What is Psychology?

• Educational psychology is important for understanding, this requires understanding psychology
• Psychology comes from the Greek words "psyche" (soul) and "logos" (science) and was initially defined as the "study of the soul"
• The "study of the soul" definition was replaced because the soul is metaphysical and cannot be studied scientifically

Study of Mind

• In 1892, William James defined psychology as the "study of mind"
• It was replaced due to the ambiguous nature of the mind's nature and function

Study of consciousness

• Psychology was defined as the "science of consciousness" by Willium Wundt
• This definition focused solely on the conscious level, ignoring the subconscious and unconscious

Study of behavior

• In 1905, William McDugall defined psychology as the "science of behavior"
• Behavior includes activities that are observed and measured scientifically and is shaped by experiences
• B.F. Skinner defined psychology as the science of behavior and experiences in human beings

Educational psychology

• The scientific study of behavior in educational settings
• A branch of psychology applying the results of psychology to education
• Skinner defined it as dealing with the behavior of human beings in educational situations
• Peel defined it as the study of education
• Educational psychology is the science of education like engineering
• Psychologists supply knowledge and skills to mold behavior in a desirable manner, creating a balanced personality
• Educational psychology understands teaching and learning in formal environments
• Topics include theories of learning, teaching methods, cognition, motivation, emotional intelligence, social development, and parent-child relationships

Nature of educational psychology

• Summarized through the following points

As science

• Employs objective methods for data collection
• This approach understands, predicts, and controls human behavior

As natural science

• Considered a natural science like biology
• Collects information and reaches conclusions scientifically

As social science

• Considered a social science, like sociology, anthropology, and political science
• Studies the behavior of human beings and their ability to be social

As positive science

• Considers facts as they are
• Studies the behavior of human beings as they are, without concern for how they "ought" to be

As applied science

• Applies the principles of psychology to education
• Tries to study and modify the behavior of individuals

As a developing science

• A growing field with new research leading to new principles and laws

Scope of educational psychology

• Aspects generally considered when studying the scope include:

Learner/student

• The content is woven around the learner
• Topics include inborn capabilities, individual differences and their measurement, characteristics of growth and development, and stages of growth and development

Learning experiences

• Helps in making decisions regarding desirable learning experiences
• Experiences learned with greater satisfaction

Learning process

• Includes the use of laws, principles, and theories of learning and motivation
• Considers items such as observing, thinking, reasoning, problem-solving, and transfer of learning

Learning environment

• Consists of ways of dealing with environmental situations for uniform teaching-learning
• Topics include classroom environment, group dynamics, techniques that assist learning, guidance, and counseling

Teacher

• Discusses the important role of teachers in learning
• Helps teachers understand students and themselves
• Covers topics such as the teacher's conflicts, motivation, anxiety, adjustment, aspiration level, personality traits, interests, and attitudes
• Can also cover underlying topics
• Investigates a child's growth and development at different stages, while also studying their characteristics
• Examines the contributions of heredity and environment
• Investigates personalities of individuals
• Deals with the nature and development of personality
• Examines individual differences, including how and why individuals are different
• Studies the concept of intelligence and its measurement
• Knowledge is important for teachers, providing help in guidance and counseling