ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with a necessarily detailed outline and critique of Piaget's model of child development before then proposing an alternative framework for understanding how young. It suggests that Vygotsky's overall approach can be usefully supplemented with the two sociological concepts of 'habitus'. The chapter introduces the key objective in developing this theoretical framework has been to provide the conceptual tools necessary to understand the nature of masculinity as it is manifest in young boys' lives and how this impacts upon their dispositions to learning. It also suggests that an alternative way of thinking about Vygotsky's notion of internalisation through the use of the two sociological concepts of habitus and figuration. Traditional models of child development continue to represent a powerful obstacle in the way of those wishing to undertake work with young children around issues of gender. In contrast, Vygotsky's work provides a radical alternative to view of development from the 'inside out' with its neglect of social context.
