Amplification of Child Development as an Alternative to the “Pedagogy of Poverty”: The Tale of Two Curricula

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 9:45 am - Gold 4
  In Roundtable Session: Systems and Stories: Cultural-Historical Perspectives on Development and Equity

Abstract

This paper focuses on the authors’ experience implementing two Vygotskian-based preschool and kindergarten curricula—Tools of the Mind and Vygotskian Early Childhood Education Program (VECEP)—in U.S. early childhood programs and public schools serving predominantly low-SES populations. The authors contrast the ‘pedagogy of poverty,’ which is commonly applied in preschool and kindergarten classrooms serving this demographic, with the instructional strategies of Tools of the Mind and VECEP, both grounded in the work of Vygotsky and post-Vygotskian scholars. The paper includes a description of research studies documenting the neuropsychological and educational outcomes associated with these programs and discusses the concept of developmental amplification as a promising approach to addressing educational inequity in early childhood classrooms.

Authors

• Elena Bodrova, Tools of the Mind, Inc

• Deborah J. Leong, Tools of the Mind, Inc

• Vera Brofman, Touro College