DATE: 20 AUGUST 2024
LECTURER: DOC MOYO N
SUBJECT: PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES TO
EDUCATION
TOPIC: AN INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY
INTRODUCTION
The focus of this lecture is to examine what is meant by psychology
which serves as the base of the study of educational psychology.
The discussion of psychology as a science and its contribution to the
understanding of human behaviour will lead to a discussion of what
educational psychology is and how it serves as an essential
component of teaching and learning in a school setting.
WHAT IS PSYCHOLOGY?
DEFINITION
The word psychology is made up of two ancient words:
Psyche- meaning human mind
Ology- denoting scientific study of
There are many ways of looking at Psychology. We may look at it as
the study of the mind, or as the study of behaviour or just simply as
the study of human beings (Hayes 1996:1).
Others have defined Psychology as the study of human behaviour
and mental processes.
Is the scientific study of animal and human mind.
Ruch (2004) defines psychology as the systematic study of animal
and human behaviour focusing on observable and unobservable
behaviour.
When studying humans we should look for the root cause of that
behaviour.
Heifman Vernoy (2004) also defines psychology as the scientific
study of the nature and causes of both human and animal behaviour
using careful observations and experiments.
SCIENCE
The term science is associated with many subjects eg political
science, social science and fields such as theology, sociology and
philosophy which refer to themselves as sciences.
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By definition science is a body of systematised knowledge obtained
by observation and verified by experimentation.
BEHAVIOUR
We are concerned with behaviour because from a scientific view, we
cannot observe feelings or thoughts without the use of special
equipment.
On the other hand, we can observe and measure a person’s
behaviour.
BEHAVIOUR HAS TWO ELEMENTS
Human activities we can observe eg looking down and up, lifting
hands, shaking hands.
Personal experience which can be studied only by asking individuals
to express their feelings and thoughts.
ANIMAL
Science extends its interest to the behaviour of animals. This is
partly for the purpose of understanding animals and partly so that
the knowledge gained can be applied to understanding the human
behaviour.
PSYCHOLOGY AS A SCIENCE
Psychology as a science is empirical, which means that its body of
information is gathered by means of observations and experiments.
The observations and experiments carried out must be such that
when given the instruction for procedure, another psychologist will
come up with similar results (Lefrancois, 1983).
The data is systematically analysed and conclusions are made which
lead to the derivation of theories.
Psychology as a science is systematic.
Psychology is identified as a science on the basis of measurement.
The terms used in psychology are clear and definable.
N/B: Psychology focuses on the individual or the mind unlike
Sociology which focuses on the interaction of people in the society.
WHY DO WE STUDY PSYCHOLOGY
Inorder to describe, explain, predict, control and change the
behaviour
Education
Is used for the purpose of teaching people in society. It helps to
develop desirable habits, skills and attitudes that make an individual
a good citizen.
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EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
It consists of two words, educational and psychology. Educational is
the process of learning. Psychology is the study of human
behaviour.
Is about how people learn and the best ways of teaching them.
Educational psychologists use this understanding of how people
learn to develop instructional strategies and help students succeed
in school.
It deals with human behaviour in educational situations.
Is the systematic study of educational growth and development of a
child.
Is the science which explains the changes that take place in the
individual as they pass through the various stages of development.
According to Skinner, educational Psychology is that branch of
Psychology which deals with teaching and learning.
It plays an important role in the learning process.
EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATION TO TEACHING
Engaging students Cooperative
learning
Assessment
Individual Educational Psychology
differences
Development
Motivation
Theories
Educational psychology is concerned with the creation of a body of
knowledge directly relevant to the educational process and the
application of this knowledge to effective classroom instruction
(Zanden and Pace 1984:6).
Educational psychology identifies conditions conducive to learning
and how teaching can bring about effective learning. The aim is to
identify strategies which are likely to be effective in the interaction
between teachers and students.
Educational psychology focuses on the child.
Provides teacher with information pertaining to children’s learning
behaviour in a variety of context.
Helps the teacher understand the principles involved in the process
of learning and teaching.
It contributes to the theories of child and adolescent development.
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It contributes to our understanding of individual differences as a
result of research into the areas of intelligence, learning style,
creativity and gifted and slow learners.
It helps the teacher to assess each student and to know where he
stands and how he has grown.
It helps the teacher to construct the curriculum according to the
need and necessity of the stage.
It enables the teacher to give proper guidance to the learners.
It provides knowledge about the efficiency of reward, punishment in
the teaching-learning process.
It helps the teacher to select a better evaluation technique to
evaluate the students.
Educational Psychology provides both the prospective teacher and
established teacher with theory which enables them to be reflexive
and adaptable to the various situation which may arise in their work
and come up with appropriate solution to the problem at hand.
Question
To what extent does the study of educational psychology help the teacher
to understand the child in the classroom.
