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How have you applied/how will you apply your learning of psychology of education theory to your teaching practice?

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How have you applied/how will you apply your learning of psychology of education theory to your teaching practice?

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The application of learning from psychology of education theory can significantly enhance the learning experience. For my reflective response I will use Bortons (1970) method of reflective response as follows;

What?

It is clear that the psychology of education has an impact on many things when considering a person's teaching practice, including helping inform the teacher of students learning styles, emphasising a growth mindset, as proposed by Carole Dweck, applying constructivist theories like those of Piaget, utilising some behaviourist techniques such as positive reinforcement and the social learning theory which includes modeling positive reinforcements (Bates, 2023).

Clearly from my own teaching practices to date I have seen the impact of things such as modeling, positive reinforcement and making use of constructivist theories in my practice. An example of this would be when I would give time at the end of my lessons for students to begin homework so I can take time to ensure each student is well aware of what is expected of them. Also positive reinforcement ensures students are feeling encouraged and seen.

So what?

The use of modelling in the language classroom is particularly beneficial, especially when we look at useful technologies such as foclóir.ie or Linguee. Online dictionaries like this inform students of things such as pronunciation and translations. In my previous teaching practices I have incorporated things such as "montrer-moi" which is were students may show me objects which they have which mean the word I am saying in the target language or else I will show an item or object and it is up to students to tell me what it is in the target language. This activity clearly incorporates techniques such as modelling. Another activity I like to make use of is 'Think Pair Share' and this incorporates Socrates thinking of encouraging students to participate in meaningful discussions and summarise their learning and share it. This in turn allows for students to share knowledge which leads to furthering their own learning in turn (Bates, 2023).

Now what?

In my future teaching practice I will make use of and incorporate the thoughts of Locke and Descartes when they say that you need to adopt and adapt your position to suit any circumstance and also to constantly revise and reflect on your practice. I think in turn this can be true for both the teacher and the students (Bates, 2023).

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Vygotsky’s theories emphasise the importance of social interaction and  scaffolding to support student learning. How can his ideas be applied in the Second level classroom context?

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Vygotsky’s theories emphasise the importance of social interaction and  scaffolding to support student learning. How can his ideas be applied in the Second level classroom context?

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Applying Vygotsky's theories in the second level classroom can be extremely beneficial and enrich the learner's experience through use of scaffolding and social interaction. Things such as collaborative learning, peer tutoring, the teacher as a facilitator, scaffolding instructions, looking at the zone of proximal development, socratic questioning, use of technology, cultural context and regular reflection all add immensely to the language classroom (Walsh, 2011).

Through use of carefully scaffolded questions and peer tutoring with activities such as think pair share, Vygotsky's ideas can be supported and encourage students learning. Making use of the zone of proximal development will encourage and challenge students. In the second level classroom you can achieve this in many different ways, including making use of peer assessment in activities with students (Walsh, 2011).

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What do you think about Bruner’s approach to teaching? (Find out what they know about a subject; support them to discover more then ask them what they have learned) How can his ideas be applied in the second level classroom context?

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What do you think about Bruner’s approach to teaching? (Find out what they know about a subject; support them to discover more then ask them what they have learned) How can his ideas be applied in the second level classroom context?

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Bruner's approach to teaching puts emphasise on the importance of building on student's prior knowledge. It highlights the importance of discovery learning. His approach encourages exploration along with fostering understanding through active engagement. In order to facilitate learner's as they actively learn, Bruner suggests that the teacher's role is not to implement knowledge on students but rather to develop sessions for the learn to discover the relationship between bits and information (Bates, 2023).

Personally I think that Bruner's approach to teaching is very useful in the second level classroom, in particular when recalling a learner's previous knowledge on a subject. For example, during my placements I often like to begin the class by asking students a 'starter question' relating to the topic at hand which plays on their previous knowledge but links directly to the topic. For example, when taking the topic of 'le sport' in French, I draw a mind-map diagram on the whiteboard for students to fill in with any information they know relating to sport in France, in the middle I write 'le sport'. In the past students have written things such as famous French sports people, the olympics or les jeux olympiques and even the names of sports in French. When assessing Bruner's approach I now see that it is also essential to ask them how they would like to expand on this knowledge and also to assess whether they have absorbed new knowledge. This reflective practice aligns with Bruner's emphasis on discovery and helps deepen their understanding (Bates, 2023).

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Humanists such as Carl Rogers argue that the role of the teacher is to facilitate the process of students arriving at their own solutions rather than providing them with answers to problems. What do you think about this idea?

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Humanists such as Carl Rogers argue that the role of the teacher is to facilitate the process of students arriving at their own solutions rather than providing them with answers to problems. What do you think about this idea?

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The idea that the role of the teacher is to facilitate the process of students arriving at their own solutions is an interesting and compelling approach to education. When teacher's guide students on their learning journey rather than spoon feed them information it allows the learn to feel empowered and in control of their own learning journey. This approach fosters intrinsic movement, as it encourages students to become more invested in their own learning journey. Not dictating learning to students also encourages them to think more critically which is an essential life skill which must be learned. It also often promotes collaborative learning for students while the teacher must also pay attention to any diverse needs in the class as some students may need extra support. This is particularly true when incorporating Montessori's ideas of making your subject matter accessible to all (Bates, 2023).

The three elements highlighted by Rogers which he felt where essential for facilitation to take place were congruence, empathy and respect. Good facilitation requires having a range of learning resources available, and also becoming an active participant while also finding out what students learned from the session (Bates, 2023). I believe this is vital in good teaching as student feedback is crucial when learning where to improve, how to improve, what is needed to help facilitate further and also how students are progressing.

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This mind-map has some of my ideas and thoughts laid out about how educational theories influence and/or inform teaching practice.

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Evidence one: Discovery learning in action

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Evidence one: Discovery learning in action

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Bates, B. (2023a). Learning theories simplified. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.

Walsh, B. (2011). Education Studies in Ireland. Gill & Macmillan Ltd.

Banyard, P., Mark, Norman, C., & Winder, B. (2010). Essential Psychology. SAGE.‌

Schacter, D. L., Gilbert, D. T., Wegner, D. M., & Hood, B. M. (2016). Psychology. Palgrave Macmillan.

Woolfolk, A. E., Hughes, M., & Walkup, V. (2013). Psychology in Education (2nd ed.). Pearson Education UK.

Syarif, E., Syamsunardi, S., & Saputro, A. (2020). Implementation of Discovery Learning to Improve Scientific and Cognitive Attitude of Students. Journal of Educational Science and Technology (EST), 6(1), 23. https://doi.org/10.26858/est.v6i1.11975