learning, teaching, and educational psychology

Educational Psychology, 11th Edition ISBN 0137144547

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc.

All rights reserved.

Learning, Teaching, and Educational Psychology

Chapter 1

Educational Psychology, 11th Edition Anita Woolfolk 0137144547

© 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 2

The Role of Psychology in Education

I.  Learning and Teaching Today II.  What is Good Teaching? III.  The Role of Educational Psychology IV.  Preview: Theories for Educational

Psychology V.  Diversity and Convergences



What Would You Do? n  Read “What Would You Do?” on p. 3

n  What would you do to help all your students to progress and prepare for the testing?

n  How would you use the intern so that both she and your students learn?

n  How could you involve the families of your non-English speaking students and students with learning disabilities to support their children’s learning?



Big Questions n  Who are the students in today’s classrooms? n  What is the No Child Left Behind Act? n  Does teaching matter? n  What is good teaching? n  What are the greatest concerns of beginning

teachers? n  Why should I study educational psychology? n  What roles to theory and research play in this field? n  Describe three families of theories explaining learning

and development and three issues that run through these theories.



Learning and Teaching n  Dramatic Diversity: Students Today

n  Have many different backgrounds n  Come from diverse families n  Face difficult challenges n  Many have disabilities

n  Teachers are less diverse n  91% are white



No Child Left Behind n  Reauthorization of Elementary and Secondary School

Act of 1965 n  All students in grades 3-8 must take standardized

tests once per year n  All students must take one standardized test in high

school n  AYP- Adequate Yearly Progress n  Schools must report results separately for groups

such as minorities and students with disabilities



Do Teachers Make a Difference?

n  Teacher-Student Relationships n  “The association between the quality of

early teacher-child relationships and later school performance can be both strong and persistent”

n  The Cost of Poor Teaching n  Less effective teaching can contribute to

lower academic gains



What is good teaching? n  A science, or an art? Are teachers

sages on stages or guides on the side? n  Teachers must be knowledgeable and

inventive n  Use a range of strategies n  Use research-based strategies for

managing classes n  Flexibility n  Knowledgeable about your students



Beginning Teachers n  Concerns

n  Classroom management n  Motivating students n  Accommodating students with differences n  Evaluating student work n  Dealing with parents n  Getting along with other teachers

n  Difference between new and experienced teacher: n  New teacher- “How am I doing?” n  Experienced teacher- “How are the students doing?”

n  Educational psychology provides new teachers the foundation they need



Role of Educational Psychology n  Educational Psychology and teaching

n  Began with early educators and psychologists observing children in classrooms

n  Educational Psychology today n  Research on teaching and learning n  Child/adolescent development n  Motivation n  Others?



Educational Psychology

n  Is it just common sense? n  How do we find answers to many of our

most pressing challenges in the classroom? n  Often, we rely on common sense

responses that may not serve students well.

n  Educational psychology is a field dedicated to the scientific study of teaching and learning.



Using Research n  Descriptive Studies

n  Survey results n  Interview responses n  Video or audio of classroom interactions

n  Correlation Studies n  Ask: what is the relation between two

variables?



Using Research

n  Experimental Studies n  Random assignment n  Cause and effect

n  Single-Subject Experimental Designs n  Examines the impact of an intervention

n  Microgenetic Studies n  Study cognitive processes in the midst of

change



Using Research

n  The role of time in research n  Short term observations n  Longitudinal studies

n  Teachers as researchers n  Action research (problem-solving

investigation)



Using Scientific Research

n  NCLB- educational programs and practices receiving federal funds must be based on “scientific research” n  Observations or experiments n  Valid and reliable data n  Clearly described and repeatable n  Must be peer reviewed



Theories for Teaching n  Theory: “an interrelated set of concepts that

is used to explain a body of data and to make predictions about the results of future experiments”

n  Principles and theories are both useful- n  Principles will help you with specific

problems n  Theories will provide new ways of thinking

about problems



Theory Preview n  Jean Piaget

n  ‘Natural’ cognitive development

n  Lev Vygotsky n  Sociocultural Theory

n  Sigmund Freud n  Dream analysis, sex and aggression

n  Erik Erikson n  Psychosocial theory



Contextual Theories

n  Lev Vygotsky- n  Zone of proximal development n  Development within the context of human

interaction

n  Urie Bronfenbrenner- n  Bioecological model for development n  Many diverse contexts for development



Diversity and Convergences n  Students are increasingly diverse, while teachers

remain primarily white and middle class. n  Diverse approaches to research can address a variety

of problems. n  No Child Left Behind seeks to close the gap between

high achieving and low achieving students. Is it working? If not, how would you fix it?

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learning, teaching, and educational psychology