constructivism
Jean Piaget, Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks, 1962
Jean Piaget, 1896‐1980
Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks
Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks concerning The Language and
Thought of the Child, and Judgment and Reasoning in the Child, by Jean Piaget
Comments It is not without sadness that an author discovers, twenty‐five years after its publication, the work of a colleague who has died in the meantime, when that work contains so many points of immediate interest to him which should have been discussed personally and in detail. Although my friend A. Luria kept me up to date concerning Vygotsky’s sympathetic and yet critical position with respect to my work, I was never able to read his writings or to meet him in person, and in reading his book today, I regret this profoundly, for we could have come to an understanding on a number of points.
1
23‐07‐2/3
Miss E. Hanfmann, who is one of Vygotsky’s closest followers, has kindly asked me to comment on the reflections of this distinguished psychologist concerning my early work. I should like to thank her, but also confess embarrassment, for while
Vygotsky’s book appeared in 1934, those of mine he discusses date back to 1923 and 1924. On thinking over the question of how to carry out such a discussion in retrospect, I have, however, found a solution that is both simple and instructive (at least for me), namely, to try and see whether or not Vygotsky’s criticisms seem justified in the light of my later work. The answer is both yes and no: on certain points I find myself more in agreement with Vygotsky than I would have been in
1934, while on other points I believe I now have better arguments for answering him. We can begin with two separate issues raised by Vygotsky’s book: the question of egocentrism in general and the more specific question of egocentric speech. If I have understood him well,
Jean Piaget, 1896‐1980
Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks
Comments on Vygotsky’s critical remarks concerning The Language and
Thought of the Child, and Judgment and Reasoning in the Child, by Jean Piaget
Comments It is not without sadness that an author discovers, twenty‐five years after its publication, the work of a colleague who has died in the meantime, when that work contains so many points of immediate interest to him which should have been discussed personally and in detail. Although my friend A. Luria kept me up to date concerning Vygotsky’s sympathetic and yet critical position with respect to my work, I was never able to read his writings or to meet him in person, and in reading his book today, I regret this profoundly, for we could have come to an understanding on a number of points.
1
23‐07‐2/3
Miss E. Hanfmann, who is one of Vygotsky’s closest followers, has kindly asked me to comment on the reflections of this distinguished psychologist concerning my early work. I should like to thank her, but also confess embarrassment, for while
Vygotsky’s book appeared in 1934, those of mine he discusses date back to 1923 and 1924. On thinking over the question of how to carry out such a discussion in retrospect, I have, however, found a solution that is both simple and instructive (at least for me), namely, to try and see whether or not Vygotsky’s criticisms seem justified in the light of my later work. The answer is both yes and no: on certain points I find myself more in agreement with Vygotsky than I would have been in
1934, while on other points I believe I now have better arguments for answering him. We can begin with two separate issues raised by Vygotsky’s book: the question of egocentrism in general and the more specific question of egocentric speech. If I have understood him well,