The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) is a concept in educational psychology that was introduced by Lev Vygotsky in the early 1900s. It refers to the difference between what a learner can do without help and what they can achieve with guidance and encouragement from a more knowledgeable other (MKO) . The core idea of the ZPD is that a more knowledgeable person can enhance a student’s learning by guiding them through a task slightly above their ability level. As the student becomes more competent, the expert gradually stops helping until the student can perform the skill by themselves.

The ZPD can be broken down into three stages:

• Tasks the learner can do without assistance. This category includes everything a person can do without help from a more experienced individual.
• Tasks the learner can do with assistance. This category includes tasks a person can’t work through by themselves but can work through with help, also known as their ZPD.
• Tasks the learner cannot do even with assistance. This category includes everything a person cannot do, even with help.

In a classroom setting, the MKO is often a teacher or tutor, but it could also be a peer with mastery of the subject. The concept of the ZPD is widely used to study childrens mental development as it relates to educational context. Several instructional programs were developed based on this interpretation of the ZPD, including reciprocal teaching and dynamic assessment. For scaffolding to be effective, one must start at the childs level of knowledge and build from there.