Welcome to a new blog... well, one I've been thinking about having for some time but wasn't exactly sure what to base it on.
So I based it on what I know most about. Educational Psychology.
I've heard of, seen some of, and experienced the worst of it, and so have a great many people known to me; so I decided to have a blog about it.
This is not to say that Educational Psychology has nothing to offer: if I felt that, I'd not bother doing it for a living (when I get the chance). But I think that some educational psychologists don't quite do the job right.
And this is a place to bitch about that.
And to talk about when it is done right, too... lest this be misinterpreted as just a major bitchfest!
posted by David N. Andrews M. Ed., C. P. S. E. @ Friday, February 09, 2007
23 comments
23 Comments:
John: "Since autism is mercury poisoning and psychology can't do anything to improve the condition, don't you think you're wasting your time? Wouldn't you be better off learning how to remove mercury from autistic people's brains?"
This blog is about educational psychology research and practice, not obsessions with heavy metals.
Sounds fascinating. I may be back to read as you go on.
I am teacher (elementary) and mother of a child with Asperger's.
Hi Daisy... Welcome.
I'll be looking up topics from the sorts of things that happen in 'my back yard', but hoping that others can suggest some too.
Hi David,
Congratulations on your new degree. Im so glad youve got a blog.
I think educational psychology is important and I want to learn more.
I want to ask intelligent questions so people can learn from what you have to offer and so you dont have your time wasted. You deserve that.
Im sure that Ill know better how to ask questions as I see what you and others write here and Im sure Ill learn alot that I can use.
The first things Im wanting to understand are:
1) Is Skinners writings about behavioralism the foundation of what most educational psychologist use in how they do their work?
2) Does the language writen in the DSM IV very limiting in how educational psychologist describe what they see in people and how they feel they can help them? I mean does the language in the DSM IV make it difficult for them to find a foundation for what they want to describe since the DSM IV is so widely accepted by the other professionals they are trying to describe things to?
3)Do most educational psychologist closly follow the BPS DipEdPsychol syllabus and can it help other nonprofessionals to know how this influences what they base their veiws on?
Im looking forward to reading your blog. I am continuing to look up other things Ive read that youve talked about and its been really helpful.
Thanks, Ed
"Hi David,"
Hi Ed....
"Congratulations on your new degree."
Thank you :)
"Im so glad youve got a blog."
Yeh, me too... been thinking about it for a while. Figured I should just do it :)
"I think educational psychology is important and I want to learn more."
I think it's an unusually good application of psychology if it's done right, and that's what got me into it (having experienced the thing when it is not done properly).
"I want to ask intelligent questions so people can learn from what you have to offer and so you dont have your time wasted. You deserve that."
Thanks. Having known you on a couple of other blogs though, I can't think of a question you've asked that hasn't been intelligent, to be honest. You ask questions that get me and others to think about what we post... that's intelligent questioning; goes well beyond the Socratic 'asking-questions-for-the-sake-of-asking-questions' thing. I think it'd be nice to see some input from John Best... I'd be unhappy for this blog to become another 'it's mercury - no it's not' thing; I did set out with this being intended to be more than that. But I think there might be some useful points and questions that he could post.
"Im sure that Ill know better how to ask questions as I see what you and others write here and Im sure Ill learn alot that I can use."
Yeh... every new blog has a period where people getting involved in it are easing themselves in.
"The first things Im wanting to understand are:"
Shoot :)
"1) Is Skinners writings about behavioralism the foundation of what most educational psychologist use in how they do their work?"
Ah... good question. His Analysis Of Behaviour was initially seen as a foundation for educational psychology as we know it now, although Thorndike beat him to the use of any terminology like 'educational psychology'. I think these days, the more useful behaviourism-based approach is the one put forward by Bandura... the social-cognitive approach, which acknowledges the social influences and cognitive processes that underlie behaviour. We also tend to use a lot of the maerial left by Vygotsky, who was also not overly impressed with Skinner's theory as an explanation of why behaviour happens (it does, however, form a reasonable desciption of some of the more observable mechanisms by which behaviour can become frequent). The influence of Lewin's work is not something we like to ignore in educatioinal psychology, either. He looked at the influence of situations on behavioural choices.
"2) Does the language writen in the DSM IV very limiting in how educational psychologist describe what they see in people and how they feel they can help them? I mean does the language in the DSM IV make it difficult for them to find a foundation for what they want to describe since the DSM IV is so widely accepted by the other professionals they are trying to describe things to?"
Yes, I think it is somewhat limiting for ed-psychs, since we don't particularly necessarily see something as 'disorder' except where an entire system is in disorder... In clinical practice, the modus operandum seems to be to ascribe difficulties to a diagnostic entity, whereas an educational paradigm would tend towards looking at difficulties that are typical when someone with X-diagnosis ends up in Y-situation with the aim of learning Z-material, and we'd have to look at the situation from a multi-level analytic approach to get the information we need in order to suggest possible ways of improving the system for that particular student.
"3)Do most educational psychologist closly follow the BPS DipEdPsychol syllabus and can it help other nonprofessionals to know how this influences what they base their veiws on?"
In the UK, up until the BPS wanted to be the APA, the DipEdPSychol was the model for all the MSc and MEd degrees in educational psychology as well as being the way into qualification for people going by an independent route (outside of a university or polytechnic, for example). As for the usefulness of the Diploma syllabus to other professionals, I have to say that it would probably vary widely in how much of the syllabus was useful; but I'd say that much of the material that was to be covered in papers one and two would be very useful for those working, for example, as SENCOs (Special Educational Needs Co-Ordinators) or indeed as child psychologists in clinical practice.
"Im looking forward to reading your blog. I am continuing to look up other things Ive read that youve talked about and its been really helpful."
Thank you, Ed. This is very good to know.
"Thanks, Ed"
Welcome. And thank you too.
Hi David... I just noticed you got your blog set up. It's looking good! :-)
Thanks, ABFH!
Trying to think of good articles for inclusion here, which is hard to do when one is currently trying to save a business :/
Glad to see your blog up.
There's always room for intelligent discussion of pertinent topics. I look forward to reading your blog.
C166, thank you :)
I have a wee backlog of work to do and then I hope to post on relevant topics within the next few days or so.
I'm likely to be commenting on issues that I see going on in the field here in Finland, but I'm sure there'll be interesting parallels in most countries....
David -
Found you through your response to Club 166's blog post in relation to my post about the 6 y/o autistic child charged w assault. I was glad to read your comments, especially coming from an educator. I, too, have run across MANY MANY wonderful educators who have graced my son's life (10 y/o Asperger's) - and not even through IEP's or anything, just through private school education and education about my son - by my son.
I'll be popping back on a regular basis!
Hi, mommyguilt,
You're welcome indeed, and welcome to my blog.
Had some rather bad news lately so my proposed first article hasn't materialised as I had hoped it would, but I shall be putting some ed-psych related material on here soon as I can find the time...
The answer to your question would rather depend on the education of psychologists would it not?
Larry: "The answer to your question would rather depend on the education of psychologists would it not?"
What question, Larry? I didn't ask one. However, Ed asked a very sensible question: "Do most educational psychologist closly follow the BPS DipEdPsychol syllabus and can it help other nonprofessionals to know how this influences what they base their veiws on?"
I can see a good link between your point and this question.
Before the BPS - in their great attempt to become the 'other' American Psychological Association - rejected the very practice-oriented DipEdPsychol, all ed-psychs were required to follow that syllabus. However, it is clear that the quality of training would vary from place to place. Now, the whole thing has been geared towards doctoral degrees with a serious emphasis on nomothetic research as opposed to the former emphasis on practitioner-research.
I am too tired to go into this not but I shall simply state that this is a seriously bad move on the BPS' part... purely because it leaves the people who would use the services of an ed-psych at a disadvantage: a qualification in academic research is not a good indicator of a good practitioner.
Am looking forward to the bitching!!!
I'm with Casdok. What if I want to come for the bitching? LOL
Right now, AC/DC and Nazareth are the only heavy metals in my kid's brain. ;-)
I found your comment on the FAAAS posting at autismbfh to be extremely fascinating and quite honestly, a damned breath of fresh air for those of us, diagnosed with ASD, who are aware of the realities of our situations and are sick of seeing the proposals for handouts and closings of groups down simply because of oversensitivity.
Although that may not have been your exact point upon commenting, it's certainly how I felt afterward and was quite pleased.
That being said, I have a few questions on the DSM-V and a proposal to invite you to my blog, an ongoing study and perspective of my life, as an eighteen year old college bound female with professionally diagnosed ASD.
1. What is your opinion on Spitzer's criticism on the nondisclosure agreement for the DSM-V? Do you see it as being more tightly-knit and concise in ways of diagnosis, or less inhibiting in the way of research?
2. Do you, personally, believe that sexual disorders and idiosyncrasies ought to be included as disorders in the DSM-V?
I'm just a curious student and have found your comments fascinating. Although I am not a psych major, it continues to be a fascination in my day-to-day life.
Thanks,
Jess
I saw that comment you made regarding me recently. Don't you ever fucking compare yourself to me like that again! I don't have a bunch of degrees to list next to my name like you do and qualifications with which to get various jobs! I'm the one whose been tossed aside by various employers over the years due to my lack of qualifications, so cut out the self-righteous bullshit! I've been working at off the books jobs that someone arranged for me, the few hours of which are available to me. Why don't you get off your ass and get a clue?
What a coward you are not facing just me with a response while choosing to put this shit up where all the suck ups are! Almost nothing in your response resembled anything cogent. Your lies don't make sense and you can't do anything about it! My degree isn't even worth the paper it's printed on and I have no skills. Don't fucking talk about me if you don't want me to yell back! You won't shut me the fuck up! I'm deprived of too damn much to tolerate being chased away by a motherfucking bulldog like you! Block me!? Block me from what? Nobody fucking blocks me! Bastards like you can't even resist making some phony example out of me to support their slimy cocksucking agendas!!
Lurker, do everybody a favour, yeh?
Fuck off and play marbles on a fucking motorway, will you?
And, Lurker...
Those were your last two. You'll be banned after that last one. You're a shit and you'll never get the help you should be getting because you prefer to wallow in self pity.
Don't bother commenting here... you won't get through. Deal with having earned yourself so many bans!
David, this is Theo. I can't contact anyone on Aspieweb because Zack put moderation on, and it looks like he is going to make another attempt! He said he won't be at his apartment this time, I fear he may succeed! Is there anyway to contact someone other than the police who might know where he would go?!
I'll be at work shortly, so you can contact me at tiffany.daniels@dmh.mo.gov Pretty Please! I feel this is dire!!!
ANd yes, the real name is Tiffany, lol. I like the name Theo though. SHort for THeophano, which is wehre the name Tiffany comes from.
Back on topic. PLEASE HELP!!!!
god, these blog is due for a new post
This blog has been way overdue for a new post ... this is a measure of how shitty the services are for foreigners with disabilities in Finland.
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