The Importance of Scaffolding in Children’s Play - 2069 Words

One of the most successful and influential early childhood educational strategies that have been used to promote children’s social and cognitive development is scaffolding. Scaffolding generally refers to the process through which adults facilitate children’s learning by enabling them achieve a level of ability beyond the child’s capacity at the time (Scarlett, 2005). This essay will discuss how scaffolding facilitates and supports meaning making in children’s play. First, the essay will briefly introduce the concept of scaffolding and its importance in children’s development. The essay will then explore various early childhood educational theories that support or acknowledge the role played by scaffolding, the view of children as learners†¦show more content†¦The zone of proximal development refers to the distance or developmental gap between what the children can accomplish by themselves in learning and the next stage of learning which th ey can achieve aided by competent assistance from an adult caregiver. Bruner drew heavily from the works of Vygotsky, particularly the zone of proximal development, in conceptualizing scaffolding (Berk and Winsler, 2010 Lambert and Clyde, 2003). Vygotsky regards play as the leading source of children’s cognitive development (Vygotsky, 1962 Lambert and Clyde, 2003). For Vygotsky, children begin their development by first thinking with others or at the prompting of others before they are capable to think independently. Therefore, from Vygotsky’s approach, cognitive development essentially occurs through scaffolding where the child first interacts with the teacher (as the competent adult) who helps identify their zone of proximal development and gradually, through guided discovery, withdraws this guidance and support to enable the child think independently. The teacher identifies the zone of proximal development or the area where the childShow MoreRelatedStructured Play in the Classroom627 Words   |  3 Pagesmake-believe play is an important and unique context, providing opportunities to learn not afforded by other classroom activities. It should not be considered something extra that can be cut to accommodate more time for academic skills, nor should it be used as a means of adding â€Å"entertainment value† for inherently boring and decontextualized drills. Instead, play should be preserved and nurtured as one of the â€Å"uniquely preschool† activities that provide the most beneficial context for children’s developmentRead MoreThe Early Childhood Years For Children1283 Words   |  6 Pagesstudies conducted on scaffolding shows that it can support cognitive and social development. Scaffolding is a process when one person supports another in reaching a goal. Typically during the scaffolding process one person is more experienced and the other is inexperienced, such as a tutor and an apprentice. Scaffolding research is al so supported by Lev Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, which involves skills a child is developing, but may need assistance. Scaffolding can occur through verbalRead MoreChildren s Learning Within Early Childhood Education1559 Words   |  7 PagesPlay in early childhood education is of great importance in the holistic development of children. Play is hard to define, due to its various presenting means. It must be regarded as an indispensable component of an individual’s development (Saracho, Olivia, Spodek Bernard,1998). Through play, the child interacts with their peers as they explore and participate in different activities. The role of the early childhood teachers is crucial in encouraging and stimulating children’s interest in playRead MoreEssay about Assignment One EDE 31032096 Words   |  9 Pagescurriculum. Quality interactions between teacher and child form the foundation for a successful and effective early childhood program. This essay wil l discuss the use of scaffolding as one of the strategies of intentional teaching, and its importance in facilitating children’s play. It will explore various theories relating to scaffolding and show clear links between these theorists and how they view the teacher as an integral part of learning. 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Farquhar and White (2014: 821) highlight the importance of early education as the ‘theory and practice of educating young children’, which is deeply rooted in the philosophy of the practitioner as they have a repertoire of strategies to teaching and learning. King and Howard (2016) believe that philosophy and pedagogyRead MoreSociocultural Development in Young Children1154 Words   |  5 PagesLev Semyonovich Vygotsky is a well known to be a theorist who focused on the sociocultural development in young children. Lev Vygotsky strongly believed in the importance of the interaction with peers when it comes to the children’s growing process of learning. Through Vygotsky’s research, he came up with the co ncept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD). 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Piaget’s key findings in the sensorimotor stage of a child’s development and the fact that children are active learners are highly applicable in an occupation such as speech language pathology. The same is true about Vygotsky’s ideas of scaffolding, social interaction, and the zone of proximal development. These beliefs of Piaget and Vygotsky are essential to the understanding and application of speech language pathologists in their language evaluations and in developing treatment plans forRead More Piaget and Vygotsky: The Psychology of Cognitive Development1701 Words   |  7 Pagesaround them. Piaget explained children’s maturation process by initiating a four stage developmental process which he considered to be univer sal. They are; sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete and formal (in Passer, M. et al., 2009). The sensorimotor occurs from birth up to two years old. Social interactions and the environment play a prominent role in the