Describe some basic ideas about the field of educational psychology. Exploring Educational Psychology Historical Background Teaching: Art and Science Identify the attitudes and skills of an effective teacher. Effective Teaching Professional Knowledge and Skills Commitment, Motivation, and Caring Why Study Educational Psychology?

1. Human Resource University
MA. in TESOL
Course: Educational
Psychology
Mr. Vath Vary
Phone: 017 47 111 7
Email: varyvath@gmail.com
Chapter 1:
Educational Psychology: A
Tool for Effective Teaching

2. Contents
• Describe some basic ideas about the field of educational
psychology.
– Exploring Educational Psychology
– Historical Background
– Teaching: Art and Science
• Identify the attitudes and skills of an effective teacher.
– Effective Teaching
– Professional Knowledge and Skills
– Commitment, Motivation, and Caring
• Why Study Educational Psychology?
Mr. VATH Vary

3. Preview
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4. Preliminary Questions to consider
• What are the characteristics (knowledge and skills) of good
teachers?
• What is educational psychology and why should you take this
course (How can it contribute to my development as a teacher?)
• How well do I know my students as people? Do I know what
interests them? Do I know what they are passionate about?
• What do my students reveal to me? Do I use this evidence to
inform my planning? Am I listening?
• Am I teaching students how to… or what? Do they know what they
are learning about learning?
• Should classrooms be teacher-centered or learner-centered to
promote learning? How do I give my students voices? Do they
participate in decision made about their learning? Do I hold all
the power?
• What does assessment look like in my classroom?
Mr. VATH Vary

5. Mr. VATH Vary
Exploring
Educational
Psychology
Historical
background
Teaching: an
Art or
Science

6. What is the difference between psychology
and Educational Psychology?
… is the scientific study of
behavior and mental
processes, including
- Perception
- Cognition
- Behavior
- Emotion
- Personality
- Interpersonal relationships
- … is the branch of
psychology that
specializes in
understanding
teaching and learning
in educational
settings.
Psychology
Educational
psychology
Mr. VATH Vary

7. Historical Background: pioneers
William
James
(1842–
1910)
first psychology
textbook,
Principles of
Psychology (1890)
gave a series of
lectures called
“Talks to Teachers”;
discussed the
applications of
psychology to
educating children.
One of his
recommendations
was to start lessons
at a point just
beyond the child’s
level of knowledge
and understanding
to stretch the child’s
mind.
emphasized the
importance
of observing teaching
and learning in
classrooms for
improving education
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8. Historical Background: pioneers
John Dewey
(1859-1952)
Viewed the
child as an
active
Learner (learn
best by
Doing)
Before Dewey, it
was believed
that children
should sit quietly
in their seats and
passively learn in
a rote manner
Pushed for
competent
education for
all children–
democratic
model
Argued education
should focus on the
whole child and
emphasize
child’s adaptation to
the environment;
problem solver
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9. Historical Background: pioneers
E. L. Thorndike: (American;
1874-1949)
Founder of
behavioral
psychology:
developed an
idea of
connectionis
m
Promoted the
scientific
foundation of
learning,
argued that
schools should
sharpen
children’s
reasoning skills.
Initiated an
emphasis on
assessment
and
measurement
of learning
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10. Historical Background: pioneers
- (1) the Law of
Readiness—the
degree of
preparedness and
eagerness to learn
- Individuals learn
best when they
are ready to learn,
and they will not
learn much if they
see no reason for
learning.
- (2) the Law of
Exercise—a connection
is strengthened in
proportion to its
frequency and its
average intensity and
duration;
- Justifies drill, repetition,
and review
- Seen today by behavior
modification and basic-
skill instruction
- (3) the Law of
Effect—responses
that cause
satisfaction
strengthen the
connection and
discomfort weaken
the connection
- Justifies the use of
reward and
punishment
Thorndike’s Three Laws of Learning
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11. 3 Major Theories of Psychology
Behavioral
psychology
- Focuses on
stimulus-
response (S-R)
and reinforcers
- Studies
conditioning,
modifying or
shaping behavior
through
reinforcement
and rewards
Cognitive
psychology:
- Focuses information
processing in
relation to the total
environment
- Studies
developmental
stages,
understanding,
multiple forms of
intelligence, problem
solving, critical or
creative thinking
Phenomenological
/ Humanistic
psychology:
- Focuses on the
whole child, their
social,
psychological, and
cognitive
development
- Studies focus on
human needs,
attitudes, feelings
and self-awareness
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12. - Thorndike's approach to
learning influenced
educational psychology
in the first half of the
20th century.
- Skinner’s (1938)
behaviorism, built on
Thorndike’s ideas,
involved attempts to
precisely determine
the best conditions
for learning.
- He defined
‘Psychology’ as the
science of observable
behavior and
controlling
conditions
- Skinner (1954)
developed
‘programmed
learning’–involved
reinforcing the
student after each of
a series of steps until
the student reached a
learning goal.
- He created a
teaching
machine to
serve as a
tutor and
reinforce
students for
correct
answers
(Skinner,
1958).
The Behavioral Approach
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13. - The behavioral
approach did not
address the needs
of classroom
educators. In
response,
Benjamin
Bloom created a
taxonomy of
cognitive skills,
which were later
applied to help
students learn.
- The cognitive
revolution in
psychology began in
the 1980s,
emphasizing
memory, thinking,
reasoning, and so
on—to help students
learn
- Metaphor: mind as a
computer
- Educational goals:
Effective information
processing
- Educational
psychologists
now focus on
the
socioemotional
aspects of
students' lives,
analyzing
schools as
social contexts
and the role of
culture in
education.
The Cognitive Revolution
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14.  White males like
James, Dewey, and
Thorndike
predominantly
dominated early
educational
psychology.
 Only a few non-
White individuals
broke through
racial exclusion
barriers to pursue
research.
 African American
psychologists Mamie
and Kenneth Clark
researched children's
self-conceptions
and identity.
 Latino psychologist
George Sanchez found
intelligence tests
culturally biased
against ethnic minority
children.
- Women
faced
barriers in
higher
education,
and Leta
Hollingwort
h was the
first to use
the term
gifted.
Diversity and Early Educational
Psychology
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15. Teaching: an art or science?
Mr. VATH Vary
How
scientific can
teachers be
in their
approach to
teaching?

16. Teaching: an art or science?
Mr. VATH Vary
Educational psychology focuses on the science and
art of teaching, drawing from broader theories and
research in psychology.
Theories like Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky can guide
teaching, as well as theories and research conducted by
educational psychologists and teachers' practical
experiences.
However, teaching can sometimes require
improvisation and spontaneity.
Educational psychology provides research knowledge and
skills to enhance understanding of factors influencing
student learning, but teaching remains an art, requiring
continuous judgments based on personal skills,
experiences, and wisdom shared by other teachers.

17. Effective
Teaching
Professional
Knowledge
and Skills
Commitment,
Motivation,
and Caring
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18. Effective Teaching
Effective
Teachers
Subject-
matter/content
knowledge
competence
Thinking
skills
(critical or
creative)
Instructional
strategies/ped
agogical
knowledge
Developme
ntally
Appropriat
e Teaching
Practices
Classroom
Manageme
nt Skills
Goal
Setting and
Instruction
al Planning
(knowledge
about
curriculum)
Mr. VATH Vary

19. Effective Teaching
Effective
Teachers
Motivation
skills
Paying More
Than Lip
Service to
Individual
Variations –
knowledge
about learners
Communic
ation skills
Assessment
Knowledge
and Skills
Technological
Skills
Working
Effectively with
Students from
Culturally
Diverse
Backgrounds
Mr. VATH Vary

20. Direct Instruction
Constructivist/Indirect
Instruction
Approaches to
Teaching
Eclectic
approaches
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21. Instructional Strategies:
Approaches to Teaching
Direct Instruction
• a structured, teacher-
centered approach
characterized by teacher
direction and control, high
teacher expectations for
students’ progress, maximum
time spent by students on
academic tasks, and efforts by
the teacher to keep negative
affect to a minimum.
• Goal: to maximize student
learning time
Constructivist Instruction
• a learner-centered approach
that emphasizes the importance
of individuals actively
constructing their knowledge
and understanding with
guidance from the teacher.
• Goal: to encourage children to
explore their world, discover
knowledge, reflect, and think
critically with careful monitoring
and meaningful guidance from
the teacher
• Today, constructivism:
COLLABORATION
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22. Instructional Strategies:
Approaches to Teaching
Direct Instruction
Constructivist/Indirect
Instruction
- effective teaching is not achievable
through a “one-size-fits-all” approach.
- Solution is ‘Eclecticism’
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23. Effective Teaching
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Goal Setting and
Instructional
Planning
 Effective teachers set high goals and organize plans to maximize
students' learning.
 They spend time in instructional planning, considering the
types of information, demonstrations, models, inquiry
opportunities, discussion, and practice needed to understand
concepts and develop skills.
 Instructional design involves determining when, in what
order, and how students should learn.
 The growing emphasis on blended and online learning emphasizes
the role of teachers as instructional designers, especially during
emergencies, the COVID-19 pandemic, the remote teaching.
Paying More
Than Lip Service
to Individual
Variations
• Teachers must consider individual variations in
their students, including intelligence levels,
learning preferences, temperaments, personality
traits, gifted students, and those with disabilities.

24. Paying More Than Lip Service to
Individual Variations
Differentiated Instruction
Goal: emphasizes tailoring assignments to meet
students’ needs and abilities–“zones” or
“ballparks”
Involves recognizing individual variations in students’
knowledge, readiness, interests, and other characteristics,
and taking these differences into account when planning
curriculum and engaging in instruction.
Mr. VATH Vary

25. Effective Teaching
Mr. VATH Vary
Technology
 Technology can support learning in education, provided
it's supported by vision, skilled teachers, content
standards, curriculum resources, assessment, and a focus
on active, constructive learning.
The International Society
for Technology in
Education (ISTE, 2016)
has recently updated
technology standards for
students, focusing on the
following aspects:
• Empowered Learner. Students actively use technology to reach
learning goals.
• Digital Citizen. Students demonstrate responsibility and are
ethical in their use of technology.
• Knowledge Constructor. Students use a variety of resources
and digital tools to construct knowledge, become more creative,
and engage in meaningful learning.
• Innovative Designer. Students use various technologies to
solve problems and craft useful and imaginative solutions to
these problems.
• Computational Thinker. Students develop strategies in using
technology to create solutions and test them.
• Creative Communicator. Students communicate effectively and
think creatively in their use of digital tools to attain goals.
• Global Collaborator. Students use technology to widen their
perspectives and enhance their learning by connecting with
others locally and globally.

26. Effective Teaching
Commitment Motivation
- Have a good attitude and caring about students.
- have confidence in their own self-efficacy, refuse to let
negative emotions diminish their motivation, and
bring a positive attitude and enthusiasm to the
classroom
- For more info, go to page 12
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27. STUDENTS’ IMAGES OF THEIR BEST AND WORST
TEACHERS
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28. STUDENTS’ IMAGES OF THEIR BEST AND WORST
TEACHERS
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29. Why Study Ed.
Psychology?
understand
yourself as a
learner or
teacher, as well
as students;
support diverse
learners
enhance the
teaching and
learning
methods and
assessment
strategies
understand
learning and
teaching
processes
themselves;
guide curriculum
development
Prospective career:
Teacher, counselor, or qualified psychologist
Mr. VATH Vary

30. Mr. VATH Vary
Further Readings

31. The heart of human excellence often begins to beat
when you discover a pursuit that absorbs you, frees
you, challenges you, or gives a sense of meaning, joy,
or passion (Terry Orlick, 2007)
ANY QUESTIONS?
Mr. VATH Vary