Rationale for a course on educational psychology

Rationale for a course on educational psychology In the HEC 2010 document, ‘Curriculum of Education: B.Ed (Hons.) 4-year Degree Programme’, educational psychology was added as a foundation course.

The main focus of the educational psychology course is to help Student Teachers develop their understanding of human behaviour and mental processes within an education context. The content of the course will help Student Teachers understand psychological concepts, encourage them to examine their own learning, and show them how to apply these concepts as teachers. The course focuses on acquainting Student Teachers with concepts such as learning, memory, intelligence, and motivation, in order to align their teaching with the psychological needs of students. Student Teachers will review a variety of techniques designed to help students grow as efficient learners.

Common misconceptions about educational psychology There are many common misconceptions about educational psychology. Some examples include the following: • People only use 10% of their brains.

• Memory works like a filing cabinet, with facts, audio and video recordings, and other data filed away for later access.

• Some people are ‘left brained’ and others are ‘right brained’.

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• Our brain takes in data and processes it logically.

• Learning is a difficult process.

• Learning takes place in a classroom.

• A quiet classroom is the best environment for learning.

• When the teacher or students are done talking about a topic, it has been taught.

• Traditional schooling prepares students for life in the real world.

• Intelligence tests are culturally biased.

Teachers of educational psychology should be wary of these misconceptions.

They need to identify and examine their own misconceptions and help Student Teachers do the same. Student Teachers can reflect on, discuss, and test their misconceptions in an attempt to confront them. For example, the common misconceptions listed above can be overcome with the following explanations: • As far as we know, all parts of our brains are used, although scientists are currently unable to explain all aspects of brain function.

• Memory is particularly complex, and the durability of a memory is dependent on how it processes information, how it is rehearsed, and how similar it is to

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other information. When recalling information, the brain pieces together data and may even fill in the blanks with a person’s own assumptions or prejudices.

• There are some lateralized attributes (i.e. that are focused on one side of the brain), but almost everyone uses both sides of their brain equally. Furthermore, there is no dichotomy between ‘logical’ and ‘creative’ people. Some people are adept at logical and creative thinking, some are adept at one but not the other, and some are adept at neither.

• The brain is very active – it plays a role in how a person perceives things and what information is absorbed or ignored. An individual’s expectations and prejudices also determine what information is taken in.

• Learning can be difficult, but humans have an impulse to learn. Learning becomes more difficult for some people when they are expected to learn in certain ways.

• Classrooms can be great places for learning, but learning takes place throughout life, everywhere.

• While quiet environments may be helpful at times, most learning takes place in very active circumstances. A quiet classroom is not necessarily always a good educational environment.

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• A concept might not have been thoroughly taught until a teacher has fully explained it and students have deeply explored it. Some teachers may even create the conditions for learning without ever saying anything!

• Some students respond to traditional schooling and leave feeling prepared for daily living. Others are unable to make relevant connections between school and life and, thus, leave school unprepared.

• Although a great deal of work has been done on intelligence testing to overcome cultural bias, there are those who still make a strong argument that intelligence tests are heavily weighted in favour of Western culture.

Further details of misconceptions about educational psychology can be found on the following website: Ø http://www.thedailyriff.com/articles/howardgardner-shares-his-justreleased-97.php Contributed by Liaquat Hussain, Sadia Suleman, and Dr Javed Iqbal

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