Scaffolding as a Panacea for Children's Learning Problems: An Overview

This paper is an attempt to explain the concept of scaffolding and highlight its implications in facilitating the learning by children. Scaffolding is defined as the support system for children by teachers to help extend current skills and knowledge to a higher level of competence. The skillful use of observation and the teacher's knowledge of the child enable the teacher to design and employ the appropriate dialogue, experiences, strategies, and/or models that will scaffold children as they construct their understanding of the concepts that will extend their knowledge to more advanced levels. This teaching style provides the incentive for students to take a more active role in their own learning. The need to implement a scaffold occurs when it is realized that a student is not progressing on some aspect of a task or unable to understand a particular concept.