Lev S.Vygotsky and Contemporary Educational Psychology

In 1996, the world psychological community will celebrate the 100-year anniversary of the birth of Lev Semenovich Vygotsky, one of the most original and influential humanists and scientists of the 20th century. It is hard to imagine that a man who lived only 37 years -- interrupted by periods of grave illness -- could achieve so much and in so many different areas of psychology and humanity. Great poets and profound scholars are often described as omniscient. In the case of Vygotsky, the scholar who had a deep interest in aesthetics, that certainly seems to have been true. He was a son of his era, a passionate revolutionary scientist, whose vision of human development was far ahead of his time. At the turn of the 21st century, his writings are very much contemporary, stimulating, and controversial. During his life, he deeply impressed a group of young students and colleagues, who later carried out and elaborated on his ideas in Russia. In the last few decades, an "invisible college" of enthusiastic and inspired Vygotskians came into being in many countries. This special issue attests to the growing influence of Vygotsky's ideas as presented by a group of his prominent disciples. The editors consider this publication their contribution to the worldwide celebration of the long life of Vygotsky's ideas.