EIREducational Innovation Research3029-18443029-1852WHIOCE PUBLISHING PTE. LTD.10.18063/EIR.v4i3.1769ArticleFrom Scaffolding to Shared Regulation: An Interactional Pathway Protocol for Preschool Cps in Project-Based Learninghttps://artdesignp.com/journal/EIR/4/3/10.18063/EIR.v4i3.1769HanBingqian,DouJiaping,LiXuelai2026432026-03-26Early childhood project-based learning (PBL) is often claimed to improve cooperation and problem-solving, yet the interactional mechanisms that connect these competencies remain under-specified. Derived from a doctoral dissertation on the coordinated development of preschool children’s cooperation and problem-solving ability, this manuscript develops a qualitative companion protocol for a QUAN → QUAL mixed-methods program. It conceptualizes coordinated development as collaborative problem solving (CPS) and proposes an interactional pathway model linking teacher scaffolding (contingency, fading, and functional focus) to children’s shared regulation moves (joint planning, shared monitoring, and repair) and to CPS mechanisms (shared understanding, coordinated action, and team organization). The protocol specifies connected episode selection based on quantitative gain profiles, prioritizing critical moments such as disagreement, prototype failure, role negotiation, and revision. Data sources include classroom video, teacher interviews, child stimulated recall, and artifact traces (plans, drawings, prototypes). The contribution is an operational coding architecture and a set of scaffolding-sensitive indicators that make CPS-in-interaction visible and support joint displays for integrated meta-inferences.Project-based learning,scaffolding,socially shared regulation,interaction analysis,collaborative problem solving,preschool education

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