(How Children Develop, 5th Canadian Edition, 5e Robert Siegler, Nancy Eisenberg, Judy DeLoache, Jenny
Saffran)
(Solution Manual all Chapters)
Appendix A
A Sample Philosophy of Teaching
STATEMENT OF TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Lynne Baker-Ward, Ph.D.
A comedy sketch on Saturday Night Live led me to articulate my instructional goals and
educational approach. The character in the skit was marketing a correspondence course that
required students to learn only “what the average college graduate knows ten years after
graduation.” This was assumed to be not very much (e.g., the Spanish curriculum covered four
phrases). In an era of rapidly expanding knowledge, when today’s facts may be out of date
tomorrow, I thought about how my work with students could have lasting value for their future
professional and personal lives.
I have come to the conclusion that effective instruction must help students acquire the skills
and values necessary to seek and use new information effectively long after they have left the
classroom. My training in cognitive and educational psychology, as well as 30 years of
professional experience in communities in which good teaching is taken seriously, have led me
to formulate the following principles and techniques for achieving this goal.
Effective Teaching Fosters Students’ Intrinsic Motivation
To learn in the short run, and to continue to build on their academic experiences, students’
serious interests in the material must be nurtured. This, I believe, can be best accomplished by
clearly linking course material to everyday, real-world situations; by conveying the field’s
challenges and complexities; and by creating a learning environment designed for student
success. For example, a central component of my child psychology classes has been a practicum
at the campus childcare center. Students’ experiences as classroom volunteers provide them with
their own observations of the developmental changes discussed in the course. I use their
examples, recorded in their journals, to enrich my coverage of language development,
attachment, child management, and other topics. The practicum also provides students with
supervised practice in observing and describing behavior, skills they know they will need in the
future as psychologists and educators or managers. Student interest in the material is also
enhanced by presenting cutting-edge issues and both sides of debates. For example, examining
the controversy surrounding children’s testimony in legal settings in my classes has fostered
student interest in highly technical, basic work in human memory performance.
A belief that success is possible is a necessary component of intrinsic motivation. Students
must believe that their efforts can result in the outcomes they desire if they are to persevere as
learners. A “user-friendly” learning environment can be created without sacrificing the rigor of
the course. To provide students with appropriate opportunities to master the material, standard
components of my courses include extra review sessions; the opportunity to redo assignments
that fail to meet expectations; self-diagnostic quizzes; and optional cumulative finals that can
, replace earlier examinations that received lower grades. I believe that it is vital to provide
students with extensive feedback on their work; learning must not end with the submission of a
paper or the completion of a test. My graduate courses all include iterative assignments; the
students’ final products reflect an extensive editorial process that provides opportunities to refine
skills in research, critical thinking, and writing. I also always grade without knowledge of the
students’ identities, so that my commitment to fairness is unimpeachable.
Effective Instruction Uses a Constructivist Approach
I am particularly concerned with the conceptual framework through which students interpret and
integrate factual information. My students’ implicit assumptions and beliefs about development
and learning will shape their work as teachers, psychologists, and parents. Our work in class
includes becoming cognizant of the beliefs that affect practice and using the class material to
test these assumptions. To address students’ deep understanding of the material, it is necessary
to evaluate how they use the information they acquire. I rely on directed discussions, student
presentations, small-group exercises, application problems, and other active learning techniques
to examine students’ cognitive models of the material. Carefully constructed examination items
(e.g., multiple-choice questions that require students to identify the evidence that supports a
conclusion) also facilitate the goal of developing students’ understanding, not just retention, of
the information. I also believe that writing is necessary in every course to provide the reflection
necessary for students to synthesize the material, as well as to enable me to address
misconceptions or limited applications of the content.
Education Builds Critical Thinking Skills
Many of my students will be researchers, in one context or another; all of them will make
decisions about new techniques and approaches. Hence, I believe it is vital to address students’
abilities to evaluate and apply research findings and theoretical implications. In my experience,
this emphasis is an inherent component of a constructivist approach and is served by the same
pedagogical techniques. I also build assignments that explicitly address students’ real world
decision-making capabilities, such as evaluating and making a recommendation about an actual
educational practice.
Learning Happens Outside As Well As Inside the Classroom
I consider my work as an advisor, a mentor, a research supervisor, and the faculty sponsor of an
undergraduate research conference as important facets of my teaching. Students participate in
my research every semester; these efforts have often culminated in research presentations or
papers authored or co-authored by students. In a number of instances, these experiences have led
to further educational opportunities or students’ first jobs. I am impressed by Vygotsky’s model
of scaffolding student learning; my goal is to participate jointly in the activity with research
students, and to provide only the guidance and direction necessary for successful task
completion. I have personally benefited, as well, from the challenge to provide a good model of
professional practice. I also believe that increased interaction between students and faculty
outside the classroom is an important contributor to learning.
,Effective Teaching Helps Create an Environment in Which Learning Is Valued
I believe that it is important to demonstrate respect for learning. In the classroom, this includes
my commitment to careful preparation, the use of up-to-date resources, and the effective use of
time. Valuing learning requires that I show respect for my students’ needs, concerns, and efforts,
and that I be accessible to students. I set and maintain reasonable office hours, and also use e-
mail extensively. I incorporate a variety of pedagogical techniques and aids to accommodate
individual differences in learning styles. It is important to me to make instruction accessible to
every student, and my syllabi include a list of accommodations that are available to everyone.
It is important to me to demonstrate my commitment to learning by serving as a good
representative of my field of psychology and by modeling lifelong learning. I am careful to
distinguish my personal opinions or conjectures from established tenets of the field. I am
challenged to continually enhance my expertise and to maintain an active, productive, and
relevant research career.
I also believe it is vital to be a fully contributing member of a community that values
learning. As I have gained seniority, I have been increasingly involved in promoting effective
teaching through service activities. In addition, I am active in mentoring graduate instructors. At
regional and national levels, I have planned and delivered workshops on teaching and advising.
, Appendix B
A Sample Course Information Sheet
Course Information
[Course number: Course name (course units)]
[Course days and times, course location]
Faculty and Contact Information
Instructor:
Office/Hours:
Telephone:
E-mail:
Teaching Assistant:
Office/Hours:
Telephone:
E-mail:
Course Description
Overview
This course provides an overview of the theories, methods, and phenomena of child psychology, and
examines the implications of this information for enhancing child development. Multiple aspects of
development, including physical, cognitive/intellectual, and social/emotional development from
conception to adolescence, are considered. The approach to these topics is scientific, with an
emphasis on recent research findings in developmental psychology. A number of themes guide the
integration of the material. These themes, which are emphasized throughout the textbook, are: 1) the
interaction between biology and environment throughout development; 2) the ways in which
children affect their own development: 3) the continuity and discontinuity of development; 4) the
mechanisms that underlie developmental change; 5) the impact of the sociocultural context of
development; 6) individual differences in development; and 7) the use of research findings to
promote children’s welfare.
Course Objectives
1. To examine age-related changes in children’s physical characteristics, social behaviors, and
cognition
2. To explore alternative explanations for these changes
3. To develop skills in reading, evaluating, and synthesizing research in child psychology
4. To apply knowledge regarding child psychology to both formal and informal observations of
children and to interactions with children
