How can teachers scaffold

Scaffolding a lesson may, in fact, mean that it takes longer to teach, but the end product is of far greater quality and the experience much more rewarding for all involved.

Show and Tell How many of us say that we learn best by seeing something rather than hearing about it? Always show students the outcome or product before they do it. If a teacher assigns a persuasive essay or inquiry-based science project, a model should be presented side-by-side with a criteria chart or rubric.

You can guide students through each step of the process with the model of the finished product in hand. Use think alouds , which will allow you to model your thought process as you read a text, solve a problem, or design a project. Tap Into Prior Knowledge Ask students to share their own experiences, hunches, and ideas about the content or concept of study and have them relate and connect it to their own lives. Give Time to Talk All learners need time to process new ideas and information. Use Visual Aids Graphic organizers, pictures, and charts can all serve as scaffolding tools.

One of the main benefits of scaffolded instruction is that it provides for a supportive learning environment. In a scaffolded learning environment, students are free to ask questions, provide feedback and support their peers in learning new material. When you incorporate scaffolding in the classroom, you become more of a mentor and facilitator of knowledge rather than the dominant content expert.

This teaching style provides the incentive for students to take a more active role in their own learning. Students share the responsibility of teaching and learning through scaffolds that require them to move beyond their current skill and knowledge levels. Through this interaction, students are able to take ownership of the learning event.

The need to implement a scaffold will occur when you realize a student is not progressing on some aspect of a task or unable to understand a particular concept.

Although scaffolding is often carried out between the instructor and one student, scaffolds can successfully be used for an entire class. The points below are excerpted from Ellis and Larkin , as cited in Larkin , and provide a simple structure of scaffolded instruction.

In other words, the instructor models how to perform a new or difficult task, such as how to use a graphic organizer. For example, the instructor may project or hand out a partially completed graphic organizer and asks students to "think aloud" as he or she describes how the graphic organizer illustrates the relationships among the information contained on it.

The instructor and students then work together to perform the task. For example, the students may suggest information to be added to the graphic organizer. As the instructor writes the suggestions on the white board, students fill in their own copies of the organizer.

At this point, students work with a partner or a small cooperative group to complete the graphic organizer i. More complex content might require a number of scaffolds given at different times to help students master the content. This is the independent practice stage where individual students can demonstrate their task mastery e. Here are some common scaffolds and ways they could be used in an instructional setting.

As with any teaching technique, scaffolds should complement instructional objectives. Between each mini-lesson, the teacher checks to see if students have understood the concept, gives them time to practice the equations, and explains how the math skills they are learning will help them solve the more challenging problem questioning students to check for understanding and giving them time to practice are two common scaffolding strategies.

In some cases, the term guided practice may be used to describe this general technique. The teacher describes or illustrates a concept, problem, or process in multiple ways to ensure understanding. A teacher may orally describe a concept to students, use a slideshow with visual aids such as images and graphics to further explain the idea, ask several students to illustrate the concept on the blackboard, and then provide the students with a reading and writing task that asks them articulate the concept in their own words.

This strategy addresses the multiple ways in which students learn—e. Students are given an exemplar or model of an assignment they will be asked to complete. The model provides students with a concrete example of the learning goals they are expected to achieve or the product they are expected to produce. Similarly, a teacher may also model a process—for example, a multistep science experiment—so that students can see how it is done before they are asked to do it themselves teachers may also ask a student to model a process for her classmates.

As students become familiar with new material, it is key for the teacher to evaluate student understanding and provide positive and corrective feedback.

Begin by boosting confidence. Introduce students first to tasks they can perform with little or no assistance. This will improve self-efficacy. Provide enough assistance to allow students to achieve success quickly. This will help lower frustration levels and ensure that students remain motivated to advance to the next step.

This will also help guard against students giving up due to repeated failures. Avoid boredom. Look for clues that the learner is mastering the task. Scaffolding is used in a very wide range of situations. Mothers naturally employ this approach as they teach their children how to live in and enjoy their world. Teachers, from Pre-K to Adult Education appreciate the necessity and increased learning afforded by the use of these techniques.

Teachers and trainers can even use the techniques and strategies of scaffolding without even knowing the name of this useful method. It is a very natural approach to ensure the learning of the student. Morelock, Brown and Morrissey noted in their study that mothers adapt their scaffolding to the perceived abilities of their children.

The mothers scaffold interactions at play by modeling or prompting behaviors which they see demonstrated by their child or just beyond the level demonstrated. For instance, the very young child is playing with blocks by stacking them on top of each other. She then watches and assists as needed until the child appropriates the skill or loses interest and moves on to something else.

She will try again the next time the child is playing with the blocks or try another construction which she feels will be more attractive to the child. The study further suggested that the mother will adapt her scaffolding behavior to the needs of her child. If she sees that the child is imaginative and creative, she will then scaffold beyond the apparent skill level exhibited.

Conversely, if she perceives that the child is less attentive or exhibits behaviors which are not easy to decipher, she will then demonstrate new skills instead of extensions to the skills already present. The authors suggest that this could be a possible early indicator of giftedness. An elementary math teacher is introducing the addition of two-digit numbers.

Then she reduces the number of steps for initial success by modeling, verbally talking through the steps as she works and allowing the students to work with her on the sample problems.

An overhead projector is a great tool for this activity because the teacher is able to face the class while she works the problems. She can then pick up non-verbal cues from the class as she works. She takes this opportunity for further modeling of the skills and verbally presenting the process as she works through these problems.

The students are then allowed to work several problems independently as the teacher watches and provides assistance where needed. The success rate is increased by providing these incremental opportunities for success.