Educational Psychology
INTRODUCTION
Do teachers make a difference in student's learning? What characterizes good teaching? Only when you are aware of the challenges and possibilities of teaching and learning then you can appreciate the contributions of educational psychology. How can principles identified by educational psychologists benefit the teachers, therapists, parents, and others who are interested in teaching and learning? What exactly is the content of educational psychology, and where does this information come from? Educational psychology will probably answer all these questions.
The Role of Educational Psychology:
For as long as educational psychology has existed, about 90 years, there have been debates about what it really is? Some people believe educational psychology is simply knowledge gained from psychology and applied to the activities of the classroom. Others believe it involves applying the methods of psychology to study classroom and school life.
The view generally accepted today is that educational psychology is a distinct discipline with its own theories, research methods, problems and techniques, "educational psychology is distinct from other branches of psychology because it has the understanding and improvement of education as its primary goal". Both in the past and today, educational psychologist’s study learning and teaching and at the same time strive to improve educational practice. But are the findings of educational psychologists really that helpful for teachers? After all most teaching is just common sense, isn't it? Let’s take a few minutes to examine these questions.
Is teaching just a Common Sense?
In many cases, the principles set forth by educational psychologists, after spending much thought, time and money sound pathetically obvious. People are tempted to say, and usually do say, "Everyone knows that!" consider these examples:
Taking turns: What method should a teacher use in selecting students to participate in a primary grade reading class?
Common sense answer: Teachers should call on students randomly so that everyone should have to follow the lesson carefully. If a teacher were to use the same order every time, the students would know when their turn was coming up.
Answer based on research: Years ago, research by Odgan, Brophy, and Evertson (1977) found that the answer to this question is not so simple. In first-grade reading classes, for example, going around the circle in order and giving each child a chance to read led to better overall achievement than calling on students randomly. The critical factor in going around circle may be that each child gets a chance to participate. Without some system for calling on everyone, may students can be overlooked or skipped. Research suggests there are better alternatives for teaching reading than going around the circle, but teachers should make sure that everyone has the chance for practice and feedback whatever approach is used.
Helping students: When should teachers provide help for lower achieving students as they do class-work?
Common sense answer: Teachers should offer help often. After all, these lower achieving students may not know when they need help or may be too embarrassed to ask for help.
Answer based on research: Sandra Graham (1996) found that when teachers provide help before students ask, the students and others watching are more likely to conclude that the helped student does not have the ability to succeed. The student is more likely to attribute failures to lack of ability instead of lack of effort.
Skipping grades: Should a school encourage exceptionally bright students to skip grades or to enter college early?
Common sense answer: No! Very intelligent students who are a year or two younger than their classmates are likely to be social misfits. They are neither physically nor emotionally ready for dealing with older students and would be miserable in the social situations that are so important in school, especially in the later grades.
Answer based on research: Maybe. According to Samuel Kirk and his colleagues (1993), "from early admissions to school to early admissions to college, research studies invariably report that children who have been accelerated have adjusted as well as or better than have children of similar ability who have not been accelerated". Whether acceleration is the best solution for a student depends on many specific individual characteristics, including the intelligence and maturity of the students, and on the other available options. For some students, moving quickly through the material and working in advanced courses with older students is a very good idea.
So we have seen from the preceding examples that generally the things which seem correct and sensible are exactly the opposite from the common answers.
What is Educational Psychology?
Educational psychology is one of the many branches of psychology dealing mainly with the problems, processes and products of the education. It is an attempt to apply the knowledge of psychology in the field of education. It may be defined as that branch of psychology which studies the behavior of the learner his educational needs and his environment. Various psychologists and scholars have defined educational psychology.
Let us analyze a few important definitions.
According to Skinner (1958):
Educational psychology is that branch of psychology which deals with teaching and learning. Crow and Crow (1973) defined educational psychology as:
Educational psychology describes and explains the learning experiences of an individual from birth through old age.
Another psychologist named Peel (1956) says: Educational psychology is the science of education.
Education in its applied form is centered around the process of teaching and learning.
Educational Psychology as a Science of Education:
With the help of minimum input in terms of energy and time science helps us to drive maximum output in terms of the quality and quantity. The same educational psychology surely does. It helps in realizing the objectives of education in a better way. Educational psychology helps in planning the process of teaching and learning by adopting the scientific principle of minimum input for maximum output. As a result with the help of educational psychology a teacher can teach effectively but making minimum use of his energy in terms of time and labor; similarly the students can learn effectively by spending less of their time and effort.
Educational psychology produces the result of education. It equips the teacher by supplying the essential scientific skills, technological expertise and advice in molding and shaping the behavior of his students for the desirable development of their personality, in the same way as the persons connected with the actual construction of a bridge are helped by an engineer or mechanic equipped with the essential civil, mechanical or electrical technology. Educational psychology thus plays the same role as other sciences and technology in helping the teachers and other persons connected with the building of future of the youngsters in their charge. Thus it is justified that educational psychology is the science and technology of education.
Nature of Educational Psychology:
Educational psychology is an offshoot and a part and parcel of psychology, so its nature can not be different from the main subject. The following points further confirm the nature of educational psychology as scientific.
1. Educational psychology possesses a well-organized systematic body of facts which is supported by the psychological laws and principles.
2. It is constantly in the search of the truth, which is studying the behavior of the learner in relation to his educational environment. The results of any study in educational psychology can be challenged and are modified or altered in terms of the latest explanations and findings.
3. Educational psychology does not accept hearsay and does not take anything for granted. It emphasized that essentially there is some definite cause linked with a behavior. And the causes of this behavior are not related to super natural phenomenon.
4. Educational psychology is mostly concerned with the “what” and “why” of happenings in the present instead of caring for the past. Therefore, in its study it focuses attention on problems like the present behavior of the learner, the causes of such behavior, and the repercussion if it were to continue unchanged.
5. The generalizations arrived at conclusions reach through the study of educational psychology are sufficiently reliable and thus like the sciences these can be used for predictions of behavior in similar situations. R.B.Cattell the modern psychologist believed so much in the predictable quality of these studies that he persisted in defining personality as well attribute which permits the prediction of what a person will do in a given situation. This discussion shows that educational psychology is sufficiently scientific in fact it is an applied behavioral science, which deals with the behavior of learner in the educational environment. Since the learner’s behavior is dynamic and unpredictable and the methods of its study are also not absolute and objective, educational psychology cannot claim the status of a developed positive science like other natural or applied sciences. Although we accept its nature as quiet scientific yet we cannot term it as a developed positive science and have to satisfy ourselves with saying that it is a developing positive science of the learner’s behavior.
Scope of Educational Psychology:
Educational psychology is a science of education which mainly deals with the problems of teaching and learning and helps the teacher in his task of modifying the learner’s behavior and bringing about all-round development of his personality. Therefore, while in psychology the scope of study and the field of operation are extended to cover the behavior of all living organisms related to all their life activities, while in educational psychology the scope of such behavioral study has to be limited within the confines of the teaching-learning process, i.e. studying the behavior of the earners in relation to their educational environment, specifically for the satisfaction of their educational needs and the all-round development of their personality. Specifically, thus, the subject matter of educational psychology must be centered around the process of teaching and learning for enabling the teacher and learners to do their jobs as satisfactorily as possible.
The following questions should be answered by an educational psychologist today:
1. How are children's abilities, knowledge, and effective characteristics related to objectives of education?
2. How does knowledge of learning process and theories contribute to more efficient learning and teaching?
3. How do characteristics of the learner effect his readiness to learn and efficiency of learning?
4. How do characteristics of the teacher affect pupil learning?
5. How do the behaviors of the teacher and the student affect efficiency of learning?
New horizons in educational psychology, are thus inviting the attention of the educationists and psychologists.
Educational psychology contributes a lot to the area of teaching and learning as well as a behavioral science applied in the class -room situation. Its main contribution lies in the understanding of the pupils as well as developing systematic programs, according to the potentials and needs of the pupils and the community.
Psychology of education helps the teacher to probe into and develop skills for effective functioning. The teacher has to function as an evaluator for measuring the outcome of his teaching. Thus, the various roles and functions of a teacher are facilitated by his knowledge and application of educational psychology. In short, educational psychology provides a frame -work for looking at the learner, the learning process and the learning situation together. Teaching is thus based upon mastery of three areas:
a) knowledge and concept
b) teaching skills and
c) decision-making skills
the knowledge of educational psychology helps a teacher to be more aware of class room behavior, to interpret the significance of such behavior and to plan purposeful strategy for bringing the desired changes in the pupil's behavior.
Successful teachers hold realistic attitude towards students. Psychology of education orients a teacher to form the strategies as well as provides the skill to reach them.
New Horizons in Educational Psychology:
Recently the psychological approach to the class-room problems has been considered superior to other approaches. Particularly the behaviorist model has been recognized and recommended today. Today the experiments are being conducted in the area of group dynamics for explaining certain complex behavior patterns leading to indiscipline and unrest among students. Moreover, the social and emotional problems in the class-room are receiving attention of the psychologists.
The teacher is not only a giver of information, he is an explorer and experimenter applying his knowledge of psychology in practical field of learning and teaching.
New experimentations are being carried on educational technology as well. This includes the technology of teaching as well as programmed instruction.
It is a systematic application of scientific knowledge about teaching, learning and conditions of learning to improve the efficiency of teaching and training.
Emphasis is being laid on the role of teachers and analysis of teaching for making a realistic approach to education.
In the area of educational psychology an integrated approach is being attempted by synthesizing the teaching learning process in the perspective of teacher's function. This approach has gone a long way in making educational psychology more meaningful and relevant to a practicing teacher. Behaviorist and applied psychology is gaining more grounds, while simple pedagogy with its theories is losing ground.
Applications of Educational Psychology
Professional educational psychologists (EPs) draw upon theory and research from other disciplines in order to benefit individual children, their families, and educational institutions, particularly schools through the following activities.
An educational psychologist may be asked to advise a parent on how to deal with a pre0school child with major temper tantrums, to assess a young child with profound and multiple disabilities, to advise teachers on the nature of a 7-year-old's reading difficulties, to advise teachers and parents on an adolescent's problematic behavior, to undertake play therapy with an 8-year-old who has been sexually and physically abused, or to give an adolescent counseling or psychotherapy.
In each case there is an assessment to identify the nature of the problem, followed by an intervention appropriate to this analysis. The assessment may include the use of standardized tests of attainment (such as reading and spelling); interviews; observation of the child in class, or with parents or friends; including play and structured pictures and tasks where the child arranges the materials to represent their own views of family, or other social arrangements. The interventions (planned procedures) may be equally wide- ranging. In some cases the EP will try to help adults to understand the nature of the problem. In other cases, more direct advice may be given on how to handle disturbing aspects of a child’s behavior. In other instances the EP advice or produce a specific program me of work, counseling, or behavior change, which they might implement directly, or they may advise on and monitor the practices of teachers and parents.