An Examination of Preservice Literacy Teachers’ Initial Attempts to Provide Instructional Scaffolding

Abstract

In today's diverse schools, meeting individual literacy needs of students is one of the most challenging aspects of teaching. Instructional scaffolding is a powerflil tool that many literacy teachers use to meet the challenge. While the term denotes a vnde array of strategies, most teachers use scaffolding in some form or another in their classrooms. Many consider it to be one of the most effective instructional procedures available (Cazden, 1992; Graves, Graves, & Braaten, 1996).

Reference

Many, J., Taylor, D., Wang, Y., Sachs, G., & Schreiber, H. (2007). An examination of preservice literacy teachers' initial attempts to provide instructional scaffolding. Reading Horizons, 48(1), 19-40.

Journal

Reading Horizons

Analysis

Is this article part of a larger project or series of studies?

Does this study draw on a large, preexisting data set?

Research Approach

none stated

Geographic Setting

not stated

Institutional Context

University based

Certification Level

K-12 ESOL

Programatic Focus

ESOL

Research Location Context

field-based methods course

Preservice Participants

alternative master’s degree in reading, language, and literacy education

Preservice Sample Size

Other Participant Data

Students in classrooms
Students in tutorial setting

Duration of Data Collection

Not clear

Data Sources

Classroom Discussion
fieldnotes
Interviews
Observations
Written reflections (prior to program entry)

Data Analysis Tools

Constant comparative analysis

Researcher Positionality

Outside (not directly invested in the program or operations)

Research Questions

"How can we describe preservice literacy teachers' initial attempts to provide instructional scaffolding to second Ianguage learners?" (p. 21)
Is this research question explicit from the manuscript? Yes