Educational Psychology by Anita Woolfolk

1. Educational Psychologyby Anita Woolfolk Chapter 1

2. Teaching after No Child Left Behind • January 2002, NCLB • Teaching will never be the same—no judgment! • Reauthorization of ESEA, 1965 • Age of Accountability • Each state’s HOUSSE (high objective uniform state standard of evaluation) • Age of Testing • All students in grades 3-8, plus one high school exam. Others to be added after 2002. • Age of making Adequate Yearly Progress • Age of being a “highly qualified teacher” • More to come on NCLB…………………….

3. Do Teachers Make a Difference? • 1966—Coleman Report—wealth and social status were noted as major factors determining learning in schools. • Effective Schools Research—refuted the Coleman Report. More to come on Effective Schools Research….. • Good teaching does make a difference in student learning: Three Studies on Teacher Effectiveness • Effective Teacher-Student relationships affect student learning. (Harme/Pianta-2001) K-8 study. Conclusions: the association between the quality of early teacher-child relationships and later school performance is both strong and persistent.

4. Do Teachers Make a Difference? • Teacher Preparation and Quality—Linda Darling-Hammond (2000) found that the quality of teachers (fully certified and majored in their teaching field) was related to teacher performance. • Tennessee math study of 5th graders: students with best teachers three years in a row (3,4,5)-83rd percentile in one district; 96th in another. Students with the least effective teachers scored 29th percentile and 44th percentile. All students benefit from good teachers, but particularly low achieving students. Effects were cumulative and residual.

5. What is good teaching?What are the qualities and characteristics of good teachers? • 1. • 2. • 3. • 4. • 5. • 6. • 7., 8., 9., 10, 11., 12., 13., 14., 15., 16., 17…..

6. Woolfolk’s take on “good teaching” • Expert Knowledge; they know content • General teaching strategies (effective classroom management, effective teaching, and evaluation) • Curriculum: the “what” of teaching • Subject-specific knowledge for teaching • Characteristics and cultural backgrounds of students. • The settings in which students learn—pairs, small groups, teams, classes, schools, and community • The goals and purposes of teaching • Self-knowledge (biases, strengths, blind spots)

7. Educational Psychology • Goals of educational psychology are to understand and to improve the teaching and learning process • Educational psychologists develop knowledge and methods. • Use knowledge and methods of psychology and other related disciplines to study learning and teaching in everyday situations.

8. Concerns of Beginning Teachers • Learning to teach is a gradual process. • The concerns and problems of teachers change as they progress. • Beginning years often focused on maintaining discipline, motivating students, evaluating students’ work, and dealing with parents. • More experienced teachers might focus on professional growth and effectiveness with a wide range of students.

9. There is so much to learn… …and so little time!