Scaffolding has been widely applied as an effective educational strategy and has been shown to have a large and statistically significant effect on learning outcomes in online environments (Doo, Bonk, & Heo, 2020). As described by Jumaat and Tasir (2014, p.74): ‘In education, scaffolding has teachers instructing students in the early stages of learning, and gradually lessening their supports as the students gain mastery (Palinscar, 1986). This reduces difficulty of complex learning and at the same time, let the students focus on constructing knowledge and higher-order demands like thinking critically (Way & Rowe, 2008).’.
Scaffolding categories
It may be helpful to think about scaffolding through the four categories distinguished by Hannafin, Land, and Oliver (1999):
Conceptual scaffolding
Helping the student to identify essential themes and related knowledge.
Example: When facilitating online discussion, instead of asking one broad question, you can provide prompts guiding students in formulating a comprehensive response. See the Blackboard Discussions guide.
Meta-cognitive scaffolding
Helping the student to monitor and reflect on the learning process.
Example: Organise learning materials into smaller sections which build on each other. Make sure the progress tracking is turned on and explain to students how to use it to monitor their advancement through the content.
Strategic scaffolding
Provides the student with alternative ways of completing a task.
Example: Where possible, you may want to give students a choice of format in completing assessments and activities. Instead of writing an essay, could they meet the intended learning outcomes by creating a podcast, a video or a poster?
Procedural scaffolding
Helping the student to use resources and tools for learning, such as providing an orientation to system functions and features.
Example: You could consider creating a video tour of your unit introducing students to its structure, explaining what they can find in each section and how you expect them to use this space. You can use the Mosaic app to record and share it in your unit.
Turn on the Student Preview and imagine you are entering your Blackboard unit for the first time as a student. What is your experience like? How scaffolded is it? Is there anything that could help you at each step?
References
- Doo, M. Y., Bonk, C., & Heo, H. (2020). A Meta-Analysis of Scaffolding Effects in Online Learning in Higher Education. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 21(3), 60–80. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v21i3.4638
- Hannafin, Michael & Land, Susan & Oliver, Kevin. (1999). Open Learning Environments: Foundations, methods, and models. In Reigeluth, C., M. (Ed.), Instructional-design theories and models (Volume II). A New Paradigm of Instructional Theory (pp. 115-140). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
- Jumaat, Nurul & Tasir, Zaidatun. (2014). Instructional Scaffolding in Online Learning Environment: A Meta-analysis. Proceedings of the IEEE. 74-77. https://doi.org/10.1109/LaTiCE.2014.22