Module 20 : Education:

Schooling, Learning
Difficulties and High
Intelligence

Student Objectives:
To learn about the branch of the psychology field called
educational psychology
To understand the history of educational psychology
To learn about different perspectives of educational
philosophy
To learn about how educational psychology approaches
learning difficulties
To learn about how educational psychology approaches
high intelligence

20.1 Introduction
The branch of psychology that studies how
people learn is called educational
psychology.

The focus of this branch is to look at topics such as how

students are taught, student outcomes, the different ways that
people learn, and how students with learning disabilities or
high intelligence can get the most out of their educational
instruction. By focusing on these topics, not only can we
observe the learning process for children and adolescents, but
also we look at the cognitive, social, and emotional processes
that are involved. This module will give you an overview of
educational psychology, and by the end, you will be able to
identify how this branch of psychology incorporates aspects of
other types of psychology including behavioral, developmental,
and cognitive.

20.2 The History of Educational

Psychology
Educational psychology is a rather young
branch of psychology, but it has experienced
much growth in the past few years.

Psychology, itself, did not emerge as a science until the

later part of the 1800s, so previous to this, educational
philosophers mostly were the primary source of information.
Many modern psychologists believe that Johann Herbart, a
philosopher, is the “father of educational psychology.”
Herbart thought that a child’s interest in a topic has an
extraordinary influence on their learning outcome. He also
believed that teachers should always have this student
interest in the back of their minds when deciding on what type
of instruction is best for a particular student.

A few years later, William James, a philosopher, and

psychologist, also started to make several contributions to
the field of educational psychology. James published a
textbook in 1899, Talks to Teachers on Psychology, which is
considered to be the very first book on the branch of
educational psychology. Around this time, Alfred Binet, the
French psychologist we have mentioned in past modules,
developed the basis of IQ tests. Binet developed these tests
for the French government, as it wanted to identify children
who were developmentally delayed. The goal was to create
programs for special education.

Meanwhile, in the United States, John Dewey was making waves

in the world of educational philosophy. His ideas were quite
progressive, and Dewey believed that schools should focus on
the students, not the subjects. He also thought that active
learning and hands-on experiences were the most critical parts
of the process of learning.

By the mid-20th century, Benjamin Bloom, another educational

psychologist, was hard at work, and he developed a taxonomy,
which was used to describe and categorize different objectives
in education. The taxonomy had three domains, which were
learning objectives, and was effective, cognitive, and
psychomotor. The latter is a hierarchical taxonomy so that a
student’s ability to master the higher levels depends on
having prerequisite skills and knowledge.

The intention of Bloom with this taxonomy was to motivate

teachers to focus on all three of the domains, which he
believed would give students a holistic educational
experience.

20.3 Perspectives of Educational

Psychology
As with all other areas of psychology,
researchers within this branch often take on
varying perspectives when considering an
issue or problem in their field. Educational
psychologists often fall into one of the
following perspectives:
The Behavioral Perspective
This perspective suggests that all human behaviors are learned
by the process of conditioning. Psychologists who utilize this
perspective will rely on the concept of operant conditioning
in order to explain how learning occurs. For instance, a
teacher might give out tokens that the student can exchange
for small toys or sweets, which rewards their behavior. Though
such methods are widely used, critics of the behavioral
approach complain that this perspective fails to account for
things such as cognitions, attitudes, and intrinsic
motivation.

The Developmental Perspective

With this perspective, there is a focus on how children get
new knowledge and skills as their brain develops. Jean
Piaget’s theories on cognitive development, which have been
covered greatly throughout this course, play a role in the
developmental perspective. Those who subscribe to the
developmental perspective will look at how children think
during different stages of their development. This helps an
educational psychologist to understand what a child is capable
of at different times of their lives. This will help educators
to develop the materials and teaching methods that are ideal
for specific age groups.

The Cognitive Perspective

The cognitive perspective has become more popular in the past
couple of decades, as it takes an approach that takes into
account how emotions, memories, motivations, and beliefs all
contribute to the way children learn. Cognitive psychology
focuses on making sure the teacher understands how people
learn, remember, think, and process the information they are
given. Educational psychologists who use this perspective in
their practice are often interested in the motivation of
children to learn, how they solve issues, their motivation for
learning, and how they remember what they have learned.
The Constructivist Approach
This approach is one of the most recent theories on learning,
and it focuses on how a child will construct the knowledge
they have of the world. This approach tends to focus more on
the cultural and social influences a child has, and how that
impacts the way they learn. This perspective is highly
influenced by psychologist Lev Vygotsky’s work, who created
ideas such as instructional scaffolding and the zone of
proximal development.

FACT

Educational psychology is a branch of psychology that explores

how a person learns. It examines how students are taught,
different ways that people learn, how students with learning
disabilities cope with their educational instruction and
overall student outcomes.

Source: CPD

20.4 Learning Difficulties and

Educational Psychology
Learning difficulties, or learning
disorders, refer to a number of learning
problems.

A lack of intelligence or motivation does not cause these

difficulties. Instead, the challenges are caused by the way
the brain receives and processes information. Some of the most
common types of learning difficulties are issues with writing,
reading, maths, listening, speaking, and reasoning.

Psychologists and neurologists have made great progress in

their attempts to understand the brain, and one process that
many use, is the concept of neuroplasticity. This is the
ability of the brain to change, create new connections, and
develop new brain cells due to learning and experience.
This has led to several new treatments for learning
difficulties, all of which are based on the notion that the
brain can change. For example, children who have issues
distinguishing between the sounds in a word can use computer
programs that slow the sounds down to allow the children to
understand them.

Diagnosing and Testing for Learning Difficulties

Diagnosing learning difficulties is not always easy, and even
if the symptoms appear to be black and white, it is essential
that an educational psychologist evaluates a child. Since
there are many conditions, such as ADHD, which can mask itself
as a learning difficulty, even the experts will have problems
diagnosing the conditions without testing.

The expert will test, take a history of the child, and observe
the way they think and learn. Parents who are seeking out this
type of expert should speak with their doctor or the child’s
school. Sometimes these professionals will work together as a
team to coordinate their services to accurately diagnose
learning difficulties.

Experts recommend that parents of children who show signs of

learning difficulties should research their child’s problems
and understand how their child learns.
They might also want to research the services, treatments, and
new theories about the specific condition. Working with the
child’s teachers, doctors, and working with the child at home
can all help. Parents should also work to nurture their
child’s strengths because just as the child might struggle in
one area, it’s likely that they excel in others.

20.5 High Intelligence and

Educational Psychology
When most people think of educational
psychological issues, they think of children
who have learning difficulties.

However, there is also the issue of high intelligence and the

learning process in school. As we have mentioned previously in
this module, one of the most common ways to teach a student is
by using the concept that everyone has specific abilities at
specific ages. However, in many children with higher
intelligence, this is not always the case. In some cases,
these children excel scholastically at a much faster rate than
their colleagues, and when this occurs, it could be
problematic.

These days, there is a common focus on the ways that highly

intelligent students are taught. The reason for this is that
educators around the world believe that many of the brightest
students are falling through the cracks of education because
they get bored and do not see school as a challenge. Instead,
they are quickly finishing their studies and then focusing on
other pursuits, such as video games.

While teachers are working hard to make sure the struggling

students can keep up, they are often unknowingly neglecting
the students in the classroom that are highly intelligent. So,
the newest approach is for educational psychologists to come
up with a way to engage these students, too.

20.6 Differentiation
Differentiation is defined as a teaching
process by which all students are
accommodated to give them all the best
chance to learn.

In other words, by practicing differentiation, a teacher

focuses on three key aspects of their student, and then
further dividing these aspects into smaller sections. The
three key aspects of differentiation are learning needs,
readiness to learn, and interest. Here are the smaller aspects
of differentiation that educators should pay attention to:

Pretesting
One way to use differentiation is to do pretesting. If a
teacher does pretesting before they begin teaching, they could
find out what students need more challenging work.

Encouraging Different Styles of Learning

Teachers should also get an idea of what a student wants to
do, and then allow them to work on their assignments in a way
that reflects that.

Grouping
Some teachers find success in grouping children based on their
abilities. Experts say that it is best for teachers to divide
the class into three separate groups. One group will follow
the curriculum, one group will work beyond the curriculum, and
one group requires more assistance. However, they are all
studying the same curriculum.

Teach in an Open-Ended Manner

It is also important that teachers teach in an open-ended
manner. This means assigning open-ended assignments, more time
for group work without a specific goal in mind, and
assignments without a model. This will give highly intelligent
students more of a challenge.

Make it Real
Too often, highly intelligent students are pushed to achieve
at a faster rate, such as skipping a year in school or pushing
them to do the assignments at a faster rate. Instead of this
practice, teachers should be giving these students real-life
problems to solve instead. Modeling the assignments on those
from higher grade levels is suggested, which often has more
real-life scenarios.

Take it Slow
When differentiation starts, even with highly intelligent
students, it is best to take it slow and introduce the
concepts one subject at a time. Experts suggest beginning with
maths or reading, as there is always something else to read
and more maths problems to master.

Take a Quick Recap Test

Conclusion
Educational psychology is a relatively new field, but research
has shown that it is a significant one when it comes to
learning. By utilizing the findings of this research, teachers
and parents will be able to create the best options for all
students to learn.

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