Growing Independence Through Skill Building: Why Struggle Matters in Learning

At Lang, we believe deeply in the potential of every student. We also know that learning is not a straight line. Rather, it is a process that requires practice, effort, setbacks, feedback, and resilience. As families, we want our children to succeed, to feel capable, and to enjoy their learning. At the same time, we must recognize that supportive struggle, the kind of challenge that stretches thinking without overwhelming, is essential for building the very skills that lead to long-term success.

The Purpose of Supportive Scaffolding

When students are young or when a task is new, scaffolds and supports are critical. Scaffolding, such as modeling, guiding questions, checklists, or explicit strategy instruction, gives learners a bridge to access complex tasks they couldn’t yet accomplish independently. This idea traces back to foundational work in cognitive development: learning is most effective when students work in what Vygotsky called the zone of proximal development, just beyond what they can do alone but within reach with support (Vygotsky, 1978).

In early learning and through transitional periods (e.g., entering high school), scaffolding helps students gain clarity, build confidence, and understand expectations. Our teachers utilize Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in their lesson planning to encourage such flexible support to meet diverse learner needs (CAST, 2018). These are not “shortcuts,” but rather intentional entry points enabling students to engage with rigorous content.

Why and When to Shift Support

While supports are vital, educational research also highlights the importance of gradually releasing responsibility to the learner. A supportive structure that never shifts toward independence can inadvertently limit growth. For example, executive functioning, including planning, organization, and self-monitoring, develops through guided practice moving toward autonomy (Best, Miller, & Naglieri, 2011). These skills are not innate; they are learned through experience and reflection.

The concept of productive struggle captures this well. Productive struggle refers to situations where students wrestle with meaningful tasks, encountering errors, refining strategies, and developing perseverance which lead to deeper understanding and self-efficacy (Hiebert & Grouws, 2007). When adults step in too quickly to fix problems, they may unintentionally reduce opportunities for students to internalize these essential skills.

Preparing for the World Beyond Lang

One of our core goals at Lang is to help students become adaptive, resilient, and independent learners who are equipped not only to earn strong grades, but to navigate complexity in college, career, and life. Real-world challenges rarely come with step-by-step guidance, and the support structures our students experience now are intentionally designed to fade over time as learners grow in competence and confidence.

Research on adolescent development underscores that this is a gradual and uneven process where students mature at different rates, and their executive functioning and self-advocacy skills develop in fits and starts (Blakemore & Mills, 2014). Because of this, we resist one-size-fits-all approaches, opting instead for dynamic, developmentally informed support calibrated to each learner’s growth.

Partnership Matters

We are grateful to partner with families in this work. When we encourage students to take ownership, reflect on setbacks, and persevere through challenges, we help them build the very capabilities that will serve them long after their time at Lang. Struggle is not a sign of weakness. It is a signal of growth.

References

Best, J. R., Miller, P. H., & Naglieri, J. A. (2011). Executive functions: Development across the life span. Annual Review of Psychology, 62, 453–483.

Blakemore, S. J., & Mills, K. L. (2014). Is adolescence a sensitive period for sociocultural processing? Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 187–207.

CAST. (2018). Universal Design for Learning guidelines version 2.2. http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Hiebert, J., & Grouws, D. A. (2007). The effects of classroom mathematics teaching on student learning. In Second handbook of research on mathematics teaching and learning (pp. 371–404). National Council of Teachers of Mathematics.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Harvard University Press.