Psychology and Education Psychology and Education provides a user-friendly introduction to educational psychology. The book covers psychological theories and their practical applications in education. Susan Bentham has written an ideal guide to this topic for students studying the OCR A level specification. The book will also be relevant to those studying the Edexcel specification and to those with a general interest in education and learning. The book covers the cognitive, behaviourist and humanistic perspectives on learning, including the works of Piaget, Vygotsky, Bruner and others, and describes the practical application of these theories. The assessment of educational performance is covered and the cultural and dev elopmental factors affecting performance are discussed. Chapters on the special educational needs of the educationally disadvantaged and gifted, and on disruptive behaviour in school are included, with sections on ADHD, autism and dyslexia. The book also discusses teaching and learning styles, and the design and layout of educational environments. The book requires little or no background knowledge and makes an ideal introduction for students of psychology, trainee teachers, child carers and anyone who is interested in what is happening in today’s schools. Susan Bentham is an experienced Psychology A level teacher and examiner for the AQA examination board. Routledge Modular Psychology Series editors: Cara Flanagan is a Reviser for AS and A2 level Psychology and lectures at Inverness College. Philip Banyard is Associate Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Nottingham Trent University and a Chief Examiner for AS and A2 level Psychology. Both are experienced writers. The Routledge Modular Psychology series is a completely new approach to introductory-level psychology, tailor-made to the new modular style of teaching. Each short book covers a topic in more detail than any large textbook can, allowing teacher and student to select material exactly to suit any particular course or project. The books have been written especially for those students new to higher-level study, whether at school, college or university. They include specially designed features to help with technique, such as a model essay at an average level with an examiner’s comments to show how extra marks can be gained. The authors are all examiners and teachers at the introductory level. The Routledge Modular Psychology texts are all user-friendly and accessible and include the following features: (cid:127) practice essays with specialist commentary to show how to achieve a higher grade (cid:127) chapter summaries to assist with revision (cid:127) progress and review exercises (cid:127) glossary of key terms (cid:127) summaries of key research (cid:127) further reading to stimulate ongoing study and research (cid:127) cross-referencing to other books in the series Also available in this series (titles listed by syllabus section): ATYPICAL DEVELOPMENT AND Introducing Research and Data in ABNORMAL BEHAVIOUR Psychology: A guide to methods and analysis Psychopathology Ann Searle John D.Stirling and Jonathan S.E.Hellewell Theoretical Approaches in Therapeutic Approaches in Psychology Psychology Matt Jarvis Susan Cave Debates in Psychology Classification and Diagnosis of Andy Bell (forthcoming) Abnormal Psychology Susan Cave SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY BIO-PSYCHOLOGY Social Influences Kevin Wren Cortical Functions John Stirling Interpersonal Relationships Diana Dwyer The Physiological Basis of Behaviour: Neural and hormonal Social Cognition processes Donald C.Pennington Kevin Silber COMPARATIVE PSYCHOLOGY Awareness: Biorhythms, sleep and dreaming The Determinants of Animal Evie Bentley Behaviour JoAnne Cartwright (forthcoming) C OGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY Evolutionary Explanations of Memory and Forgetting Human Behaviour John Henderson John Cartwright Perception: Theory, development Animal Cognition and organisation Nick Lund (forthcoming) Paul Rookes and Jane Willson OTHER TITLES Attention and Pattern Recognition Nick Lund Sport Psychology Matt Jarvis D EVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY Health Psychology Early Socialisation: Sociability and Anthony Curtis attachment Psychology and Work Cara Flanagan Christine Hodson Social and Personality Psychology and Crime Development David Putwain and Aidan Sammons Tina Abbott (forthcoming) P ERSPECTIVES AND RESEARCH S TUDY GUIDE Controversies in Psychology Exam Success in AQA(A) Philip Banyard Psychology Ethical Issues and Guidelines in Paul Humphreys (forthcoming) Psychology Cara Flanagan and Philip Banyard (forthcoming) To the memory of my mother, Patricia Byrne, a very special lady! Psychology and Education Susan Bentham First published 2002 by Routledge 27 Church Road, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 2FA Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor and Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2002. © 2002 Susan Bentham Cover design by Terry Foley All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN 0-203-46571-7 Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-77395-0 (Adobe eReader Format) ISBN 0-415-22762-3 (hbk) ISBN 0-415-22763-1 (pbk) Contents List of illustrations xi Acknowledgements xiii 1 Perspectives on learning: the cognitive approach 1 Introduction 1 Piaget 1 Vygotsky 10 Bruner 11 Applications 12 Summary 18 2 Perspectives on learning: the behaviourist and humanistic approaches 21 Introduction 21 Behaviourist approach 21 Applications of behaviourism 25 Humanistic approach 29 Applications of the humanistic approach 32 Summary 35 3 Assessing educational performance 37 Introduction 37 vii CONTENTS What is psychometrics? 38 Types of psychometric tests 39 Value of psychometric tests 43 Limitations of psychometric tests 44 Types of performance assessments at different ages: the National Curriculum and Key Stages 46 Specific ways in which educational performance can be assessed 46 Value and limitations of assessment 49 Implications of assessment and categorisation 56 Summary 60 4 Special educational needs 61 Introduction 61 Definitions of special educational need 62 A global approach to assessment 62 Who has special needs? 64 Overview of some specific types of learning disabilities 64 Strategies for educating children with special needs 65 Dyslexia 71 Gifted children 77 Summary 79 \ 5 Cultural and gender diversity 81 Introduction 81 Differences in educational performance 82 Gender 82 Other factors 85 Explanations for differential performance 87 Why have girls succeeded? 88 Why do some students from lower social classes and ethnic groups underachieve? 90 Why do some beat the odds? 91 Why do some boys underachieve despite benefits from social class? 91 Strategies for improving educational performance 92 Summary 95 viii CONTENTS 6 Learning and teaching styles 97 Introduction 97 Definitions 98 Theories 101 Measurement of learning styles 103 Individual differences in learning styles 106 Improving learning effectiveness and study skills 108 Summary 116 7 Motivation 119 Introduction 119 Definitions 120 Types 120 Theories 121 Attribution theory 127 Learned helplessness 129 Improving motivation and reducing learned helplessness 130 Summary 133 8 Disruptive behaviour in school 135 Introduction 135 Definitions and types 136 Effects 137 Diagnosis 13 9 Explanations/causes/interventions 139 Summary 148 9 Design and layout of educational environments 151 Introduction 151 Environmental psychology 152 Physical features of the learning environment 152 Effects of physical features on performance and feelings 153 Creating better environmental conditions for learning 159 Summary 162 ix