Scaffolding language development and learning in teacher-student interactions

Abstract

This paper is a review of empirical research on scaffolded teacher-student interactions in English as a Second Language (ESL) and English as a Foreign language (EFL) classrooms that covers two decades, from 2000 to 2019. Research articles were selected through different databases from Science Direct, Google Scholar, Scopus and Emerald. The review focuses on five key features of the articles, namely temporal distribution, location, research design, learning type scaffolded and level of education in which the studies were conducted. Findings of the review reveal that studies on teacher-student interactions in the ESL and EFL classrooms continue to be relevant. It was also found that scaffolding oral skills development was the most frequent pedagogic target of teacher-student interactions in the ESL and EFL classrooms. The review also revealed that the dominant research design used in these studies was the mixed mode method, with most of the studies conducted at the upper secondary and university levels. The review suggests that teacher-student scaffolded interactions in the ESL/EFL classrooms remain a potential means of helping students develop their English language communicative competence.