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2005 |
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Temenoujka Fuller |
Zone of Proximal Development and
Students' Learning Demand
Humans'
learning needs and learning demands are two different constructs concerning
humans' learning. In a learning process, the time-distribution of individual
learning needs requires a complex analysis, involving knowledge and
understanding on how humans feel, reason, and in learning settings. For each
learning task, the zone of proximal developments in terms of Vygotsky (1978) is (presently) an unknown distribution of
learning services for each group of individuals. At the present level of our
research, the real distribution of the zones of proximal development is only a
hypothesis that it is related to the demand of learning services and programs;
therefore, in this paper, the zones of proximal development are studied
indirectly through the utilization of learning cervices in a community college
learning center. The utilization of learning services is called students'
learning demand, and, the assumption is that the learning demand is correlated
with the distribution of zones of proximal development.
In this
study, the information obtained by students' usage of different learning
cervices is considered a measure of students' learning demand construct.
Students' learning demand depends on learning cervices (observable) and
learning needs (a hidden variable). The utilization of learning services
(learning demand) in a learning center is an observable, measurable and
controllable variable. On the bases of students' learning demand, some inferences
about learning needs in terms of distribution of zones of proximal development
are a resourceful step in the learning need analysis.
The
variable of students' learning demand -- LD -- is presented in this study as
thee dimensional complex variable (elementary event). The three dimensions of
students' learning demand are: (OX) the day of visit in the learning center,
(OY) the initial time of visit in the particular day, and (OZ) the duration of
student's visit. All students are presented in the study with the three
dimensional point of learning demand (XYZ). If a student has more than one
visit at the same day, each visit is considered a new event in the learning
demand distribution.
In this paper,
some visualizations of utilization of learning cervices are presented to inform
further study on what students need and what is their demand for learning
services outside of the classroom. A long-term study on the distribution of
learning needs for low achieving on standardized tests community college
students has been conducted with low achieving
on community college placement test students. The most important element
of this study is to provide learning services as needed during the entire time
in which learning needs are traced.
Tutoring
emphasizes the individualized instruction in the zone of proximal development,
while teaching emphasizes the content and evaluation. The phenomenon of
humans' life-long learning through social interaction is called by Vygotsky (Vygotsky, 1978) Zone of
Proximal Development. In the social process of learning, those who can and know
how to approach certain learning problem help the novice to learn. Student can
perform some task or some challenging portions of the task under adult guidance
in reasonable time. At the same time, students do not need help nonstop to
learn. There are areas of personal study, in which students can perform well
without help or guidance. Today, many schools are trying to provide individualized
instruction after the school day; colleges and universities provide tutoring
programs. The goal of this study is to present some concerns about learning
needs - real and non real, and to connect students
learning demand with academic professional development. Tutoring and teaching
are the same process of social learning with different emphases.
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Fig. 1 The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
for one particular task and student is illustrated. (ZPD is the level of
intellectual challenges at which the students can perform with tutoring or
cooperative learning.) |
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Fig. 2 For each individual, the ZPD
changes with the time, according to Bodrova and
Leong (1998). The time scope in this picture is at least three semesters, not
necessary consecutive. |
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The goal of this study is to observe and describe the zone of proximal
development "encapsulated" in students' learning demand. How the
total need of learning assistance will change with the advancement of a group
of students? The study is focused on students in three mathematics courses
during one semester time-interval for each course. The change of students'
learning needs in advanced classes compare to learning needs in remedial
classes are considered a dynamical observation of the change of student zone
of proximal development. The goal is to provide visual evidence of Bodrova and Leong's (1998)
ideas for a group of students. The
Hypothesis is that the distribution of students' learning demand will
change in the long run as students move from remedial to pre-college math
classes. The results of our observations are represented on Fig. 2. The
visualization of students' learning demand is done with methods of
cartography. Statistical methods used in the study are the same as methods
used in modern physics to penetrate the fine structure of solid state
materials. The size and the density of the individual zones of proximal
development, if they depend on students' learning demand, should decrease
although the intellectual challenges are increasing (The Tutoring Paradox). |
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To describe
students' learning needs of assistance in mathematics, for three selected
mathematics courses, the number of visitors in the learning center is measured
with 3 variables;day of visit (OX), time of visit
during the day (OY), and length of visit measured in hours (OZ). It the data
presented on Fig. 3, during the equal number of days in one and the same
semester, the students' visits at a learning center are measured by the
time-length of their visits in the learning center to get help for the three math
courses selected for the study -- arithmetic, beginning algebra, and college
algebra.
The data,
collected within the first seven weeks of the spring semester 2003, is grouped
in 3 blocks - one for each of the three mathematics courses - arithmetic review
(bottom), beginning algebra (middle), and college algebra (top). All students,
enrolled in three mathematics courses were free to visit or not the learning
center at any time at which the learning center was opened. It was important to
help each student as much as needed, preferably in the zone of proximal
development (if possible), and not to do the work for students under their
individual zones of proximal development. With other word, tutors were
trained and encouraged to help if student is stuck by explaining the problems,
and if the students does not know the material and can do some study, tutors
were trained to guide the student to do the study. Almost all tutor training
programs emphasize the need of guidance, leading the student, helping with the
learning cycle. what is missing in all tutor training
programs, is the need of help in the zone of proximal development.
In this
study, the number of students enrolled in each course is more than one hundred., and the number of students enrolled in different
sections of one course is plus or minus 10% from course to course and through
the semester. The number of students can not be held constant; some students
are dropping, some are in the learning center every day and some just once or
twice. The dynamic of students' learning demand is depict and presented in the
paper as a first attempt to use data to identify the "shadows" of the
distribution of zones of proximal development. The organized data is compared
with some studies of the zones of proximal developments by Bodrova
and Leong (1998)
Conclusion: The theory of Vigotsky
(1978) about the Zone of Proximal Development can be used as a guide for
students' need of tutoring services. This study tested a hypothesis of
decreasing need of tutoring with the increasing intellectual difficulties. The
results are obtained in a long period of time from the beginning of semester to
the time before the midterm. All records after the midterm are ignored due
to dominant role of curricular objectives. The results are very
encouraging for students who are first generation to college and adult
learners, students at risk and all students that feel mathematical anxiety and
frustration.
References
Vygotsky, L.S. (1978), Mind
and society: The development of higher mental processes.
Bodrova,
E., & Leong, D. (1998). Scaffolding Emergent
Writing in the Zone of Proximal Development.
Literacy, Teaching and Learning, 3(2), 1.