From the course: Teaching Complex Topics

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Introduction to scaffolding

Introduction to scaffolding

From the course: Teaching Complex Topics

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Introduction to scaffolding

- At the beginning of this course, I described how to use effective planning to develop curriculum that can reach all students. I then went on to discuss different delivery and teaching strategies that can make your instruction accessible to the full spectrum of students. In this chapter, I'm going to focus on methods for assisting individual students and small groups using something called scaffolding. I like to think of my curriculum as a kind of structure or building. And I use scaffolding as a way for students to build their understanding of a curriculum floor by floor without the whole building collapsing on them. Scaffolds in the construction world are structures used to add support to a building while it's under construction. Once the building is stable and able to stand on its own, the scaffolding is taken away. In education, scaffolding is used in much the same way. Some students require a little extra support during the teaching process. But then that support can be…

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