chapter 1

© 2013, 2010, 2005, 2001, 1997Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Anita Woolfolk

Educational Psychology

Twelfth Edition

Chapter 1

Learning, Teaching, and Educational Psychology

1-3WoolfolkEducational Psychology, 12e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

Overview

I. Learning and Teaching Today

II. What Is Good Teaching?

III. The Role of Educational Psychology

WoolfolkEducational Psychology, 12e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.


What Would You Do?

Read “What Would You Do?”

• What would you do to help all your students progress and prepare for the achievement tests?

• How would you make use of the intern so that both the intern and your students learn?

• How could you involve the families of your non-English- speaking students and of students with learning disabilities to support their children’s learning?

WoolfolkEducational Psychology, 12e © 2013 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.


Objectives

1.1: Describe the key elements and requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act.

1.2: Discuss the essential features of effective teaching.

1.3: Describe the methods used to conduct research in the field of educational psychology.

1.4: Recognize key theories of development and learning that influence educational practice.


Learning and Teaching Today

Students Today

• Dramatic Diversity– Language○ 18% speak language other than English at home

– Ethnicity○ 22% of children are Latino

– SES○ 1 in 5 children lives in poverty

• Technology–High levels of technological literacy



Teachers Today

• 91% are white.

• Teacher’s sense of efficacy– A teacher’s belief that he or she can reach even difficult

students to help them learn – Predicts student achievement–Grows from real success with students– Experience and training are essential.



No Child Left Behind Act (2002)

• Reauthorization of Elementary and Secondary School Act of 1965

• All students in grades 3–8 must take standardized tests once per year.

• Schools must make AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress).

• A Blueprint for Reform: The Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (March, 2010)– Aims to reward excellent teaching and student growth– Stay tuned



Do Teachers Make a Difference?

• Teacher-Student Relationships– Positive relationships are associated with school success.

• The Cost of Poor Teaching– Ineffective teaching has long-lasting affects on academic

gains.


What Is Good Teaching?

Is Teaching a Science or an Art?

• Beware of either/or choices.

• Teachers must be:– Able use a range of strategies– Flexible and inventive– Knowledgeable about their students



Differentiated Instruction

• Going beyond accommodating learner differences to seeing diversity as an array of strengths on which to build

• Creating curriculum that is– Focused– Engaging–Demanding– Important– Scaffolded



Beginning Teachers

• Concerns– Classroom management– Motivating students– Accommodating students with differences– Evaluating student work– Dealing with parents– Getting along with other teachers

• New Teacher: ”How am I doing?”

• Experienced Teacher: ”How are the students doing?”

• Educational psychology provides new teachers the foundation they need.


The Role of Educational Psychology

Educational Psychology

• In the Beginning– Educators and psychologists observing children in

classrooms

• Today– Research on teaching and learning– Child/adolescent development–Motivation

• What happens when someone teaches something to someone else in some setting?



Is It Just Common Sense?

• Principles may seem obvious, but are the results of rigorous research.

• Often, common-sense responses may not be the best for students.

• Educational psychology is a field dedicated to the study of teaching and learning.



Using Research to Understand and Improve Learning

• Descriptive Studies– Survey results– Interview responses– Video or audio of classroom interactions

• Correlation Studies– Ask: What is the relation between two variables?



Using Research

• Experimental Studies– Random assignment– Cause-and-effect relationships–Quasi-experimental studies

• Single-Subject Experimental Design– Examines the impact of an intervention

• Microgenetic Studies– Study cognitive processes in the midst of change



Using Research

• The role of time in research– Short-term observations– Longitudinal studies

• Teachers as researchers– Action research (problem-solving investigation)



Scientifically Based Research

• NCLB: Educational programs and practices receiving federal funds must be based on “scientific research.” – Systematic observation or experiments– Rigorous data analysis procedures– Clearly described and repeatable–Must be peer reviewed



Theories for Teaching

• Principle: an established link between two or more factors– Principles will help you with specific problems.

• Theory: an interrelated set of concepts that is used to explain a body of data and to make predictions about the results of future experiments”– Theories will provide new ways of thinking about problems.

• Hypothesis: a prediction of what will happen in a research study based on previous research



The Research Cycle

• Clear hypothesis or questions

• Systematic gathering and analyzing data

• Improving theories based on results

• Asking new questions



Supporting Student Learning

• Two groups of variables are directly linked to student achievement:– Student personal factors– Socio-contextual factors

• Educational psychology provides a base for developing knowledge and skills to support both groups.

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