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A Meta-Analysis of Scaffolding Effects in Online Learning in Higher Education

Bibliographic Data

ID21729356
AuthorsMin Young Doo (0000-0003-3565-2159, Kangwon National University), Curtis J Bonk (0000-0002-6365-9502, Indiana University Bloomington), Curtis Bonk, Heeok Heo (Sunchon National University)
Year2020
Volume21
Issue3
Publication date2020-03-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1492-3831 • E-ISSN: 1492-3831
PublisherAthabasca University Press (PUBLISHER • CA)
DOI10.19173/irrodl.v21i3.4638
OpenAlexW3085279139
LanguageEN
Citations received35
References cited9

The significance of scaffolding in education has received considerable attention. Many studies have examined the effects of scaffolding with diverse groups of participants, purposes, learning outcomes, and learning environments. The purpose of this research was to conduct a meta-analysis of the effects of scaffolding on learning outcomes in an online learning environment in higher education. This meta-analysis included studies with 64 effect sizes from 18 journal articles published in English, in eight countries, from 2010 to 2019. The meta-analysis revealed that scaffolding in an online learning environment has a large and statistically significant effect on learning outcomes. The meta-cognitive domain yielded a larger effect size than did the affective and cognitive domains. In terms of types of scaffolding activities, meta-cognitive scaffolding outnumbered other types of scaffolding. Computers as a scaffolding source in an online learning environment were also more prevalent than were human instructors. In addition, scholars in the United States have produced a large portion of the scaffolding research. Finally, the academic area of language and literature has adopted scaffolding most widely. Given that effective scaffolding can improve the quality of learning in an online environment, the current research is expected to contribute to online learning outcomes and learning experiences

Cognition · Educational technology · Learning environment · Mathematics education · Meta-analysis · Multimedia · Online learning · Scaffold · Computer Science · Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods · Medicine · Online Learning and Analytics · Psychology · Technology-Enhanced Education Studies

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Unique citing works35
Citations per year7
Citation span2021 - 2026 (6)
Citation velocitycurrent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 30

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