Piaget's
theory of language acquisition.
According to Piaget, children
construct knowledge about
language through a complex
process of assimilation,
stressing the inherent capability
of a child's brain to adapt to
stimulation. By contrast,
Vygotsky stresses the social
nature of language learning,
emphasizing the environment
within which a child is raised.
