Scaffold: a card game to revolutionise teaching

Scaffold is a tool, consisting of a deck of 102 cards, created to support educators in designing learning activities and guiding them step-by-step – from planning to assessment.

Scaffold aims at making European competence frameworks simple and easy to use by teachers – and more broadly, by all educators – by combining meaningful learning activities for learners with essential knowledge of what each competence entails, structured with instructional and assessment design prompts (full guide & PowerPoint presentation). 

It is based on the European competence frameworks for digital competences, entrepreneurship competences, sustainability competences, as well as personal, social and learning-to-learn competences. It shows how the development of these competences could be addressed comprehensively in both formal and non-formal learning contexts, and how multiple learning outcomes could be integrated when designing curricula, teaching and assessment methods. 

Scaffold also demonstrates the links between transversal competences common for all competence frameworks and helps teachers to identify and cluster learning outcomes according to the teaching objectives, available resources, learning spaces and teaching duration.

To be used before entering the classroom, Scaffold also guides teachers/educators on how to articulate and deliver lessons and learning activities. It is suitable for any subject area and could be applied at any level of the education system or for any type of non-formal learning. 

The Scaffold cards serve as ‘bricks’ helping educators in building learning experiences creatively, according to their goals and learner needs. As a set of cards, Scaffold is portable and easy to use in collaboration. It has a fluid structure to encourage creativity and it can be scaled according to user needs.

Learning is like a tower, you have to build it step by step.

Scaffold has been produced jointly by the European Training Foundation, in the framework of its Creating New Learning initiative, and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, in the context of its work on key competences with the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion.

Interested in using Scaffold? Here are some useful resources: video, brief guide, PowerPoint presentation, full guide & deck of printable grayscale cards. Please note that we are not able to send decks of cards by post.

If you would like to translate Scaffold in your national language, you may ask us for the source files. We would like to hear about your new projects at system, sector or network level, using Scaffold, and to receive your feedback on its usability and uptake.

To cooperate with us, please contact the ETF's Creating New Learning team: NewLearning@etf.europa.eu