EDTS 544 - Building Blocks for Success: Scaffolding in the Classroom

Each student enters the classroom with a different set of skills and needs, a common occurrence that can make instruction challenging. Scaffolding is an effective educational technique that considers every student’s initial abilities and supports your students’ progress toward academic proficiency and independent learning. But how do you scaffold without overwhelming yourself or your students?

In this course, you’ll examine the concept of the zone of proximal development (ZPD), determine the ZPD’s relationship to scaffolding instruction, and learn the benefits of scaffolding in the classroom. You’ll explore best practices for creating (and gradually removing) initial scaffolds that are appropriate for each student’s skill level and needs, and the relationship between instructional scaffolding and differentiated instruction. You’ll also learn methods for evaluating your students’ progress that will help you identify when to remove these scaffolds to promote student success.

Using the techniques from this course, you’ll be able to use scaffolding to provide each of your students with differentiated instruction that will support their personal academic development and promote their shift toward greater independence.