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Lev Vygotsky's theory does not follow the traditional categories of ages like Erikson's and Piaget's. Nor does his theory consider the biological development of children. Rather, his theory focuses on how children develop the ability to participate within their extended community through learning the values and belief systems, customs and traditions, and abilities of their local culture.
This is done in a way similar to a master/apprentice relationship, where an adult guides a child through various tasks. It is the purpose of the adult to only provide the necessary direction to aid the child in understanding a concept or completing the task. He called this scaffolding. As the child obtains more knowledge and becomes more proficient in ability, the level of difficulty and amount of assistance by the adult should change accordingly.
The difference between a child's ability to master a skill alone against the need for someone with more expertise to accomplish the task is what Vygotsky called the zone of proximal development.
This is done in a way similar to a master/apprentice relationship, where an adult guides a child through various tasks. It is the purpose of the adult to only provide the necessary direction to aid the child in understanding a concept or completing the task. He called this scaffolding. As the child obtains more knowledge and becomes more proficient in ability, the level of difficulty and amount of assistance by the adult should change accordingly.
The difference between a child's ability to master a skill alone against the need for someone with more expertise to accomplish the task is what Vygotsky called the zone of proximal development.
(Berk, 2008; Grace, 2010)