Cognitive Scaffolding: An AI-Generated Intelligent Tutoring System Advancing Bloom's Taxonomy in Distance Higher Education

• Mariana Nassif Cogna Educação S.A.
• Mario Antonio Pessoa Santos Cogna Educação S.A.
• Tyagi Lima Cogna Educação S.A.
• Luiz Rodrigues Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná (UTFPR)
• Cleon Xavier Instituto Federal Goiano (IFGoiano) https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7617-5283
• Newarney Torrezão Costa Instituto Federal Goiano (IFGoiano) https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4954-176X
• Rafael Ferreira Mello Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco (UFRPE) https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3548-9670

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/sbie.2026.27143

Resumo

In distance learning courses for higher education, bridging the gap between passive reading and active knowledge construction is a critical challenge. This paper presents the design and large-scale deployment of a Cognitive Scaffolding Intelligent Tutoring System (CS-ITS). Unlike generic conversational agents or static signaling tools, CS-ITS operationalizes Bloom's Taxonomy as a control mechanism to orchestrate "upward cognitive scaffolding." The system detects key concepts in digital textbooks, anchors them with re-explanations at the learner's current cognitive level, and automatically generates follow-up questions at the subsequent higher Bloom level. This design transforms static reading into a dynamic inner loop of active learning. We report on a pilot study that involved 7,192 undergraduate students in four disciplines (Pedagogy, Administration, HR, and Logistics). The results indicate that while voluntary participation was 7%, the system achieved high user satisfaction (CSAT 4.7/5) and successfully guided 14% of the engaged users through higher-order cognitive tasks. Critically, the engaged students demonstrated gains in academic performance of up to 2.9%.

Palavras-chave: Intelligent Tutoring Systems, Bloom's Taxonomy, Cognitive Scaffolding

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