Week 11: Vgorsky and Bruner

Kevin Hansen's picture

Learning: I really liked the idea of scaffolding from this week's reading.  It seems fairly logical to me that knowledge can built in stages and that a learner can build this knowledge starting with more structure and help from the instructor and gradually moving to less and less of this.  There seem to be some "emotional" ties in starting with more support, this can help a student to feel more comfortable and willing to try new things.

Instructor: Similar to what I've spoken of in the past, I still think the instructor's role is to help a student to know how to learn.  The student needs to be comfortable and the instructor should make efforts to support the learner and provide enough structure that the learner can progress.

 

Groups:
Submitted by Kevin Hansen on Tue, 07/21/2009 - 8:19pm
Steven Haderlie's picture

Emotional ties

Submitted by Steven Haderlie (not verified) on Tue, 07/21/2009 - 8:28pm.
Hi Kevin, True about the emotional ties. I think that's another good reason that teachers need to be kind and supportive for their students. Otherwise students won't feel safe as they begin learning new things. It's always nice to have a patient coach beside you whenever you are about to learn something new, and there's nothing worse than having a critic ready to pounce on the slightest mistake. Good thoughts! Steven
Lacy's picture

Kevin- I totally identified

Submitted by Lacy (not verified) on Thu, 07/23/2009 - 11:39am.
Kevin- I totally identified with Scaffolding as well! I feel like it is a very logical way of learning and for teaching. I like how you summarized the teachers role in learning!
Angela Sauro's picture

I agree with you on the idea

Submitted by Angela Sauro on Mon, 07/27/2009 - 12:50pm.

I agree with you on the idea of scaffolding.  It does make sense to give student extra support at the beginning and I agree that this can help a student become more comfortable. 

Disclaimer

Any opinions expressed here, except as specifically noted, are those of the individual authors or commenters and do not necessarily represent the views or policies of the Department of Instructional Technology and Learning Sciences, the Emma Eccles Jones College of Education and Human Services, or Utah State University.