Vygotsky, in contrast to Piaget, believed that learning is a cumulative process of environmental influence. His theory was based on one major point, that learning and development are intimately involved and interrelated from the first days of life.
The key to Vygotsky's theory is the fact that there are two interrelated levels of development:
The Actual Developmental Level- This is the level at which person exists today. More clearly, this is the total sum of acquired knowledge up to the immediate point in time.
The Zone of Proximal Development- This is, for lack of a more exact word, the potential level of development. This is the difference between what is known now and can be completed on one's own (Actual Development) and what can be done with some level of assistance, the level of knowledge that will be Actual in the future. That knowledge that is in the ZPD today will be the actual developmental level tomorrow.
With Vygotsky, all of learning is an interaction with the environment in which one is developing. All those people around you are influencing you to teach you what it is you cannot do on your own. They are helping you in your ZPD, so as to help you learn the skills to able you do do them on your own in the future. This is the essence of teaching.
