Lesson 3 Psychological Foundations of Curriculum Curriculum is influenced by

psychology. Psychology provides

This lesson will give the students an overview of the
psychological foundations of the curriculum.
Learners will be exposed to several important
learning theories which are Behaviourism,
Cognitivism, Social Learning Theory, Social
Constructivism and Multiple Intelligences. Each of
the theories is important in understanding the
psychological need of individual students.
Topics Covered:
• Behaviourism and Cognitive Psychology
• Phenomenology and Humanistic Psychology
information about the teaching
and learning process. It also seeks
answers as to how a curriculum be
organised in order to achieve
students’ learning at the optimum
level, and as to what amount of
information they can absorb in
learning the various contents of the
curriculum.

Why This Lesson

This lesson is essential in understanding the psychological part that is related to curriculum development. All the
theories related to humans will be discussed in detail and the impacts of psychological elements on the
curriculum will be analysed in detail.

Influence of Psychology on Curriculum

Psychology has an influence on the curriculum. Information regarding the teaching and learning process is
available from psychology.

It also asks questions about how a curriculum should be structured to maximise students' learning and how
much knowledge they can take in while learning the various curriculum subjects.

Learning Theories

Learning Details
Theories
Behaviourism Classical Conditioning-Classical conditioning is a behavioural technique in which a
biologically powerful stimulus (such as food) is combined with a previously neutral stimulus.
It is sometimes referred to as Pavlovian conditioning or responder conditioning (e.g. a bell).
It also describes the process of learning that follows this pairing, in which the neutral stimulus
eventually learns to elicit a response (such as salivation) that is typically similar to the one
induced by the powerful stimulus.

Operant conditioning, often known as instrumental conditioning, is a type of conditioning in

which the strength of voluntary behaviour is altered by rewarding or punishing it.
Opportunistic responses may be reinforced by classically conditioned stimuli. However,
classical conditioning can have a variety of effects on operant conditioning.

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 Ivan Pavlov conducted studies with dogs and published his findings in 1897, making him the
first person to study classical conditioning in depth. When studying digestion, the Russian
scientist Pavlov noticed that the dogs he used as subjects drooled when given meat.

[1] Classical conditioning is a fundamental behavioural phenomenon, and we are

just now starting to understand its brain underpinnings. Even while it might be
challenging to tell classical conditioning from other associative learning methods
(such as instrumental learning and human associative memory), several
observations can help, particularly the conditions under which learning takes place.

[2] Along with operant conditioning, classical conditioning served as the cornerstone
of behaviourism, a psychology movement that peaked in the middle of the 20th
century and continues to have a significant impact on both the practice of
psychotherapy and the study of animal behaviour. There have been additional
applications for classical conditioning as well. For instance, it might have an impact
on how the body reacts to psychoactive substances, how hunger is controlled, how
learning and memory are underpinned by the brain, and how some social events,
like the false consensus effect, are observed.

Behaviourism in the Classroom

The application of operant conditioning to classroom management is simple to
understand. For a classroom to be organised, numerous behaviours need to be moulded
(an operant phrase!). I do need to mould some classroom behaviours if I want to improve
learning. Students might suffer unfavourable consequences, for instance, if they have their
phones out. It's possible that they won't get their daily attendance points as a result. We
can employ operant conditioning to improve attention and learning as research suggests
that cell phones draw attention.

The key takeaway from this situation, though, is not this kind of behavioural control.
Instead, I want to discuss boosting the utilisation of effective study techniques. Perhaps
you've instructed your children personally in them. In the classroom, you can also give
constructive criticism. Students who show evidence of using the new techniques to
attempt and change their behaviour can receive praise or extra credit. One element that
makes this so difficult is that the punishment should follow the action pretty fast. For
instance, students who use spacing put in a lot of effort for a while before getting a
reward. Students who study the night before the exam and succeed get more rapid
praise, which increases their propensity to repeat the activity. In the classroom, you can
also give constructive criticism.

Students who show evidence of using the new techniques to attempt and change their
behaviour can receive praise or extra credit.

One element that makes this so difficult is that the punishment should follow the action
pretty fast.

© UNITAR International University 2 Prepared by: Siti Nor Amira Binti Baharudin
 For instance, students who use spacing put in a lot of effort for a while before getting a
reward.

Students who study the night before the exam and succeed get more rapid praise, which
increases their propensity to repeat the activity.

Cognitivism Jean Piaget’s Theory

1. The sensory-motor phase (birth to age 2).

The infant advances from reflex actions and a monochromatic environment to
complicated sensory responses with respect to environmental patterns realises that
items have permanence (they can be retrieved again) and starts to build basic
relationships between similar objects.

2. The preliminary stage (ages 2 to 7).

Events and things start to have symbolic value. For instance, a chair is used for
sitting and clothing is worn. When given concrete examples of more difficult
concepts, the youngster demonstrates the ability to acquire them from
experience.
Fruits like oranges, apples, and bananas are examples; the youngster must have
the opportunity to handle and consume them.

3. Stage of concrete operations (ages 7 to 11).

The youngster starts to arrange information into logical relationships and becomes
more adept at manipulating information in order to solve problems.
However, this learning scenario only happens if there are tangible objects on hand
or if the child can draw from prior knowledge.
The infant is capable of making decisions on conservation, reversibility, reciprocal
relationships (for instance, left and right are relevant to spatial relations), and (a
long, narrow glass may hold the same amount of water as a short, wide one).

4. Stage 4 of formal operations (ages 11 and up).

Without having any experience in the field, the person is able to comprehend
formal and abstract operations, analyse concepts, comprehend spatial and
temporal relationships, reason logically about abstract data, evaluate data in
accordance with acceptance criteria, form hypotheses, deduce potential
consequences, construct theories, and come to conclusions. There are currently
few or no restrictions on the learning content.

Environmental experiences are the main focus of Piaget's cognitive ideas. It is the
responsibility of the educator to "shape actual experience through environmental

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 conditions" and to be aware of "what environments are conducive to having experiences
that lead to growth."

Assimilation, according to Piaget, is the integration of fresh experiences with older ones.
However, assimilation alone is insufficient to deal with novel circumstances and issues. New
cognitive structures must also be developed in the youngster. The existing cognitive
structures of the kid are altered and transformed during this process of adaptation in order
to respond to the environment. Equilibration is the process of balancing what is known with
what is unknown, or the simultaneous assimilation and adaptation to one's surroundings.

Tyler's three strategies for structuring learning experiences are also based on Piaget's three
cognitive processes (as well as Dewey's educational experiences):
1) Continuity: Concepts and skills should be repeated throughout the curriculum, and
there should be "continuing opportunity for these skills to be practised”.
2) Sequence: Understanding should be developed gradually, and "each successive
experience builds upon the preceding one" and "goes more broadly and deeply
into matters involved";
3) Integration: The curriculum's elements should be "unified," and subjects "should not
be isolated... or taught as a single"

The four phases of cognitive development identified by Piaget and their consequences for
mental growth are thoroughly reviewed by Taba, who comes to the conclusion that
learning experiences must be "planned to fit assessment of age levels at which specific
processes of thought can occur."

The goal is to simplify difficult ideas and subjects into understandable mental processes for
learners and to create curricula that support "deeper and more formal levels" of thought.
• "Creating such a curriculum would inevitably entail a better comprehension of the
hierarchies [Piaget's stages] of concept creation and mental processes [as well as]
a better understanding of the sequences in the evolution of thought."
• Similar to this, in her explanation of generalisations and abstract thought, Taba
draws attention to Piaget's cognitive processes of assimilation, accommodation,
and equilibration. She is concerned with planning curricula and educating
students so that new experiences can be assimilated into existing experiences
(assimilation), that concrete experiences can be accommodated into concepts
and principles (accommodation), and that those new relationships can be
classified and understood (equilibration).

Cognitivism in the Classroom

Intelligent tutoring systems, an improved kind of teaching machine, divide learning down
into digestible steps and analyse students' responses to point them in the direction of the
most appropriate next step. The most recent development in this area is adaptive
learning.

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 Other recent developments include artificial intelligence, which aims to replicate in
computer software the mental processes involved in human learning. If successful, this
endeavour would undoubtedly lead to the replacement of many human tasks, including
teaching, if learning is viewed from an objectivist perspective.

Learning objectives that have been predetermined and are based on an examination
and development of several cognitive processes, including comprehension, analysis,
synthesis, and assessment; problem-based instruction centred on the examination of
thought processes methods to instructional design that aim to control the design of
education to successfully achieve predetermined learning goals or objectives; successful
problem-solvers employ to solve problems.

Social Learning Learning From Models - Albert Bandura

Theory 1. Attend to pertinent clues
2. Code for memory (store a visual image)
3. Retain in memory
4. Accurately reproduce the observed activity
5. Possess sufficient motivation to apply new learning

Research indicates that the following factors influence the strength of learning from
models:
1. How much power the model seems to have
2. How capable the model seems to be
3. How nurturing (caring) the model seems to be
4. How similar the learner perceives self and model
5. How many models the learner observes

Four interrelated processes establish and strengthen identification with the model:
1. Children want to be like the model
2. Children believe they are like the model
3. Children experience emotions like those the model is feeling.
4. Children act like a model.

Through identification, children come to believe they have the same characteristics as the
model. When they identify with a nurturant and competent model, children feel pleased
and proud. When they identify with an inadequate model, children feel unhappy and
insecure.

SLT in the classroom

• Collaborative learning and group work
• Modelling responses and expectations

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 • Opportunities to observe experts in action

Social Child development, in Vygotsky's view, is a sociogenetic process that is influenced by an

Constructivism individual's "conversation" and "play" with the culture. People live in environments that have
changed as a result of the actions of earlier generations. These generations created the
objects that let individuals engage with their social and physical environments. People live
in two worlds: the natural world and the man-made world. The framework of human growth
and development has been fundamentally shaped by the human-made world, a product
of culture.

Vygotsky believed that psychological and cultural functions needed to be viewed from the
perspective of history. The historical setting of a person's existence must be taken into
account while analysing their thinking, language, and problem-solving techniques. People
behave differently depending on the institutions in place at the time. Human behaviour and
culture both change over time.

Vygotsky was a psychologist secondarily and a teacher first. He held that formal education
is the primary institution for this enculturation and that it is the primary cause of children's
higher mental functions. Although he did not disregard informal education, he believed that
formal education was the best testing ground for human development. In such a setting,
the youngster had the chance to acquire and master psychological tools that helped in
organising and reorganising mental functions while being guided by an educator.

Vygotsky disagreed with this idea, contending that learning occurs before development.
Learning processes that result in development are created by pedagogy. In other words,
kids at a certain developmental stage could be "drawn" to a higher level through
education. A student's level might be raised through peer interaction or effective teaching.
This is undoubtedly relevant to meaningful instruction today.

Although students interacting with effective teachers may perform or think “better” than
before:
• what about students interacting with less effective teachers?
• will students always move beyond their developmental levels when working with
more capable peers?
• what happens to the development of more capable peers when they work with less
capable classmates?

All these questions have serious implications as educators attempt to implement school
reform and improve the learning of low-performing students.

Social Constructionism in the classroom

• Journaling
• Experiential activities
• Personal focus
• Collaborative & cooperative learning

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Hierarchy of
Needs

Multiple
Intelligences

Multiple Intelligences in the Classroom

Linguistic
Invite kids to create a tale around the material they are learning. Have them create an
instruction manual or provide a "how to" speech if they are learning a process. Other
worthwhile occupations for this intellect include creating films, writing scripts, or designing
brochures.

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 Logical-Mathematical
This intelligence relies on logical reasoning and problem-solving in addition to solving math
difficulties. Can students collect data from a survey and graph it?

Bodily-Kinesthetic
Allow physically active pupils to do a play, dance, or physically recreate a scientific
procedure. Use manipulatives when teaching math, have them build a model out of clay,
or have them make a collage illustrating a key idea.

Musical
These pupils often have a keen sense of rhythm and pattern, in addition to being talented
musicians.

Make links between sound and the lessons you are teaching by having them write a rap
song about their subject or engage them in musical activities.

Ask students to select three pieces of music, for instance, one for each of the following: a
solid, a liquid and a gas.

Have them play a sample of each song before explaining why they choose it; this will
engage their interests while also enabling you to assess their understanding.

These kids could also take pleasure in producing podcasts or other audio content.
Interpersonal

Interpersonal
These students typically speak up in class.

Utilise their gregarious energy by having them teach the class, engage in class debates or
group projects, or use technology to have them communicate with others via chat, Skype,
or other means.

Intrapersonal
Give these students assignments that demand them to draw connections between their
own lives and the subject matter of the lesson.

However, these students can also benefit from metacognitive assignments, which
encourage them to reflect on their own learning methods and processes. Common
assignments for these students include blogs, journals, and essays on personal issues.

These students might also be interested in compiling a portfolio of their particular

assignments.

Naturalistic

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 Include extracurricular activities to keep these students interested. Although field trips and
project-based learning are preferable, anything that allows students to experience nature
and engage with living things will be beneficial. On a sunny day, have class outside, or ask
these pupils to assist you in maintaining a school garden. Utilise organic objects like flowers
or rocks as manipulatives for math or ask them to compose a poem about the sky.

Visual-Spatial
Let these "picture-smart" youngsters create a PowerPoint presentation, a diagram, or an
illustration for a group assignment. Given that this group might have trouble using
conventional note-taking techniques, you might want to urge them to use symbols or
colours to aid in understanding their notes. They can also benefit from graphic organisers.

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