educational psychology

Educational Psychology

Educational psychology is the study of the social, ethical, and cognitive development of students as they progress from children to adult learners. Educational psychologists develop and apply theories of teaching, learning, and human development to determine the most effective ways for educators to teach students.

In developing curricula, educational psychologists look at topics such as instructional methods, individual differences in learning, and behavioral and cognitive theories of education. Educational psychologists research ideas like the multiple intelligence theory, appropriate learning goals, and what motivates students to learn. They then use this type of research to build better instructional curricula in an effort to improve the quality of education.

History of Educational Psychology

Early Developments

Educational Psychology boasts a long and prestigious history, as it’s roots can be traced back to discussions facilitated by ancient Greek philosophers like Plato and Aristotle. Then, as now, educational psychologists debated the best methods of teaching, the role of a teacher in learning, the appropriate relationship between a student and teacher, and the nature of learning.

Key historical figures in the development of modern educational psychology spanned the globe.
Sixteenth-century Spanish philosopher Juan Luis Vives was exceptionally progressive for his time. He emphasized differentiated instruction, or the need to adapt teaching methods according to the individual strengths of each student, long before the term came into style. Additionally, he believed in using self-comparison assessment methods, rather than competition, to evaluate the work of students.

Post-Renaissance Developments

The 1600s ushered in another important thinker in educational psychology in the Czech theologian and educator Johann Amos Comenius. Comenius was the first to bring visual aids into the classroom, and he posited the then-radical notion that the goal of education should be in-depth understanding rather than rote memorization, as was the fashion of the time.

By the 1700s, several notable European philosophers, including Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Johann Friedrich Herbart, and Friedrich Wilhelm August Froebel had evaluated systems of learning in which they determined that students should be actively engaged in learning, while teachers needed to build on the prior experience of students to further their thinking. Much research of today’s educational psychology remains consistent with these ideas.

Psychology and philosophy remained inextricably entwined through the nineteenth century. Then in the 1890s, the philosopher William James more or less founded American education psychology with a series of lectures for educators given around the country called “Talks to Teachers about Psychology” Some of the ideas James discussed were quite progressive. For instance, he supported project-based learning, in-class discussion, and lab experiments to facilitate learning. His methods seem to have taken effect: James’ student, G. Stanley Hall, founded the American Psychological Association. Hall wrote prolifically about children and adolescents, encouraging teachers to keep careful records of the academic development of their students.

A student of Hall’s named John Dewey is considered the father of the progressive education movement, while Edward Lee Thorndike wrote the first textbook on educational psychology at the turn of the twentieth century. In 1910, Thorndike founded the Journal of Educational Psychology. For the first half of the century, educational development and psychology remained closely tied, as evidenced by the contributions to education supplied by renowned psychologists Jean Piaget, Alfred Binet, and Benjamin Bloom.

Modern Developments

Modern educational psychology came into play in the 1960s with Jerome Bruner’s research into inductive reasoning and discovery learning, while David Ausubel disagreed. Asubel believed learning should occur deductively: that specifics should be deduced from general examples.

Contemporary views of education psychology generally fall into three brackets. Cognitive psychologists view people as learners who actively initiate learning experiences and attempt to solve problems, while they reorganize prior knowledge to come to new conclusions. Behaviorists derive most of their influence from B.F. Skinner, whose work focuses on implementing positive and negative reinforcements to shape the behavior of students. Skinner’s work is particularly applicable to classroom management strategies.

Finally, constructivist teaching strategies emphasize knowledge as a social construct in which responsibility for learning is shared between the educator and the student. Instruction is student-centered, with a focus on applicable tasks and differentiated instruction.

Accredited Educational Psychology Schools

Dozens of accredited educational psychology programs exist in top schools across the country. The best programs offer masters and doctoral degrees in education psychology, which will prepare you to work for a school district or research facility as a counselor, educator, or psychologist. The U.S. News and World Report ranks the top three educational psychology programs as University of Wisconsin, University of Michigan, and Stanford.

The Future of Educational Psychology

Schools rely on the research performed by educational psychologists to develop methods of effective teaching for particularly gifted and challenged students. In addition, students, teachers, and programs are evaluated based on educational research and findings. The United States is in the midst of massive education reform, which means educational psychologists will continue to have extensive responsibilities.

Demand for school psychologists and counselors is also expected to increase faster than average, especially in rural areas, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. School counselors are becoming more involved in outreach programs like suicide prevention and drug and alcohol abuse, and as such, the demand for qualified individuals is expected to grow.

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