From learning to interacting: the experience of Perezhivanie in a beginner Italian student’s use of the Schemas of a Complete Orienting Basis of Action (SCOBAs)

Abstract

This study explores the cognitive, linguistic, and emotional development of a student (Marie) who is learning Italian through concept-based language instruction (C-BLI; Lantolf & Poehner, 2014) and her use of Italian during study abroad. Marie's use of the Schema of a Complete Orienting Basis of Action (SCOBA) during classroom instruction and study abroad is analyzed through the Vygotskyan concept of Perezhivanie to document language development. The analysis of data sources from classroom instruction and study abroad demonstrates how Marie's use of the SCOBA was an essential aspect of her cognitive, linguistic, and emotional development. The SCOBA, as conceptual graphic representation inlaid in a C-BLI pedagogy, guided Marie’s interaction, use, and transformation of the tool. This article also contributes to research on C-BLI by documenting the use of Perezhivanie as an analytic construct.