The Role of Scaffolding in Second Language Acquisition
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37547/ijll/Volume05Issue05-32Abstract
This study focuses on the impact of scaffolding model provided by teachers on first intermediate students' English language acquisition in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instruction. Aligned with Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and Wood, Bruner, and Ross (1976) scaffolding model, this research questions the impact of structured teaching assistance on students' progress in vocabulary, grammar, and reading skills and students' attitudes towards scaffolding methods in the classroom. A mixed-methods approach is used, combining qualitative and quantitative analyses. The sample includes 30 first intermediate students at a school, and data sources are written exercises, teacher feedback, and learner reflections. This study identifies the pedagogical advantage of scaffolding in intermediate EFL instruction and merits its continued use to facilitate effective language acquisition.
References
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Lightbown, P. M., & Spada, N. (2013). How languages are learned (4th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Long, M. H. (1983). Native speaker/non-native speaker conversation and the negotiation of comprehensible input. Applied Linguistics, 4(2), 126–141.
Maybin, J., Mercer, N., & Stierer, B. (1992). Scaffolding learning in the classroom. In K. Norman (Ed.), Thinking voices: The work of the National Oracy Project (pp. 186–195). Hodder & Stoughton.
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Language Skills Activity Worksheet
Vocabulary (30%)
A. Matching (10%)
Match the words to their meanings:
A. Enormous
B. Fragile
C. Cautious
D. Reliable
___ Easily broken
___ Very large
___ Careful
___ Can be trusted
B. Fill-in-the-blanks (10%)
Fill in the blanks with the correct word from the list:
(list: generous, exhausted, whisper, rescue)
The firefighters arrived just in time to ______ the trapped dog.
After running for an hour, she felt completely ______.
Please speak softly and ______ so we don’t wake the baby.
He is a very ______ person who often helps others.
C. Sentence Creation (10%)
Use the given word in a meaningful sentence:
Courageous: ___________________________________________
Predict: _______________________________________________
Harmful: ______________________________________________
Discover: _____________________________________________
Grammar (30%)
A. Sentence Correction (10%)
Correct the grammatical errors in the following sentences:
She don’t like playing basketball. → __________________________
I can swims very well. → _________________________________
They is going to the park. → _______________________________
He have eat lunch already. → ______________________________
B. Tense Transformation (10%)
Change the sentences to the tense indicated in brackets:
She walks to school. (Past Simple) → __________________________
They played soccer. (Future Simple) → _________________________
He is eating lunch. (Present Perfect) → _________________________
We will travel to Japan. (Present Continuous) → __________________
C. Dialogue Completion (10%)
Complete the dialogue using correct grammar:
A: Hi! How ______ you today?
B: I’m fine, thanks. What ______ you doing?
A: I ______ my homework.
B: That’s good. Do you need any ______?
Reading Comprehension (40%)
Read the passage and answer the questions below:
Tom was a kind boy who loved animals. One day, he found a stray cat near his house. It was cold and hungry, so Tom took it home, fed it, and gave it a warm place to sleep. The next day, he made a poster to find its owner.
A. Literal Questions (10%)
What kind of animals did Tom love?
What did Tom do when he found the cat?
B. Inferential Questions (15%)
Why do you think Tom took the cat home?
What does this story tell us about Tom’s character?
How might the cat have ended up near Tom’s house?
C. Vocabulary in Context (10%)
What does the word “stray” most likely mean in the passage?
a) Dangerous
b) Lost
c) Happy
d) Young
D. Main Idea Summary (5%)
Write one sentence to summarize the main idea of the passage:
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Copyright (c) 2025 Asst. Prof. Dr. Wafaa Mokhlos Faisal, Asst. lect. Noor Shakir Fadhil (M.A)
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