Abnormal Psychology Schizophrenia essay

Educational Psychology has developed different methods of studying learning abilities such as hypothesis, IQ tests and psychometric testing.  Jean Piaget, became one of the most well-known psychologists through his study of children’s thinking (Fontana, 1995). In part, his study has been dismissed by psychologists today, but his theory of the “child as a product of an interaction between biological maturation and the environment, is universally recognised” (Fontana, 1995, P. 52).  Such studies of children and learning by Piaget and other psychologists, have laid the foundation for educational psychology in practice today.Cognitive development, self-efficacy and individual differences are three important areas studied, in relation to the development of learning.  Cognitive development studies how a person processes information and concepts, their perception, thinking processes and language skills.  In turn, self-efficacy is the belief a person has in their own abilities, which in turn has a profound impact on their learning abilities.  Finally, individual differences characterise a person and their specific needs.  When all of the above are applied in a practice situation, the appropriate needs of the individual are taken into account, to enhance their learning abilities in the right learning environment (Boyd & Bee, 2006).