EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

Educational Psychology

Educational psychologists study learners and learning contexts — both within

and beyond traditional classrooms — and evaluate ways in which factors such as
age, culture, gender, and physical and social environments influence human
learning. They leverage educational theory and practice based on the latest
research related to human development to understand the emotional, cognitive,
and social aspects of human learning.

Educational psychology can influence programs, curricula, and lesson

development, as well as classroom management approaches. For example,
educators can use concepts from  to understand and address the ways rapidly
changing technologies both help and harm their students' learning. In addition,
educational psychologists play an important role in educating teachers, parents,
and administrators about best practices for learners who struggle with conventional
education methods.

Field that studies and applies theories and concepts from all of psychology in
educational settings.

The study of learning processes both cognitive and effective allows researches
to understand individual differences in behavior personality intellect and self-
concept.
Behaviorism
Behaviorist learning theories first emerged in the late 19th century from the work of
Edward Thorndike and Ivan Pavlov. They were popularized during the first half of
the 20th century through the work of John B. Watson, B.F. Skinner, and others.

Behaviorism defines learning as observable behavioral change that occurs in

response to environmental stimuli. Positive stimuli — or "rewards" — create positive
associations between the reward and a given behavior; these associations prompt
one to repeat that behavior. Meanwhile, negative stimuli — or "punishments" —
discourage the behaviors associated with those stimuli. Through this process of
conditioning, people learn to either repeat or avoid behaviors.

Because early behaviorists tried to legitimize psychology as a science, their theories

emphasized external, scientifically measurable behavioral changes in response to
similarly measurable stimuli.

Although they admit that thought and emotion influence learning, behaviorists
either dismiss these factors as phenomena beyond the realm of scientific inquiry
(methodological behaviorism) or convert internal factors into behavioral terms (neo
behaviorism/radical behaviorism).

Assuming that changes in behavior signify learning, methodological behaviorists see

no fundamental difference between human and animal learning processes, and they
often conduct comparative research on animals.

Application
Behaviorism has significantly shaped the disciplines of psychology and education,
illuminating major influencing factors in human behavior and learning. In
psychology, both behavior modification and behavior therapy owe their origins to
behaviorism.

Meanwhile, behaviorist insights underlie many of the teaching methods still used
today in homes, classrooms, workplaces, and other contexts. The widespread use of
learning objectives, for example, breaks down larger learning goals into a series of
specific skills and behaviors desired from a student

Behaviorism also influences the sequence and methods used during the teaching
and learning process. Teachers work toward their desired objectives by using
external stimuli, explaining and demonstrating a skill or behavior, and then inviting
student practice and providing feedback that reinforces the behaviors or skills they
wish students to learn or unlearn.
Cognitivism
emerged in the 1950s and became dominant in the 1960s. Departing from the
comparative emphasis of behaviorists, cognitivists see human beings as rational
creatures quite different from animals. Consequently, cognitive theory explores the
complexities of the human mind as it processes information. It views behavior as a
result of one's thoughts.

Using the computer as a metaphor for the human mind, cognitivists see learning as
a product of mental faculties and activities, including thought, knowledge, memory,
motivation, reflection, and problem-solving. Recasting learning as the acquisition of
knowledge and the development of understanding, this approach emphasizes
reading and lecture as learning modalities.

Rather than measuring learning based on observable behaviors, cognitivists

evaluate learning based on a learner's demonstration of knowledge and
understanding.

Application
Behaviorism has significantly shaped the disciplines of psychology and education,
illuminating major influencing factors in human behavior and learning. In
psychology, both behavior modification and behavior therapy owe their origins to
behaviorism.

Meanwhile, behaviorist insights underlie many of the teaching methods still used
today in homes, classrooms, workplaces, and other contexts. The widespread use of
learning objectives, for example, breaks down larger learning goals into a series of
specific skills and behaviors desired from a student.

Behaviorism also influences the sequence and methods used during the teaching
and learning process. Teachers work toward their desired objectives by using
external stimuli, explaining and demonstrating a skill or behavior, and then inviting
student practice and providing feedback that reinforces the behaviors or skills they
wish students to learn or unlearn.
Constructivism