Scaffolding in Case-Based Service Learning: Guest Blogger: Xiaokai (Katie) Jia

Scaffolding in Case-Based Service Learning

In a previous post in February, Dr. Anne Leftwich described how pre-service teachers are working on two base-based learning activities, where students solve technology integration problems in their subject areas. All these cases are authentic cases since they are created by in-service teachers in K-12 classrooms. One challenge we faced is that students sometimes are not familiar with the technology integration environment. Besides, they often fail to see the bigger picture of the cases in action because they are not familiar with the teachers’ teaching style, the length of the unit. Although environmental descriptions are provided, it is sometimes far away from students’ personal experience.

To overcome these difficulties, our team started to try out service learning case analysis projects with one section, and expanded to three sections in Spring 2013. The gist of service learning projects is to have students engaged in activities that meet genuine community needs that would help them to achieve their personal learning goals. In the case-based service-learning project, our students connect to their previous teachers in their own subject area, and help the teacher to identify and solve technology integration problems. The main benefits includes:

1.  Students are already familiar with the teaching and learning environment.
2. Students understand the teachers’ teaching styles and instructional goals.
3. Students can easily relate to the knowledge and skills learned in the classrooms to its real-world applications.

Base-based service learning has great potential to motivate students to develop a positive attitude toward technology integration in their future classroom, and to increase their self-efficacy by connecting their academic coursework with the needs of their community. At the same time, it is crucial that instructors provide guidance/scaffolding to help students successfully accomplish the learning tasks.

In addition to the scaffolded template to help the novice teachers make strong technology integration decision, we also implemented the several strategies to help our students successfully achieve the learning goals.

1. Setting up initial and follow up communication emails to reduce the workload of these students.
2. Setting up a Google form to help students collect case information, and monitor their progress.
3. Use weekly Google form to provide JIT support for their concerns. This form was usually filled out at the beginning of each class. Then instructor would review students’ comments and address the common problems in class. Individual questions would be answered either right in class or on the same day of class to make sure students are on track.

Instructors provide abundant help in students’ problem-solving processes. After all problems are identifies, and solutions proposed, our students would create all necessary artifacts that their teachers can implement in teaching.

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Xiaokai (Katie) Jia is a fourth year doctoral student of the Instructional Systems Technology Department at Indiana University. Since Fall 2011, she has been working as an Associate Instructor (AI) for an undergraduate level technology integration preparation course, W200 (Using Computers in Education). Her research interests include teacher technology integration professional development, performance-based English as a Foreign Learning, and online learning. She is currently the Lead AI for the W200 team. In addition, she is also leading a research project on pre-service teacher case-based learning under the supervision of Dr. Anne Leftwich.