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Course Syllabus

PSY 2034 Educational Psychology

  • Division: Social and Behavioral Science
  • Department: Behavioral Science
  • Credit/Time Requirement: Credit: 3; Lecture: 3; Lab: 0
  • Prerequisites: Students should have taken either Psychology 1010 or Education 1010
  • Semesters Offered: Fall, Spring
  • Semester Approved: Fall 2022
  • Five-Year Review Semester: Fall 2027
  • End Semester: Summer 2028
  • Optimum Class Size: 30
  • Maximum Class Size: 40

Course Description

Educational Psychology provides teacher candidates and psychology majors with an overview of the relationship of psychology to teaching and learning. Students will learn about the nature of learning, adjustment and personality in adolescent development, learning, measurement, and evaluation, as well as social factors such as culture and gender. An emphasis is placed on applying the theories and practices to day-to-day teaching and learning practices.

Justification

The content of this course would be beneficial for any student to understand. Learning how we learn, and what methodologies are the most effective, can have lasting impacts on students. This course is also required for education majors at many institutions across the state and nation. It will give added variety of course offerings for students who are psychology majors at Snow College. Ultimately it will serve two larger groups of transfer students to be better prepared when moving to 4-year institutions. It can also serve individuals seeking certificates or recertification points in education.

Student Learning Outcomes

  1. Students will identify key researchers and theoretical lenses and their respective influences on education and/or educational psychology.
  2. Students will understand the value of current research in the field, know how to use it as well as how it can be critically examined.
  3. Students will apply one’s understanding of educational research methodologies (both formal and informal), and the impact of gathered information.
  4. Students will describe characteristics and stages of cognitive, physical, linguistic, emotional, and other relevant developmental stages.
  5. Students will understand how to design instruction and assessments that are appropriate for social, cognitive, and emotional development.
  6. Students will reflect upon course content and its applications to future professional learning, classroom practice, and career goals.
  7. Students will reflect on the impacts of culture, race, gender, and other social issues on academic performance and psychological well-being.
  8. Students will analyze the teacher's role in the educational process as it relates to: planning, engaging students, teacher's personality, productive and safe learning environments, feedback, and other instructional activities.

Course Content

This class approaches topics such as:Applying Psychology to Teaching Theories of Psychosocial and Cognitive DevelopmentEducational Research MethodologiesAge-Level Characteristics Learning Theories: Operant Conditioning, Information-Processing Theory, Social Cognitive Theory, and Constructivist Learning TheoryProblem Solving, and TransferApproaches to Instruction MotivationClassroom ManagementAssessment of Classroom LearningAccommodating Student VariabilityUnderstanding Student DifferencesAddressing Cultural and Socioeconomic Diversity