Scaffolding Student Learning
Kevin M. Clark
Future Faculty Teaching Fellows Summer Institute
July 13, 2013
Opening Question
• So what is teaching anyway???
Common Teaching Practices
• Lecture – should I tell students something?
• Discussion – should I try to get students to talk
about something?
• Activity – should I have students do something?
Courses I Teach
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General Psychology (PSY P103)
Lifespan Development Psych. (PSY P216)
Statistical Techniques (PSY K300)
The Psychology of Learning (PSY P325)
Cognitive Psychology (PSY P335)
Behavioral Neuroscience (PSY P326)
History & Systems of Psychology (PSY P459)
Special Topics (PSY P390):
– The Psychology of Creativity
– Political Psychology
– Motivation to Learn
Planning for Class
• Frame #1: How can I “fill” class time today?
• Frame #2: What is the most important content
I should “cover” today?
• Frame #3: How can I incorporate new
technology and teaching “fads” into class
today?
Planning for Class
• Frame #4: In what activities should students
engage today?
• Frame #5: What do I want students to learn
today?
• Frame #6: How can I best assist student
learning today?
Teaching as Scaffolding Student
Learning
• Scaffolding is providing students with needed
assistance and support so as to maximize their
learning.
• It is aimed at expanding capabilities and
developing mastery.
• Assistance is reduced as learning becomes more
self-regulated and support is no longer needed.
Vygotsky (1978): Zone of Proximal
Development (ZPD)
http://www.innovativelearning.com/educational_psychology/development/zone-of-proximal-development.html
Implications of Vygotsky’s ZPD
• Teach (scaffold or assist performance) in the
ZPD.
• Distinguish current performance vs. potential
for learning.
What should we scaffold?
• Concepts (literacy)
– Understanding
– Application
• Thinking
– Critical thinking
– Metacognition/Reflexivity
• Motivation
– Expectancy (self-efficacy)
– Value
Tharp & Gallimore (1988):
Means of Assisting Performance
• Modeling
• Contingency management
(reinforcement/punishment)
• Feedback
• Instruction
• Questioning
• Cognitive structuring
– Conceptual understanding
– Task structuring
Lave & Wenger (1991): Legitimate
Peripheral Participation (LPP)
From: University of South Alabama, Online Learning Laboratory, Retrieved 7/13/11 from
http://www.innovativelearning.com/educational_psychology/development/zone-of-proximal-development.html
Implications of Lave & Wenger’s
LPP
• Understand learning as intertwined with issues of
belonging and identity.
• Connect (and help students see connections between)
class activities and meaningful practices.
• Recognize class practices and student goals may differ
from those teachers intend/desire.
– Example (see Brophy, 2010):
• Learning Goals
• Performance Goals
• Work Avoidance Goals
So how can we scaffold students
preparation for class?
• Class Preparation Assignments
• Daily/Weekly Quizzes
• Reflection Papers/“Talking Points”
• Review (e.g., stats “math review”)
Scaffolding During Lectures
• Emphasize most important & challenging ideas
• Use “interactive lectures” (teacher-led conversation)
• Provide cognitive structuring
• Model concepts as tools for thinking
• Demonstrate applications and relevance
• Connect to prior learning
• Embed discussions, activities, & concept checks
Scaffolding During Discussions
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Create a community of learners (e.g., the “name quiz”)
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Model critical thinking/reading and respectful dialogue
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Use discussion as context for scaffolding understanding/literacy
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Push students toward deeper thinking (e.g., probing follow-ups, “devil’s advocate”)
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Use “reciprocal teaching” (summarizing, clarifying, questioning, predicting)
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Provide cognitive structuring (e.g., frameworks for integrating emerging ideas)
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Mix in personal reflections, “think-pair-share”, or small-group discussions
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End with “final thoughts”
Scaffolding with
Activities/Assignments
• Move from “hands on” to “minds on” (Brophy, 2010).
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Expert panels/debates
JIGSAW technique: expert groups  learning groups
Film analyses/product reviews
Newsletters/workshops (for a specific audience)
Dialogues (among key figures/from different perspectives)
Poster sessions/student presentations
Case analysis/Personal intellectual history papers
“Final Essay” assignment
References
• Brophy, J. (2010). Motivating students to learn (3rd ed.).
New York: Routledge.
• Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning:
Legitimate peripheral participation. New York:
Cambridge University Press.
• Tharp, R. G., & Gallimore, R. (1988). Rousing minds to
life: Teaching, learning, and schooling in social context.
New York: Cambridge University Press.
• Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The
development of higher psychological processes (M.
Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman, Eds.
& Trans.) Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Contact Info
Kevin M. Clark
Associate Professor of Psychology
Indiana University Kokomo
(765) 455-9342
kevclark@iuk.edu