ALOMOFU

Alomofu (kutoka Kiingereza "allomorph") ni msamiati uliotumika kwanza kuelezea mabadiliko ya
muundo wa kikemia. Mwaka 1948 Fatih Şat na Sibel Merve walianza kuutumia upande wa lugha katika kitabu chao Language XXIV.

Dhana yake
Dhana ya alomofu ni dhana inayojadiliwa katika isimu ya lugha.

Dhana hii hujadiliwa sana katika
mofolojia ya lugha yaani, sarufi maumbo .

Kimsingi huwezi kupata dhana kamili na inayoeleweka kama huwezi kuhusianisha alomofu na
mofimu. Ndiyo maana fasili ya alomofu kwa maana ya kikamusi inaweza kuwa:

1. Umbo jingine la mofimu ileile
2. Aina mbalimbali za mofimu moja

Ukiangalia maana hizo mbili za neno alomofu utabaini uhusiano wa neno hilo na mofimu. Yaani huwezi kutaja Alomofu kama huwezi kuhusisha mofimu.

Kwa ujumla, kilugha, dhana ya alomofu huweza kufasirika kama: "Maumbo zaidi ya moja yanayowakilisha mofimu moja kisarufi". Kwa mujibu wa
wanaisimu neno hili limegawanyika kama ifuatavyo:

ALO = Zaidi ya moja
MOFU = Ni kipashio cha kimofolojia kiwakilishacho mofimu.

Mofu ni umbo ambalo huweza kuandikwa watu wanapoandika maneno, pia huweza kutamkwa watu wanapotamka maneno.
Tazama mfano wa maneno yafuatayo:

Mtoto = Neno hili lina mofu mbili, ambazo ni M - toto

Analima = Neno hili lina mofu tatu , ambazo ni: A- na - lim - a

Baba = Neno hili lina mofu moja ambayo ni: Baba

Kumbuka: baadhi ya wanaisimu wanaamini kuwa hata mzizi wa neno ni mofu pia.

Namna ya kuzitambua alomofu
Ukirejea katika mofimu, utakuta mofimu huweza kufanya kazi tofauti katika neno.

Mofimu huweza kudokeza
nafsi , wakati, umoja au wingi wa
nomino na hata kauli mbalimbali za
kitenzi .

Mfano:
Anacheza = A-na-chez-a
Tuliondoka = Tu -li-ondok-a
Wanaita = Wa -na-it-a

Katika mfano huo, mofimu zilizokozwa
wino ni mofimu zinazodokeza nafsi. Kwa hiyo, tunapopata mofimu tofauti, yaani zenye maumbo tofauti lakini zinafanya kazi moja kisarufi huitwa ALOMOFU. Kwa mfano huo, hapo A, Tu na Wa tutaziita ni Alomofu za nafsi.
Tazama mfano wa pili:

Mtoto = M -toto,
Watoto = Wa -toto,
Mwalimu = Mw -alimu

Katika mfano huo, maneno yaliyokozwa wino ambayo ni M , Wa na Mw ni mofimu zinazodokeza umoja na wingi wa nomino. Kwa kuwa maumbo ya mofimu hizo ni tofauti lakini hufanya kazi moja kisarufi, ndiyo maana tunaziita Alomofu.

Mazingira yanayosababisha kutokea kwa alomofu:

Alomofu hutokana na mazingira tofautitofauti.

Alomofu zinaweza kutokana na mazingira yafuatayo:

Kifonolojia
Hapa tunaweza kuona mifano ya mazingira yanayoweza kutokea kwa mofimu na alomofu zake katika
unyambulishaji wa vitenzi vya Kiswahili .

Mfano: Kutendeka
Piga -               Pig- ik-a
Cheza -            Chez- ek -a
Zoa -                 Zo- lek-a
Chukua -           Chuku- lik -a

Hapo mofimu ik inayobainisha dhana ya kutendeka ina Alomofu nne , ambazo ni: Ik, ek, lek na lik

Kileksika
Hapa tunaweza kuona mofimu na alomofu zake katika ngeli za majina. Kwa mfano, katika ngeli ya kwanza na ya pili yaani, m/wa

Mfano
M -tu -                   wa -tu
M -ke -                   wa -ke
Mw -alimu -           wa -alimu
Mu -uguzi -             wa -uguzi

Katika mfano huo, tunaona mofimu m yenye dhana ya umoja ina alomofu tatu ambazo ni: M , Mw na Mu.

Kisarufi
Hapa tunapata mofimu na alomofu zake katika mofimu ya njeo (wakati).

Mofimu ya nje inawakilishwa na alomofu zifuatazo:
A- na -pika = Wakati uliopo
A- li -pika = Wakati uliopita
A- ta -pika = Wakati ujao

Hapo alomofu za njeo ni: na , li , na ta

DHANA YA MOFU

DHANA YA MOFU
Mofu ni umbo kietimolojia
Mofimu ni maana (kabla ya kuja kwa sarufi mamboleo neno mofimu lilitumika kwa maana ya umbo na maana, dhana hii ilianzishwa na mtaalamu wa Isimu aitwaye Noam homsky lakini baadaye ikaamuliwa kuwa Mofimu itumike kuukilia maana kwa sababu kietimolojia mofimu hmaanisha maana – elementi dhahania.
Alo = zaidi ya moja (mf. Alomofu = maumbo zaidi ya moja yanayowakilisha mofimu (maana) moja kisarufi).
NB: Maana ya kietimolojia ni fasili ya neno au kitu kutoka kwenye lugha yake ya asili.

MOFU
Ni kipashio cha kimofolojia kinachosetiri mofimu (maana).

Mofu ni umbo ambalo huweza kuandikwa watu wanapoandika maneno na pia huweza kutamkwa watu wanapotamka maneno.

Kwa hiyo neno lolote lenye maana sharti liwe na mofu angalau moja kwa msingi kwamba maana ni elementi dhahania ambayo hubebwa na umbo fulani.

AINA ZA MOFU
Mofu huainishwa kwa kuzingatia vigezo viwili ambavyo ni:

Maana inayobebwa na mofu na
Mofolojia ya mofu.

Aina za mofu kwa kigezo cha maana
Kigezo hiki kina aina tatu za mofu ambazo ni mofu huru, mofu funge na mofu tata

1.Mofu huru
Hizi ni mofu ambazo husimama kama maneno kamili yanayojitosheleza kimuundo na kitaarifa.
mf. Baba, mama, safi, Sali, kaka, n.k

2.Mofu funge/tegemezi
Ni vijisehemu vya neno vinavyojiegemeza kwenye mzizi wa neno ili kutoa taarifa fulani. Kila kipande cha neno ni mofu funge.
mf.
Anaimba = A-na-imb-a
Tuliochezeana = Tu-li-o-chez-ean-a

3.Mofu Tata
Hizi ni mofu ambazo zikitumiwa katika maneno huleta utata, hufanya neno liwe na maana zaidi ya moja.
Mf:
Juma aliwacheze a wanangu
Katika tungo hiyo kuna utata wa kimaana ambao unabebwa na neno
aliwachezea . Kimsingi utata katika neno hilo unasababishwa na kauli ya kutendea ambayo imebebwa na mofu –e- ya utendea. Maana zinazoletwa na mofu hiyo ya utendea ni kuwa ukisema Juma aliwachezea wanangu
wanaokusikiliza wanaweza kuelewa kuwa:
(i) Juma alicheza ili kuwafurahisha watoto
(ii) Juma alicheza kwa niaba ya watoto
(iii) Juma aliwaroga watoto
(iv) Juma aliwafanyia watoto tendo la udhalilishaji
Maana zote hizo zinaletwa na mofu – e- na hiyo ndio tunaiita mofu tata.

Aina za mofu kwa kigezo cha mofolojia
Hapa tunapata aina mbili za mofu za mofu ambazo ni mofu changamano na mofu kapa

4.Mofu Changamano
Mofu changamano huundwa kwa kuweka pamoja mzizi au shina zaidi ya moja ili kuunda neno moja. Katika hali ya kawaida kila moja ya mizizi hiyo huweza kusimama peke yake na kuunda neno lake.
Mf.
Mwana + nchi
Mwana + chama
Askari + kanzu

5.Mofu Kapa
Ni maumbo ambayo hayadhihiriki kimatamshi (kifonolojia) wala kimaandishi (kiothografia) lakini athari zake zipo akilini mwa wazungumzaji. Katika maandishi mofu hizi huwakilishwa na msimbo (alama) θ. Katika Kiswahili kuna mofu kapa za umoja na za wingi.
mf. 1
Umoja
Wingi
θ+sanduku ma+sanduku
θ+debe ma+debe
θ+chungwa ma+chungwa
mf. 2
Umoja wingi
U+nywele θ+nywele
U+kucha θ+kucha
U+funguo θ+funguo
Katika mfano wa kwanza (1) hakuna mofu za umoja lakini za wingi zipo na katika mfano wa pili (2) mofu za umoja zipo na za wingi hazipo. Kwa hiyo mtu akisema “ …niletee sanduku ” inajulikana ni sanduku moja na akisema, “ …niletee masanduku” inajulikana ni zaidi ya moja. Hali kadhalika ukiambiwa funguo ni tofauti na ukiambiwa ufunguo. Mofu kapa huwa akilini mwa wasemaji wa lugha.

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY - LEARNING THEORIES AND TEACHING

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

LEARNING THEORIES AND TEACHING
What is a theory?
Dorin, Demmin and Gabel (1990) say that; theories provide general observations on a phenomenon made over time but the information gained so far has not yet being established beyond doubt.
A theory is a fact based framework for describing a phenomenon. In psychology, theories are used to provide a model for understanding human thoughts, emotions and behaviors.
A psychological theory has two key components:
it must describe a behavior
it must make predictions about future behavior
For a theory to be recognized, lies a collective assumptions of the existence of the phenomenon, and that it has the best explanation of phenomenon and the respective people are working on it to eventually prove that it is true.
Education psychology include some theories that dominate and impact the field and related fields for a certain period of time and then they lose their dominance to other theories seen as more “plausible” (reasonable or believable).
1. Behavioral Approaches
Is a theory of learning based on the idea that all behaviors are acquired through conditioning which occurs through interaction with the environment. Behaviorists believe that our responses to environmental stimuli shape our actions.
Among the behaviorists includes
Edward Thorndike, Ivan Pavlov, John Watson, Tolman and B.F. Skinner. The main focus of behaviorism is that behavior is learnt through conditioning. behaviorists believe that learning is expressed by change in overt behavior (observable behavior), the environment changes behavior and that the formation of a bond of things or events depends on the time interval between them.
Behaviorism defines learning as permanent changes of behavior as a result of experience. There must be a change in observable behavior to definitely prove that learning has taken place. Lack of change in behavior implies that learning has not occurred.
To behaviorists learning is associated by classical conditioning and instrumental conditioning.
However, it is important to have a glance at Edward Thorndike theory of response association expressed as S R = Stimulus Response
The theory states that, when an organism detects a certain
stimulus it gives a specific response based on previous encounters.
This approach of learning had three laws:
Law of exercise: states that, connection between stimulus and response is strengthened depending on how frequent they are used together.
Law of effect : states that strengthening or weakening of the connection between stimulus and response are the results of the consequences of the response.
Law of readiness : states that the basis of individual’s response depends on the extent of his/her preparedness to act.
Classical Conditioning
Classical Conditioning is also known as Pavlovian Conditioning.
Refers to a learning procedure in which a biologically potent stimulus (eg. food) is paired with a previously neutral stimulus (eg. a bell).
Pavlov Terminologies
Unconditioned stimulus (US): a stimulus in the environment that biologically makes an organism to give a specific response, eg. food makes organisms salivate.
Conditioned stimulus (CS): this is a neutral stimulus that naturally does not produce response but after being paired several times with the US produces a response eg. A bell before connected to food.
Unconditional Response (UCR):
this is an unlearned response produced by UCS. The dog naturally salivate when food powder was placed on the tongue, we normally salivate when we taste something delicious. UCR can be counted as reflex action.
Conditional Response (CR): this is a response that is elicited by CS alone. Before pairing CS and UCS there was no response, but after pairing an organism makes a response on CS in the absence of UCS.
Identify the UCS,UCR, CS, and CR in a given paragraph bellow:
Example:
Alexander is four years old. One night his parents decided to light a fire in the family room fireplace. A burning ember jumped out of the fireplace and landed on Alexander’s leg, creating a nasty burn. He cried because the burn hurt. A week later, when Alexander’s parents started to light another fire in the fireplace, Alexander began to cry.
From the paragraph above
UCS = the nasty burn
UCR = crying
CS = the fire in the fireplace
CR = crying
Pavlov Observations on Classical Conditioning
Extiction: if one stops pairing the CS and UCS, the CR will cease in response to CS. The dogs stopped to salivate if the bell was presented alone several times in absence of food.
Stimulus generalization: CR can occur in presence of stimuli that are similar to the UCS. The dogs salivated when they had sounds similar to the bell.
Stimulus discrimination: an organism can learn to discriminate between the Cs and other stimuli similar to the Cs ie give CR only to one specific CS. This occurs after recognizing that only one specific neutral stimulus is accompanied with reward. The dogs learned to respond only to the bell and not to other similar sounds.
Spontaneous recovery (learning): the extinguished Cr can reappear latter if Cs is again paired with the UCS. The time taken to establish the connection during spontaneous recovery is much shorter than the initial one to establish the conditioning. Also after spontaneous recovery it takes a shorter time to extinguish CR if the CS is presented alone in absence of UCS.
Higher – order Conditioning:
once an organism has learned to associate CS and UCS, another neutral stimulus can be presented at the same with the CS. Eventually the new stimulus becomes CS that can elicit CR in absence of the original CS.
The way teachers react to students’ answers can induce fear that can negatively affect learning process and vice versa. If the teacher is too harsh to students’ answers, they may be conditioned to fear the teacher and lose interest to his/her subject. Alsoconditioning can account for test anxiety (fear of tests and examinations) among students.
Just as students learn to fear neutral things they can also learn not to fear the same things through extinction process. Remember extinction is stopping giving a response to CS. One can learn not to fear teachers or other objects in school.
Operant Conditioning (Instrumental Conditioning)
The approach of operant conditioning was developed by
B.F.Skinner (1904-1990). He postulated that psychology should deal with observable behaviors that can be measured and ignored the process taking place in the mind ie. mentalprocess.
In Pavlov’s experiment the dog had to wait for someone to introduce UCS for it to give a response.
In operant conditioning (sometimes called Instrumental Conditioning) the organism ‘opereates’ on the environment based on the consequences of its actions ie deliberately initiating and operating in a process of responses. The individual and the consequences are instrumental in his/her behavior.
Skinner used a special box (called Skinner Box) to study the behavior of some animals (mostly rats) to demonstrate his theory.
Based in these experiments Skinner established the following basic aspects of operant conditioning.
The sequence of operant conditioning can be illustrated in the following chart.
Actions that lead to positive consequences are repeated and those that bring negative consequences are avoided. Repeating or avoiding are both responses. Positive Reinforcement is a pleasant or rewarding consequence that follows a response and as a result makes it likely for response to be repeated in future when under the same circumstances.
A student will always study more for a course she/he does well. Negative reinforcement is a consequence that makes a person escape or avoid painful situation. These responses are likely to be repeated since they remove unpleasant conditions. A person will repeat taking pills that relief (avoid) headache when s/he gets a headache in the future.
Responses that do not get reinforcement eventually become extinct. Extinction means an organism stopping giving a response in presense of stimulus after learning that it will not be reinforced. A student will stop raising a hand to a teacher whom s//he knows will not select him/her to answer the questions.
In some occasions it takes time and trial and error to make an association between stimulus, response and reinforcement ie to establish new behavior through a process known as behaviorism shaping. Behavioral shaping invoves giving reinforcement to responses that lead to the final required response and ignoring the other responses, until the individual learns the association between the stimulus and the desired response.
Primary and Secondary Reinforcement
Reinforcers are objects, events or actions that increase the individual’s possibility of repeating a specific behavior in the future, The power of a reinforce depends on the person or organism being reinforced eg. money is an effective reinforce to humans but worth nothing to a dog and even a small child.
Aspirin is a reinforce to a person with headache but not to a person starving. As a teacher you must identify things or objects that are effective as reinforcers to students and sometimes to a specific student.
Types of Reinforcers
There are two types of reinforcers, namely Primary reinforcement and Secondary reinforcement.
Primary reinforcement: are natural things that meet our basic needs such as food, water and shelter. Other things that are paired with primary reinforcers and eventually get their own reinforcing powers ar known as
secondary reinforcers. Money is a good example of secondary reinforce. Many of the reinforcers in schools are secondary reinforcers. When a secondary reinforce acquires the properties of a primary reinforcer it is known as a
generalized reinforce. When we just work to get money just for the sake of becoming rich then money is a generalized reinforcer.
Schedules of Reinforcement
From the experiences not all of our responses are given reinforcement immediately. Some responses are reinforced immediately while others are not reinforced immediately ie the reinforcement is provided later. In most cases when we pay cash to the shopkeeper we get the object we want.
Schedules of reinforcement refers to a system that indicates which response get reinforcement and which will not get reinforcement.
In continuous reinforcement every response is followed by reinforcement. Every time a student gives a correct answer in the classroom the teacher nods in recognition. In the long run this schedule is not very effective since some people and organisms stop responding to enjoy the reinforcements that have been accumulated.
Continuous reinforcement is very effective in establishing new behavioral response. Once the intended behavioral responses has been established we can move on to partial reinforcement schedules ie not all responses get reinforcement, but rather just some of them. Partial reinforcement schedules have been known to be more effective in maintaining an established response than the continuous reinforcement. Partial reinforcement schedules can be in various patterns.
Patterns of partial reinforcement:
There are two types of partial reinforcement patterns namely as: Interval schedules and ratio schedules
In the Interval schedules; presentation of reinforcement is based on time factor. In fixed interval schedules a response is reinforced after a fixed amount of time has elapsed since the last reinforcement.
The time period between reinforcement is constantly the same. An employer can decide to give reinforcement to his worker after five days of work ie paying the worker at the end of every fifth day. Giving a test on every last Monday of each month is another example.
In variable Interval schedules the amount of time that elapses between the reinforcement varies. The individual (organism) knows that s/he will be given reinforcement but does not know when. The employer may pay his worker after five days this time, next payment after seven days and the following payment after four days. A teacher may decide to give a quiz after five days, then after six days and the next one after three days. Note that an individual has to give responses to get reinforcement within the respective period of time. The main limitation of fixed interval is that some people stay idle and only give responses just before the time reinforcement is expected.
In the ratio schedule presentation of reinforcement is based on a number of correct responses one has to make to get reinforcement. In fixed ratio schedules one is reinforced after making a fixed number of correct responses since the last reinforcement.
An employer can decide to give reinforcement after his worker has produced a specific number of items eg paying the worker after baking 100 loaves of bread. In classroom a teacher can only marks student’s exercise after he has completed five questions.
A variable ratio schedule implies one gets reinforcement after a set of average number of correct responses. These set vary in the number of correct responses. The first set might be after five responses, the second set after four responses and the following after six responses. A worker may get reinforcement after baking 100 loaves then after baking 200 loaves and then after just baking 75 loaves.
The effects of this type of schedule of reinforcement used differ. Fixed ratio is more effective when establishing a new behavior. The best schedule for maintaining behavior is variable ratio. The individual does not stop giving responses since s/he is always expecting to get reinforcement after the next response.
PREMARK’S PRINCIPLE
This principle was described by David Premark. Actions that are more desirable to the individual can be used as reinforcers for less desirable ones. Desirable actions done by individual more often and much longer in terms of time relative to the less desirable ones ie desirable actions have high frequency activity. In life every person has actions that s/he likes more and other actions that s/he likes less. Many children (and adults too) like to watch television and dislike homework.
Premark’s principle says that watching television can be used as a reinforcement for doing homework or washing pots. A child is required to complete homework or washing pots before being allowed out to play.
As a teacher it is advisable to identify desirable actions of your students and then make a reinforcement hierarchy ie listing actions of student with the most desirable action at the top and ending the least desirable action at the bottom. To obtain the list you can tell students to write what they like or you can observe them during their spare time.
COGNITIVE THEORIES OF LEARNING
Several psychologists identify cognitive processes as critical component in understanding human behavior. All cognitive theories look beyond overt behavior and rather focus on brain and mental processes in explaining learning. Other common features in these theories include making inferences on observable mental processes, believing that individuals are actively involved in learning process and learning involves relating new information to previously learned information.
Edward Tolman (Tolman & Honzik, 1930) proposed Latent learning in which an organism learns about its environment without reinforcement or a change in behavior. We develop cognitive map of our environment and only demonstrate this knowledge when reinforcement is available.
When in a new surroundings you observe the area and learn about the layout of objects without expecting any reinforcement. Later on the information acquired can be used to give a response that leads to reinforcement.
Gestalts psychologists
Psychologists of this perspective were against behaviorism by emphasizing that mental processes are important in explaining learning. Among the basic ideas of this theory is that we perceive things in whole and not in segment and the perception formed can be different from the reality.
Cognitive Constructivism
Constructivists hold that a learner is actively constructing and inventing his/her own knowledge from past experiences rather than just receive and absorb what s/he gets from others including teachers. A learner modifies his/her understanding in relation to the new information leading to internalization of concepts, rules and principles that are later applied in future encounters.
Constructivists main ideas are (Elliot et al, 2000):
We only know subjective reality and not the object reality since knowledge we have is based on our subjective experiences
Knowledge is subjective because each one has his/her own unique experiences
The knowledge of two people are said to be “taken as shared” to the extent that their constructions seem to function in the same way in given situation
Knowledge is constructed through the process of adapting to events and ideas one experiences
The construction of knowledge is significantly influenced by symbols and materials one uses or has ready access to.
Readiness to learn means that an individual is ready to learn when his/her existing cognitive constructions are capable of incorporating new information.
Piaget’s theory of Learning
This theory believes that learning is determined by mental structures and how the new information is incorporated into the existing knowledge.
Implications of cognitive theories on education are:
Cognitive processes influence learning
Learning difficulties often indicate ineffective cognitive processes, especially for children with learning disabilities
As children grow they become capable of increasingly more sophisticated thought
People organize things they learn
New information is most easily acquired when people can associate it with things they have already learned
People control their own learning.

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY - DEVELOPMENT OF A CHILD

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

DEVELOPMENT OF A CHILD
Main concepts
Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why human beings change over the course of their life. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult development, aging, and the entire lifespan. Developmental psychologists aim to explain how thinking, feeling and behavior change throughout life. This field examines change across three major dimensions: physical development, cognitive development, and socio-emotional development.
There is a clear distinction between ‘ growth’ and
‘development’ as used in psychology. Both concepts are based on the fact that during life span individuals are progressing from one stage to a higher stage.
Growth: is used when the changes are quantitatively, ie. An increase or decrease in numbers. A good example is height and weight of a child. In normal circumstances children’s height and weight increases as they progress in years. We expect two years old to be shorter and lighter at this age relative to when they will be in primary school.
Development: is used for qualitative changes.
Development is progressive acquisition of various skills (abilities) such as head support, speaking, learning, expressing the feelings and relating with other people. These are not directly observable but infer some changes within the individual have taken place. A good example is language development. At birth children cannot talk however around two years they begin to speak. Language spoken at the age of two is qualitatively inferior relative to the language used at four or at ten. The changes manifested in language don’t mean that the brain has changed but rather some reorganization has taken place that account for the differences between the stages.
Development a child (students) can be looked at three main areas which are: physical, cognitive
and psychosocial. These areas are interrelated and develop simultaneously. There is quite variation in rate of development as in some group of students of the same age and in the same age in the class and all still growing you find some of them are taller while others are shorter, some are heavy and others are not so heavy, some have language development while others have not. There are also some developmental variations within the individual himself/herself. Some may grow fast in terms of weight but more slowly in height. The implication is that students of the same age are similar in some aspects and different in others.
The periods of child development are classified by psychologists into four periods. Notice that, there is variation on the onset and end of the periods. The periods are:
Infancy: starts from birth to 18 to 24 months. It is characterized by :
- Total dependence on the caregivers at the beginning
- Development of sensorimotor coordination
- Walking
- Language
- Thinking and
- Learning
Early childhood: starts at the end of infancy and extends to 2.5 to 6 years. Early childhood (usually defined as birth to year 8) is a time of tremendous physical, cognitive, socio-emotional, and language development. Sometime this is called preschool period. The child is more self-sufficient and has developed some skills related to improved sensorimotor coordination.
Middle to late childhood: extends from 6 to 11 years. Most of children in this stage are in primary schools (elementary schools). They have developed self-control and acquire primary skills of learning such as reading, writing and math.
Adolescence: begins around 11 years and extends to between 18. This is a transitional period from childhood to adulthood that is characterized by rapid body changes that includes the development of sexual organs functions. Also individuals in this stage seek self-independence. Most complete primary school at this stage, and most of secondary school students are in this period.
ROLE OF HEREDITY AND ENVIRONMENT ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF STUDENTS
In development there is a constant interaction between
nature and environment (nurture) . The nature component involves the biological processes that start at conception i.e. genetic inheritance formed by the combination of genes of the sperm and those in the ova. The conception process has a major role in determining the rate of growth of the body in terms of weight and height; and the development of brain, motor skills and body changes caused by hormones. Also, there are some human potential that are genetically programmed, including the learning processes, language development and motor coordination.
The environment (nurture) includes physical and social surroundings. Physical environment is essential for the survival of the individual, his/her development in general and learning process. Some studies have indicated that children who had severe
kwashiorkor experienced learning difficulties later in schools (Galler, et al, 1987), and those exposed to lead later on in life experience physiological problems (Patrick, 2006). In physically stimulating environments children were found to be more developed language wise than those in less stimulating environment (UNESCO, 1987). Social environment in form of child’s relationship with other people has great influence on the socio-emotional processes of the child i.e. emotional and personality changes of the child.
As a teacher, you are part of the environment and your aim is to enhance learning and the full development of the students’ abilities and you need to avoid being source of deterring learning potential of the students.
COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENT DURING CHILDHOOD
Brain is the major organ of cognitive processes. The brain is divided into different parts that are involved in different aspects of cognition and learning.
The brain has two halves; called
cerebral hemisphere, which are connected by corpus callosum (The corpus callosum is a thick band of nerve fibers that divides the cerebral cortex lobes into left and right hemispheres. It connects the left and right sides of the brain allowing for communication between both hemispheres).
The two spheres appear to be identical but there are some differences in their functions.
Cerebral lateralization is the specialization of the functions of each sphere of the brain. The right hemisphere controls the left side of the body while the left hemisphere controls the right side of the body. So, if you are right handed you are left lateralized, if left handed you are right lateralized. For most people speech is localized in the left hemisphere. Nonverbal processes such as spatial perception, visual activities and emotions are predominantly localized in the right hemisphere.
However, studies show that the brain is more complicated than that since both atmospheres to some degree are involved in all activities. Complex functions such as logic and creativity involve both spheres of the brain.
The brain has four lobes. Frontal lobe has functions for motor activities and thinking; temporal lobe has functions for hearing; parietal lobe has functions for body sensations; and occipital lobe has functions for vision. The brain lobes are as seen in the diagram below.
In describing cognitive development Jean Piaget (1896-1980) a Swiss psychologist while working with the results of IQ tests of children he noticed that young children’s answers are qualitatively different from those given by older children. He believed that children are actively constructing their world as they respond to what they see, touch or test. For him the way human respond to the environment is not learned but an inherit method of intellectual functioning i.e. a function that is there since birth.
Piaget’s theory of cognitive development has four major stages with sub-stages in each stage. Here come some important concepts before discussing the Piaget’s stages.
Schema is a concept or an organized pattern of thoughts or behavior that one organized unit. Riding a bicycle is a scheme (behavior); picture of a dog or a dog is a scheme; and teaching is a
scheme (a complex one). Schemes help us to organize and make sense of our world.
Adaptation is a psychological mechanism used by children to use and adapt schemas in a new experience. This mechanism has two processes, namely assimilation
and accommodation.
Assimilation occurs when a child incorporates new knowledge into existing knowledge i.e. taking in new objects, events and concepts into the existing schemas.
Accommodation occurs when we are changed by what enters into our mental structures. So, through assimilation we transform the environment to fit into preexisting cognitive structures while accommodation changes our cognitive structures in order to accept something new from the environment.
Equilibration is a concept developed by Piaget that describes the cognitive balancing of new information with old knowledge.
...... Equilibration involves the assimilation of information to fit with an individual's own existing mental schemas and the accommodation of information by adapting it their way of thinking.
Organization is when bring together isolated behaviors or ideas into a single more complex behavior or concept. This leads to have smooth functioning cognitive system.
The above processes are fundamental on how children understand their world and adapt it in their mental structures.
All children follow the same sequence but at different rate.
Piaget’s stages
1. The sensorimotor stage
This stage extends from birth to 2 years. The term sensorimotor imply that during this stage the child explores his world by using sensory experiences such as seeing, hearing and touching. It is by coordinating these experiences that the child develops the first schemas and it is the basis of the beginning of cognitive development.
At this stage child’s responses are through reflex actions i.e. unlearned, innate reflexes such as sucking anything he/she touches or grasping any object he touches to his palm of hand.
This stage is then sub-divided into three parts known as primary circular reaction dealing with deliberately repeated actions involve only body e.g. sucking (involves fingers and mouth). The second is secondary circular reaction in which children develops behaviors like holding an object and coordinate several actions to achieve something. The third one is called tertiary circular reaction between 12 and 18 months whereby a child starts experiment with things e.g. deliberately dropping things to see what will happen.
During this stage a child forms the first schemas through
assimilation and accommodation in adapting to his/her world. It is the beginning of the organization process. Development of language (associating sounds with objects or events) is another important aspect in this stage.
Also, they develop sense of object permanence i.e. objects continue to exist even when out of sight. Before then children do not look for objects that are removed or obstructed out of visual field, cannot be seen, heard or touched. The sense of object permanence is very significant since the child’s world becomes organized and predictable. Furthermore, in this stage the child becomes aware that he/she can be the cause of an action. Also, due to development of mobility the child is able to explore objects that are far and consequently new mental abilities.
At this stage children learn to walk, meaning they gain the ability to access the environment around them. Before walking they had to depend on others to bring items to them, now they can move around to the object and explore their surroundings. So in sensorimotor stage children learn through use of senses, actively exploring their environment.
Touch the palm ( the central. region of the front of the hand) ofa child less than 12 months old and observe his/her reactions.
2. Preoperational stage
This stage extends from 2 to 7 years. According to Piaget
operations are actions that we perform mentally including knowing an object, thinking and manipulating ideas. A good example is when we compare things mentally to discover their similarities and differences. So, in preoperational stage the child is not yet able to manipulate things mentally through s/he has started to use language. In this stage a child’s mental functioning is mainly characterized with the use of symbols.
The child gains the mental ability to represent an object that is absent, a demonstration of thinking. The use of language expands rapidly; they engage in pretending plays whereby an object (let’s say a piece of wood) may represent a house, a car or person. In the play they assume that the innate objects (not endowed with life or spirit )are alive and conscious, referred to as animism (is the belief that everything has a soul or spirit).
Another characteristic of this stage is egocentrism (is the inability to differentiate between self and other. ...). this is the inability to know and recognize that other people see objects from their point of view and instead they think that the other person is seeing the object as s/he is seeing it from his/her position.
Because of this characteristic a child at this stage may need company of other children but normally each one engage in his/her own play and monologue.
Do not waste your time forcing a child in this age to see things from your point of view.
Centration refers to child’s tendency of concentrating and focusing on only one aspect of an object and disregarding the other aspects although they are important features of the object.
Children in preoperational stage also lack conservation i.e. the ability to realize that properties of an object remain the same although its shape might change. For adults a volume of liquid remains the same even when put into a container of different shape or size. Due to lack of conservation a child thinks that water poured into a narrow container is more than when it was in broad container. This is caused by irreversibility i.e. the child being unable to reverse mentally the procedures or his/her thinking.
Therefore, in this stage of preoperational children learn by experiencing real objects in their surroundings. They use symbols and images in constructing knowledge about their world. Children are egocentric and cannot understand other people’s point of view.
3. Concrete Operational Stage
This stage extends from 7 to 11 years. In this stage children overcome the limitations of the preoperational stage by using reasoning that involves concrete operations i.e. they can deal with real concrete situations but are unable to deal with abstract situations.
The child now has establishes conservation since s/he can reverse mental actions and take into account several aspects of the object or event instead of focusing only on one aspect.
Egocentric thinking diminishes too. A child in this stage makes addition by counting real things, mostly fingers. The problem comes when the sum is more than ten and they are wearing shoes! This is why children at this stage seem to carry bottle tops in a string to school for making calculations.
This stage is characterized by a number of behaviors like:
Classification i.e. to sort out things from a big group and put them in sets or categories based on their similarities. Also, they have the ability to know an object can be classified into different groups, eg. one woman at the same time can be a daughter, mother, sister, wife and grandmother.
Seriation this is an ability lacking in the preoperational stage where children cannot compare more than two objects at the same time. Due to seriation they can reason about relationships and come up with logical conclusions ( transitivity) . They can conclude that object “C” is taller than object “A” upon realization that “B” is taller than “A” and “C” is taller than “B”.
Spend some time in lower classrooms in a primary school i.e. standard one and two. Make observations of the characteristics of children in preoperational stage.
4. Formal Operational stage
This is the fourth and last stage in Piaget’s cognitive theory. It starts at about 11 and 12 years (during adolescence). In the previous stage a child is only able to conduct concrete operations by using real objects. However, in this stage the adolescent demonstrates the ability to think in abstract, idealistic and logical ways. They solve problems presented to them verbally and they can express themselves without relying on concrete objects.
One of their characteristics is that they can differentiate the real from the possible and can think about the future. They have developed hypothetical-deductive reasoning whereby they think abstractly in systematic manner that involves developing hypothesis and means of testing them.
In their plans they gather all possible information and study possible combinations of solving the problems.
IMPLICATIONS OF THE THEORY TO TEACHERS
Teachers have knowledge on developmental psychology especially on cognitive development.
Teachers get to understand that children are mentally qualitatively different from adults and among themselves depending on their cognitive stage of development (individual variations)
Enable teachers to recognize and understand that children’s answers are not ‘wrong’ or ‘weird’ ( weird -a miujiza, sio kawaida; -a kuogofya, -a ajabu, mtu mwenye tabia ya pekee. ) but statements indicating the state of their mental functions.
Guide teachers to observe the mental functions of their students basing on important key factors.
Help the curriculum developers to develop the curriculum that suit the learners with their environment and level of cognitive development.
>>>>>>>IT PROCEED>>>>>>>>>>

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY -RESEARCH IN EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

RESEARCH IN EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
Educational research refers to the systematic collection and analysis of data related to the field of education. Research may involve a variety of methods. Research may involve various aspects of education including student learning, teaching methods, teacher training, and classroom dynamics.
What is a scientific research?
Scientific research is based not on the phenomenon being investigated but by the way the investigation is carried out. Scientific approach is objective, systematic and verifiable. It is objective since it is based on the observable and/or on measurable aspects. Educational psychologists do not accept resolutions that might be biased, based on personal beliefs, opinions, speculation or experience alone. Verifiability is founded on the premise that someone else can crosscheck the findings by repeating the same research. Thus, scientific approach is based on empirical evidence.
Scientific approach is systematic since it has laid down procedures of carrying out an investigation.
The main stages of conducting a research in Educational Psychology are:
Conceptualizing the problem
The first thing is to identify a problem that is researchable i.e
research problem. A problem is any issue that can be answered by doing a research. Some of the things we may like to study cannot be explained through scientific approach. Scientific methods cannot be applied in finding the existence of God, or God’s relationship with student’s academic performance. Research problem can be a result of personal experiences in one’s professional field (eg. Teaching/learning experiences in school settings) or developed from the findings of other researches (normally research findings raise new questions that need to be answered through scientific methods). A research problem may be finding why most students from area ‘A’ are dropping out of school and performance of most of those remaining in school is low.
When formulating the research problem one has to draw knowledge from theories and other materials related to phenomenon under investigation. This knowledge gained shows what is going on the area of research and also is used to formulate the hypothesis. Hypothesis is a statement indicating the relationship of the variables of the research and indicating the expected results of the study. Hypothesis of the above research problem may be, “ Students of parents with secondary education in area “A” are more likely to complete schools than students whose parents have only primary school education”. Variables are the elements in the hypothesis. In the above hypothesis the variables are “parents with secondary education”, “parents with primary school education” and “completing school”. So, the main activity in this stage is to identify and clarify the research problem.
Data collection
This stage involves determining instruments and mechanisms of obtaining information needed in solving the research problem. In this step, information gathered is used to test the hypothesis. The hypothesis is not determined as correct or incorrect, but if it is rejected or accepted on the data obtained. There are several ways of collecting data that are to be discussed in the following section.
Conclusion
The raw data collected is processed through statistical procedures so that results can be analyzed and interpretations made. Statistical analysis determines if the results happened by chance or are the results of conditions created or that observed by the researcher. The results are used to make conclusions that indicate the application of findings in respective situations.
MAJOR RESEARCH METHODS
There are two major types of research methodology in Educational Psychology, namely:
quantitative methods and qualitative methods. In quantitative approaches measurements and test scores are used. Variables in the research are quantified and statistical methods are applied for the interpretation of the data.
In educational settings qualitative approaches are used to study theoretical variables that can only be inferred and are difficult to quantify. This method can be used to describe events, processes, motivation, attitudes and personal experiences. For example, a participant might be directed to narrate his feelings under specific conditions and then his/her explanation is recorded and analyzed.
Description of Data Collection Methods in Research
Descriptive Study
This type of qualitative study determines the current status of the behavior in the research problem. The main aim is to understand and describe the way things are. So, the researcher is collecting data to test hypothesis. Descriptive study is used to get the attitudes, opinions and the occurrences of behavior among students.
Descriptive data can be collected through observation. Natural Observation is a systematic observation and recording of data (thus scientific) in a natural setting while the researcher is detached from the activities of the group under study. This can either be observing students and teachers in the classroom, cafeteria or in the playing field. In participant observation the researcher (observer) is actively engaged in the activities of the group of the study. So, the observer is both part of the group and also involved in recording the data.
Another descriptive method is
survey research , it involves selecting a number of people (sample) to collect data that represents the views, opinions, attitudes and/or beliefs of a population. Data can be collected by asking questions through questionnaires and/or conducting interviews. Due to technological advancements these instruments can be administered either by face to face or through e-mail and/or phones.
Single Case Study
This study is based on investigating one single individual or specific event. It is used when an opportunity avails itself for a study that could not otherwise be done due to ethical or practical reasons. We cannot inject students with addictive drugs to study their levels of aggressions against others. However we can observe the levels of aggression of students who are discovered to be drug addicts. The findings of case study can help us to come up with some understanding of a phenomenon. However, since the results cannot be analyzed statistically, their interpretations cannot be generalized to other people.
Correlational Study
This study determines the relationship between two or more variables that are associated. It indicates whether there is relationship or not. Statistical approach is used to determine the strength of the relationship and if it is either positive or negative. The score of relationship lies between the coefficient of -1 (negative) and +1 (positive). A score close to 0 means there is no relationship between the variables. There is no relationship between the height of student and his/her test score. A score close to -1 implies a negative relationship ie if one variable increases the other one decreases and vice versa. A good example is the relationship between test score and number of wrong answers. If the number of wrong answers increases the test score decrease, when the number of wrong answers decreases the test score increase. A score close to +1 means a positive relationship ie if one variable increases the other variable also increases. When the number of correct answers increase also the test score increase.
The strength of the relationship can be used to make predictions. However, finding that there is a relationship between the variable does not mean there is cause-effect relationship ie one cannot say either of the variables is the cause of the relationship. The number of correct or incorrect test answers is not the cause of academic performance of a student but rather due to other factors such as mental ability, study skills or level of difficulty of the test.
Experimental Research
Educational psychologists use experimental research to determine cause-effect relationship between variables ie to find out if a certain variable is the cause of behavior or condition. Experimental research is conducted in a laboratory or controlled environment whereby conditions or factors thought to cause/influence the respective behavior are carefully manipulated. The factor that is manipulated is called the independent variable while the behavior being observed or measured is called the dependent variable. So independent variable is the factor considered to be influential, cause or has effect on the dependent variable. If the dependent variable changes due to manipulation of the independent variable then we say there might be cause-effect relationship between the two variables ie
independent variable has an influence on the dependent variable.
In many experimental researches two groups of individuals are used ie experimental group and
control group . At the beginning of the research both groups are equal in all aspects. Random sampling is used to form these groups. This technique gives each individual of the study an equal chance to be selected in either group and eliminates the biases that the researcher may have. Experimental group with the one manipulated while the control group is treated the same way as the experimental group is the independent variable while the behavioral outcomes of the two groups are the dependent variables.
Cross-sectional Research and Longitudinal Research
These are studies that are time span researches ie research based on changes related to period of time. We might be interested to know the characteristics of students at different stages of development.
There are two main approaches used in time span researches. In
cross-sectional research groups of children based on their age are selected and then the research focuses on the problem area of interest. The aim is to compare the characteristics of the respective age groups.
In longitudinal research the same group of individuals is investigated over a period of time that is normally over a year, some last many years eg. from birth to death. One observes the changes that take place among the group members during the duration of the study.
Action Research
This is a research carried by a teacher or several teachers, rather than psychologist or research experts, with the aim of solving a specific problem in the classroom or school. The findings are used to remedy and improve teaching/learning processes.
In Action research a teacher uses research procedures to gain skills that help them to deal with problems or situation that hinder effectively learning in their classrooms. So, the teacher has to know how to formulate questions that accurately reflects the problem/situation, to define the terms in the question, collect data and use analysis processes that yield findings that are valid and reliable. From the findings the teacher makes strategies for instructional improvement or
for addressing the adverse situation. The implications are that as an effective teacher you are not only going to teach but also be a researcher in the classroom all the time. In action research you may follow the same procedures used in the other types of researches to avoid personal biases but have reliable results that lead to effective line of action.
As an example, a teacher may observe that a certain student in the class is always causing commotion and that she/he is supported by some other students despite being warned several times.
Firstly, the teacher formulates a
question “What makes Bahati to make commotion?” The teacher needs to define commotion. Next, the teacher engages in data collection. The teacher records when and how many times she/he makes commotion and through interview deduce why s/he makes commotions. Also s/he may record when and how many times the other students support him/her. The next follows the
data analysis . The findings from the analysis may reveal that Bahari and his/her colleges are not motivated to learn that teacher’s subject. Based on the findings the teacher makes an
action plan on how to make students motivated to learn his/her subject.
Qn: For each of the methods of collecting data mentioned above identify its advantages and limitation.s.
Ethics in Research
Ethics refers to the correct rules of conduct necessary when carrying out research. We have a moral responsibility to protect research participants from harm.
· Protection of Participants
Researchers must ensure that those taking part in research will not be caused distress. They must be protected from physical and mental harm. This means you must not embarrass, frighten, offend or harm participants.Normally, the risk of harm must be no greater than in ordinary life, i.e. participants should not be exposed to risks greater than or additional to those encountered in their normal lifestyles.
· Gain consent from the participants and permission from responsible authorities before embarking on collecting data.
Participants, and the data gained from them must be kept anonymous unless they give their full consent. No names must be used in a research report. What do we do if we find out something which should be disclosed (e.g. criminal act)? Researchers have no legal obligation to disclose criminal acts and have to determine which is the most important consideration: their duty to the participant vs. duty to the wider community. Ultimately, decisions to disclose information will have to be set in the context of the aims of the research.
· Informed Consent
Whenever possible investigators should obtain the consent of participants. In practice this means it is not sufficient to simply get potential participants to say “Yes”. They also need to know what it is that they are agreeing to. In other words the psychologist should, so far as is practicable explain what is involved in advance and obtain the informed consent of participants.
· Deception
This is where participants are misled or wrongly informed about the aims of the research. Types of deception include (i) deliberate misleading, e.g. using confederates, staged manipulations in field settings, deceptive instructions; (ii) deception by omission, e.g., failure to disclose full information about the study, or creating ambiguity.
· Withdrawal from an Investigation
Participants should be able to leave a study at any time if they feel uncomfortable. They should also be allowed to withdraw their data. They should be told at the start of the study that they have the right to withdraw. They should not have pressure placed upon them to continue if they do not want to continue.
Qn: Elaborate the summary with your own words and then go through the lecture to verify your accurateness.

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY AND TEACHING (DEFINITION AND HISTORY)

OEP 101: EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY AND TEACHING (DEFINITION AND HISTORY)
What is Educational Psychology?
Educational psychology is the branch of psychology that focuses on development of effective teaching techniques and assessing learners aptitudes and progress in learning process. It uses psychological knowledge to understand learning and teaching in education.
It incorporates and applies knowledge gained from other areas of psychology eg theories of human development are used by educational psychologists to know how students develop and learn; and to understand the characteristics of learners at various stages; cognitive psychology when referring to reasoning and problem solving; school psychology in determining students’ abilities and the best ways and conditions necessary for individuals to realize their full potential. Knowledge from disciplines outside psychology contributes to educational psychology eg findings I neurosciences help us to understand how brain works in relation to learning. Also research findings in educational psychology contribute to wide field of psychology and education in general eg in creating educational policies and developing curriculum based on characteristics of the learners.
Psychology plays a great role in the aspects of instructional design and application, curriculum development, special education, classroom management, use of technology in teaching and assessment of learners and their performance.
Go through the school curriculum and make a list of items that are directly related to educational psychology.

OBJECTIVES (FUNCTIONS) OF EDUCTAIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
To describe and understand the nature and principles of learning. What is involved in the learning process? How do learners learn at different stages of development? Which are the factors that enhance/hinder learning?
Educational psychology aims at answering those kinds of questions by research.
It aims at designing strategies for guiding learners in learning. Students possess learning abilities and skills. Educational psychology guides students to use their existing skills more effectively and/or develop new skills
It provides teachers with methods and specific skills of teaching. These methods and skills are based on the outcomes of research findings and facilitate learning. To meet the state educational goals, learners need, school objectives as well as the societal needs.
It provides the teacher with the skills to identify individual learner’s process and traits. An effective teacher creates a learning environment in the classroom that caters for the individual variations so that each learner is motivated to realize his/her full potentials. The environment has great effect on learning process. Teachers can improvise the environment to enhance learning. Educational psychology trains teachers to identify and control these external factors eg teaching materials available, research findings and new teaching skills and technological advances.
To develop in those who teach, a sympathetic attitude towards children.
To aid in providing the teacher with a better perspective for judging both the results of his own teaching and the educational practice of others. Educational Psychology aids in providing a better background for understanding the total job of teaching in all its intricacies.
To assist the teacher in giving the necessary facts and techniques for analysing child’s behaviour to facilitate adjustment and growth of personality.

Who is an effective teacher?
If you meet the requirements of educational psychology, develop the teaching skills and apply them in teaching settings you will be motivated to be an effective teacher who tackles teaching challenges with confidence and great satisfaction.
So an effective teacher is the one who master the following concepts and perceptions:

Subject matter:
This refers to having a conceptual understanding of the subject you teach. You must work hard not only to acquire the knowledge of your subject, but also to be able to organize this knowledge and be in position to include knowledge from related disciplines. Just knowing the fact is not enough. Too little knowledge leads to teacher’s lack of confidence in the classroom. Remember that you don’t have to teach all what you know since you may cause harm in the class. Materials presented in the class should relate to the student’s abilities and the syllabus.

Knowledge of students:
You must know your students. It’s very difficult to deal with individuals whom you don’t know. As you spend time with them learn about them as a group, and as each student as a unique being. They bring different background to the class. Know about their physical, cognitive and psychosocial development. You will come into contact with exceptional students needing special attention and approach in teaching.

Learning process:
Learning process all about knows your students including having knowledge on how they learn ie skills and strategies students use to get new knowledge. Understanding this component is an asset in designing your teaching strategies as they have to be compatible with learning process of the respective students.

Instructional strategies:
Most effective instructional strategies lead students to develop skills of being reflective, thinking critically and in exploring their environment. Instructional strategies therefore should make each student learn efficiently.

Motivational skills:
Learning is a natural phenomenon but in school it can be discouraged or undermined by several elements (both within and/or external to the students). To be an effective teacher you must deploy conditions that will lead to students developing self-motivation ie eager to learn and staying on the task for personal satisfaction rather than pleasing others.
There is no point of having policy of compulsory education or attending school if a student is not interested in learning.

Classroom management:
A classroom environment is composed of many individuals and factors that have a bearing on the teaching/learning process. One of the most important responsibilities of a teacher is to create and maintain an environment an environment in the classroom that is conducive to learn ie keeping students engaged on the intended task. You will need to have strategies of organizing your students for effective learning and have in place a mechanism of preventing problems.

Assessment strategies:
A teacher needs to know if his/her students are successful or not in their learning. This can be realized if the teacher is able to develop or obtain appropriate instruments, make accurate assessments and interpretations of the measurements. Assessment enables one to determine the performance and needs of the students leading to making correct decisions and actions that will improve the performance of each student.

Technological skills:
This is an era of information technology and for one to function effectively she/he needs to be competent in technological skills. These skills will assist you to access knowledge and integrate technology in your teaching strategies. Also you will be in a position to make students use technology in their learning.

HISTORY OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
In the past we look specifically at the history of educational psychology. Educational psychology as an independent field started just before the beginning of 20th C in America. Here we are going to have an overview of important contributors in the development of this field. Some of the prominent contributors are as follows:

William James (1842-1910)
He published a book and gave lectures on the application of psychology in educating children. For research, he emphasized the use of direct observation in the real classroom learning/teaching conditions rather than laboratories. He is among the pioneers of learner centered method of teaching in education.

John Dewey (1859-1952)
He was a major figure on practical application of psychology. He shaped the field of psychology by establishing the first educational psychology laboratory in USA. His major contribution was the view that a child is an active learner rather than the held belief that children are passive learners. Also he emphasized that the role of the teacher should be to train students on how to think and adapt to the conditions outside the classroom. He was influential in making all children get competent education regardless of their gender, socio-economic background or ethnicity.

Edward L. Thorndike (1874-1949)
He emphasized the use of scientific approach in educational psychology. He initiated the use of assessment and measurements in learning. B.F. Skinner built on the ideas of
Thorndike. However, he insisted that the subject matter of psychology should not include mental processes but should only focus on the observable behaviors. This is termed as
behavioral perspective . Skinner’s approach determined the best conditions for learning to take place. The teacher uses a rewarding system that improves student behavior or performance. He developed the concept of programmed learning in which a learner is reinforced in each step that leads to the intended goal.

Benjamin Bloom (1956)
Benjamin Bloom created the taxonomy of cognitive skills that indicated the goal s of educators on learners. The cognitive skills he identified are and in the following order starting from the lowest level to the highest:

remembering, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Is from the Bloom’s taxonomy where educationists come up with curriculum documents like syllabuses, schemes of work, lesson plans and table of specifications in the implementation of curriculum.
In the 1980s the educational psychologists focused on the cognitive aspects of human learning advocated by Dewey and
James but ignored by Skinner and fellow behaviorists. They researched on and applied the concepts of cognitive psychology including memory, thinking, reasoning and perception on the premises that they are significant on how information is received and processed.

Currently educational psychology includes out of school aspects that have influence on learners eg the role of culture in education. Also it is focusing on theories of self-regulating learning and metacognition ie cognition about cognition or knowing about knowing.

CONTRIBUTIONS OF OTHER FIELDS AND THEORIES
It is obvious that one cannot be fit for teaching and learning by only accruing knowledge from educational psychology only and ignoring other field’s knowledge. There are other fields which are very important; a good example is the use of research and ICT in teaching and learning process where by teachers and students enjoy a lot from the existence of findings from different sources as well as the computers with internet.
Elaborate the summary with your own words and then go through the lecture to verify your accurateness.