Francine Smolucha has been translating, teaching, and researching Vygotsky since the 1980s. Along with an interesting personal history, we get a great look at creativity’s line of development from infancy through fully-realized adulthood.
Highlights include:
0:48 - Francine’s interesting backstory
5:00 - Can people consciously direct their imaginative thinking?
10:38 - Visual isomorphism is useful - and fun!
18:00 - Why do creativity exercises?
24:06 - Artists and intuition
27:50 - Do children have innate creative imaginations?
36:48 - Vygotsky on the role of play in development (pretend play and object substitution)
42:48 - How (and when) do higher mental functions and psychological systems interact?
46:50 - Vygotsky and neuroscience
51:20 - What comes first: brain or concept (or function) development?
56:34 - What does “word meaning develops” mean?
1:05:38 - Development of concepts vs. that of word meaning
1:09:56 - Vygotsky’s idea of a fully developed adult
1:17:00 - Pros and cons of scientific concepts (and “restrictive frames”)
1:22:45 - Frame flexibility and being different
1:24:35 - Francine’s role in the Vygotskysphere
1:29:05 - Vygotsky as film character and as role model
1:32:50 - The role of conflict resolution and perseverance in Francine’s own development
1:45:03 - Ideas for everybody
1:52:15 - Some ideas for maintaining creative development through adolescence
1:59:26 - Honoring everyday creativity : )
Links & References:
"Vygotsky’s theory in-play: early childhood education" - http://tiny.cc/m321vz
"Why Man Creates" - http://tiny.cc/n321vz
"An interesting assignment" - http://tiny.cc/p321vz
