Foundations for a Shared Future: The Vision Behind ILCHE

Origins and Development

What began in August 2019 as an informal Facebook group has gradually developed into a shared intellectual home. Initially, it was a simple online space—a place to read, listen, ask questions, and discuss Vygotsky’s cultural-historical theory with scholars and practitioners from different parts of the world. Over time, this space became more than a forum. It became a place where we learned to think together.

For nearly seven years, we have used this platform to engage with complex concepts, listen to international experts, and challenge our own interpretations. Our conversations have never been purely abstract. They have also been grounded in real contexts: children, teachers, classrooms, kindergartens, universities, institutions, technologies, and the changing conditions of human life.

As these discussions evolved, we began to recognise the limitations of informal digital exchange. Important insights emerged through posts, comments, and online meetings, but they were not always easy to preserve, develop, or share systematically. We therefore made a collective decision to move from spontaneous discussion toward more organised, research-oriented activity. Our aim was to document our work, create continuity, support collaboration, and build a stronger foundation for scholarly contributions grounded in Vygotskian traditions and legacies. This decision led to the establishment of the International Laboratory of Cultural-Historical Psychology and Education (ILCHE).

The Rationale for ILCHE

ILCHE has emerged from a genuine need within academic life. Cultural-historical theory (CHT)-based research is rich, diverse, and active, yet often fragmented. Scholars work across different countries, languages, institutions, and traditions. While many engage with the same foundational texts, interpretations vary across historical and educational contexts.

This diversity is valuable and has the potential to deepen theoretical understanding. However, when scholars remain disconnected, diversity can also lead to isolation. Ideas may stay within local circles, and concepts may be repeated without being examined across contexts. ILCHE was created in response to this challenge.

We do not see the laboratory as a closed academic network or a static archive. Rather, we understand it as a shared intellectual space—a place where ideas can be tested, critically examined, developed, and connected to empirical work. Through ILCHE, we aim to transform a loose network into an active and collaborative scholarly community.

Contemporary Relevance of Cultural-Historical Theory

Cultural-historical theory was developed in the early twentieth century through the work of Lev S. Vygotsky and his colleagues. Its relevance has not diminished; in many ways, it has become more urgent.

We live in a time of profound social, technological, and educational change. Generative artificial intelligence is transforming how knowledge is produced, assessed, and shared. Migration is reshaping classrooms and communities. Inequality continues to influence children’s opportunities for learning and development. Digital platforms increasingly mediate teaching, communication, and professional life.

In this context, narrow theories of learning are insufficient. When learning is understood solely as an individual cognitive process, the broader social, cultural, historical, and institutional conditions shaping development are overlooked. CHT provides conceptual tools to examine these conditions. It emphasises that human consciousness develops through cultural tools, language, interaction, and participation in social practices. It also highlights that agency is not purely individual but is developed, enacted, and expanded through joint social activity.

These issues are particularly significant today. Digital tools and artificial intelligence are reshaping relationships between humans, knowledge, and institutions. This raises critical questions: How do technologies mediate thinking and learning? How do teachers maintain professional judgment in platform-based environments? How do children develop agency under unequal conditions? How can educational institutions act in the best interests of learners rather than simply adapting to external pressures?

These are not only technical questions—they are cultural, historical, ethical, and pedagogical in nature.

Collaboration as a Foundation for Knowledge Develop

For us, international collaboration is not optional; it is fundamental to the development of knowledge. Cultural-historical theory itself teaches that development is always situated and mediated within specific social, cultural, and historical contexts. No single national, institutional, or linguistic perspective can fully account for the complexity of learning and development.

When research is conducted within a single context, there is a risk that local assumptions may be treated as universal. By contrast, when scholars from different countries and educational settings engage with one another, diverse problems, histories, and perspectives enter into dialogue. This diversity becomes a condition for stronger, more robust theory.

Our Direction

ILCHE is still developing, but its direction is clear. We aim to deepen cultural-historical theory through careful study and empirical research, while strengthening the relationship between theory and educational practice. We are committed to building a democratic scholarly community that spans career stages and institutional contexts.

We also approach learning as a biosocial process, recognising that technologies can support development when they are thoughtfully integrated into pedagogy. Through ILCHE, we seek to contribute to a shared future in which research, practice, and collaboration are closely connected.

The Website

Through this website, we present the evolving work of ILCHE as an open and collaborative research laboratory. Visitors can explore our ongoing research projects, theoretical and methodological work, and key areas of investigation, including cultural-historical theory, research methodology, digital learning, and educational practice. The site also serves as a platform for scholarly exchange, mentorship, and international collaboration, bringing together researchers across contexts who are committed to advancing cultural-historical approaches to human development and education. Those interested in engaging with our work are welcome to join the community, including through free membership, and contribute to its ongoing development.

Organisers: Nikolai Veresov, Ammar Singh, & Samran Daneshfar.