Educational Psychology

Goal: To study the determinants of human development from birth to adolescence with special reference to the effects of heredity and environment on the physical, cognitive, social, moral and emotional development of the child. The relationship between psychological principles and educational practice will be examined. Course Objectives On the completion of this course, students should be able to: - Know the human development from birth to adolescence. - Know the effect of heredity and environmental on the physical cognitive, social, moral and emotional development of the child. - Know the relation and application of psychological principles to educational practice with emphasis on Nigerian Post-primary institutions. CONTENT UNIT 1: Human growth and development.  Prenatal development  Factors affecting prenatal development  Principles of growth and development cephalo-caudal gradient proximodistal growth gradient. principle of complexity of growth e.g. simple to complex growth, principle of differentiation of growth, asynchronous growth. UNIT 2: Stages of development  Infancy  Childhood  Developmental milestone and tasks  Early and late adolescence etc  Adulthood UNIT 3: Different aspects of human growth and development.  Physical development  Mental/cognitive development.  Social development.  Emotional and moral development  Selected personality theories – Eric Erickson theory of psychosocial development, Sigmond Freud theory of psychoanalysis.  Determinants of personality UNIT 4: Concept and nature of learning Definition of learning Factors affecting learning Stages of learning: acquisition stage, retention and recall UNIT 5: Theories of learning  S-R theories Association theories – Thorndike theory of connectionism, Pavlov theory of classical conditioning, Skinner Operant conditioning  Cognitivist/Gestalts – Kofka and Kohler insightful learning UNIT 6: Psychological facilitation of learning  Motivation  Reinforcement  Imagination  Meaningfulness of learning materials UNIT 7: Maladjustment and mental health of learners  Poor study habit  Lack of concentration  Adjustment problems UNIT 8: Types of learners and implications on learning Gifted child Above average learner Average learners Under achievers