Educational Psychology

What is Educational Psychology? Some define it as "the application of psychology and psychological methods to the study of development, learning, motivation, instruction, assessment, and related issues that influence the interaction of teaching and learning" (Elliott, et.al., 2000). Perhaps a more simple definition is: we try to figure out how people learn so that we can better teach them the things they need to know. The philosopher William James identified three ways in which psychology can be useful to educators: “first, to provide the underpinnings for beliefs about instruction; second, to prohibit teachers from making certain egregious errors; and third, to provide intellectual support to teachers for some of their pedagogical decisions” (Berliner, 1993). In other words, the study of educational psychology gives teachers background and support for the decisions they make.

• Theories of Development
• Multiple Intelligences
• Behaviorism
• Cognitivism
• Constructivism
• Social Cognitivism
• Connectivism
• Motivation
• Agent Psychology
• Testing and Assessment

Key Questions to ask about Educational Psychology:

• What makes a good teacher?
• What is a theory?
• How can theories be useful?
• What is the role of research in educational psychology?
• How can this research be useful for teachers?
• What are the different types of educational and psychological research?
• What are the advantages and trade-offs of these different types of research?

The materials on this site will help you with the following:

1. Apply learning theories to the resolution of teaching and learning problems.
2. Recognize the strengths and weaknesses of learning theories, and how these strengths and weaknesses influence the applicability of the theory to a given circumstance.
3. Critically examine personal theories and beliefs about teaching and learning.
4. Collaborate with others to discuss issues and solve instructional problems.
5. Recognize and create assessment instruments that are valid measures of learning.
6. Apply principles of motivation to improve teaching and learning.

Berliner, D. (1993). The 100-year journey of educational psychology: From interest, to disdain, to respect for practice. In T. Fagan and G. VandenBos (Eds.), Exploring applied psychology: Origins and critical analysis (Master Lectures in Psychology). Washington, DC; American Psychological Association. Retrieved November 2004, from http://courses.ed.asu.edu/berliner/readings/journey.htm.

Elliott, S.N., et. al. (2000) Educational Psychology: Effective Teaching, Effective Learning (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw Hill. Retrieved February 2005, from http://www.mhhe.com/socscience/education/elliott/index.htm.

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