EDUC 215 Chapter 1, Fall 2012

1 1 2 3 C H A P T E R 1 EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY: A TOOL FOR EFFECTIVE TEACHING I touch the future. I teach. — Christa   McAuliff e American Educator and Astronaut, 20th Century Chapter Outline Exploring Educational Psychology Historical Background Teaching: Art and Science Effective Teaching Professional Knowledge and Skills Commitment, Motivation, and Caring Research in Educational Psychology Why Research Is Important Research Methods Program Evaluation Research, Action Research, and the Teacher-as-Researcher Quantitative and Qualitative Research Learning Goals Describe some basic ideas about the field of educational psychology. Identify the attitudes and skills of an effective teacher. Discuss why research is important to effective teaching, and how educational psychologists and teachers can conduct and evaluate research. 2 Effective teachers know that principles of educational psychology and educational research will help them guide students’ learning. Margaret Metzger has been an English teacher at Brookline High School in Massachusetts for more than 25 years. Here is some advice she gave to a student teacher she was supervising that in- corporates her understanding of basic principles of educational psychology, such as the importance of teaching how to learn and the need to apply educational research to teaching practice: Emphasize how to learn, rather than what to learn. Students may never know a particular fact, but they always will need to know how to learn. Teach students how to read with a genuine com- prehension, how to shape an idea, how to master diffi cult mate- rial, how to use writing to clarify thinking. A former student, Anastasia Korniaris, wrote to me, “Your class was like a hardware store. All the tools were there. Years later I’m still using that hard- ware store that’s in my head. . . .” Include students in the process of teaching and learning. Every day ask such basic questions as, “What did you think of this homework? Did it help you learn the material? Was the assign- ment too long or too short? How can we make the next assign- ment more interesting? What should the criteria for assessment be?” Remember that we want students to take ownership of their learning. . . . Useful research has been conducted lately on learning styles and frames of intelligence. Read that research. The basic idea to keep in mind is that students should think for themselves. Your job is to teach them how to think and to give them the necessary tools. Your students will be endlessly amazed at how intelligent they are. You don’t need to show them how intelligent you are. . . . In the early years of teaching you must expect to put in hours and hours of time. You would invest similarly long hours if you were an intern in medical school or an associate in a law fi rm. Like other professionals, teachers work much longer hours than outsiders know. . . . You have the potential to be an excellent teacher. My only concern is that you not exhaust yourself before you begin. Naturally, you will want to work very hard as you learn the craft. (Source: Metzger, 1996, pp. 346–351.) Teaching Stories Margaret Metzger Preview In the quotation that opens this chapter, twentieth-century teacher and astronaut Christa McAuliffe commented that when she taught, she touched the future. As a teacher, you will touch the future, because children are the future of any society. In this chapter, we explore what the fi eld of educational psychology is all about and how it can help you contribute positively to children’s futures. Historical Background EXPLORING EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY Teaching: Art and Science 1 Psychology is the scientifi c study of behavior and mental processes. Educational psychology is the branch of psychology that specializes in understanding teaching and learning in educational settings. Educational psychology is a vast landscape that will take us an entire book to describe. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND Th e fi eld of educational psychology was founded by several pioneers in psychology in the late nineteenth century. Th ree pioneers—William James, John Dewey, and E. L. Th orndike—stand out in the early history of educational psychology. William James Soon aft er launching the fi rst psychology textbook, Principles of Psychology (1890), William James (1842–1910) gave a series of lectures called “Talks to Teachers” (James, 1899/1993) in which he discussed the applications of psychology to educating children. James argued that laboratory psychology experiments oft en can’t tell us how to eff ectively teach children. He emphasized the importance of observing teaching and learning in classrooms for improving education. One of his educational psychology The branch of psychol- ogy that specializes in understanding teaching and learning in educational settings. www.mhhe.com/santrockep5e Exploring Educational Psychology 3 recommendations was to start lessons at a point just beyond the child’s level of knowledge and understanding to stretch the child’s mind. John Dewey A second major fi gure in shaping the fi eld of educational psychology was John Dewey (1859–1952), who became a driving force in the practical application of psychology. Dewey established the fi rst major educational psychology laboratory in the United States, at the University of Chicago in 1894. Later, at Columbia University, he continued his innovative work. We owe many important ideas to John Dewey. First, we owe to him the view of the child as an active learner. Before Dewey, it was believed that children should sit quietly in their seats and passively learn in a rote manner. In contrast, Dewey (1933) argued that children learn best by doing. Second, we owe to Dewey the idea that education should focus on the whole child and emphasize the child’s adaptation to the environment. Dewey reasoned that children should not be just narrowly educated in academic topics but should learn how to think and adapt to a world outside school. He especially thought that children should learn how to be refl ective problem solvers. Th ird, we owe to Dewey the belief that all children deserve to have a competent education. Th is democratic ideal was not in place at the beginning of Dewey’s career in the latter part of the nineteenth century, when high-quality edu- cation was reserved for a small portion of children, especially boys from wealthy families. Dewey pushed for a competent education for all children—girls and boys, as well as children from diff erent socioeconomic and ethnic groups. E. L. Thorndike A third pioneer was E. L. Th orndike (1874–1949), who focused on assessment and measurement and promoted the scientifi c underpinnings of learn- ing. Th orndike argued that one of schooling’s most important tasks is to hone chil- dren’s reasoning skills, and he excelled at doing exacting scientifi c studies of teaching and learning. Th orndike especially promoted the idea that educational psychology must have a scientifi c base and should focus strongly on measurement. Diversity and Early Educational Psychology Th e most prominent fi gures in the early history of educational psychology, as in most disciplines, were mainly White males, such as James, Dewey, and Th orndike. Prior to changes in civil rights laws and policies in the 1960s, only a few dedicated non-White individuals obtained the necessary degrees and broke through racial exclusion barriers to take up research in the fi eld (Koppelman & Goodhart, 2011; Spring, 2010). Two pioneering African American psychologists, Mamie and Kenneth Clark, conducted research on African American children’s self-conceptions and identity (Clark & Clark, 1939). In 1971 Kenneth Clark became the fi rst African American president of the American Psychological Association. In 1932 Latino psychologist George Sanchez conducted research showing that intelligence tests were culturally biased against ethnic minority children. James, Dewey, and Thorndike created and shaped the field of educational psychology. What were their ideas about educational psychology? John Dewey William James E. L. Thorndike DIVERSITY 4 Chapter 1 Educational Psychology: A Tool for Effective Teaching Like ethnic minorities, women also faced barriers in higher education and so have only gradually become promi- nent contributors to psychological research. One oft en over- looked person in the history of educational psychology is Leta Hollingworth. She was the fi rst individual to use the term gift ed to describe children who scored exceptionally high on intelligence tests (Hollingworth, 1916). The Behavioral Approach Th orndike’s approach to the study of learning guided educational psychology through the fi rst half of the twentieth century. In American psychology, B. F. Skinner’s (1938) view, which built on Th orndike’s ideas, strongly infl uenced educational psychology in the middle of the century. Skinner’s behavioral approach, which is described in detail in Chapter 7, involved attempts to precisely determine the best conditions for learning. Skinner argued that the men- tal processes proposed by psychologists such as James and Dewey were not observable and therefore could not be appro- priate subject matter for a scientifi c study of psychology, which he defi ned as the science of observable behavior and its control- ling conditions. In the 1950s, Skinner (1954) developed the concept of programmed learning, which involved reinforcing the student’s behavior aft er each of a series of steps until the student reached a learning goal. In an early technological eff ort, he created a teaching machine to serve as a tutor and reinforce students’ behavior for correct answers (Skinner, 1958). The Cognitive Revolution However, the objectives spelled out in the behavioral approach to learning did not address many of the actual goals and needs of classroom educators (Hilgard, 1996). In reaction, as early as the 1950s, Benjamin Bloom created a taxonomy of cognitive skills that included remembering, comprehending, synthesizing, and evaluating, which he suggested teachers should help students develop. Th e cognitive revolution in psychology began to take hold by the 1980s and ushered in a great deal of enthusiasm for applying the concepts of cognitive psychology—memory, thinking, reasoning, and so on—to helping students learn. Th us, toward the latter part of the twentieth century, many educational psychologists returned to an emphasis on the cognitive aspects of learning advocated by James and Dewey at the beginning of the century. Both cognitive and behavioral approaches continue to be a part of educational psychology today (Anderman & Dawson, 2011; Veenman, 2011). We have much more to say about these approaches in Chapters 7 through 11. More recently, educational psychologists have increasingly focused on the socio- emotional aspects of students’ lives. For example, they are analyzing the school as a social context and examining the role of culture in education (Campbell, 2010; Spring, 2010). We explore the socioemotional aspects of teaching and learning in many chapters of this book. TEACHING: ART AND SCIENCE How scientifi c can teachers be in their approach to teaching? Both science and the art of skillful, experienced practice play important roles in a teacher’s success. Educational psychology draws much of its knowledge from broader theory and research in psy- chology (Bonney & Sternberg, 2011; Danielson, 2010). For example, the theories of Jean Piaget and Lev Vygotsky were not created in an eff ort to inform teachers about ways to educate children, yet in Chapter 2 you will see that both of these theories have Like other disciplines, educational psychology had few ethnic minority individuals and women involved in its early history. The individuals shown here were among the few from such backgrounds to overcome barriers and contrib- ute to the field. Mamie and Kenneth Clark Leta Hollingworth George Sanchez RESEARCH Thinking Back/Thinking Forward Self-effi cacy plays an important role in motivation. Chapter 13, p. 450 many applications that can guide your teaching. Th e fi eld also draws from theory and research more directly created and conducted by educational psychologists, and from teachers’ practical experiences. For example, in Chapter 13 you will read about Dale Schunk’s (2008) classroom-oriented research on self-effi cacy (the belief that one can master a situation and produce positive outcomes). Educational psychologists also recognize that teaching sometimes must depart from scientifi c recipes, requiring improvisation and spontaneity (Borich, 2011; Parkay & Stanford, 2010). As a science, educational psychology’s aim is to provide you with research knowledge that you can eff ectively apply to teaching situations and with research skills that will enhance your understanding of what impacts student learn- ing (Alexander & Mayer, 2011; Harris, Graham, & Urdan, 2011). But your teaching will still remain an art. In addition to what you can learn from research, you will also continu- ally make important judgments in the classroom based on your personal skills and experiences, as well as the accumu- lated wisdom of other teachers (Ryan & Cooper, 2010). First-grade teacher, Zakia Sims, guiding her students’ learning at William Lloyd Elementary School in Washington, D.C. Recognized as an outstanding teacher, Zakia has a master’s degree from Howard University and a coveted National Board certificate. To what extent is her teaching success likely art, and to what extent is it likely science? Review, Reflect, and Practice Describe some basic ideas about the field of educational psychology. REVIEW ● How is educational psychology defined? Who were some key thinkers in the history of educational psychology, and what were their ideas? ● How would you describe the roles of art and science in the practice of teaching? REFLECT ● John Dewey argued that children should not sit quietly in their seats and learn in a rote manner. Do you agree with Dewey? Why or why not? PRAXIS™ PRACTICE 1. Mr. Smith believes that all children are entitled to an education and that this education should focus on the whole child. His views are most consistent with those of a. Benjamin Bloom. b. John Dewey. c. B. F. Skinner. d. E. L. Thorndike. 2. Four teachers are discussing influences on being an effective teacher. Which of their following four statements is likely to be most accurate? a. Applying information from scientific research is the most important factor in being an effective teacher. b. You can’t beat a teacher’s own personal experiences for becoming an effective teacher. c. Being an effective teacher is influenced by scientific research knowledge, teaching skills, and personal experiences. d. A teacher’s innate skills trump all other factors in being an effective teacher. Please see the answer key at the end of the book. 1 www.mhhe.com/santrockep5e Exploring Educational Psychology 5 6 Chapter 1 Educational Psychology: A Tool for Effective Teaching Because of the complexity of teaching and individual variation among students, eff ec- tive teaching is not “one size fi ts all.” Teachers must master a variety of perspectives and strategies and be fl exible in their application. Success requires the following key ingredients: (1) professional knowledge and skills, and (2) commitment, motivation, and caring. PROFESSIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS Eff ective teachers have good command of their subject matter and a solid core of teaching skills. Th ey know how to use instructional strategies supported by methods of goal setting, instructional planning, and classroom management. In addition, they understand how to motivate students and how to communicate and work eff ectively with those of varying skill levels and culturally diverse backgrounds. Eff ective teach- ers also employ appropriate levels of technology in the classroom. Subject-Matter Competence In their wish lists of teacher characteristics, sec- ondary school students increasingly have mentioned “teacher knowledge of their subjects” (NAASP, 1997). Having a thoughtful, fl exible, conceptual understanding of subject matter is indispensable for being an eff ective teacher. Of course, knowledge of subject matter includes more than just facts, terms, and general concepts. It also includes knowledge about organizing ideas, connections among ideas, ways of think- ing and arguing, patterns of change within a discipline, beliefs about a discipline, and the ability to carry ideas from one discipline to another. Clearly, having a deep understanding of the subject matter is an important aspect of being a competent teacher (Abruscato & DeRosa, 2010; Eby, Herrell, & Jordan, 2011). Instructional Strategies At a broad level, two major approaches characterize how teachers teach: constructivist and direct instruction. Th e constructivist approach was at the center of William James’ and John Dewey’s philosophies of education. Th e direct instruction approach has more in common with E. L. Th orndike’s view. Th e constructivist approach is a learner-centered approach that emphasizes the importance of individuals actively constructing their knowledge and understanding with guidance from the teacher. In the constructivist view, teachers should not attempt to simply pour information into children’s minds. Rather, children should be encouraged to explore their world, discover knowledge, refl ect, and think critically with careful monitoring and meaningful guidance from the teacher (Bonney & Sternberg, 2011; Lawson, 2010). Constructivists argue that for too long children have been required to sit still, be passive learners, and rotely memorize irrelevant as well as relevant information (Gredler, 2009). Today constructivism may include an emphasis on collaboration —children working with each other in their eff orts to know and understand (Slavin, 2011; Wentzel & Watkins, 2011). A teacher with a constructivist instructional philosophy would not have children memorize information rotely but would give them oppor- tunities to meaningfully construct knowledge and understand the material while guiding their learning (Johnson, 2010). By contrast, the direct instruction approach is 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 eff orts by the teacher to keep negative aff ect to a minimum. An important goal in the direct instruction approach is maximizing student learning time (Estes, Mintz, & Gunter, 2011). EFFECTIVE TEACHING Professional Knowledge and Skills Commitment, Motivation, and Caring 2 constructivist approach A learner-centered approach to learning that emphasizes the impor- tance of individuals actively constructing knowledge and understanding with guidance from the teacher. direct instruction approach A structured, teacher-centered approach characterized by teacher direction and control, high teacher expectations for students’ progress, maximum time spent by stu- dents on academic tasks, and efforts by the teacher to keep negative affect to a minimum. www.mhhe.com/santrockep5e Effective Teaching 7 Some experts in educational psy- chology emphasize that many eff ective teachers use both a constructivist and a direct instruction approach rather than either exclusively (Darling-Hammond & Bransford, 2005). Further, some circum- stances may call more for a constructivist approach, others for a direct instruction approach. For example, experts increas- ingly recommend an explicit, intellectu- ally engaging direct instruction approach when teaching students with a reading or a writing disability (Berninger, 2006). Whether you teach more from a con- structivist approach or more from a di- rect instruction approach, you can be an eff ective teacher. Thinking Skills Eff ective teachers model and communicate good thinking skills, especially critical thinking, which involves thinking refl ectively and pro- ductively and evaluating the evidence. Getting students to think critically is not easy; many students develop a habit of passively learning material and rotely memorizing concepts rather than thinking deeply and refl ectively (Bonney & Sternberg, 2011). Th inking critically also means being open-minded and curious on the one hand, yet being careful to avoid key mistakes in interpretation on the other. Th roughout this book we will encourage you to think critically about topics and issues. At the end of each main section in a chapter, you will be asked “Refl ect” ques- tions related to the topic about which you have just read. In Chapter 9 you will read more extensively about critical thinking and other higher-level cognitive processes such as reasoning, decision making, and creative thinking, and you will learn how to encourage critical thinking in your students by building it into your lessons. Goal Setting and Instructional Planning Whether constructivist or more traditional, eff ective teachers don’t just “wing it” in the classroom. Th ey set high goals for their teaching and organize plans for reaching those goals (Anderman & Dawson, 2011). Th ey also develop specifi c criteria for success. Th ey spend consid- erable time in instructional planning, organizing their lessons to maximize stu- dents’ learning (Burden & Byrd, 2010). As they plan, eff ective teachers refl ect and think about how they can make learning both challenging and interesting. Good planning requires consideration of the kinds of information, demonstrations, mod- els, inquiry opportunities, discussion, and practice students need over time to understand particular concepts and develop particular skills. Although research has found that all of these features can support learning, the process of instructional design requires that teachers fi gure out which things students should do when, in what order, and how. (Darling-Hammond & others, 2005). Chapter 12 addresses planning in detail. Developmentally Appropriate Teaching Practices Competent teachers have a good understanding of children’s development and know how to create instruction materials appropriate for their developmental levels (Bredekamp, 2011; NAEYC, 2009). U.S. schools are organized by grade and to some degree by age, but these are not always good predictors of children’s development. At any grade level there is usually a two- or three-year span of ages with an even wider span of skills, abilities, and developmental stages. Understanding developmental What characterizes constructivist and direct instruction approaches to educating students? critical thinking Thinking reflectively and produc- tively and evaluating the evidence. Thinking Back/Thinking Forward In planning, teachers need to fi gure out which things students should do, when, in what order, and how. Chapter 12, p. 399 DEVELOPMENT 8 Chapter 1 Educational Psychology: A Tool for Effective Teaching pathways and progressions is extremely important for teaching in ways that are opti- mal for each child (Follari, 2011; Marion, 2010). Th roughout this text, we call attention to developmental aspects of educating children and provide examples of teaching and learning that take into account a child’s developmental level. Chapters 2 and 3 are devoted exclusively to development. Classroom Management Skills An important aspect of being an eff ective teacher is keeping the class as a whole working together and oriented toward class- room tasks. Eff ective teachers establish and maintain an environment in which learn- ing can occur (Jones & Jones, 2010; Mertler & Charles, 2011). To create this optimal learning environment, teachers need a repertoire of strategies for establishing rules and procedures, organizing groups, monitoring and pacing classroom activities, and handling misbehavior (ASCD, 2009). Motivational Skills Eff ective teachers have good strategies for helping students become self-motivated and take responsibility for their learning (Anderman & Dawson, 2011). Educational psychologists increasingly stress that this is best accom- plished by providing real-world learning opportunities of optimal diffi culty and nov- elty for each student. Students are motivated when they can make choices in line with their personal interests. Eff ective teachers give them the opportunity to think creatively and deeply about projects. In addition to guiding students to become self-motivated learners, teachers need to establish high expectations for students’ achievement (Eccles & Roeser, 2009). Too oft en children are rewarded for inferior or mediocre performance with the result that they do not reach their full potential. When high expectations are created, however, a key aspect of education is to provide children—especially low-achieving children— with eff ective instruction and support to meet these expectations. Chapter 13 covers the topic of motivation in detail. Communication Skills Also indispensable to teaching are skills in speaking, lis- tening, overcoming barriers to verbal communication, tuning in to students’ nonverbal communication, and constructively resolving confl icts (Hybels & Weaver, 2009). Communication skills are critical not only in teaching but also in interacting with parents (Weiss & others, 2010). Eff ective teachers use good communication skills when they talk “with” rather than “to” students, parents, administrators, and others; keep criticism at a minimum; and have an assertive rather than aggressive, manipulative, or passive communication style (Stewart, 2009). Eff ective teachers work to improve stu- dents’ communication skills as well. Student communication skills are especially impor- tant because they have been rated as the skills most sought aft er by today’s employers. Paying More Than Lip Service to Individual Variations Virtually every teacher knows that it is important to take individual variations into account when teaching, but this is not always easy to do. Your students will have varying levels of intelligence, use diff erent thinking and learning styles, and have diff erent temperaments and personality traits (Martinez, 2010). You also are likely to have some students who are gift ed and others with disabilities of various types (Darragh, 2010; Friend, 2011). Consider Amber Larkin’s challenges and experiences as a beginning teacher (Wong Briggs, 2007). Her classroom was a trailer, and her stu- dents included children who were homeless, non–English speaking, had disabilities, or were refugees who had never worn shoes or experienced any type of formal education. Aft er four years of teaching, she was named one of USA Today ’s 2007 National All-Star Teachers. Almost all of her students pass state-mandated No Child Left Behind (NCLB) tests, but she is just as pleased about her students’ socioemotional growth. Her principal described her in the following manner: “Th ere’s an unspoken aura that great things are going to happen, and that’s how she goes about her day” (Wong Briggs, 2007, p. 6D). “My mom told me to tell you that I am the educational challenge you were told about in college.” Reprinted by permission of Heiser Zedonek. Amber Larkin, helping fifth-grade student Miya Kpa improve his academic skills. What are some strategies for paying more than lip service to individual variation in students? Thinking Back/Thinking Forward The best teachers have very few discipline problems, not because they are great disci- plinarians, but because they are great teachers. Chapter 14, p. 490 Eff ectively teaching a class of students with such diverse characteristics requires much thought and eff ort (Rosenberg, Westling, & McLesky, 2011). Diff erentiated instruction addresses this challenge by recognizing individual variations in students’ knowledge, readiness, interests, and other characteristics, then taking these diff er- ences into account in planning curriculum and engaging in instruction (Tomlinson, 2006). Th us, diff erentiated instruction aims to tailor assignments to meet students’ needs and abilities. It is unlikely that a teacher can generate 20 to 30 diff erent lesson plans to address the needs of each student in a classroom. However, diff erentiated instruction advocates discovering “zones” or “ball parks” in which students in a class- room cluster, thus providing three or four types/levels of instruction rather than 20 to 30. In Chapters 4 and 6 we provide strategies to help you guide students with dif- ferent levels of skills and diff erent characteristics to learn eff ectively. Working Effectively with Students from Culturally Diverse Backgrounds Today one of every fi ve children in the United States is from an immigrant family, and by 2040 one of every three U.S. children is projected to fi t this description. Nearly 80 percent of the new immigrants are people of color from Latin America, Asia, and the Caribbean. Approximately 75 percent of the new immigrants are of Spanish- speaking origin, although children speaking more than 100 diff erent languages are entering U.S. schools. In this world of increasing intercul- tural contact, eff ective teachers must be knowledgeable about people from diff er- ent cultural backgrounds and sensitive to their needs (Bennett, 2011; Shiraev & Levy, 2010). Th ey should encourage stu- dents to have positive personal contact with other students of diverse back- grounds and think of ways to create set- tings in which such interaction can occur. Eff ective teachers will guide students in thinking critically about cultural and eth- nic issues while taking actions to forestall or reduce student bias and cultivate acceptance. Th ey need to serve as cul- tural mediators among students as well as, when necessary, between the culture of the school and the culture of the stu- dent, especially those who are unsuccess- ful academically (Darragh, 2010). Here are cultural questions for teachers to ask themselves (Pang, 20