Open learning environments such as makerspaces and inquiry-based learning promise rich opportunities
for creativity, collaboration, and self-regulated learning, with particular benefits for inclusion and
engagement in STEM. Yet these formats also shift teachers' roles from content
deliverers to facilitators and orchestrators of diverse, concurrent student projects often under constraints of
time, class size and technical reliability. Within the DEEP consortium, the Scafalle
project investigates how digital scaffolds can foster the sustainable implementation of such open formats
in everyday educational practice.
This contribution reports on the design and evaluation of three co-design workshops (N = 15 teachers) that
aimed to elicit concrete needs in makerspace and inquiry-based learning. It further describes on how
participants co-ideated scaffolds and derived design principles for a supportive application. Each workshop
combined focus-group discussions, collaborative sketching of tool concepts, and evaluation of early digital-interface prototypes. All sessions were audio-recorded and transcribed. The qualitative content analysis is
primarily based on the first workshop, while materials from later sessions were used to refine codes and
design requirements.
The results cover five major topics, namely (1) orchestration load and teachers' role shift: Teachers reported
high cognitive and logistical load when supervising concurrent student projects while at the same time
ensuring safe machine/tool use by other students. Tensions emerged between professional identity and
enacted role. Many teachers see themselves as the ‘sole knowledge source,' but the setting requires a
facilitator role that enables student autonomy. (2) Structural constraints: Large classes, limited preparation
time, and intermittent technical issues amplify support demands, especially in open-ended tasks. (3)
Underused infrastructure: Even where equipment is available, schools often lack strategies and knowledge
for effective, curriculum-aligned use. (4) Student readiness, self-regulation and foundational skills:
Foundational skills, such as working independently, planning and troubleshooting, are unevenly developed,
increasing dependence on teacher assistance...