Vygotsky Podcast

Should a simple question get a simple answer?  Marxism archiver Andy Blunden offers his response.

In this follow-up to a previous chat about neoformations, development, and danger, David Kellogg shifts his focus from paintings to songs... 

3:39 - "Haasati Aziva" by Dr. Oliver Mtukudzi 

4:58 - The song, quite beautiful but poorly translated with Google Translate 

24:48 - Four different views of anthropology (including Vygotsky's) 

31:39 - "Ice Cream" by Blackpink 

40:19 - "Todii" by Dr. Oliver (Tuku) Mtukudzi 

45:56 - "Un di Felice" (La Traviata) - Giuseppe Verde (Netrebko & Villazon, perf.)  

Previous chat here: "Development and Danger: the Importance of Neoformations" - http://tiny.cc/16xxtz

Nikolai Veresov, with contributions from David Kellogg, demonstrates how Vygotsky's cultural-historical theory is built as a system of concepts.  To best understand (and use) one concept, it's important to understand its place and role in the theory, along with its relationships to other concepts and important ideas.  

1:33 - ZPD 2:27 - ZPD + motivation 

3:55 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion 

5:16 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person 

6:22 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie 

10:13 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development 

11:38 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + General Genetic Law 

12:26 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts  

13:02 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts + hidden dimensions 

16:26 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts + hidden dimensions + signs & tools 

18:41 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts + hidden dimensions + signs & tools + metacognition 

23:55 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts + hidden dimensions + signs & tools + metacognition + refraction 

26:59 - ZPD + motivation + drama & emotion + whole person + perezhivanie + development + GGL + spontaneous & scientific concepts + hidden dimensions + signs & tools + metacognition + refraction + social situation of development 

28:19 - Cultural-historical theory as a system of concepts  

Original source: http://tiny.cc/dvjjuz  "Asia-Pacific Sociocultural, Cultural-historical & Activity Theory Summer School, January 2021"

While there are many pathways into Vygotsky's work, this approach, so far, has been the most sensible for a slow learner like me -- even if it's misguided and even if I'm still years away from synthesizing a lasting and holistic understanding.  Initially published May 27, 2021

Full chat: http://tiny.cc/16xxtz  

Highly relatable:  "People develop concepts in what Vygotsky calls a 'twisting path' that  does not proceed in a neat, linear fashion. Rather, one's route toward  the development of a concept becomes detoured, rerouted, and otherwise  thrown off course as new examples are considered for inclusion within  the concept, and as one generates sufficiently extensive related  knowledge to make consistent judgments." Smagorinsky (2012) Vygotsky and  Literacy Research: A Methodological Framework

Linguist and Vygotskian scholar David Kellogg distinguishes two types of  neoformations and hypothesizes on the deep roots and peculiarities of  basketball.  Initially published May 27, 2021

Full chat: http://tiny.cc/16xxtz

Using art, David Kellogg grounds a conceptual discussion of "neoformations" through an extended focus on a single line of development (negation) and its varied and accompanying neoformations. This conversation features David's recent translation of Vygotsky's Pedological Works, cross-cultural challenges of developmental education, and ideas for navigating a dangerous world.  (First published May 22, 2021)

Highlights include: 

1:42 - knowing vs. owning a word: Ant's background and aims for the discussion 

4:38 - Another interesting word: What is the Synopticon? 

6:15 - Yet another: переплетение (intertwining) -- and lace-making (Vermeer's "The Lace Maker") 

9:42 - Pedology: a "murdered" science studying the unity of mind/body development 

13:24 - Reminder: the map is not the territory 

18:30 - Real problems in a dangerous world -- "the crisis of no" (Netscher's "The Lacemaker") 

24:29 - Real problems, cont. - "the crisis of no" in Korea (mind, body, culture) 

31:54 - When education is not a game (tricky problems and tragic consequences) 

33:18 - Unplanned break (due to power outage) 

33:22 - Theory picks up where metaphor stops; Vygotsky concurs 

35:30 - Trying to understand neoformations using metaphor 

38:50 - Limits of the thread metaphor 

43:31 - Where are neoformations located? 

49:40 - Consulting Vygotsky in times of crisis 

51:56 - More types of neoformations - critical and stable ones 

55:38 - What is picked apart and rethreaded? More cool examples 

59:03 - Unraveling the social situation of development: the environment/child meeting point 

1:05:02 - Visualizing 'thread patterns' within and between people (Halliday and Vygotsky) 

1:12:14 - Answers without questions: potpourri (Ant's mic stopped  working)   

“. . . with each new epoch, the design must be picked apart and the old  materials reknitted in a new way into a new form” - Unraveling Some  Threads (early draft) - http://tiny.cc/t4xxtz  

"I think teaching children to say no - when they're not really sure what  they are saying no to - teaching children to say no to adults is kind of the most concrete, most specific, most practical way of thinking  about developmental crises. And in fact, when we go back over the developmental crises that Vygotsky was talking about, we see that "No" plays a very important role." - 23:20

David Kellogg notes the benefits and limitations of conceptualizing neoformations as thread and as pattern.  (First published May 21, 2021)

Full chat: http://tiny.cc/16xxtz

Nikolai Veresov gets provocative again, and I wonder, "Should I publish  this?"  There is little doubt that almost everybody in the field has forgotten  more than I have learned about Vygotsky, so why should I publish  provocations such as these?  Because the information seems essential, important, and interesting.  (Initially published May 11, 2021)

Full chat here: http://tiny.cc/sucxtz

Nikolai Veresov shares a book recommendation and gives the reasons why  (Initially published May 11, 2021)

Full chat here: http://tiny.cc/sucxtz

Nikolai Veresov argues that Vygotsky's status is inaccurately valued and suggests reasons why.   (Initially published May 11, 2021)

Full chat here: http://tiny.cc/sucxtz