BSc Educational Psychology

The unit centres on school as an environment in which psychology can be used in different ways, by different people, for different reasons.  Students are encouraged to reflect on how/where/why psychology can be used in schools and how this data can be captured and examined.

Students will be presented with a pathway through the unit to facilitate virtual and/or physical options to ‘visit’ various aspects of school.  Options will depend on accessibility and availability of school placements and/or student’s own preferences and needs.   The pathway choices are (as far as possible) equivalent, address the same ILOs, and are interchangeable on a week by week basis. 

For both the physical and virtual strands, students will be supported in accessing forms of classroom observation, interviews with staff, and document analysis of in-situ policy documents.

School ‘visits’ are ‘sandwiched’ by seminars that orientate students towards the purposes of the unit, which is to develop students own reflection and enquiry skills in relation to the application of their own understanding of established Psychological frameworks.

Familiarise students with the school environment and it’s systems with an emphasis on responses to individual differences through a Psychological framework.

The approach adopted in this unit is primarily one of self-reflection and experiential learning in context.  This will be supported and guided through the use of face to face seminars and guided use of online material.  Students are to reflect on their understanding of Psychological frameworks introduced in the session (e.g. Vygotsky’s principles of scaffolding) and how they see these principles being applied in the school context.

Blackboard will be used as a blended learning environment where students can build their assignment by referencing their own understanding against established psychological theories.