RELEVANCE OF PSYCHOLOGY TO TEACHER EDUCATION

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Child psychology is important to teachers for the following reasons:
1.It helps the teacher to understand the child he is teaching-that is to understand the learner.

  1. It helps the teacher to improve learning and teaching.

  2. It facilitates the teacher's understanding of himself

  3. It helps to advance the cause of education through proper appreciation of its role and through research.

  4. It helps in handling problems of discipline in a more rational and even democratic way.

  5. It helps in writing of text books.

  6. Understanding the Learner

(a) It furnishes the teacher with the knowledge of the child as he progresses from INEANCY through
CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENCE TO ADULTHOOD. Thus, the major characteristics, needs, task and accomplishment of the ditferent stages are discussed and these can be utilized for learning efficiency.

(b) No two individuals are the same, some are younger than others of the same age some mature and develop
earlier while others mature and develop late, some are more intelligent than others. Educational psychology
helps to explain the ways in which individuals differ and suggest ways oft coping with the differences. It also

explains the various genetic and environmental factors which account for the differences. In circumstances as of now where mass education is the case, each class is heterogeneous in composition. The teacher needs the
knowledge of the educational psychology to assess an
individual ditferently for eftective management, how to present materials for effective learning how to motivate and channel the different interests and
abilities in the class for effective learning and optimal development.

(C) Development of child psychology enables us to understand the idea of exceptionality. There are children who are gitted, those that are handicapped.
They are special in some way that makes them difterent from normals. The deaf or hard of hearing, the blind or partial blind, those with loSs limbs or any form of structural damage are physically handicapped. There
are those who are slow learners and those with superior intelligence. Educational psychology equips teachers to update learning experiences by contributing towards
their identification and specitying how they can be rehabilitated.

(D) Child psychology helps the teacher to acquire knowledge of children's behavioural problems. Some problems are normal and will disappear with age and greater maturity (EURESIS). Some have genetic or environmental implications (SICKLER). The knowledge of educational psychology helps the teacher know how to help children grow out of them and how to manipulate the environment, to prevent children from becoming maladjusted in school.

2 Improvement of Instruction and Learning

(a) Knowledge and use of a variety of techniques. It is now known that when children do not learn, the teaching of
environment and methods are at fault. Lots principles and techniques wnicn Promote learning have been proposed in psychology. For instance,
strategies which get the learners tO De very active as well as the use of rewards and incentives have been proposed in study of educational psychology. These
techniques and principles are specified for different learning and of different types of materials, skills, concepts, problem solving and so on.

(b) By discovering the needs, characteristics, interest and abilities of different groups of children, the curriculum and its interpretation can be made relevant. Teaching methods can also be related to the needs and level of the maturity of the learners. Educational psychology provides help in deciding whether certain categories of learners would benefit most from individualized instructions, small group or whole class.

(c) Many creative children are lost or sent away from schools because teachers do not understand them.

Educational psychology enables the teacher to assess creativity of learners as well as other abilities througn
simple procedure.

3 Teacher's Understanding of Himself
Educational psychology leads to greater indepth knowledge of ourselves. In learning about and trying to impart certain skills, social and other adjustment skils,

we cannot help assessing and improving our own skills too. The same applies to leadership qualities. So, educational psychology enables us to accept our strength and weaknesses.

  1. Advancement of the cause of Education

Educational psychology helps to advance the cause of education through proper appreciation of its
role and through research. That is, it embodies and attempts to add the experience of the research workers
in the field of education to that obtained by personal experience.

  1. Handling Problems of Discipline
    Educational psychology helps to handle problems of discipline in a more rational and even democratic way. Teachers can now examine the cause of indiscipline among their students before reacting to them.

  2. Writing of Textbooks
    Teachers now write textbooks that are tailored in language and difficulty level appropriate to various classes of readers etc.

Reference:
Munn, N. L (1980). Psychological Development: An Introduction
to Genetic Psychology. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Nkang, I. E. & Eneh, G. A. (2002). Psychology of Human Learning.
Uyo: MEH (Nigeria) Limited.

Nkemakolam, E. O. (1992). Education and Human Development:
A Psychological Approach. Benin: Barloz Publishers
Inc.

Nwoye, A. (1990). Counselling PsychologY for Africa. Jos: Fab
Arich (Nigeria) Limited.

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