Scaffolding Students’
Comprehension of Text
Article written by
Kathleen F. Clark &
Michael F. Graves
Summarized by
Kristine Barrett
Scaffolding
The scaffolding of a building under construction provides support
when the new building cannot stand on its own. As the new
structure is completed and becomes freestanding, the scaffolding
is removed. So it is with scaffolded adult-child academic
interactions. The adult carefully monitors when enough
instructional input has been provided to permit the child to make
progress toward an academic goal, and thus the adult provides
support only when the child needs it. If the child catches on
quickly, the adult’s responsive instruction will be less detailed than
if the child experiences difficulties with the task.
M. Pressley
Why use scaffolding?
• Vygotsky’s zone of
proximal development
• Pearson and Fielding’s
release of
responsibility model
Inductive form of instruction
It teaches students how to find and organize
information, create and test hypotheses that
describe relationships among data sets.
(Joyce & Weil)
Forms of Scaffolding
Instruction
•Moment-to-moment scaffolding
•Instructional frameworks
–Questioning the Author
–Scaffolded Reading Experience
•Instructional procedures
–Direct Explanation of Comprehension
Strategies
–Reciprocal Teaching
Moment-to Moment Verbal
Scaffolding
• Use of a variety of questioning
techniques
– Prompt
– Probe
– Help explain answers more
in-depth
• Knowledge of how to ask
questions without giving
answers
• Give meaning and purpose to
questions
• Must remain very aware of
students’ abilities
Instructional Frameworks

Questioning the Author
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Use for reading individual
texts
Used to understand,
interpret, and elaborate
on author’s meaning
Open-ended questioning
techniques instead of
story element questions
A variety of responses is
desired from questions
Designed by I.L. Beck,
M.G. McKeown, J.
Worthy, C.A. Sandora,
and L. Kucan

Scaffolding Reading
Response (2 phases)

Planning Phase in which the
teacher must consider:
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Implementation Phase
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The students who are
reading
The reading selection
The purpose for reading
Pre-reading activities
During-reading activities
Post-reading activities
These activities are
designed to guide the
students to meet the
purposes set in the
planning phase.
Designed by M.F. Graves &
B.B. Graves
Instructional
procedures for
teaching reading
comprehension
strategies
•Direct Explanation of
Comprehension
Strategies
•Reciprocal Teaching
Direct Explanation of
Comprehension Strategies
The teacher…
•Clearly explains
strategy
•How it is to be used
•When it is to be used
•Models the strategy
•Provides
opportunities for
student modeling
ReciprocalTeaches
Teaching
four comprehension
strategies:
1. Questioning
2. Summarizing
3. Clarifying
4. Predicting
The strategies are directly taught and
modeled.
The strategies are designed to teach
understanding of the purposes of
reading, activating prior
knowledge, focusing attention on
important content, critically
evaluating text, monitoring
comprehension, and drawing &
testing inferences.
The teacher’s role is to
provide the students with
enough instruction and
guidance as long as
necessary. That
instruction and guidance will
continually change as the
students develop their own
skills and strategies, which
will enable them to become
independent learners and
thinkers.
Final Thoughts
•Very well written
•Provides useful insights into reading instruction
•Explained in easy to understand ways
•Background information is provided
•Constructivist elements are provided
–Scaffolding, zone of proximal development, Reciprocal Teaching, and the gradual release of responsibility
model
•Definite instructions for use in the classroom
–Allows students to grow into creative thinkers who are able to take learning into their own hands.
–Each form builds on the other ones so students will continually use them in comprehending any type of
material.
–Students will begin to see the connections to all subject areas instead of just during “reading time”.
• Each form of scaffolding instruction requires students to think for themselves.
•Teachers model strategies.
•Collaboration between students is encouraged.
•Examples are given from a variety of levels of education
•Authors quote directly from classroom discussions so readers can “see” the form at work.
•This is a real-world article, which would allow me to take the knowledge gained from it and begin using it
immediately within my own classroom.
Scaffolding “is a highly flexible and adaptable
model of instruction that supports students as
they acquire basic skills and higher order
thinking processes, allows for explicit
instruction within authentic contexts of reading
and writing, and enables teachers to
differentiate instruction for students of diverse
needs” (Clark & Graves, 2005, p.579).