Bioecological Theory of Development

Cluster three in Anita Woolfolk's textbook Educational Psychology, discusses a lot about childhood development, both motor and physical.  It was interesting to read about how children develop and mature differently and how they mature can affect their social relationships.  I was particularly interested in Urie Bronfenbrenner's discussion of development occurring though environmental interactions.  This does not specifically mean interaction in nature, but more so interactions that occur between your immediate environment such as family, friends, or school.  The concept goes further to discuss how interactions between oneself and the cultural environment they can in can shape their development.  Cluster three also touches on how self-concept develops and how self-concept develops through self-evaluations in different situations.  I think the idea of self-concept is very important for the developing child.  A child with poor self esteem and self-concept may have difficulty focusing in class because they are not confident in themselves and their abilities.  

source: geopolicraticus.wordpress.com

Check out this video about Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model

What does the term intelligence really mean?

The term intelligence can mean different things to different people.  In Educational Psychology, Anita Woolfolk (2013) identifies intelligence as the “ability or abilities to acquire and use knowledge for solving problems and adapting to the world” (p. 119).  The concept of intelligence has been around since the time of Plato.  Typically, early theories of intelligence were based around one or more themes of intelligence.  These themes were identified as an individual’s capacity to learn, the total knowledge that a person acquired, and their ability to adapt to new situations and to the environment (Woolfolk, 2013).  Newer definitions of intelligence include not only the theories of intelligence, but also stress higher-order thinking.  I have not ever knows someone who was considered to be really smart or have above average intelligence.    

Intelligence is often measured through IQ tests.  Woolfolk (2013) indicates that “even though psychologists do not agree about what intelligence is, they do agree that intelligence, as measure by standardized tests, is related to learning in school” (p. 124).   Alfred Binet and his associate, Theodore Simon, were instructed with the task to identify children early on who will require special instruction and extra help to succeed in school.  Binet and Simon wanted to devise a way to measure not only school achievements, but also which intellectual skills students needed to do well in school.  Binet and Simon created a test that would allow for a person’s mental age to be determined from administering the test.  This test evolved to become a type of IQ test that is still administered today.  Woolfolk (2013) indicated that standard IQ test scores only evaluate an individual’s analytical IQ, not their practical or creative abilities.  It is suggested that “IQ test scores can provide some prediction of achievement, but if measures of self-regulated learning skills, practical intelligence, and creativity are included, more accurate predictions are likely” (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 126).  

                                        

Source: blog.lib.umn.edu

References

Woolfolk, A. (2013). Educational Psychology (12^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

What are Kohlberg's Stages of Moral Development

As we grow, develop and create or own identity, we are also learning what is considered to be right and wrong.  Determining and thinking about right and wrong is part of our moral reasoning (Woolfolk, 2013).  Lawrence Kohlberg developed a theory of moral development, which is partially based on Piaget’s ideas, and aimed to evaluate the moral reasoning in both children and adults. 

Kohlberg evaluated moral reasoning by placing both children and adults in moral dilemmas, or hypothetical situations, and evaluating their responses. According to Woolfolk (2013) a moral dilemma is a “situation in which no choice is clearly and indisputably right” (p. 100).  He used the information he gained from his observations and evaluated how individuals based their reasoning and decision making to come up with his Stages of Moral Development.  He divided his theory of moral development into three different stages, the preconventional, conventional, and postconventional stage. 

Woolfolk (2013) discussed that in Kohlberg’s preconventional level, “judgment is based solely on a person’s own needs and perceptions.  The two stages that make up the preconventional level are the Obedience Orientation and Rewards/Exchange Orientation. Essentially in Obedience Orientation the individual will adhere to the rules in order to avoid punishment.  While in the Rewards/Exchange Orientation right and wrong is determined based on what the individual wants.  Level two, the conventional level, considers what the expectations of society are and what the laws are.  The conventional level can further be broken into the Being Nice/Relationships Orientation and the Law and Order Orientation.  In the Being Nice/Relationships Orientation, in order for the individual to be good, he or she must be nice to others. While in the Law and Order Orientation, the social system must be kept in order and laws and authority must be obeyed.  Finally, Kohlberg’s third level of his Moral Development is the postconventional stage in which judgments are based on the person’s principles of justice, not according to laws or rules suggested by society.  The postconventional stage can be further divided into the Social Contract Orientation and the Universal Ethical Principles Orientation.  In Social Contract Orientation, social standards determine what the moral choice is.  In the Universal Ethical Principles Orientation, “there are universal principles of human dignity and social justice that individuals should uphold, no matter what the law of other people say” (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 101).

Kohlberg aimed to make a theory of moral development that evaluated what both children and adults did when facing a hypothetical moral dilemma.  A persons moral reasoning is related to both “cognitive and emotional development” (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 101).  As a person moves up through the stages of Kohlberg’s moral development, a person’s decision making process goes from evaluating and obeying the rules and laws to thinking in more conceptual ways.  

References

Woolfolk, A. (2013). Educational Psychology (12^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

The Role of Educational Psychologists

Whenever someone thinks of research, they typically think of research being done for science, or to test an experiment.  However, research can also be done in education to better understand teaching and learning.  Additionally, educational psychology has been around for over one hundred years.  But what does the term educational psychology mean, and how can we utilize educational psychology in our teaching?

In Educational Psychology, Anita Woolfolk (2013) defines educational psychology as being a “distinct discipline with its own theories, research methods, problems, and techniques” (p. 12).  Woolfolk (2013) indicates that educational psychologists strive to improve the educational practice and do research on teaching and learning.  Essentially, educational psychologists study what happens when someone teaches something to someone else in a particular setting.  That could mean a teacher teaching something to a student in the classroom, or a parent teaching something to a child at home.  Woolfolk (2013) and other authors suggests that the role of educational psychologists is to examine the development of children and adolescents.  They also consider how individuals are motivated, how they learn and master different subjects, the cultural and social aspects that influence their learning, and how children are affected by assessments and testing.

Research that is conducted can be used to help influence, understand, and improve our teaching.  There are several forms of research that can be used by educational psychologists that are typically conducted on a large scale—specifically, descriptive studies, experimental studies, and correlation studies.  The information that is discovered in these studies can help teachers to see different methods and ways to best teach their students.  Another type of research that can be used on a small scale level is action research.  Woolfolk (2013) defines action research as the “systematic observations or tests of methods conducted by teachers or schools to improve teaching and learning for their students” (p. 16).  In action research the “same kind of careful observation, intervention, data gathering, and analysis that occurs in large research projects can be applied in any classroom to answer questions” (Woolfolk, 2013, p. 16) regarding student learning.  Action research can help to answer questions like which writing prompt works best, are students responding better to visual or listening learning techniques, what techniques lead to the most class involvement in discussion, and so on.  Being able to answer questions such as this, and even doing action research pertaining to a specific individual in the classroom, a teacher is better able to differentiate his or her teaching to effectively reach all of his or her students.

Educational psychology and research have been around for many years and can be extremely useful to educators.  In addition to a teacher conducting action research in his or her classroom to better teach and engage his or her students, a teacher can also look at research that has been conducted on a larger scale.  Interpreting this research and then utilizing the techniques in the classroom will help teachers to improve their teaching abilities, engage their students better, and provide a more meaningful and effective teaching strategy.

References

Woolfolk, A. (2013). Educational Psychology (12^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc.

So How did I do?

For my theorist project I taught a lesson on Urie Bronfenbrenner.  Before doing this project I had never heard of this educational psychologist, but, after doing some research I found I am very interested in what he has to say!  Bronfenbrenner's theory on development is one that I can understand, process, and relate too.  His bioecologial model of development focuses on how the changes and interactions that occur within our surrounding environment have an affect on our development.  He do not only refer to the environment as being nature, but the social environment we live and work in.  I found this powerpoint to be a great experience and I loved teaching about it.  It felt great to hear and see my peers being interested in something that I was explaining to them.  Click here to check out my powerpoint on Urie Bronfenbrenner!  After teaching my lesson, I had the other students in my class complete an assessment to see how much they learned about Urie Bronfenbrenner and his bioecological model.  Check out the results below! 

Summary

What type of model did Bronfenbrenner create?

Bioecological	6	86%
Biological	0	0%
Sociological	1	14%
He didn't create a model	0	0%

Bronfenbrenner is known for helping to found which program?

Race to the Top	0	0%
Head Start	7	100%
No Child Left Behind	0	0%
ObamaCare	0	0%

What does the chronosystem encompass?

immediate relationships	0	0%
relationships between the teacher and the school administration	0	0%
the individual	0	0%
the time period	7	100%

Where was Bronfenbrenner born?

Slovakia	7	100%
United States	0	0%
France	0	0%
Sweden	0	0%

What is your opinion of the model presented by Urie Bronfenbrenner and do you think it is a valid model. Why or why not?

I think it is a valid model. Not many models include self and what self gives off and receives in return. It is also good to see the model illustrated I am a visual person so seeing a model in a model was a great touch. I think his model is valid for the main reason (and opinion) that we as individuals develop through social interaction. Importantly, as teachers, we should be cognizant of these interactions especially with our students and identify situations where there may be concern. The model presented represents how the environment interacts with each individual. I think it is valid because the examples provided make logical sense when you reflect on them. I thought it was great. I loved the layers in his system and how they can impact a person, even if it seems insignificant. I think it is very valid because it makes sense and the research supports it. My opinion on his model is that it is interesting. At first, the ideas seemed like general knowledge, but it made me look deeper into how certain people, events, groups, geographic locations, etc effect us and our development. I do think this is a valid model that takes several different life aspects into consideration. I thought the model presented by Urie Bronfenbrenner was spot on with the layers. I never really thought of how each individual thing affects us. After looking at this model I compared it to a real life situation I just had. I had a wedding in Hawaii this past week that I had to grow accustomed to the culture and way of life down there. Coming back yesterday to the city was very overwhelming for me and I had a hard time getting use to the environment and the culture that surrounded me. I think the model that Bronfenbrenner presented was a very valid model. It really made sense, especially with the interactions between people. Great job Lisa!