Key Words

Binary Opposition ⟶ A pair of mutually-exclusive signifiers in a paradigm set representing categories which are logically opposed and which together define a complete universe of discourse: for example, alive or dead. In such oppositions each term necessarily implies its opposite and there is no middle ground.

Cognitive Pluralism ⟶ A pluralistic theory of semiotic mediation that considers other systems of language beyond the spoken/written one, such as drawings, musical notes and diagrams.

Culture ⟶ The characteristic features of everyday existence (such as diversions or a way of life) shared by people in a place or time.

Dialectic ⟶ The unification of contradictions ⟶ the interrelatedness of diverse elements and the integration of opposites that creates unity ⟶ the synthesis of contradictions in phenomena.

An interpretive method in which the contradiction between a proposition (thesis) and its antithesis is resolved at a higher level of truth (synthesis)

Functional Systems ⟶ The dynamic psychological systems in which diverse internal and external processes are coordinated and integrated.

Internalization ⟶ The process through which we are able to make sense of cultural symbols and assign meaning and purpose to them.

Labor ⟶ Practical activity [carried out by humans]

Marxism ⟶ The political and economic theories of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, later developed by their followers to form the basis of communism.

The political, economic, and social principles and policies advocated by Marx. A theory and practice of socialism including the labor theory of value, dialectical materialism, the class struggle, and dictatorship of the proletariat until the establishment of a classless society.

Mediation ⟶ The way knowledge is transmitted between objects and individuals.

Phenomenology ⟶ The science of phenomena as distinct from that of the nature of being. ⟶ An approach that concentrates on the study of consciousness and the objects of direct experience.

Praxis ⟶ Humans collectively act[ing] on the world to produce their communal lives... collective labor... transformative collaborative practice.

Psychological Tools ⟶ Tools Psychological tools are the symbolic cultural artifacts—signs, symbols, texts, formulae, and most fundamentally, language—that enable us to master psychological functions like memory, perception, and attention in ways appropriate to our cultures.

Scaffolding ⟶ Educational (or Instructional) Scaffolding is a teaching method that enables a student to solve a problem, carry out a task, or achieve a goal through a gradual shedding of outside assistance.

Semiotics ⟶ The study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation.

Semiotic Mediation ⟶ The invention and use of signs as auxiliary means of solving a given psychological problem (to remember, compare something, report, choose, and so on) is analogous to the invention and use of tools. The sign acts as an instrument of psychological activity in a manner analogous to the role of a tool in labor. [Vygotsky, 1978, p. 52]

Sociocultural ⟶ Combining social and cultural factors.

Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) ⟶ The distance between the actual developmental level as determined through independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers.