Despite of their popularity and previous expectations, on-line courses for university education present great difficulties, which lead to high levels of dropouts and low levels of achievement. The students’ low levels of self-regulated learning can explain some of these difficulties. Self-regulated learning abilities are required for students to be able to follow these types of e-learning courses.

In order to solve this problem, this research project designed a scaffolding system to teach students to self-regulate their learning. This scaffolding system adapts itself flexibly to the students’ cognitive style characteristics. The scaffolding system was designed to be used by students during their regular on-line courses and works in any course developed under a Moodle platform.

In its operation, the scaffolding system begins with the on-line application of different tests and questionnaires to determine the students’ cognitive style (in the field dependence-independence dimension FDI), their learning style (in the dimensions defined by Felder and Soloman) and their levels of self-regulated learning (using Pintrich’s MSLQ Questionnaire). Once the instruments are applied, the system issues a report, adressed to the students, describing some aspects of their cognitive profile, focusing on actions that can be especially useful to succeed in the course.

After this part is concluded, the student gains access to the planning module. In this module, the contents and general activities of the course are presented and the student is guided, through a series of questionnaires to become aware of previous experiences on similar courses, so that he/she can set his/her goal for the course. The goal is set in relation to the level of knowledge that the student wants to achieve. There are three levels: 1) informative, 2) intermediate and 3) profound (deeped).

Once the goal has been set, the software guides the student through the definition of the strategies and sources that are necessary for he/she to achieve the goal. In this part, the student plans the sites, moments, schedules and conditions for the study sessions, along with decisions about whether he/she will study alone or in company, during the day or at night and also the intensity and frequency of his/her work, among other things.

Once the planning phase has been concluded, the monitoring of the students’ performance developing the plan begins. During this phase, the scaffolding system will support the process by means of “metacognitive prompts” selected according to the students’ cognitive and learning style profile. In this phase, the activities of external evaluation and self-evaluation will be taken into account for the student to adjust his/her planning of sets, strategies, sources, etc., in accordance with the partial results of the process.

After an external evaluation, the scaffolding system provides access to the self-reflection module. In this module, strategies and sources used will be examined for the student to built metacognitive information that can have further use.

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