Psychological Approaches in

curriculum and development

Topics
Understanding learning
Behaviorism
Cognitive
Constructivism
Humanism
 Psychological Approach
• Psychology is concerned with the question of
how people learn and curriculum specialist ask=
how psychology can contribute to the design
and delivery of curriculum

• Psychology as a science must focus on the objective and

observable behaviors
e.g. multiplication stimuli OB
objective (drilling ) able to??
BEHAVIOURAL
APPROACH
Behaviorists

Pavlov Skinner

Thorndike
Watson
 Behavioural learning Approach
Goals and objectives of learning are specified.

Contents and activities are arranged to match

with specified learning objectives.

The learning outcomes are evaluated in terms

of goals and objectives that are set at the
beginning
 Behaviourism is based upon the idea
• Behaviours are acquired through conditioning

• conditioning occurs through interaction with the environment

• conditioning can be used to learn new information &

behaviours

•behaviours can be measured, trained, & changed

• Behaviours are observable, so it is easier to collect data or

information about learning & to quantify learning
 Behaviourist curriculum focuses upon:

• Learning that occurs through reinforcement &

punishment for behaviour

• Organizing learning so that students can

experience success in the process of mastering
the subject matter.

• "teacher" is the dominant/ anchor person

in the classroom
 Element in learning
• People learn through observation and
modeling
• Direct instruction
• practice and drill
• Monitoring students, and prompt feedback
• step-by-step structured methods for
learning
 Element in learning
• Change in external behavior using
reinforcement and repetition

• Desired behavior is rewarded; the undesired

behavior is punished

•   "teacher" is the dominant/ anchor person in

the classroom
 Elements in learning
• careful analyzing and sequencing of the learners’
needs and behaviors
• specify the desire outcomes, what needs to be
changed, and how it will evaluated
• Abundant drills
• Programmed instructions
 Humanist approach
Carl Roger Abraham Maslow
 Humanistic
• A system of thought predominantly
concerned with the human experience
rather than with the spiritual aspects of life

• A general orientation to life that recognises

the uniqueness of human beings and the
qualities of life that contribute to our
humanity ( human kind)
 Humanist’s beliefs

•  The present is the most important aspect of the person and

therefore humanists focus on the here and now rather than
looking at the past or trying to predict the future.

• Reality based and to be psychologically healthy people must take

responsibility for themselves, whether the person’s actions are
positive or negative.

• The individual, merely by being human, posses an inherent

worth.  Actions may not be positive but this does not negate the
value of the person.
   
 Humanist’s beliefs
• The goal of life should always be to achieve personal
growth and understanding.  Only through self-
improvement and self-knowledge can one truly be
happy.

• Humanists believe that it is necessary to study the

person as a whole, especially as an individual grows
and develops over the lifespan. It follows that the
study of the self, motivation, and goals are areas of
particular interest.
 Humanistic approach
• The main components of the humanistic approach are that
the lessons are Student-centred.

• Humanism allows students for social personal development. It

takes pressure of the students as is not performance-oriented
or test-dominated, this provides opportunity for success.

• The whole process is about Discovery. Students are

encouraged to go out there and find out information and it is
up to them to decide which information they think is relevant.
Elements of learning in humanistic
• Reflective learning –

• Articulate one’s own interests, feelings, ethical and

aesthetical concerns, meaning making, and moral values

Inquire into the own identity development and reflect on

the own learning process

Regulate the own learning process and taking responsibility

for own autonomy and giving meaning
instructional learning in humanistic
• Dialogical learning
• Communicate in an open way with other people
• Analyse and compare different perspectives
• Analyse the social, cultural and political power
relations involved
• Student-centred teaching.
• social personal development.
• Provide opportunity for success.
• Discovery learning
 Humanistic applications
• Allow the student to have a choice in the selection of
tasks and activities whenever possible;
• Help students learn to set realistic and challenging
goals;
• Have students participate in group work, especially
cooperative learning, in order to develop social and
affective skills;
• Teacher act as a facilitator for group discussions when
appropriate;
• Teacher be a role model for the attitudes, beliefs and
habits you wish to foster.
 COGNITIVE APPROACH
Jean Piaget
Montessori
 Cognitive approach
• Focus attention on how individuals process
information and how to monitor and manage
thinking.

• learning constitutes a logical method for organizing

and interpreting learning.

• Learning is rooted in the tradition of subject matter

where teachers use a lot of problem and thinking
skills in teaching and learning..
 Instructional learning
• reflective thinking,
• creative thinking,
• intuitive thinking,
• discovery learning
• Classifying or chunking information
• Linking concepts ( linking new content with something known)
• Providing structure ( organizing information in a meaningful way)
• Real world examples
• Discussion
• Problem solving
 Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences

• This theory was developed in 1983 and supports the

development of intelligence through seven different
areas: logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-
kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal and intrapersonal.
• Each intelligence allows our students "to solve
problems, or to create products, that are valued
within one or more cultural settings” .
• However, in recent years Gardner has added two
more intelligences to his theory. These two are
verbal and communicational.
 Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
• 1. Verbal-linguistic intelligence (well-developed verbal
skills and sensitivity to the sounds, meanings and
rhythms of words)
• 2. Logical-mathematical intelligence (ability to think
conceptually and abstractly, and capacity to discern
logical and numerical patterns)
• 3. Spatial-visual intelligence (capacity to think in images
and pictures, to visualize accurately and abstractly)
• 4. Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence (ability to control one’s
body movements and to handle objects skilfully)
 Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
• 5. Musical intelligences (ability to produce and
appreciate rhythm, pitch and timber)
• 6. Interpersonal intelligence (capacity to
detect and respond appropriately to the
moods, motivations and desires of others)
• 7. Intrapersonal (capacity to be self-aware
and in tune with inner feelings, values, beliefs
and thinking processes)
 Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
• 8. Naturalist intelligence (ability to recognize
and categorize plants, animals and other
objects in nature)

• 9. Existential intelligence (sensitivity and

capacity to tackle deep questions about
human existence such as, What is the meaning
of life? Why do we die? How did we get here?
 CONSTRUCTIVISM
APPROACH
Dewey (1929)
Bruner (1961)
Vygotsky (1962)
Piaget (1980).
 Constructivism's central idea
• Human learning is constructed, that learners build new
knowledge upon the foundation of previous learning.

• Learners construct new understandings using what they

already know.

• Learners come to learning situations with knowledge

gained from previous experience, and that prior
knowledge influences what new or modified knowledge
they will construct from new learning experiences
(Phillips, 1995).
 Constructivism's central idea
• Learners will be constantly trying to derive
their own personal mental model of the real
world from their perceptions of that world.
•
• As they perceive each new experience,
learners will continually update their own
mental models to reflect the new information,
and will, therefore, construct their own
interpretation of reality.
 Element in learning
• To provide experience with the knowledge
construction process (students determine how they
will learn).
•
• 2) To provide experience in and appreciation for
multiple perspectives (evaluation of alternative
solutions).

• 3) To embed learning in realistic contexts (authentic

tasks).
 Element in learning
• 4)To encourage ownership and a voice in the learning
process (student cantered learning).

• 5) To embed learning in social experience (collaboration).

• 6) To encourage the use of multiple modes of

representation, (video, audio text, etc.)

• 7) To encourage awareness of the knowledge

construction process (reflection, met-acognition)
 Homework
Discuss model of curriculum development
• Group 1: Taba
• Group 2: Tyler
• Group 3: Oliver

Discuss steps in curriculum design

• Group 4: need analysis and objectives
• Group 5: Selecting and organizing content
• Group 6: implementing and evaluating the
curriculum