This is a great technique for students that have no previous experience in the field that they are going into. It takes time for them to grasp the need for the concepts they are learning and then and only then can the actually grasp the concepts. Scaffolding gives them something to "hold on to" while going through this process.

This is the only way to teach complicated processes in my opinion. Especially for students new to the field. Each step of the process must be related to a concept they already understand.

I find in testing it is highly important to use questions that relate directly to exercises that were completed in the classroom. The hands on activity that relates directly to the field the student is entering are invaluable as preparation for the field and retention for testing.

I find that most students can learn difficult concepts if the meat of the concept can be relayed in a memorable melody. :)

This definitely works best for me, and seems to really work best for students as well. It's a challenge to come up with something students will remember for every important point... but it really works.

Students that have learning and language difficulties can be a real source of frustration when you have a full class and see that one person is just not able to go at the same speed as others. In my experience the only real solution is additional time... often in one on one sessions or additional tutoring. These students ARE able to learn, it just indeed takes more time.

It certainly can be difficult when students are learning English as a new language. However, I agree with the the teaching in this course; picking up a few key words of the other language (in my case mostly spanish) and using them occasionally to establish report and also to help with comprehension when English words are difficult is very, very helpful.

In my experience, when forming groups it is VERY important to make each group diverse, point out that they are diverse for a reason, and encourage them to get outside of the comfort zone in interacting with people that are different than they are. I remind them if they only allow themselves to hear ideas from people like them, they will be shutting themselves off from a HUGE source of information and experience.

People definitely say more with their eyes than their mouths and I have found eyes are a very accurate tell about how well a student understands the subject matter.