Investigation Of The Relevance Of Educational Psychology Into Teaching – Learning Process
The investigation into the relevance of educational psychology in the teaching-learning process underscores the intricate interplay between psychological principles and pedagogical practices. Educational psychology delves into understanding how individuals learn and develop within educational settings, encompassing cognitive, social, and emotional aspects. By integrating insights from educational psychology, educators can tailor instructional strategies to suit diverse learning styles, optimize classroom environments to foster engagement and motivation, and address students’ cognitive challenges and socio-emotional needs effectively. This investigation aims to elucidate the significance of educational psychology in enhancing teaching effectiveness, student learning outcomes, and overall educational experiences, thereby contributing to the continuous improvement of educational practices and policies.
This project was on the relevance of educational psychology into teaching learning processes in secondary schools in Enugu North Local Government Area of Enugu State. The study was specifically aimed at investigating the importance and help educational psychology has rendered to teaching – learning processes in order to achieve these objectives, the following questions were formulated and used:
What is the relevance of educational psychology into teaching – learning situations? How will the educational psychology help students adapt to teaching learning situations? It there is any way of identifying hindrances to learning and bridging the gap? What should be done in the case of exceptional students?
How does educational psychology take of the students in adolescent stage? The population of the study comprises the students, teachers and patents. The sample selection way was by stratified random sampling technique. This was based on single and co-educational schools. One boy school, two girls’ schools and two co-educational schools were selected. Data collection technique sued included literature review, interview, personal using explanation of results from interview, a bit of frequency distribution table and percentages. Findings by those sources arrived at. The researcher found out that the had made positive contributions in the areas of understanding of the nature of classroom, acknowledgement of individual differences, teaching methods, understanding students problems, motivation to study harder, management of adolescents, care of exceptional students and guidance and counseling educational implications were given in chapter five and some recommendations were made to enhance effective teaching – learning situation.
Title page
Approval page
Dedication
Acknowledgement
Abstract
Table of content
CHAPTER ONE
Introduction 1
1.1 Background of the study 1
1.2 Purpose of the study 3
1.3 Significance of the study 5
1.4 Statement of the problem 7
1.5 Research questions 7
1.6 Assumption of the study 8
1.7 Limitation of the study 9
1.8 Definition of terms 10
CHAPTER TWO
Literature Review 12
2.1 Meaning of educational psychology 12
2.2 Brief history of educational psychology 15
2.3 Scope of educational psychology 17
2.4 Contribution of educational psychology
in teaching-learning process 18
2.5 Contribution of educational psychology
to practices of education 24
2.6 Educational psychology; a help adolescent stage 26
2.7 Theories of learning 30
CHAPTER THREE
Methodology and design 41
3.1 Geographical area of the study 41
3.2 Target population 42
3.3 Sample 43
3.4 Instrument development and validation 43
3.5 Data collection techniques 44
3.6 Planned method of data analysis 44
Reference 45
CHAPTER FOUR
Data presentation and analysis 48
CHAPTER FIVE
Discussion and interpretation of results 58
5.1 Conclusion 61
5.2 Implications of the study 62
5.3 Recommendation 63
5.4 Suggestions for further research 64
References 65
Appendix 1 66
Appendix II 67
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Right from the very start of education psychology, there have been teaching and learning.
Teaching and learning take effect from birth to death.
It is impotent to now that educational psychology with enhances greater output in teaching – learning process.
There are some contributions made by educational psychology towards teaching – learning process examples are:
1) Educational psychology with its study attempts to develop the theories of teaching.
2) Educational psychology also with its study helps to improve teaching methods and materials.
3) The study of educational psychology attempts to solve learning problems, and to measure learning abilities.
4) The study of educational psychology helps to improve teaching practice in all components of the basic teaching model.
5) The study of educational psychology attempts to measures educational progress and how individuals learn at different ages.
With the knowledge of that, the teacher is better placed to understand his students. He will be able to diagnose when an individuals child is having some problem because learn ability is negatively affect.
He will try to find out the sources of the problems whether it is physical, emotional, social to mention but a few.
The teacher will find a way to see that the problems are solve if possible or controlled.
When a proper attention is given to a child, such a child will have a sense of belongings.
As a result of the care, there is the tendency that the child will come back from abnormality to normalcy
1.2 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY
The purpose of this study is to investigate into the relevance of educational psychology the teaching –learning process in secondary schools, in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State.
The researcher being aware of this will dwell more on the relevance of educational psychology the teaching-learning process in some secondary schools in Enugu South.
The purpose of this study is to look closely at certain problems and how they hinder effective teaching and learning.
The objectives of educational psychology as summarized by S. S. Challhan (1987) are:
• To provide teachers with some basic skills related to teaching.
• To give teachers guidelines to solve problems associated with teaching – learning process.
• To help teachers to understand the scientific knowledge and to instill in them a spirit of inquiry for their professional growth.
In conclusion, the researcher will no doubt unfold the possible solutions, which should of course be a welcome relief not only to teachers and students in secondary schools in Enugu South but to the school system in general.
FORMULATED QUESTIONS
To achieve these objectives stated above, the following questions were formulated;
1. What is the relevance of Educational psychology?
2. How will the educational psychology help students adapt to teaching-learning situations?
3. Is there any way of identifying hindrances to learning and bridging the gap?
4. What should be done in the case of exceptional students?
5. How does Educational psychology take care of the students in Adolescent stage?
1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
The high rate of learning problems and distractions in our schools cannot be over emphasized. The issue of how to enhance adequate learning has been the concern of every right thinking teacher. There is no doubt; the problems of teaching learning process have to be taken care of.
This study is geared towards x-raying certain problems that hinder adequate learning and how to tackle them in order to enhance greater productivity as regards teaching-learning situations.
The researcher therefore hopes that this project will enable teachers and students alike appreciate the role of educational psychology in bridging the gap created by distractions and problems of teaching learning process.
Furthermore, this will help teachers in this age to rectify the mistakes made before like tagging a pupil a dullard or “good for nothing even when a pupil’s intelligent quotient is above average ordinarily but he has learning problems.
Root causes of the pupil’s performance should be looked into and handled better.
The study of educational psychology provided information, ideas and practices, which facilitate learning in the classroom. It will be to the relevance of educational psychology with regards to teaching – learning theories of teaching, an aspect of human growth and development, motivation, remembering and forgetting and others.
The study of educational psychology has its significances thus:
1) Educational psychology with its study attempts to develop the theories of teaching
2) Educational psychology also with its study helps to improve teaching methods and materials.
3) The study of educational psychology attempts to solve learning problems, and to measure learning abilities.
4) The study of educational psychology helps to improve teaching practice in all components of the basic teaching model.
5) The study of educational psychology attempts to measures educational progress and how individuals learn at different ages.
1.4 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS
There are some problems, which eventually comes up from stumbling block to learning. But can it be said that a teacher has taught when the pupils have not learnt? No. Therefore the primary concern of the classroom teacher is to make learning possible. How does he do that?
He will ask himself whether the pupils understand his teaching.
– To what degree dot hey understand?
– What happens to retention of what have been naught?
Then the teacher will find out the possible causes of he learning and retention problems.
1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
In this study, the researcher formulated and answered the following questions:
1) What is the relevance of educational psychology to teaching-learning process?
2) How will the educational psychology help students adapt to teaching – learning situations.
3) Is there any way of identifying hindrances to learning and bridging the gap?
4) What should be done in the case of exceptional students?
5) How does educational psychology take care of the in adolescent stage?
1.6 ASSUMPTION OF THE STUDY
The knowledge of educational psychology is a strong weapon for the enhancement of effective teaching and learning. It is assumed that this project will help teachers know and apply certain principles on diagnosis of learning problems. When the problems are diagnosed, the teacher with the knowledge of educational psychology will put in various schedules of reinforcement. He will also include motivational principles.
Educational psychology therefore provides the teaching with the clues and tools to ensure that its work is well done unlike the teacher who does not have the knowledge of or that who does not want to acknowledge the course.
It is assumed that the teacher will help the students overcome their problems, be it physical, social, emotional and others. He will tackle the ones he can and refer t eh ones he cannot solve to specialists
1.7 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
The topic of his study is quite an interesting one in which more work could be done to help students out of educational problems. Although the research is an admirable one, the researcher encountered some constraints during the time of the work.
Among the restrictions are:
– The scope of he work
– The limited time which disturbed more work
– The insufficient finance incapacitating the researcher.
The fact that he investigator to housewife with children and with her husband living in a different state posed a big problem. As a result, the researcher has to combine the domestic and academic work at the some time.
1.8 DEFINITION OF TERMS
Maturation: The ripening of a physiological feature
Absentmindedness: A type of forgetting due to the fact that there is no cue and the individual is also occupied with some task.
Motivation: The energization, sustenance and direction of behaviour towards a goal, which normally restores equilibrium.
(S.R) Stimulus Response Learning: A mechanistic learning where specific stimuli call forth conditioned response.
Diagnosis: A statement which is the result
Mental Retardation: A condition where the individual shows a remarkable slow rate of learning and lack of intelligent behaviour.
Exception Students: Includes handicapped cases as the blind, deaf, mentally retarded and also gifted students who cannot benefit much from normal class activities.
Incongruent: When an individual is not in harmony with his environment.
Adolescence: The period of development between puberty and adulthood.
Reinforcement: This is any stimulus that increases the probability that a certain desired behaviour or response will occur.
Defense Mechanism: Putting up some behaviours to cover faults.
Neuroticism: A condition f disorder of the mind.
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Investigation Of The Relevance Of Educational Psychology Into Teaching – Learning Process:
Investigating the relevance of educational psychology in the teaching-learning process is essential for educators and educational researchers. Educational psychology is the branch of psychology that focuses on understanding how individuals learn and develop within educational settings. It provides valuable insights into various aspects of teaching and learning, and here are some key areas where its relevance can be explored:
Understanding Learning Styles and Individual Differences: Educational psychology helps educators recognize that students have different learning styles, abilities, and needs. By understanding these differences, teachers can tailor their instructional methods to cater to diverse student populations effectively.
Cognitive Development: Research in educational psychology, particularly in the realm of cognitive development, sheds light on how students acquire and process information. This knowledge informs the development of age-appropriate curriculum and instructional strategies.
Motivation and Engagement: Educational psychology delves into the factors that influence student motivation and engagement. Educators can use this information to design lessons and activities that inspire and sustain students’ interest in learning.
Assessment and Evaluation: Educational psychologists contribute to the design of valid and reliable assessment tools. Teachers can use this expertise to create fair and effective assessment methods to measure student learning outcomes accurately.
Classroom Management: Understanding principles from educational psychology can aid in effective classroom management strategies. This includes techniques for maintaining a positive learning environment, addressing behavioral issues, and promoting student cooperation.
Instructional Design: Educational psychology informs the development of instructional materials and strategies that align with learning objectives and take into account cognitive processes. This can lead to the creation of more effective and engaging teaching materials.
Problem Solving and Critical Thinking: Research in educational psychology explores how students develop problem-solving and critical thinking skills. This knowledge can guide educators in fostering these skills in their students.
Special Education and Inclusion: Educational psychology plays a crucial role in supporting students with special needs through the development of inclusive teaching practices and individualized education plans.
Teacher Training and Professional Development: Teacher preparation programs often incorporate principles from educational psychology to equip educators with the knowledge and skills needed for effective teaching.
Parent-Teacher Communication: Understanding the psychological aspects of child development and learning can help teachers communicate effectively with parents, facilitating a collaborative approach to support student success.
Technology Integration: Educational psychology can inform the integration of technology in the classroom by considering how digital tools can enhance learning experiences while addressing potential cognitive and motivational challenges.
Continuous Improvement: Educators can use insights from educational psychology to continually evaluate and refine their teaching methods, adapting to the evolving needs of students and the changing educational landscape.
In conclusion, educational psychology is highly relevant to the teaching-learning process. Its principles and research findings provide valuable guidance for educators to create effective and inclusive learning environments, promote student engagement and motivation, and enhance student outcomes. Continuously investigating and applying insights from educational psychology can lead to improved educational practices and student success.