Educational Psychologists Unique Role of Promoting Learning and Development

ABSTRACT

Educational psychologists work in the community in partnership with other professionals and families to help children achieve their full academic and development potential. Educational psychologists support local authorities and schools to improve all young people learning experiences. Studies reveal that psychology had changed the educational spirit and has given learning new learning. In the modern education and era, education psychology had become the education foundation and influenced young people's education in every aspect of the curriculum. Over the years, researchers have proposed the role and objective of educational psychology and the purpose of the field for the practice of learning and teaching (Frederickson et al., 2015). However, according to Roth and Jornet (2017), educational psychologists have more trouble explaining their role and why educators should acknowledge their role. However, educational psychologists utilize their training in children's development training to determine the challenges children have in their education. Moreover, they offer training and advice on how schools might help young people learn and develop. Similarly, to promote young people's education, they recommend strategies and methods in partnership with schools to allow them to learn more effectively. Educational psychologists' techniques in helping young people include teaching approaches, advice on curriculum materials, improvements to learning environments, and behavior support. Therefore, their role in education is very vital. Therefore, this study will critically evaluate educational psychologists' role in their unique role of helping young people develop and learn.

Educational psychologists have a unique role in helping young children with the condition that makes them have learning difficulties and those with very young age. Children with low age and those with learning challenges need extra help to learn and develop. Therefore, an educational psychologist plays an essential role in early year’s children's development and learning. Frederickson et al. (2015) state that when children start to attend pre-school, they need additional support beyond everyday classroom teaching. Therefore, at a very young age, these professionals have a significant role in assessing a child who needs extra help. This assessment is part of daily learning and teaching activities. In this case, the educational psychologist also conducts further research on a child's needs. To assess children, psychologists often talk to children's current or previous teachers and parents and analyze children’s school work and learning strategies. Other educational psychologists' methods include observing the children in the classes, considering children's social and emotional behavior and development, and talking to the earners themselves. Therefore, it is evident that these professionals have a significant role in assessing and supporting young people's development and education. To assess and support children, psychologists use models of human development to understand learners’ educational needs. While interacting with students, teachers, and students learning environment, psychologists learn a lot, and the knowledge becomes an essential part of their work. Therefore, by observing how students learn in various settings, they can identify strategies and approaches to make learning more effective and help in child development. Similarly, Frederickson et al. (2015) state that one of the psychologists' roles in assessing and diagnosing young people with respect to the level of activity and challenging behavior. The study also reveals that children with a high level of problematic behavior may be considered Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Therefore, educational psychologists are essential in assessing and helping in child development.

Moreover, school psychologists have transitioned from their traditional role and today make a significant contribution to helping early childhood teachers in professional development. The psychologists are positioned in schools to assist early childhood teachers in implementing evidence-based practices and create strong connections with other professionals. Through supporting novice teachers’ professional development, students’ development and assessment is achieved in the school environment. The support to early career teachers is achieved by helping them effectively manage class behavior concerns via the application of evidence-based practices. This strategy is vital since early childhood teachers rank learners who are misbehavior as the most complex, and stressful. Therefore, school psychologists’ expertise and training support these teachers in the domains of teaching that are challenging for them. Thus, psychologists enable teachers to accommodate complex learners and ensure that they develop effectively. Similarly, while teaching early childhood teachers to handle various students, school psychologists develop and test schools' intervention. For example, Practice-Based Evidence shows that training and evaluation of teachers are very vital. According to Lilienfeld et al. (2012), training plays an important role in shaping the profession by developing teachers' skills and practices. Through training, teachers develop necessary skills and allow for a greater emphasis on research and evaluation skills, thus promoting effective learning and skills development. Also, Practice-Based Evidence consists of practitioner evaluation which enables professionals to practice through reflection and audit. Therefore, the psychologist's role in the school, especially in children's learning and development, cannot be underestimated.

Furthermore, educational psychologists utilize their profession and knowledge to better teaching-learning environments, thus promoting learning and development. Psychologists in the education field research how people learn and retain knowledge. Therefore, via the application of psychological science research, there is an improvement in learning and promoting all students' educational success. According to Shakir and Sharma (2017), the education system is very complex; thus, no single learning approach suits every student. Therefore, psychologists play a significant role in research and identifying learning methods to better understand how people absorb and retain new information. According to Shakir and Sharma (2017), a psychologist in education advocates for research and engagement with an individual's reasoning, thinking, and decision-making.

To conclude, educational psychologists have an essential work in the community, especially their role of promoting learning and children's development. To achieve this role, these professionals’ partner with the community and other professionals to enable them to reach their full academic and development potential. Therefore, they have become an education foundation via their unique role and influenced young people's education in every aspect of the curriculum. Thus, though they have trouble explaining their role and why educators should acknowledge their role, Educational psychologists are significant in training children and their development since they help in researching and developing teaching approaches, improvements to learning environments, and children behavior support.

References

Frederickson, N., Miller, A., Cline, T., Gulliford, A. and Birch, S., 2015. Educational psychology. Routledge.

Lilienfeld, S.O., Ammirati, R. and David, M., 2012. Distinguishing science from pseudoscience in school psychology: Science and scientific thinking as safeguards against human error. Journal of School Psychology, 50(1), pp.7-36.

Roth, W.M. and Jornet, A., 2017. Understanding educational psychology. A late Vygotskian, Spinozist approach.

Shakir, M. and Sharma, S., 2017. Using Educational Psychology for Better Teaching-Learning Environment. International Journal of Education, 8, pp.20-28.

Continue your journey with our comprehensive guide to development psychology.