BSc (Hons) Developmental and Education Psychology

Social Minds: Exploring Human Interaction

The module will explore the experience of relationships through the processes related to forming an impression of people, feeling attracted or not to them, wanting to be their friend, getting to know them and forming a relationship with them, through a variety of behaviours, such as approaching them, talking to them, and meeting them socially.

Psychological theories and empirical findings from investigations into impression formation will be introduced, and methodology will be explored.

Thinking Like a Social Scientist: Study and Research Skills

This module will introduce you to research skills that are essential for your academic success and growth. It introduces you to the basics of data analysis and covers key concepts in time management and teamwork. You’ll develop your critical thinking skills to enhance your ability to present convincing arguments in written work, and your academic reading skills will also develop to enable you to access complex scientific reports.

Additionally, the module will teach you how to produce high-quality assessments, including creating references and citations using APA style, presenting information effectively, and writing well-structured essays.

Learning Communities – Children Learning, Children Thinking

This module explores the sociological influences brought to bear on our success as learners. You will draw on historical and contemporary theory and research into thinking, learning and development in order to consider how individuals can maximise learning opportunities for themselves and help others to learn.

You will also explore influences on learning, development and identity.

Facilitating Wellbeing: Positive Perspectives

Based on the discipline of Positive Psychology, the module will explore the experience of living well, relating the need to understand well-being, emotions, motivation, aspirations and goals to self-development, personality traits, needs for achievement, self-efficacy, and self-esteem, environmental influences and the enhancement of well-being.

Psychological theories and empirical findings from investigations into needs, motivation and traits will be introduced, as will the use of selected nonparametric statistics.

This module aims to give you an understanding of a broad area of everyday functioning and experience in terms of the behaviours, feelings, attitudes, and mental processes involved in that experience.

The module also aims to use functional analysis so that a broad experience can be broken down into a series of questions concerning the sub-functions and behaviours involved, allowing the psychological constructs and theories that are associated with those behaviours to be elucidated and explored.  Exploration will involve appropriate methods to investigate what psychological constructs and theories relate to relevant behaviours and function.

The module will explore the experience of positive psychology relating the need to understand one’s own motivation, aspirations, and goals to self-development, personality, need for achievement, self-efficacy and self-esteem.

Psychological theories and empirical findings from investigations into emotions, traits and environments will be introduced and non-parametric methodology will be explored.

Mind and Machine

The module aims to develop an understanding of a broad area of everyday functioning and experience in terms of the behaviours, feelings, attitudes and mental processes involved in that experience.

You will use functional analysis so that a broad experience can be broken down into a series of questions concerning the sub-functions, psychological states and behaviours involved, allowing the psychological constructs and theories that are associated with those states and behaviours to be elucidated and explored.

Exploration will involve appropriate methods to investigate what psychological constructs and theories relate to relevant behaviours and function.

The Science of Behaviour: Theory to Evidence

This module introduces the conceptual and historical issues in psychology, as well as the work of prominent figures who have influenced the development of modern psychology. You will begin to explore key thinkers in psychology, focusing on how key thinkers design and conduct research in their field.

Human Cognition and Individual Differences

This module explores how we think (Cognitive Psychology) and how we differ from one another (Individual Differences).

The aim of this module is to introduce you to basic theory, research findings and methods of investigation in perception, attention, learning, memory, face and object recognition and problem-solving.

Developmental Psychology

Developmental Psychology involves the study of development and maturation in cognitive, personality and social processes.

The aim of this module is to introduce you to fundamental theory, research findings and methods of investigation in infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and overall lifespan development.

The module will aim to provide a critical understanding of ways in which behaviour is influenced by developmental factors, the nature of developmental processes, and ways in which empirical research can help us to understand how developmental processes influence what we do.

Research Methods: Experimental Design and Analysis

The module aims to develop an understanding of experimental designs and associated methods of analysis related to psychology, and introduces you to research ethics. The introduced methods are variants of Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), a method that allows comparison of groups and/or conditions.

Biological Psychology

Biological Psychology involves the study of the biological and psychological bases of mind and behaviour.

This module will introduce you to basic theory, research findings and methods of investigation in behavioural genetics, neuroscience and neuropsychology.

The module will aim to provide a critical understanding of the ways in which behaviour is influenced by biological factors, how we study these biological processes and why these processes are important in applied psychological settings.

Forest Schools: Principles and Practices

A Forest School is a journey of self-discovery and awareness in the outdoors in which participants are given the freedom to explore their surroundings, themselves and others through their curiosity and imagination.

The approach is heralded by some as inspirational but described by others as re-branding of old ideas giving questionable impact. This module explores principles that underpin the Forest School approach and reflects on evidence for its effectiveness.

To enable them to engage fully in these reflections, you will learn and use practical skills expected of a Forest School Practitioner.

Research Methods: Survey & Qualitative Designs and Analysis

The module aims to develop an understanding of survey and qualitative designs and associated methods of analysis related to psychology.

The module will develop knowledge of survey and qualitative approaches to investigating and analysing psychological data. The relationship between correlational analysis and predictive reasoning will be outlined. Areas covered include multivariate analysis (multiple regression) and thematic analysis.

Independent Project

The Independent Project provides an opportunity to apply appropriate knowledge, concepts, techniques and research methods of psychology to an in-depth study of a particular question or problem related to psychology.

This module aims to foster a greater understanding of the processes involved in undertaking a research project and marks the culmination of your learning experience.

The study will enable you to produce a written research report, and a poster presenting a summary of your research and findings.

Project Management and Presentation Skills

This module enables you to deliver a wide range of skills, from project management to presentation of results in an accessible form.

In this module, you will have the opportunity to develop your project management skills, to further develop your scientific reasoning and reporting skills, and to learn skills necessary for producing a poster presenting research work.

Creativity, Technology and Learning

This module enables you to investigate, both academically and practically, how new technologies can be used in learning and teaching in a wide variety of mainstream and/or specialist educational settings.

You will evaluate how technology can be effectively harnessed to engage pupils and help them to learn. In particular, it will consider the potential for new technologies to be used creatively by students and teachers.

Work-based Placement

The module provides you with an opportunity to work with children and young people in a professional setting.

The placements are organised by you in conjunction with relevant staff and provide you with a choice of approved setting, according to availability. Settings may include, for example, special school, day nursery, family support teams, out of school provision, libraries, community play or youth scheme, medical provision for children or young people. You might complete your placement outside the UK.

You will be enabled to demonstrate your capacity to engage in the workplace alongside professionals and to learn by observing, doing and reflecting on their performance.

During the placement, you will support your own development by keeping a learning journal or diary which incorporates targets and self-evaluation.

Wellbeing and the Developing Person

This module aims to develop insight into influential theories of human psychological development and critically evaluate the historical context of theories of development.

It will enable you to explore ways in which developmental theories have enhanced the understanding of the developmental course of mental health and individual wellbeing.

The module also aims to encourage examination of ways in which developmental theories have improved outcomes for children and provided insights into ways in which children’s flourishing can be enhanced, and to apply theories of development to real-world contexts in terms of children’s social experience and educational careers.

Topics include Concepts and Issues in Developmental Psychology; Psychological Trends in Education; Educational Neuroscience; Neurodiversity in Theory and in the Classroom; Peer relations; Deafness and Development; The Flourishing Learner; Mental Health in Childhood; Language, Speech and Reading.