To show the organization of the course that includes this module, follow this link:  Course organization

Learning outcomes

Educational Psychology is the discipline which applies knowledge of mental, neural and social processes to learning in educational contexts. The course is aimed at introducing students to knowledge, techniques and methods employed in this discipline, with the purpose of offering not only a theoretical basis but also practical knowledge and the techniques useful to the educational profession.

Program

1. Part I: Individuals, intelligence and learning.
• The educational perspective. Introduction to the discipline.
• Intelligence and learning: what is intelligence? Innatist, constructivist and contextualist conceptions of intelligence and their educational implications.
• Individual differences in learning
• Mental and cultural processes: the cultural origin of higher mental functions, the influence of cultural practices on the child’s developmental and educative processes.

2. Part II: Ability and motivation to learn
• Metacognition and self-regulation in learning.I
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• Motivation to learn, self-efficacy, and the motivational role of context
3 . Part III: literacy processes:
• Learning to write and writing difficulties
• The process of reading and text comprehension.



Texts:

Boscolo, P. (1997). Psicologia dell'apprendimento scolastico. Torino, Utet.
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

Students’ notes

For those not attending the course:

Boscolo, P. (1997). Psicologia dell'apprendimento scolastico. Torino: Utet.
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11

Rogoff, B. (2006). Imparando a pensare. L'apprendimento guidato nei contesti educativi. Milano: Cortina.

Examination Methods

The examination will be written, consisting of three open questions based on the programme.