The Role of Educational Psychology in Teaching

Aundrea Riley

PSY 6631: Psychological Foundations of Education

March 9, 2012

Dabney Hunter McKenzie, Ph.D.

Introduction There are many who have wondered about the place of educational psychology in teaching and learning. However, a closer look at the nature and scope of learning and teaching and the essence of educational psychology clearly shows a relationship that can be best described as mutually integral. This means that there can never be effective educational programs outside educational psychology. This paper therefore seeks to establish the lucidity of the interconnection between the two.

Background of the Study There have been
It is only after being equipped with this kind of information that a teacher can effectively impart knowledge on the child. Herman (2009) on the other hand integrates classroom theory with educational psychology. He states that without a proper grasp on classroom theory, there can never be meaningful transaction in a classroom, between the student and the teacher. It is because of educational psychology that the teacher will be in a position to cultivate a favorable climate for learning. Downey (2008) alternatively sees educational psychology as being the very yardstick for measuring competence. An instructor who is bereft of educational psychology is totally unable to control the classroom situation. The same is neither able to strike learning relationships between himself and individual learners, nor is he able to bring the classroom into a friendly capitulation. The former is true since it is through educational psychology that the teacher will gauge the mind, brilliance, stages of development, challenges and cognitive skills of every individual student in the classroom. It is against this backdrop that one can strike and consolidate with all students in a classroom. On the other hand, bringing the classroom to a friendly capitulation is an important factor whose sidestepping can be very counterproductive. Not bringing the learning environment under control is a matter that leaves the entire learning process futile. Absentmindedness,