SAMAR COLLEGES, INC

Catbalogan City, Samar

Foundations of Education
MA063 - EM 201
1st Semester SY 2023-2024
_____________________________________

Topic: Introduction: Module 1- The Psychological Foundations of Education

Professor: Carmen R. Lim, Ph.D.
Reporter: Marilou G. Budhi
Date: October 28, 2023

Introduction

From the dawn of civilization, man has been marching in search of wisdom.
Various experiments are projected through education so that humanity, happiness
and harmony are wedded together. Education is indispensable for making life and

living meaningful and purposive. Its significance cannot be fully appreciated

unless it is looked at in proper perspectives philosophical sociological and
psychological.

Psychology has a very significant bearing on education because of its

influence on the various factors related to learning and teaching. Without the
knowledge of psychology, a teacher is at a loss to understand the needs and
problems in a child s life. This provides the key to know the Individual differences
and meets them with appropriate educational programs. It also helps the teachers
to offer guidance and counselling to the pupils. In fact, psychology places
education on a scientific basis and brings dignity to education as a discipline.

The word "psychology" comes from the Greek word (Psyche mean Soul,
Logos mean Science, thus the meaning of Psychology is the science of soul. It is
the science of behavior, the activities of animate creature which can be observed
and measured in an objective way.

Education in the other hand is the modification of behavior of children in a

controlled environment. To shape the behavior of the subject and bring some
positive or negative changes, it is necessary to study the science of behavior. The
developmental stages and characteristics of children are very essential factors from
which the teacher must aware in order to be a successful teacher.
 If the teacher has no knowledge of children psychology and societal origins,
how can we expect from him that he would succeed in bringing about the desirable
changes in children?

The systems of Schools of Psychology

Education depends heavily upon psychology because the king and the
amount of education that the home accurate conditioned by psychological
trait such as general mental ability aptitudes temperament, interests, effort
making capacity physical condition, etc.
1. Structuralism
This is a point of view held by Wundt and Titchener. They
contend that experience or mental states are made of sensations,
i m a g e s or ideas, and feelings , as well a s analysis of these
elements , their a t t r i b u t e s , and their combinations (Good, p. 528). In
other words, all consciousness of facts a n d phenomena of experiences
are based upon the operation of the nervous system, particularly the
brain. Then follows an abstract a n a l y s i s of the mental s t r u c t u r e s
that are operating.

2. Functionalism
Functionalism asserts that the mental processes should be
regarded as functions or operations of the organism in its adaptation to
end modification of the e n v i r o n m e n t . Its approach is distinctly
biological, thereby forming the psychological basis of pragmatism and
instrumentalism in philosophy ( Good, p. 241). Led by Dewey and
Carr, functionalists are interested i n h o w an organism makes its
adjustment to its environment, that is, either it changes or makes
adaptation to it. For instance, a big river separates, a barrio from the
town. To be able to go to the town, the barrio folks have to learn how
to swim or construct a bridge across the river.

3. Behaviorism
Behaviorism maintains that psychology can be scientific only if it
deals with activities that can be measured objectively. Founded by Watson,
behaviorism considers the Stimulus-Response hypothesis as its basic theory.
This theory believes that a stimulus, physical or otherwise, creates a response.
Behavior is considered the result of various responses to stimulation and
should be controlled or directed by modifying either the stimulus or the
r e s p o n s e without regard to consciousness the nervous system. A
particular stimulus calls for a particular response and so education or
training is merely a matter of building up innumerable bonds or connections
between stimuli and responses. The Thorndike laws of learning were
formulated by the behaviorists and stressed the law of exercise as well as
the importance of drill and repetition as a mode of learning.

4. Gestalt psychology
 The central thesis of this system or school of psychology is that the
conception of experience at any given moment is determined by the totality of
its related phases which constitute an integrated pattern or configuration.
According to this theory, the whole is more than the sum of all its parts,
meaning that the whole possesses qualities, attributes, or functions which
the individual component elements d o not possess. T h e prevailing emphasis on
insight, generalization, and integration and their related principles is the
result of Gestalt p s y c h o l o g y .

5. Other psychological schools

Among the minor systems or schools of psychology are: The "Hormic"
or purposive psychology of MacDougall which emphasizes the function of
urges or purposes in behavior; Woodworth's "dynamic” psychology which
regards the human individual as a dynamic striving organism instead of a
passive one, and the school of psychoanalysis, founded by Freud and
developed further by Adler and Jung which furnished explanations for
mental and emotional maladjustments in terms of the inability of the
individual to satisfy his own desires, and popularized the value of mental
and emotional therapy a s a cure for emotional cases.

STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT
1. Prenatal Period
From conception t o birth during this period all parts of the human body
such as the internal organs, skeletal bones, flesh, etc. Are formed. The
inherited characteristics from the parents are also imparted to the child
during this period.

2. Period of Infancy or Babyhood

This period is from birth to two years. The baby begins to learn the
rudiments from right and wrong.

3. Early Childhood
From 2-6 years, the pre-school a g e . The child begins to learn some
social relationships and mixes and plays with children of his age group. The
child wants to explore or anything h e can reach and asks too many questions

4. Late Childhood
From 6 or 7 years to 11 or 12 years, the elementary p e r i o d . They learn
things taught in school such as reading, writing, arithmetic, and language, and
social studies. Further l e a r n s what is right and wrong. They begin to be
interested i n the opposite sex.
 5. Adolescence
Transition age from childhood to adulthood when sex maturation
and rapid physical development occur resulting to changes in ways of feeling,
thinking and acting.

6. Early adulthood
This i s from twenty-one to forty years. New life adjustments
occur such as courtship and marriage, parenthood, employment, recreational
bobby, religious affiliation which may occur earlier, joining clubs, and years of
achievement. Higher studies may be pursued. This is the s tart of the
productive years.

7. Middle age
This period which is from forty to sixty-five years is also a part of
adulthood. At this stage, a man o r woman must have achieved most of his or
her aspirations in life such as a well-established home and family, stable and
lucrative employment or business, creative achievements, even political
achievement. This i s also the time for the preparation for retirement. Some
physical and physiological functioning’s begin to decrease or deteriorate.

· 8. Old age
This period starts at age sixty-five. Some claim old age starts
at sixty but at this age, men and women are g e n e r a l l y still
strong, energetic, and mentally alert. This is the period of
retirement. Some physical, physiological, and mental functioning’s
continue to decline more rapidly although there are men and women who
at the age of eighty or even ninety, are still physically and mentally alert. Some
ailments that are characteristic of old age occur, such as deafness, failing eyesight,
forgetfulness, baldness, arthritis, senility, etc. Painful adjustments have to be
made to meet some unavoidable circumstances such as death of a spouse,
solitude as children now have their own homes or jobs in far places,
inadequate financial resources, inability to perform home chores more
efficiently, unpleasant relationships with kin and neighbors, etc.

DEVELOPMENTALISM
Developmentalism sometimes called Pestalozzianism is a system of
educational doctrines and practices developed by the Swiss educator, Johann Heinrich
Pestalozzi (1746-1827) and followers. They conceived of education as a continuous
development of the mind through exercise graded from sense impressions from object
lessons to the apprehension and application of abstract ideas, development being
attended by the progressive, harmonious functioning of the mind in all its capacities of
action and expression.
 In short, this system subjects the individual to developmental t a s k s
arranged from easy to difficult.

Developmental tasks. This is an offshoot of developmentalism. Developmental

or learning tasks are lessons arranged sequentially according to difficulty by
maturation of the learner and by the culture of the group to which he belongs. The
tasks or l e s s o n s are to be performed step by step. Before a t a s k is to be
performed, the task prerequisite to it must be first learned and mastered. For
instance, before a child can crawl, he must first learn how to rollover, after which
he learns how to sit, then how lo stand and finally how to walk. These sequential
l e a r n i n g or developmental tasks are imposed by maturation. They are universal
or common to all.
In school, a learner must first pass Grade I before he qualifies for Grade II. If
promoted, he qualifies for Grade III. The process continues until Grade VI. Passing his
Elementary course qualifies him for admission to secondary level. The same applies to
the collegiate level. This logical and sequential
arrangement is imposed by culture, that is, done by educationists, to suit the
maturation levels of the learners. The grades are examples of developmental
tasks.
The content of a subject is also divided into developmental tasks called topics
which are usually arranged from easy to difficult.

Two Basic Facts About Development

1. Development is sequential
From the foregoing discussions, it is very clear that developmen.t
follows strictly a definite sequence of steps or stages of progression. The steps
or stages of development are observable and measurable. After a series of
stages, the child who learns to roll over eventually walks. The same is true
with the learner who has to &tart from Grade I and pass through a series of
grades before reaching Grade VI.

2. The rate of developmental is not the same for all individuals

Some persons develop and learn faster than others. Sometimes the gap
is wide. This uneven rate of growth and learning is caused by two major
factors: heredity and environment.
a) Heredity

We inherit almost all the thing& we need for growth and

development: mental ability, physical and physiological structure,
emotional stability, and other traits. Some even inherit
criminal tendencies. Of course, those who have inherited superior
capacities learn and grow faster than those who have inherited
inferior capacities.

Heredity gives all the potentialities for growth and developments.

 b) Environment

Environment modifies to a certain extent the effects of heredity.

A person endowed with intelligence but bereft of education cannot
fully develop into a community achiever. On the other hand, a
person who combines intelligence and formal education can fully
develop himself into an achieving citizen.

Environment provides the direction of the growth and

development of an individual.

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

Heredity and environment affect the factors that cause the uneven rate
of growth and development among individuals. These factors are called
individual differences. What are these individual differences? They are as
follows:
1. Age.
Certainly, age is a big factor in making one different from
another. A six-year-old boy cannot do nor understand what a
twelve-year-old boy can. Generally, older learners have more
physical strength and higher level of comprehension than younger
ones. Maturation and readiness are important in learning. Mature learners have
greater capacity to receive instruction.

2. Sex
In our culture, sex determines certain roles. Malee are expected to be
aggressive, fearless, and capable of doing heavier work. Females are
expected to be passive, demure, prim, and the like. As to choose of
profession, males usually prefer farming and agriculture, engineering,
military, law, medicine, forestry, and science while, females flock to
teaching, nursing, nutrition, home economics, social work, and pharmacy.
Hence, to a large extent, sex determines the direction of the growth and
development of individuals. Nowadays, however, some women pursue
supposedly careers for man while some men take courses for women,

3. Physical condition
It has been observed that some people are born bluer, healthier, and
stronger than others, Naturally, healthier persons progress more rapidly in
their development than those who are less healthy, Moreover, they select
activities that call for more energy like athletics, mechanics, driving, etc.
There are also people who are born with handicaps each as deafness,
muteness, defective arms or legs, and t h e like. Naturally, normal people
develop faster and better and are able to attain higher s t a t u s than the
handicapped people.

4. Intelligence (mental ability)

 Children do not have the same level of mental ability. Some are more
intelligent than others. And those who are more intelligent progress and
grow faster than those who are less intelligent. The former finish
professional courses which make them leaders in certain endeavors in their
respective communities while the latter chooses careers that do not
demand too much work of the mind thus doing the less honorable work in
the community’s

5. Aptitude and special talent

Children are gifted with special aptitudes and talents in music,
painting, acting, science, mathematics, and the like. These children, given
the chance, often show excellence of performance and leadership in their
respective fields of specializations far above the ordinary individuals.

6. Temperament (emotional maturity and stability)

There are individuals who are easily irritated and tensed even with trivial
things, symptomatic of emotional immaturity and instability. Generally,
children who are more emotionally mature and, stable are more patient in
studying their lessons hence, learn faster than those who are more
temperamental. Even in actual work performance, people who are
emotionally mature and stable perform better and are easier to deal with
than people who are emotionally immature and unstable.

7. Extroversion-introversion, dominance-submissiveness.
Extroverts are usually gregarious and l i k e the dominants, enjoy
interacting with people. Hence, they choose careers that afford them more contact
with other people. On the other hand, introverts and s u b m i s s i v e s prefer
Jobs than can be performed in peace, quiet, and with less contacts with other
people. These traits determine the direction of the growth and development of
individuals.

8. Effort-making capacity
An important trait, one with much effort-making capacity studies and
works harder, concentrates more, and exhibits steadiness in his work. One
cannot hope to succeed without an effort-making capacity and surely, effort-
making capacity is a great determinant of success. Those who have more of
this trait usually forge ahead faster than those who have
less.

9. Criminal tendency
Psychologists can prove that criminal tendency ill inherited. Children
who have this tendency are usually bullies, troublemakers, and they commit
many anti-social acts, in or out of school. Usually, individuals with this
tendency end up in early death, or in prison, or in perpetual hiding from the
agents of the law unless the criminal tendency is redirected or softened by the
environment.
 PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS THAT CONDITION THE
INTELLECTUAL AND BEHAVIOURAL DEVELOPMENT

1. Reflexes
These are inborn automatic responses to simple localized
stimulation involving particular muscles and parts of the body. The
automatic w i t h d r a w a l of a foot upon stepping on a live charcoal
is an example. An individual with quick reflexes learns fast action skills
such as dancing, calisthenics, games of volleyball, basketball, and the
like.

2. Drives, needs, wants, urges

These are inborn urges and tendencies and wants. Some refer
to these instincts a s drives. Drives Include hunger, thirst, lust or sex,
rest, etc. which create tensions in the individual. These tendencies
develop motives which determine the actions and reactions of an
individual towards certain situations. These tendencies also give rise
to ambitions which motivate individuals to exert efforts to attain their
goals. The greater the urge or desire, the greater the effort exerted
and the possibility of success is greater.

3. Capacities and special aptitudes

These include nil those latent potentialities that an
individual possesses which are developed through the process of
education. Besides general capacity and intelligence, an individual
possesses certain special talents or aptitudes, such as those for
mathematics, art, music, and the like. In addition, effort-making
capacity is also an important trait of an individual. Taking all other
things equal, one with a greater effort-making capacity can learn and
develop faster than one with a lesser effort-making capacity.

4. Temperament or emotion
This refers to certain emotional predispositions of an individual. Some
emotional patterns such as rage, some forms of fear, and lust (sex) are inborn.
One with a poor temperament, one who is easily irritated and emotionalized
even with trivial matters, will have many social as well as learning problems
that may retard his learning progress. Emotional stability and emotional
maturity are important assets in the development of one's capabilities.

Emotion as it affects the learner

Emotion is a stirred-up state or disorganized behavior caused by a
situation which the individual cannot cope with. This is caused by increased or
restricted glandular activity. For instance, if a wife loses her husband, she feels
sad and cries. The tears are due to the Increased activity of the tear glands.

THEORIES OF EMOTION
The different theories of emotions are:
1. Evolutionary theory
"Emotion is the primitive matrix from which all later mental powers are
developed.
2. James Lange theory
According to this theory, bodily changes are antecedent of the mental state.
3. Canon-Dano Theory
According to this theory, emotion is the result of the action and reaction of
the cerebral cortex and the diencephalon part of the brain bodily changes are not
antecedents or consequences of conscious mental states.
4. Emergency or Conflict theory
This theory state that emotion is a mechanism that enables an individual to
meet conflicts of emergencies.

Importance of Emotion
1. Emotion shapes up the personality of a person.
2. Emotion either makes us strong to do action or prevents us from doing any
action during emergencies.
3. Emotion enables us to cope with conflicts and emergencies.
4. Emotion dominates our lives.

Methods of eradicating undesirable emotional behavior

1. Disuse
Avoids that which causes the undesirable behavior. If one is afraid of the
dark do not give him chance to be in the dark. Eventually the fear disappears.
2. Frequent application of the stimulus
If a child is afraid of the dark brings him often to the dark. Eventually the
fear disappears.
3. Ridicule or scorn
Of a male child is fearful of the dark, call him a coward", etc, His pride
will dare him to go into the dark.
4. Social imitation
 If a child is afraid of the puppies, show him that other persons are not afraid
of puppies and that he can handle them without getting harmed,
5. Verbal Appeal
Give as many plausible reasons a possible against an undesirable emotional
attitude.
6. Reconditioning
If a child does not like to take medicine because it is bitter, make the
medicine sweet.

Means of indirect adjustment to frustration

1. Sublimation or substitution
Sublimation is an indirect but socially acceptable expression of emotion or
drive on the other hand, Substitution is replacing an activity for another in which the
individual fails to excel.
2. Compensation and overcompensation
Compensation is a socially acceptable means of adjustment to make up for
deficiency or inferiority, physical or otherwise, While Overcompensation is an extreme
form of compensation less rational and often anti-social.
3. Fantasy or introversion
Act of imagining success and satisfactions that are not attained. This consists of two
types:
a. The conquering hero type-one who imagines himself to be the victorious
hero.
b. The suffering hero or the martyr type one who believes that the world is
sympathetic to his cause.
4. Rationalization
An act of giving some socially acceptable reasons for one's frustrations. There are
three methods involved in this way of adjusting to frustrations.
a. Sour grapes mechanism-one finds fault in a motive which he fails to attain.
b. Sweet lemon mechanism-one finds satisfaction in his failure because
it is a blessing in disguise.
c. Projection-act of blaming somebody or something for one's failure.

5. Simulation of physical ailments

This is composed of two types:
a. Hysteria- simulation of localized ailments. Usually, it is a combination
of screaming and crying.
 b. Neurasthenia- simulation of generalized bodily ailments. A nervous breakdown is
evident.

6. Nomadism- Act of wandering aimlessly.

7. Regression- Act of submerging into the subconscious state or forgetting
8. Delusions- These are strong beliefs in things opposite to reality.
9. Regression- Act of seeking infantile expressions of motive. A grown-up person acts like
a child.
1O. Escape through alcohol and drugs- Act of excessive drinking of liquor and taking
of prohibited drugs to forget or ease up frustration.

References:
Module-Foundation of Education-FOUNDATIONS OF EDUCATION ED OU 703
ROLANDO D. DOLLETE en-Studcu
https://books.google.com.ph/books?
id=ay5QWDQpZLQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs ge summary
r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false
https://iiari.org/product/foundations-of-education/
https://course.lumenlearning.com/suny-oneonta-education106/chapter/teacher-focal-
points/