The cultural-historical basis of the ‘Golden Key’ program

Abstract

The ‘Golden Key’ programme is a preschool education programme that is constructed on the basis of Vygotskij's cultural-historical theory. One of the most important aspects of this theory is not just the unity of intellect and affect, but the fact that the relationship between these two changes during the course of development. In infants, affect drives action, whereas by the end of the preschool period, affect and action are mediated by intellect. If affective and cognitive developments are studied as separate processes, then this has the effect in pedagogy of separating nurture and education. In the cultural-historical approach there is a movement from personal meaning to normative, or cultural, sense. Within the pedagogical approach derived from this theory the teacher neither nurtures nor teaches, but lives a joint life with the children. The Golden Key programme is based on a family group, with between 15 and 25 children aged from three to 10 years and their teachers. Parents and family members are also involved in the life of the group. Pedagogical practice is based around a special system of events which helps children develop their initiative and understand their culture. In their first four years the children experience four components of the programme in sequence. In the first year, teachers work on spatial orientation. In the second year, teachers work on time and history. In the third year, teachers work on activities with different materials and in the fourth year, teachers work on children's abilities to analyse and reflect on their actions. By the end of the educational programme all children succeed according to a set of criteria that include the ability to concentrate, to solve problems, to evaluate their own actions, to think logically and to act creatively. Children who have graduated from this programme are noted for their ability and skill and also their level of physical health.