Vygotsky and language
vygotsky was interested in the development of higher psychological functions such as attention and memory. A key feature of these higher functions is that they are mediated by the use of signs. We mentioned this in Chapter 2 .Some years ago it was common to tell someone to tie a knot in their handkerchief in order to remember something It stands for knot acts as a sign or symbol, allowing the person to remember something. It stands for or represents the thing to be remembered This is important it transform remembering from a process dependent on direct stimulation from the environment t a process that can be voluntarily regulated and reflected on The learner no longer ha o be in the presence of the thing to be remembered but has made an internal representation to allow him or her to remember the thing. Nowadays fewer people carry handkerchiefs and people have developed different(and sometimes very personal) way of creating signs or symbols to enable them do have a mental representation of something. This is what allows us not only to remember, but also to think about the things we remember, so we reflect on what we recall Here is an example to illustrate this: Four-year-old Joe could remember in detail some of the things that had happened on d visit to his cousins house in Manchester a year before this conversation took place He said We had a blue car and we stayed in a big house. was in one room right at the top and my sister was in the room with me There was a cat and I was scared that the would bite me or scratch me(giggles) was only little then You can see how a return visit to his cousin's house prompted Joe not only to remember some of the physical details of an event long past, but also to think back and reflect on his own behaviour. He could remember being scared that the cat would bite or scratch him and analysed that as justifiable because he had been only little then'. Talking and thinking about an event and being able to reflect on it through language are complex higher-order cognitive skills.