Vygotsky and Design Principle 4


Vygotsky… What a tough week it was for me DDLS. I spent the past two weeks reading Vygotsky, rereading some of it, and still not comprehending what I was reading. It inevitably resulted in frustration kicking in and me not wanting to complete my work. But as I always do, I didn’t give up and I persevered...eventually. I even found the tasks in class difficult for me to fully engage in…. Poetry?! Write poetry using vocabulary from Vygotsky?! I’m sure Dawn could sense my displeasure. I found the mind maps to be the most helpful in my understanding of Vygotsky. I enjoyed seeing everyone's interpretations of the mind maps. We were all given the same assignment and they were all completely different and they all helped me to better understand Vygotsky.


We also dove into the Fourth Principle-The Learning Principle- Good learning designs engage students in “playful” activities at the edge of their knowledge and understanding using symbolic tools to develop and internalize meaningful thought.

Something else I learned about myself this week is I need to be better at engaging in “playful” activities. Dawn shared her authentic problem with us about Priscilla in Africa. I was one of the ones in class that said this isn’t real, I’m going to finish the initial assignment we were given. Just because I didn’t fully engage in the authentic activity doesn’t mean I don’t see the value of “playful” activities. Playful activities paired with authentic activities create a level of engagement and excitement within our students that will create meaningful learning that they will remember.

Comments

  1. elvalentineSeptember 21, 2019 at 5:23 PM

    Hi Liz!
    I found the assignments challenging too. And I felt that the activities we did, including the poetry, really helped my understanding. I appreciated the connection between the activities and the Fourth Principle- which I guess was kind of the point.

    My partner and I bought into Dawn's game and had the diagnosis for Priscilla in no time! Though we fully understood this was no a true dire situation, I thought it was fun and engaging.
    I like your mind map!

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  2. JulianneSeptember 23, 2019 at 9:09 AM

    Liz- I love our mind map! Honestly, I thought about it while I was writing my blog post too. This is a great way for students to visualize tough concepts.
    As for the playful activities: You know I am on the same page as you:-) We know our audiences though and I am confident we could "play" pretty well with kids as we design instruction for them. I think timing in the lesson/activity is key too so the authentic engagement feels more "real."

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  3. Lauren HentzSeptember 23, 2019 at 4:42 PM

    I HATED this book, so I'm glad to see I'm not alone. The concepts are sound but I really felt bogged down in the verbose wording. I'm glad we were both able to push through in the end.

    I had to laugh at your reaction to the authentic activity. I was exactly the same. I am the one who hates ice breakers and other activities that most people would consider fun. My least favorite is when we have to pretend to be kids. I completely ignored the Priscilla's problem and focused on finishing my assignment. There will always be kids who feel the same way about playful activities, though most will probably enjoy it.

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  4. Alana StanleySeptember 28, 2019 at 3:22 PM

    Hi Liz,

    I did NOT enjoy reading this book either, especially after a long day of work. However, the mind mapping activity definitely supported my thinking and solidified my thinking in other areas I felt weak in my knowledge. Although, the poetry intimidated me at first I feel like the communication and collaboration with my partner helped me to understand Vygotsky's thinking better. Although, I understood the purpose of the assignment to be authentic, synthesizing our knowledge and fun (play). That was not my initial reaction, but after I realized I could apply my knowledge I felt more confident.

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