Abstract:
In Sri Lanka, many students who have completed their primary and secondary studies in their
mother tongue, and who have limited English language proficiency, struggle at the university
level where the medium of instruction is in English. These students have to face difficulties in
learning a new language and new content simultaneously, and they encounter various types of
learning challenges including cognitive, behavioural, language, and pedagogical problems.
Literature on learning problems/challenges among students for whom English is a second
language indicates that there is a dearth of empirical in-depth research investigating learning
challenges of these students and limited intervention strategies to support them. Therefore, this
research explores the use of a novel intervention approach/model called ‘Therapeutic
Scaffolding’ (TS) to support underachieving ESL students to mitigate their learning challenges
and enhance academic proficiency.
