WHAT IS EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY? - ECONOMÍA - 2025

The educational psychology is a discipline which studies behavioral changes. Those that are related to age and appear in human beings during their development, starting from the moment they do until the individual dies.

In turn, this science establishes differences between the following stages of personal development such as: Early childhood: 0 - 2 years; Childhood: 2 - 6 years; Primary: 6 - 12 years; Adolescence: 12 -18 years; Adulthood: 18 - 70 years old and Old age: 70 - onwards. (Palacios et al., 2010).

Characteristics of Educational Psychology

Educational psychology contemplates the possibility of describing and identifying, explaining or optimizing the development and growth of the person since he begins to see the world, that is, he understands, raises and intercedes in every educational process of the human being.

Therefore, in the words of Palacios et al. (1999), is a science in charge of studying the changes in knowledge, attitudes and values ​​that occur in human beings through their participation in different educational actions, both formal and non-formal.

Without a doubt, the development of the person has numerous factors that intervene in its progress.

Some of these are the environment or the genetic influence that surrounds the human being. Both go together and cannot occur separately, as they result in the behavior that the human being performs and the actions that he or she executes.

As a consequence, the genetic-environment relationship will lead to a unique development in the human being, in which it is not possible to individually separate any of these factors, since they make up an integrated whole.

Taking into account all the aforementioned, we must reflect and review the literature as it is not a theme that goes unnoticed throughout the reflections that have been made throughout history.

Likewise, we can observe that there are numerous studies that support the development of the human being. Each perspective has tried to understand, contributing their point of view, the complexity that involves the development of the person throughout the stages through which the learning itself passes.

In this sense, some of the most famous psychologists have approached the broad field of educational psychology: Freud (1856 - 1936) through psychoanalysis; Watson (1878 - 1958), Pavlov (1849 - 1969), Skinner (1904 - 1990) and Bandura (1925 - today) based their studies on behaviorism; Lorenz and Tinbergen through the concept of imprinting, Piaget (1896 - 1980) with Genetic Epistemology, Baltes (1939 - 2006) with the perspective of the life cycle and Bronfenbrenner (1917 - 2005) with the Ecological perspective (Palacios et al., 1999).

To carry out a study of the facets involved in human development based on the psychology of education, we must analyze physical and psychomotor development from theoretical perceptions; cognitive development; language acquisition and development; of the socio-personal development and the involvement of the school in this process.

1. Why do psychology from the perspective of education?

The answer to this question begins when psychology, as a science, raised the possibility of taking an interest in the educational field, establishing a close relationship with the field of study of pedagogy.

Therefore, terms such as studies in "psychopedagogy", the very "science of education" and "educational" or "pedagogical" experimentation, were the first fields in which psychology influenced to contribute knowledge to educational studies.

The psychology of education, in itself, proposes obtaining the object of study from education and, on the other hand, the research methods from psychology.

However, we must bear in mind that due to the current situation in the world of work, it is not surprising that pedagogy itself considers intrusiveness as far as the psychology of education is concerned, however it is psychologists who consider it a mere part of "applied psychology."

We must be clear that the primary objective of educational psychology is to study the conduct and behavior that occurs in school (Bese, 2007).

In addition, it is important to make an important mention of research related to "wrong attitudes" in the school environment. Since the study of "change processes" of students is of great interest, which occur in educational contexts (Bese, 2007).

2. Physical and psychomotor development

To define physical and psychomotor development from the point of view of education, we must mainly point out the definitions of physical growth.

We understand physical growth as the increase in weight and height of the person. While we understand psychomotor development as the control of the body from where the possibilities of action and expression of the human being are optimized.

In the first place, we must point out that there are also factors influencing development, at a physical level we can find: endogenous: genes, hormones…, and exogenous: where physical and psychological factors intervene.

Therefore, it is necessary to take into account that it is not something that is genetically closed but rather has an open structure where external agents intervene and are essential factors in this development.

However, we must point out that genes, for their part, intervene in the growth process through heredity.

Another idea to take into account is that psychomotor skills should be emphasized as something joint, since they are not independent processes of each other, but that joint achievement will give rise to mastery, since it does not occur independently.

Therefore, we must emphasize that there is a sequential order in postural control and locomotion as a result of the maturation of the individual where the brain and the stimulation received influence.

Finally, we can also point out that the family is a relevant factor for psychomotor development, through the so-called psychomotor stimulation.

However, there are situations where stimulation is greater, since not all children make up a standard parameter, popularly known as “normal”.7

There are situations where it is necessary to establish certain programs for psychomotor stimulation in children with difficulties.

Likewise, the school as a stimulator should provide help from the organization of the center and the classroom itself in each educational stage, in addition to the activities designed for psychomotor development (Palacios, 1999).

3. Cognitive development

To mention the subject related to cognitive development, special mention should be made of authors such as Piaget, with a significantly relevant role in Developmental Psychology.

This established a series of stages of development, where the potentialities and difficulties of children during this process are fundamentally addressed, since they represent a fundamental step (Palacios, 1999).

Piaget conceived of thought as an internalized and mentally represented execution, which is organized schematically. These schemes are mental systems, which show an organized structure that allows to represent and think about proposed objectives and goals.

The stadiums were mentioned, according to Palacios (1999), as:

• Sensorimotor (0-2 years): The child shows intelligence as something practical and uses action to solve the problems that are generated.
• Preoperative (2 to 6/7 years): "symbolic" intelligence begins to appear, therefore, it uses actions that are not yet logical to solve problems.
• Concrete operations (6/7 to 11/12 years): Begins to use logical reasoning in concrete and real situations.
• Formal operations (12 onwards): It appears in adolescence to be part of the person's thinking throughout his life. It is from here that logic will form the fundamental pillar of thought.

4. Language acquisition and development

Language development is a complex process that, as it evolves, acquires different functions.

It also has a variety of symbols that allow us to represent reality, communicate, plan and control our behavior and cognitive processes. In addition, it allows us and transmit our own culture.

When babies are born, they participate in the so-called “proto-conversations” with adults, this means that there is a capacity and preferences where the baby and the adult communicate through perception and sensitivity. Therefore, a dialogue is exchanged where the adult accommodates the baby and there is a mutual interest in communicating.

For this reason, we can point out that since the baby is born, it has the ability to create a certain communication and this makes it grow as a person from the first moment it has contact with the world.

For its part, during development the child uses behaviors to adapt to the world, such as the use of reflexes as a means of survival. Acquiring, later on, behaviors that the adult will see repeatedly.

To conclude, we must bear in mind that the importance of the family is paramount in the development of language.

It is important to use shared activities where language socialization is practiced, such as games, food, and recreational activities.

For this, it is recommended:

• The creation of routine contexts for good communication to be established.
• Allow enough time for the child to participate in the conversation.
• That the adult properly interpret the signals that are shown in the conversations.

On the other hand, in school we must be clear that the origin of oral language comes from writing, and they need each other, therefore we must promote it. Learning to read implies a correct use of oral language.

Based on this, we can deduce that the activities to be carried out may be, for example, the use of riddles, tongue twisters, songs, stories, rhymes and spontaneous conversations, among others. Also generating situations where personal descriptions, expositions, debates and group discussions have to be made, among others (Palacios et al, 1999).

5. Socio-personal development

Emotions are included in the development of the person. They are facts that indicate the relevance of the situations that frequent the development of the human being.

To study them, they can be divided between basic emotions (joy, anger, sadness, fear…) and socio-moral (shame, pride, guilt…). From here we define the cultural norms and the conscience that we manifest to accept these norms.

Emotional regulation implies a control of the emotions that babies in their first years of life, not having brain maturation and improvements in attention, cannot control it (Palacios et al., 1999).

Therefore, adults should promote this emotional regulation and should promote the control of emotions in children, using emotional education (Palacios et al., 1999).

Several authors mentioned in the studies by Palacios (1999), propose some techniques for a correct emotional development that the family and the school can carry out in the same direction:

• Acceptance and expression of positive and negative emotions.
• Structure, study and control the different emotions.
• Use them positively for vital development, being a personal benefit.
• Identify the emotions of others and your own.
• Learn to comfort and help effectively, through empathy and assertive communication.
• Express and talk about emotions and moods to a colleague / friend.
• Control frustration and impulses.

6. The classroom as the setting for the teaching-learning process

Within the educational system, in the classrooms, the educational development of students is worked on.

Therefore, we can characterize these educational processes, which have a cavity in educational centers, as those that originate learning and imply educational purposes taking place in a systematic period of time (Pozo, 2000).

In other words, this process has the mission of creating lasting effects and has intentional, systematic and planned characteristics (Pozo, 2000).

For this reason, we must point out that within the educational system, of the classrooms, there are numerous ways of learning and, for this, we have determined the two best known and most appropriate to take into account among these lines: constructive and associative learning.

First, the constructive reorganizes knowledge, where the student must be dynamic, establishing a more lasting learning over time.

And secondly, associative learning is often associated with students characterized as static and reproductive. Therefore, its duration is subject to the practice used to promote it (Palacios, 1999).

References

1. BESE, JM (2007). A psychology of education ?. CPU-e, Revista Investigación Educativa, 5. Recovered on.
2. PALACIOS, J. (COORDS.) (1999). Psychological and educational development. Madrid: Alliance.
3. POZO, I. (2000). Apprentices and teachers. Madrid: Alliance