When you look at a building under construction, you generally see scaffolding. Without this initial structure, tradesmen would have an impossible time erecting the walls.
Educators use the word differently. To them, scaffolding is the process students practice as they build their knowledge based on previous reading, instruction and experiences. Unless someone introduces the concept, most students don’t even realize their brains are functioning in this manner. To most, it’s simply a case of “if this, then that.” Effective instructors, however, use a series of techniques throughout a curriculum, compelling students to recall what they’ve learned in previous classes. This forces students to scaffold their learning rather than “cram and purge” after every test.
Ask yourself, “How can I adopt this practice with those I supervise? After all, scaffolding is an element of good decision making. In today’s pressurized workplace, many tasks and practices have become so transactional we don’t remember what we did the day before. The fifth “C” in the 5Cs of Problem Solving stands for “cogitate,” in other words reflect on what you’ve learned before moving on. This is, in essence, scaffolding. Encourage . . compel . . force your people to cogitate. If you don’t, you will all spend time down the road learning what you could have learned the first time.