Educational psychology is a branch of psychology that is responsible for studying the ways in which human learning takes place, especially in the context of educational centers. Educational psychology looks at the ways we learn and teach, and we try to increase the effectiveness of different educational interventions to improve the process. It also tries to apply the principles and health of social psychology to educational institutions and organizations.
It should be noted that educational psychology provides solutions for the development of curricula, educational management, educational models and cognitive sciences in general.
To understand the main characteristics of learning in childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and old age, educational psychologists develop and apply different theories about human development, which are generally considered stages of maturity.
Furthermore, as in clinical psychology, educational psychology may not only serve the purpose of treatment once a problem has been identified, but also prevention. For the aforementioned, constant research studies are carried out. A research focused on the consolidation of methodologies that become a fundamental pillar for the assimilation of new knowledge.
In the school environment, educational psychology studies and investigates the best methods and study plans that allow improving the educational model and the management of the centers.
Being their objective the better understanding of the elements and characteristics that influence learning during childhood, adolescence, adulthood and old age, educational psychologists are responsible for developing and implementing different theories about human development that help to understand the different processes and contexts in which learning takes place.
One of the references in educational psychology is Jean Piaget, who founded the Theory of Learning. This theory structures the different stages of children's knowledge from the point of view of their development to integrate logical thinking. And it should be noted that education also sits directly on philosophy while learning and knowledge improve the human being. In fact, the Philosophy of Education is a branch that studies precisely the thought of those authors who carried out theories about learning. One of the most important philosophers in this context is Jean Jacques Rousseau.
It should be noted that there are a significant number of problems related to the learning process, such as dyslexia, attention problems, social integration, mental retardation, deafness, epilepsy, blindness, among others, in which, of course, the educational psychologist should intervene. in order to guide parents and teachers on the best course to follow.
