Social learning, language and instruction for adult learners where English is their second language

This chapter reports on an investigation into Vygotsky’s social learning theory in the context of young adult learners. There are strong interactive links between individuals’ language development, cognitive reasoning and educational success. These links are best facilitated within a learning environment where the dialogue between the teacher and the student is meaningful, planned, and encouraged. In this chapter, Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development is related to the notion that a teacher can use Blank’s (2002) four levels of dialogue to enhance young adults’ learning, when using English as the medium of instruction and assessment, especially when English is not the students’ first language.