Educational Psychology
What Is Educational Psychology?
Educational Psychologists normally have a bachelor's degree in a related discipline, such as psychology, and have studied at a higher level, frequently earning a doctorate in Educational Psychology. While many work in education or do research at institutions such as universities, others work in clinical practice and visit both public and private patients, typically when a child's teachers and/or parents are worried that the kid may have special educational requirements of some kind.
Educational psychologists may identify learning disorders such as dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), as well as assist persons with and without learning difficulties in maximizing their learning potential by adapting their approach to their unique requirements. While educational psychologists typically diagnose and work with children, these conditions are sometimes diagnosed in adults, and Educational Psychologists can play an important role in adult education and developing techniques to manage a learning disability and mitigate its impact on an individual's life.
Applications Of Educational Psychology
Educational psychologists frequently collaborate with professionals from related fields, such as social work, psychiatry, childcare, education, and speech therapy, to address problems raised by their clients—typically youngsters in the education system—and to address problems with societal and individual implications, such as early school leavers and how to maximize educational outcomes in general. They frequently deal with applications of behavior analysis, such as investigating how incentive systems might be used in the classroom or with people to encourage children and assist them in learning, or investigating how problem-solving skills are mastered and used in the context of learning. They can, for example, work with gifted children who may require a different approach to learning in order to maximize their potential and avoid becoming disruptive or disheartened, as well as classrooms of children from very diverse cultural, linguistic, and social backgrounds who may present some challenges in terms of finding an appropriate approach to teaching them.
Educational psychologists assist students who are having difficulty finding learning methods that work for them. Currently, a variety of technological approaches can assist students with a variety of learning needs, and Educational Psychologists can collaborate with their teachers to help them find the most appropriate approach, which could include using an iPad instead of books or engaging in distance learning, for example. Because technology is evolving so quickly, this is an interesting and ever-changing field of research and practice.
Educational psychologists may also assist instructors and students in developing a constructive connection in which both sides can collaborate to obtain the greatest learning outcomes possible.