Scaffolding Emergent Writing in the Zone of Proximal Development

In recent years, there have been many and varied successful applications of the Vygotskian concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD) to the area of literacy learning (e.g., Burkhalter, 1995; Combs, 1996; Steward, 1996). These applications, often developed as instructional programs, generally demonstrate the viability of providing children support within their ZPD and describe various ways to increase their level of performance beyond what learners may achieve on their own or with instruction that is out of their range of capabilities. Most of the programs use the assistance of more capable others, likely peers or teachers, to support the learning of individual children. Consistent with Vygotsky's own emphasis, the process and the outcomes of the interactions between the child and the other participants in the dialogue are typically presented in a verbal form, through different forms of discourse (e.g., Au, 1997; Brown, Ash, Rutherford, Nakagawa, Gordon, & Campione, 1993; Cazden, 1981; Moll, 1990). In the work of Vygotsky’s followers, such as Daniel Elkonin and Pyotr Galperin, it was found that for young children, the progress within their ZPD can be further enhanced when not only social interactions are present, but also special instructional techniques are utilized (Elkonin, 1963, 1969, 1974; Galperin, 1969, 1985, 1992). Going beyond the original Vygotskian theoretical insights Abstract