UNESCO Chair on the Cultural and Historical Psychology of Childhood

The London publishing house «Continuum»  presented the book «Vygotsky and Special Needs  Education: Rethinking Support for Children and Schools» edited by Professor Harry Daniels (Head of the Centre for Sociocultural and Activity Theory Research, University of Bath) and Professor Mariane Hedegaard (Senior Research Fellow, Department of Education, University of Oxford) («Vygotsky and Special Needs  Education: Rethinking Support for Children and Schools» Daniels, H., and Hedegaard, M. (Eds) (2011). London: Continuum).

Author’s intention is to offer a way of thinking about problems in schools without pathologizing those who work and study within them. They believe that there is much to be gained from theory that guides intervention towards the person in a situation rather than towards a feature that lies within the person alone. The work theory is to direct the gaze, reformulate challenges and redesign intervention. Vygotsky’s theory of development gives a possibility to meet these challenges. They build their understanding of children’s learning and development in school on Vygotsky’s theory of multiple pathways for children’s development. This theory takes departure in the conception that there is a wide diversity of biological and social conditions for children’s development but development through educational support always can be forward directed towards realizing children to appropriate motives and competences appreciated in the societal institutions that the child is part of.
The book may be of interest to professionals working in the field of special and inclusive education, to specialist interested in cultural-historical psychology, as well as to wide audience.