Approaches to Education
There are many different theoretical approaches in Psychology, some of which you met at AS Level (cognitive, behaviourist, psychodynamic, social, developmental etc). Which one you find most changes how you explain behaviour, how you investigate it and even what things you choose to investigate in the first place. In other words, the approach that is chosen makes a big difference. The first section of the Education unit looks at three approaches that have been widely applied to education. They are:
- Behaviourist applications to learning
- Humanistic applications to learning
- Cognitive applications to learning
Bullet point 1 - Behaviourist applications to learning
• behaviourist applications to learning
Underlying theory (classical and operant conditioning); applications such as programmed learning and behaviour modification techniques (controlling disruptive behaviour).
Underlying theory (classical and operant conditioning); applications such as programmed learning and behaviour modification techniques (controlling disruptive behaviour).
Underlying theory...Hopefully you remember this from the developmental unit last year.
Behaviourism is the idea that all behaviour is the result of our environmental surroundings. On other words, the things that happened in the environment leading up to the behaviour are what caused it. The environment provides a stimulus, and our behaviour is a response to that stimulus. A simple example might be picking up a hot pan, and then dropping it immediately. The heat of the pan is the stimulus, and dropping it was the response. There are two ways in which a stimulus could lead to a response, and these are the two types of learning in behaviourism:
Bandura's Social Learning Theory is a development of operant conditioning, which states that as well as learning through our own punishments and reinforcements, we can also learn through observing other people's behaviour (and the outcomes of it). Classical conditioning - know the termsThe specialist terminology of classical conditioning can seem confusing at first, but it is important if you are to be able to describe the process accurately. Make sure you can use the following terms correctly:
Psychology factsheets - test your knowledge... |
Assumptions of the behaviourist approach* Psychology should be seen as a science. Watson stated that “psychology as a behaviorist views it is a purely objective experimental branch of natural science. Its theoretical goal is … prediction and control”.
* Behaviorism is primarily concerned with observable behavior, as opposed to internal events like thinking and emotion. Observable (i.e. external) behavior can be objectively and scientifically measured. Internal events, such as thinking should be explained through behavioral terms (or eliminated altogether). * People have no free will – a person’s environment determines their behavior * When born our mind is 'tabula rasa' (a blank slate). Everything that we know we have learned from the environment. * There is little difference between the learning that takes place in humans and that in other animals. Therefore research can be carried out on animals as well as humans. * Behavior is the result of stimulus – response (i.e. all behavior, no matter how complex, can be reduced to a simple stimulus – response association). Watson described the purpose of psychology as: “To predict, given the stimulus, what reaction will take place; or, given the reaction, state what the situation or stimulus is that has caused the reaction” (1930, p. 11). * All behavior is learnt from the environment. We learn new behavior through classical or operant conditioning. McLeod, S. A. (2007). Behaviorism - Simply Psychology Exam Hint! Always relate the theory to EDUCATION!The description of the theory on the left is (hopefully) all nice and clear, but on its own it doesn't quite do the job. First, watch this video and answer the associated questions on how humans may be affected by classical conditioning. Then...
We're looking at behaviourist applications to education, so you need to make sure that you can relate all of this to things that could be done in schools. With this in mind... Assignment 1 - From the theory to the classroom...Using your knowledge of the theory of classical and operant conditioning:
Submit your assignment through the form on the home page. |
Application of behaviourism 1 - Programmed learningSkinner's application of the ideas of operant conditioning to education lead to the development of programmed learning. This presents information in a series of very small 'frames' (e.g. single facts at a time), followed by a memory test.
With a correct answer, positive feedback is given and the student can move on to the next frame. A wrong answer means that the frame is repeated. Excitingly for Skinner (and probably for many students), this method suggested that teachers could be entirely replaced by 'teaching computers'. Can you think of any evaluation points for programmed learning? What are its strengths and weaknesses? Are there some types of information or subjects that it would not be very useful for?
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Types of programmed learning schemeApplication of behaviourism 2 - Behaviour modificationBehaviour modification is the term given to attempts to use operant conditioning in order increase or decrease the frequency of certain behaviours.
We will meet behaviour modification, or it's more modern version of 'Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA)' at a couple of places on this course, most notably in the treatment of autism spectrum disorder and in strategies for the treatment of disruptive behaviour. See these pages for more information. Assignment 2 - answer these questionsWithout using your notes, write as much as you can in answer to the following questions:
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Exam hint - evaluating explanations at A2
When you are asked to evaluate a theory in the A2 exam, there are four key areas for which you can receive credit. These are:
As you review each section of work, try to have something from each of these four categories to say...
- Appraisal - giving the positives of the theory
- Criticism - giving the negatives
- Applications - showing how the theory can be used in the real world
- Comparison to another theory/approach - critically comparing the theory to other competing explanations
As you review each section of work, try to have something from each of these four categories to say...
Evaluating behaviourist theories of education
Positives
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Negatives
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Assignment 3 - Answering essay questionsHere is a sample 2a) question from the exam paper:
You should aim to write at least a side of A4 in response to this question. The mark scheme is given to the right. Make sure you follow its advice. Plan your response, then hand write it and hand it in to me. |
Bullet point 2 - Humanistic applications to education
• humanistic applications to learning
Underlying theory (Rogers, 1951); applications such as co-operative learning, learning circles and the open classroom. Summerhill School
Underlying theory (Rogers, 1951); applications such as co-operative learning, learning circles and the open classroom. Summerhill School
Underlying theory (Rogers 1951)...Carl Rogers (pictured with his best 'friendly granddad' smile to the right) looked out over the landscape of late 1940s Psychology and didn't like what he saw. Freudians and behaviourists were battling for supremacy, but whoever won the outlook was bleak for us. Either we were animals helplessly driven by internal and unconscious urges, often sexual in nature, or we were animals mindlessly responding to stimuli!
Rogers didn't recognise those descriptions in most human beings. He wanted to create a "third way" of looking at Psychology and human behaviour, one that emphasised people's goodness, freedom to choose and desire to be better people. He called it humanistic psychology. Assignment 1 - From the theory to the classroomLook at the assumptions of the humanistic approach in the right hand column. How could these ideas be successfully adapted into a school environment?
Design a humanistic school, using the principles of humanistic psychology. Your design should include applications of humanistic theory in as many different areas of school life as possible: the teaching styles, subjects taught, exams, break times, canteens, assemblies, uniform etc etc. Be as creative as you can. |
Assumptions of HumanismCheerful smile - cheerful theory
5. Scientific approaches that are experimental and reductionist (e.g. behaviourist and cognitive approaches) are dehumanising, reducing human beings to just a set of data. The human is more than that. Therefore the approach rejects experiments and uses qualitative research methods such as unstructured interviews and questionnaires with open questions. |
Assignment 2 - Skinner vs Rogers
Based on the group that you were assigned in the lesson, prepare as many arguments as you can for the 'Skinner vs 'Rogers' balloon debate. Your points can either be positives of your own approach, or criticisms of the other approach. Make sure your points are related to education, or they will not count.
Applications of humanism to education
Collaborative learning techniques are very widely used, but some people are highly critical of them. In a recent book, teacher Tom Bennett calls such group exercises "an invitation to misbehaviour, a recipe for disguised inactivity, unequal loading and unfair assessment." He also dismisses “the self-evidently intellectually bereft idea that children learn best from other children” and the equally crazy idea that teachers should “stop telling them things they don’t know.” To Mr Bennett, the whole point of a teacher is to tell students new things, so to deliberately design lessons where they can't do this seems ridiculous.
Do you agree with his assessment?
Another application of the humanistic approach is learning styles. See the 'Learning Styles' page for more information, but remember that many of the evaluations for the humanistic approach in general will also be applicable to learning styles.
Do you agree with his assessment?
Another application of the humanistic approach is learning styles. See the 'Learning Styles' page for more information, but remember that many of the evaluations for the humanistic approach in general will also be applicable to learning styles.
Assignment 2 - answer these questions
Review your notes and the information here, and then answer these questions in as much detail as you can from memory:
Type your answers and submit them through the form on the home page.
- Explain in your own words what is meant by the ‘humanistic’ approach to learning.
- Describe two ways in which the humanistic approach has been applied in education.
- Provide two criticisms of the humanistic approach in education.
Type your answers and submit them through the form on the home page.
Summerhill School
"Imagine a school where kids have the freedom to be themsevles. Where success is not defined by academic achievement but by the child's own definition of success."
So begins the website of 'Summerhill School', one of the first and most famous libertarian schools in the world. Summerhill puts into place many of the humanistic principles envisaged by Carl Rogers. The school is run as a democracy in which all members of the school community have an equal vote in the outcomes. These meeting decide the rules of the school and the ways that the school functions. Students therefore have a say in what they learn, how they learn it and how they judge the success of their actions. The founder, A.S. Neill used the maxim "Freedom not Licence" to describe the basic philosophy of the school. This is the principle that you can do as you please, so long as it doesn't cause harm to others. Hence, you are free to swear as much as you like, within the school grounds, but calling someone else an offensive name is licence, as so would be prohibited.
Here is a 2013 article about the school. What do you think the author's views on the school are? Is their opinion clear from the piece?
Would you like to attend Summerhill school? Make a list of five advantages and five disadvantages that you could see for your education of attending the school.
So begins the website of 'Summerhill School', one of the first and most famous libertarian schools in the world. Summerhill puts into place many of the humanistic principles envisaged by Carl Rogers. The school is run as a democracy in which all members of the school community have an equal vote in the outcomes. These meeting decide the rules of the school and the ways that the school functions. Students therefore have a say in what they learn, how they learn it and how they judge the success of their actions. The founder, A.S. Neill used the maxim "Freedom not Licence" to describe the basic philosophy of the school. This is the principle that you can do as you please, so long as it doesn't cause harm to others. Hence, you are free to swear as much as you like, within the school grounds, but calling someone else an offensive name is licence, as so would be prohibited.
Here is a 2013 article about the school. What do you think the author's views on the school are? Is their opinion clear from the piece?
Would you like to attend Summerhill school? Make a list of five advantages and five disadvantages that you could see for your education of attending the school.
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Assignment 3Watch the video to the left. As you do so, create a list of all of the aspects of Summerhill school which fit with the theories of humanistic psychology. Go into as much detail as you can.... try to write more than half a page as a minimum.
Submit your assignment through the form on the home page. Evaluating Summerhill School
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Evaluating humanistic theories of education...
Strengths
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Weaknesses
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Exam tip... It's not always one thing or the other!
When writing evaluative essays (question 2B in the exam), the best answers will understand that there is a grey area between two different theories. For example, just because there are problems with one part of a theory does not mean that all of its ideas are worthless, or that the competing explanation is completely right!
FOR EXAMPLE: There are many criticisms of humanistic ideas in education, and it seems fairly clear that schools run entirely along humanistic lines (e.g. Summerhill) do not achieve the exam results of 'normal' schools... but this doesn't mean that they are all bad! There may be some types of children (creative, artistic etc) who benefit greatly from such an environment. Also, just because 'libertarian schools' such as Summerhill don't do as well in exams, that doesn't mean that there aren't any humanistic ideas which can be valuable to education. Co-operative learning can be an effective learning tool in the hands of a good and organised teacher. Also, some other humanistic ideas, such as non-grading (not putting grades on regular school work or reports, just focusing on learning targets) is increasingly supported by evidence showing that it can have positive effects (e.g. Gutierrez & Slavin, 1992). The key is that you can understand the nuance of the arguments - that there might be value in both theories that you are discussing. Good teachers will use a range of methods from a number of different theoretical viewpoints, depending on the specific requirements of each lesson. |
The Parable of the Two Chefs...Once upon a time there were two chefs working in the same kitchen. One thought that the quality of a dish depended on using the best available recipe and the other that the best dishes depended on the quality and freshness of the ingredients. Each chef tried to persuade the customers with vivid arguments and experiments to prove their case. Everyone who ate in the restaurant was persuaded by one of the two chefs, and insisted that their preferred chef prepared their food.
Then one day a little girl came into the restaurant, who listened attentively to both chefs before announcing that she would like her dishes prepared with the ingredients from the chef who believed in the importance of ingredients, but prepared with the recipe of the chef who believed in the importance of recipes. She ate very well indeed. This story clearly illustrates how using a combination of approaches is often better than just sticking to one idea repeatedly.
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Assignment 4 - Writing a 2a) essay on the humanistic approachHere is a sample 2a) question from the exam paper:
You should aim to write at least a side of A4 in response to this question. The mark scheme is given to the right. Make sure you follow its advice. Plan your response, then hand write it and hand it in to me. |
Bullet point 3 - Cognitive applications to learning
• cognitive applications to learning
Underlying theory (e.g. Piaget); applications such as discovery learning (Bruner); expository teaching/reception learning (Ausubel); zone of proximal development (Vygotsky)
Underlying theory (e.g. Piaget); applications such as discovery learning (Bruner); expository teaching/reception learning (Ausubel); zone of proximal development (Vygotsky)
Jean Piaget and schemas - background
Although he might look a bit like an extra from Lord of the Rings, Jean Piaget was a brilliant and visionary scientist. Piaget was one of the first researchers to see that children thought differently to adults. Previously it had been thought that children simply displayed less developed (i.e. stupider) versions of adult thought, but Piaget showed that they thought in entirely different ways to adults, as well as showing how interesting this difference was in helping us to understand both children and adults.
One of Piaget's main ideas, which is very relevant to Educational Psychology, is schemas. Piaget studied how schemas formed, and the process by which they changed. These processes are excellently summarised on Saul McLeod's site here. In particular, use the very clear interactive graphic halfway down the page to watch how schemas could develop and change, through processes such as accommodation and assimilation. When our schemas work to accurately describe the world we live in, we are said to be in a state of equilibrium, but if they don't then we are in disequilibrium, and must respond by making adjustments to our schemas in some way.
Another key Piaget idea is that we develop in stages. This is very relevant to primary education, but less so for secondary education (which we are more focused on in this unit).
One of Piaget's main ideas, which is very relevant to Educational Psychology, is schemas. Piaget studied how schemas formed, and the process by which they changed. These processes are excellently summarised on Saul McLeod's site here. In particular, use the very clear interactive graphic halfway down the page to watch how schemas could develop and change, through processes such as accommodation and assimilation. When our schemas work to accurately describe the world we live in, we are said to be in a state of equilibrium, but if they don't then we are in disequilibrium, and must respond by making adjustments to our schemas in some way.
Another key Piaget idea is that we develop in stages. This is very relevant to primary education, but less so for secondary education (which we are more focused on in this unit).
Piaget's schemas - test yourselfWrite a paragraph describing a child adapting its understanding of the world due to an experience it has had. Make sure you use the correct terms:
–Schema –Assimilation –Disequilibrium –Accommodation –Equilibrium |
Applying Piaget to educationPiaget's ideas have been hugely influential in education. As we will see, theorists such as Bruner and Ausubel would develop his ideas further. Here are a couple of key educational ideas to take away from Piaget's work:
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Bruner's discovery learning
Think about the implications of Piaget's theory for education. How would you arrange a classroom and teach lessons to best make use of these ideas? Jerome Bruner thought about this question too. The result was a system called discovery learning. Bruner's thinking went as follows:
Children make their own versions of reality. Therefore the point of an education system should be to help them discover their own meanings. Schools should therefore encourage the discovery of relationships. The best thing for a teacher to do, therefore, is to present information, not in its final form, but in a form where the child is required to organise it themselves.
The bold text above is the definition of discovery learning. In other words the student is not provided with an exact answer but rather the materials in order to find the answer themselves.
Examples of discovery learning activities:
Children make their own versions of reality. Therefore the point of an education system should be to help them discover their own meanings. Schools should therefore encourage the discovery of relationships. The best thing for a teacher to do, therefore, is to present information, not in its final form, but in a form where the child is required to organise it themselves.
The bold text above is the definition of discovery learning. In other words the student is not provided with an exact answer but rather the materials in order to find the answer themselves.
Examples of discovery learning activities:
- Students are given a map and told that they need to establish a settlement. Where would they do it? (This will require research about the ideal conditions for settlements, the conditions required etc).
- Alia has a new car, but she doesn't understand how the engine works. Can you design a program to educate her?
Assignment 5 - Discovery learning through discovery learning!Have a go at this computer exercise which introduces the ideas of discovery learning and asks you to analyse situations to decide if they are examples of discovery learning or not.
Complete the six questions on the page, and submit to me. |
Advantages
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Disadvantages
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Ausubel's expository teaching/reception learningAusubel would see Bruner's ideas as being too time-consuming to be used very often. Would you be happy to have to discovery learn all the material for your A-Levels? It might be useful for younger children, but by secondary school age we need to know complex, abstract information and we need to know it quickly. More often, Ausubel believed, children need to be given the material that they need to know. This is the basis for reception learning, which Ausubel classed as an alternative to discovery learning. In his own words, reception learning is where "the entire content of what is to be learned is presented to the learner in its final form".
Just like Bruner and Piaget, Ausubel believed that learning meant establishing a relationship between old and new material, it's just that he thought that the relationships should be made clear by the teacher. Ausubel, slightly irritatingly, called this type of learning subsumption, and he distinguished two types of it.
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Great teaching, Ausubel style...Again, the challenge for you is to be able to show how the theory can be applied to the classroom. So what is it that teachers should be doing, according to Ausubel?
1. Causing correlative subsumption. Correlative subsumption leads to more effective learning (as it causes schemas to be rearranged and updated). A teacher's job, therefore, is to cause children conflict, to force them to change the way they look st the world by presenting them with new information. E.g. "There are no giant insects on the planet... but there used to be. Why?" 2. Using advance organisers Advance organisers are general ideas that the students are presented with at the start of the lesson. They serve as a reminder to the students of what has been covered and help to place the new material in the context of the old. Students should be more able to see the relationship between the new and old material. E.g. The diagram on the right is an example of a graphic advance organiser. An example of a verbal advance organiser might be a teacher saying "Right, now remember what we did last time on the three different psychological approaches to education. At some point in this lesson I will be asking you to tell me three similarities and three differences between each approach. Make sure you are able to answer these questions." |
Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development
Lev Vygotsky's career is a great example of how science cannot escape political feuds and rivalries. Despite being born in the same year as Piaget, and doing much of his work at the same time as Piaget was publishing his ideas, his work remained little known (especially in the West) because it was banned by Stalin after Vygotsky’s death. Only with the gradual opening up of the Soviet Union in the 1970s was there greater dialogue between Western and Russian scientists, leading to Vygotsky’s work being translated into
English.
Vygotsky's main idea is that many theories (including Piaget's and Bruner's) underestimated the idea of culture and the social environment on what a child learns. Think of Bruner's ideas of learning, with the child self-discovering and finding their own way of interpreting the world. They are pretty much on their own in this process, in fact Piaget used the phrase "lone scientist" to describe how children learned.
Vygotsky disagreed. For him a child was not a lone scientist, but a "little apprentice", someone who learnt not from discovering the answers for themselves but from watching and being coached by other people, and from relying on other people to help us learn new things.
In order to explain how the people around us could help us to learn new things, Vygotsky created the idea of a zone of proximal development (ZPD).
Vygotsky's main idea is that many theories (including Piaget's and Bruner's) underestimated the idea of culture and the social environment on what a child learns. Think of Bruner's ideas of learning, with the child self-discovering and finding their own way of interpreting the world. They are pretty much on their own in this process, in fact Piaget used the phrase "lone scientist" to describe how children learned.
Vygotsky disagreed. For him a child was not a lone scientist, but a "little apprentice", someone who learnt not from discovering the answers for themselves but from watching and being coached by other people, and from relying on other people to help us learn new things.
In order to explain how the people around us could help us to learn new things, Vygotsky created the idea of a zone of proximal development (ZPD).
The ZPDAn important principle of Vygotsky’s work if the zone of proximal development (ZPD). The ZPD can be defined as the difference between what a child can achieve on their own in problem solving and what can be achieved with the help of an adult or peer (Butterworth & Harris 1994).
For example, a child could not solve a jigsaw puzzle by itself and would have taken a long time to do so (if at all), but was able to solve it following interaction with an adult. The adults or peers who are more knowledgable or experienced than the student (the ones who can give them guidance) are known as more knowledgable others, or MKOs. The support provided by MKOs for the student is known as scaffolding, a term also used by Bruner. The idea that guidance in the form of scaffolding improves cognitive development – supported by Conner, Knight and Cross (1997) who demonstrated that in follow-up sessions, children who had received good scaffolding performed better than children who had received poor scaffolding. |
Applying Vygotsky to education...Vygotsky's ideas have a number of implications for classroom practice:
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Evaluating Vygotsky's theory
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Assignment 6 - answer these questionsReview your notes and the information here, and then answer these questions in as much detail as you can from memory:
Type your answers and submit them through the form on the home page. |
Assignment 7 - writing a 2a) essay on the cognitive approachHere is a sample 2a) question from the exam paper:
You should aim to write at least a side of A4 in response to this question. The mark scheme is the same as is given above for the behaviourist and humanistic essays. Make sure you follow its advice. Plan your response, then hand write it and hand it in to me. |
Cognitive conclusions
The four theories that you need to know for the cognitive approach to education can seem confusing when viewed all together, but remember that they all still share the same basic ideas (see the assumptions section). Piaget, Bruner and Ausubel's ideas can be seen as very closely linked and developments of each other, with Vygotsky's being more independent. If you are able to compare and contrast them clearly, then you will be able to write an effective essay on the topic.
General strengths of the cognitive approach to education
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General weaknesses of the cognitive approach to education
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End of section essay writing exercise - introducing question 2b)
Although you've written 2a) 'describe' essays for each of the three sections above, in reality you won't be asked this in the exam. You will get an essay on the whole section. The essay will have two parts, a 'describe' section and an 'evaluate' section. We'll now start looking at the 2b) 'evaluate' question as well.
2 a) Describe how psychological perspectives have been applied to education. [8]
2 b) Evaluate how psychological perspectives have been applied to education and include a discussion of ethics. [12]
First read this document, which covers the skills that we want you to learn when approaching these questions. In summary, you need to try to mention a range of information in question a), so try to mention things from all three bullet points in the specification (so here, something from each of the three approaches). For the question b), try to evaluate using issues and debates (same ones as from AS level). On this page, issues such as reductionism, determinism, ethics, data collection methods, scientific-ness, objectivity and other have been mentioned. Use these in your evaluations! Remember to use a PEE format if you find it helpful.
One final point. Make sure you answer the specific question asked! The 2 b) question will always have a little extra requirement in it, where it will ask you to focus your discussion on one specific area or issue. Here is it ethics. At least a paragraph should consequently be devoted to discussing the ethics of these approaches.
Generic mark schemes are given below. Read them carefully before you start writing and make sure your essays fulfill all the requirements. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
2 a) Describe how psychological perspectives have been applied to education. [8]
2 b) Evaluate how psychological perspectives have been applied to education and include a discussion of ethics. [12]
First read this document, which covers the skills that we want you to learn when approaching these questions. In summary, you need to try to mention a range of information in question a), so try to mention things from all three bullet points in the specification (so here, something from each of the three approaches). For the question b), try to evaluate using issues and debates (same ones as from AS level). On this page, issues such as reductionism, determinism, ethics, data collection methods, scientific-ness, objectivity and other have been mentioned. Use these in your evaluations! Remember to use a PEE format if you find it helpful.
One final point. Make sure you answer the specific question asked! The 2 b) question will always have a little extra requirement in it, where it will ask you to focus your discussion on one specific area or issue. Here is it ethics. At least a paragraph should consequently be devoted to discussing the ethics of these approaches.
Generic mark schemes are given below. Read them carefully before you start writing and make sure your essays fulfill all the requirements. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
End of section essay writing exercise - Introducing Section C
Section C in your exam always consists of two questions, one 6 mark recall question and one 8 mark application question. There are always two of these types of question, and you need to choose one.
3 a) Describe the key features of one psychological perspective on education. [6]
3 b) Giving reasons for you answer; suggest how your chosen perspective could be used to teach science. [8]
The first question is a straightforward recall question. This is the longest question you will get which could focus on just a single theory. You need to write about half a page, so a simple revision check is to make sure that you can write half a page of description about every idea/theory/study that is specifically mentioned in the specification.
The second question allows you to be creative. There is no single right answer. All you have to do is give practical and specific ideas for how you might implement the theory you have described in the first question into the scenario they give you. About a page should be a good length.
Here you have to suggest how the perspective could be used to teach science. You therefore need to make sure that you are specifically referring to ideas for teaching a science lesson. Pick a simple science topic (e.g. water etc), and design a lesson or a few lessons according to the principles of the approach you've chosen. It takes some getting used to writing this way, but it is an area that, with a little bit of practice, you will be able to do very well on.
Have a go at the questions above. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
3 a) Describe the key features of one psychological perspective on education. [6]
3 b) Giving reasons for you answer; suggest how your chosen perspective could be used to teach science. [8]
The first question is a straightforward recall question. This is the longest question you will get which could focus on just a single theory. You need to write about half a page, so a simple revision check is to make sure that you can write half a page of description about every idea/theory/study that is specifically mentioned in the specification.
The second question allows you to be creative. There is no single right answer. All you have to do is give practical and specific ideas for how you might implement the theory you have described in the first question into the scenario they give you. About a page should be a good length.
Here you have to suggest how the perspective could be used to teach science. You therefore need to make sure that you are specifically referring to ideas for teaching a science lesson. Pick a simple science topic (e.g. water etc), and design a lesson or a few lessons according to the principles of the approach you've chosen. It takes some getting used to writing this way, but it is an area that, with a little bit of practice, you will be able to do very well on.
Have a go at the questions above. Please submit your essays through the form on the home page.
Revision
Create a key words list for the three approaches to education. If you want, create a more interactive revision resource through the use of a Classtools 'Brainybox'. |
ExtensionOperant conditioning might seem a slightly outdated theory in these days of brain scans and neuroscience... but it's still very powerful. Gambling machines are still designed to reward people along the same schedules that Skinner discovered. Here is a video taking about the use of operant conditioning schedules in video games...
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