BSc Psychology

In this course unit, we focus on how children learn to communicate in the real world, with a particular emphasis on the communicative skills needed for survival and success in educational settings.  

In the first half of this module, we consider how children learn to use the kinds of complex language needed in the classroom; to what extent language learning is impacted in atypical populations (e.g. autism, DLD); how language interventions can support children’s learning; how cross-linguistic differences might impact children’s use of the language of the classroom.  

In the second half of this module, we consider the challenges and benefits of bilingual language development; how children’ engage in mind-reading for successful communication; and how children’ reason with one another, collaboratively think and solve problems with other individuals such as peers.

This is an optional Final Year unit for the BSc Psychology programme. 

This unit aims to:

• Build on students’ knowledge of how children develop the skills needed to communicate during the pre-school years.
• Consider the particular challenges for communicative success posed by the academic language used in education, and how children’s developing knowledge of language might support or impede success.
• Introduce students to empirical research and theoretical models relating to developmental disorders which impact on communicative development.
• Examine how language interventions can support children’s development.
• Consider how the different language backgrounds children experience can impact on communication in the classroom.
• Examine bilingual language development with its advantages and challenges.
• Consider children’s mind-reading abilities for successful communication.
• Consider the role of peers in children’s development of argumentation and collaborative problem-solving. 

• 2 x 2-hour Introductory lectures (one for each half of the unit)
• 8 x weekly in-person 2-hour lecture modules
• 10 x 1 hour weekly online activities and extension materials to consolidate learning
• 8 x 1 hour weekly interactive in-person group-based activities
• Weekly engagement with monitored discussion forums 

• Describe, using appropriate empirical evidence; how children’s understanding of complex language changes over development, the nature of developmental language disorders, examples of interventions designed to support language learning, the differences between languages, and what it means to be bilingual, how children engage in mind-reading, how children collaboratively solve problems, how children reason with peers. 

• Critically evaluate, in the light of appropriate empirical evidence; the factors that influence children’s learning of complex language, how and why communicative development can go wrong, the effectiveness of language interventions, how differences between languages might influence classroom communication, factors affecting bilingual language development, development of mind-reading abilities and contexts facilitating children’s reasoning and argumentation.
• Synthesize a body of research to produce a well-reasoned and supported argument; arrive at and present a clear conclusion or a research question on the basis of an evaluation of appropriate empirical evidence.   

• Use a range of sources (library, internet, electronic databases) to gather information. 

• Work collaboratively as a member of a team to discuss a topic or piece of empirical research and arrive at a shared understanding of its significance 
• Plan how to approach coursework assignments through collaborative discussion 

Students will receive a grade and written feedback 20 working days after the final submission deadline.

This will be supplemented by references to specific research papers for each lecture topic.