Psychology in the Classroom

Over the next 4 years Psychology in the Classroom will be following the RE-STAR research project. The aim of this is to really bring the the research process to life and take a 'behind the scenes' look at the planning, considerations, challenges and applications of research carried out on and with young people.  This first episode I am joined by principal investigator, Professor Edmund Sonuga-Bark...

This week Dr Jo Taylor from Psychology Associates joins me to discuss supervision.  Most importantly what supervision is (probably not what you expect), how it can really benefit school staff, the barriers to implementation and how we can overcome them.  We discuss the challenges and complexity of the school environment and how supervision can give teachers space to think slowly about problems, un...

Shahana Knight is the founder and director of TPC Therapy Ltd . She grew up with her own experiences of childhood trauma and as a result has been on a mission to help children feel loved, understood, and noticed ever since.  In this episode we talk about emotional intelligence and the importance of modelling in for young people, how to support the most vulnerable young people and much more.  You c...

This week I talk to Rebecca Leong about her research in to engagement - its effects on attainment and motivation.  She gives lots of top tips on how to engage students in the classroom, why it is so important and why relationships form such a big part of student engagement.

Professor Dave Putwain's research interests are at the intersection of Education and Psychology - so what better guest for Psychology In the Classroom? His research has focused on how psychological factors influence, and in turn are influenced by learning and achievement and he has a particular focus on motivation, emotion, engagement, and the learning environment.  In this episode we cover the ro...

Dr Charles Margerison is a great story teller and he uses stories of amazing people to inspire young people.  By using the life stories of others, Charles created Amazing People Schools to support the development of key character strengths including resilience, creativity, gratitude and perseverance. These strengths have never been more important and greatly increases the odds that our young peopl...

Just like behaviours become habits the way we think is habit too.  Mostly we consider negative thinking habits like Automatic Negative Thoughts.  In this Episode I talk with Mo about how we can encourage positive thinking habits in children and young people.   If you want to find out more about Mo you can go to his profile via LinkedIn or visit his company's website .  Remember to search up 'Compo...

This week's guest, Dr Alex Barrable, discusses why connecting with nature is so important and how we can encourage young people to connect with nature inside the classroom, outside the classroom, on trips and even in an urban environment.  She is really keen to hear from teachers about the ways they encourage their students to connect with nature and the challenges they face, so please do get in t...

Hannah Dunn, a psychology teacher of 20 years has been researching the impact of self-compassion on teacher wellbeing, how it can reduce stress and teacher burnout.  In this interview she discusses 6 threads that she drew out from her research in helping teachers to be more self-compassionate.  You can find out more about Hannah and her work here: PsychExcel Toolkit

Dr Dean Burnett joins me this week to delve into the mysteries of the teenage brain and the neuroscience that can help us make sense of the 'typical' teenage behaviour we see and how this can help us support young people through the turbulent adolescent years. We cover sleep, tech, mental health, emotion regulation and much more. Here is the link to my Parent's Facebook Group - Parenting Your Chil...

Harriet Ennis is a Psychology teacher at Bootham School in York and joins me this week to discuss motivation - something every teacher wishes their students had just a little bit more of.  The conversation covers a wide ranges areas such as grit, resilience, wellbeing, ugly coping, perfectionism, healthy striving and more.  Harriet mentions several pieces of research and links to these can be foun...

Welcome to the first episode of 2022!  This week I speak to Dr Jo Van Herwegen from UCL Institute of Education about her work with NeuroSENse - addressing neuromyths in special educational needs and disabilities.  We also discuss the impact of Covid-19 on the mental health of young people with neurodevelopmental conditions.  Finally Jo has also been researching how neurodevelopmental conditions af...

In the final episode of Bootham School's Psychology in the Classroom Christmas Takeover Podcast Audrey introduces Mastery learning, the main components, what it might look like in an A level classroom and how it has helped motivate her.

Welcome to the second of the Bootham School's Psychology in the Classroom Christmas Takeover podcasts.  This week Libby talks about meditation - she is open and honest about her beliefs and experiences of meditation, why she tried it and, whilst recognising that her experience may not be representative, is keen to encourage you to give it a go.

Over the holidays I asked psychology students from Bootham School in York if they would like to make some short podcasts about psychology that teachers might be interested in.  To start us off we have Maddy who talks about her interest in social psychology and cross curricular opportunities.

Martin Galpin in a Chartered Occupational Psychologist who draws on positive psychology to help people be at their best and bring the best out of others.  This episode is all about how to how psychology can help us thrive and flourish in the work place, but also teach children a few tricks to develop a more optimistic outlook and understand their strengths and why they are valued.  For all the lin...

For many of us Statistics is something we steer well clear of, well this week I am diving right in - head first.  With the help of Professor Obi Ukoumunne, from Exeter University we get right to the heart of the matter and break it down for the non-mathematician so that we can really understand what the statistics mean behind the research and most importantly so we can be critical of the numbers t...

Kenji and Marsha talk honestly and openly about Kenji's transition, his coming out, his school experience, the highs and lows as well as Marsha's role as a parent.  We discuss the challenges that trans people face and the difference getting things right can make.  We cover what not to say as well as how to support young people who may be transitioning.  And we delve into the research to unpick our...

Sport is all about timing - ensuring you reach peak at just the right moment and can perform under high pressure.  If you think about it, exams are like this too - you need to reach your peak at just the right moment and not allow the pressure to get to you.  So what can sports psychology teach us about exams?  This week Rhys Davies International Double Canoe Slalom competitor talks about his care...

Now most of you will go through your day saying hello to students and colleagues, greeting friends in the supermarket and not give a second thought to how you know it is them.  Well imagine not being able to recognise faces, you know you are looking at a face but you have no idea who it belongs to, you aren't sure if you should say hello or keep on walking.  For about 2-4% of the population this i...

Every teacher has a plethora of strategies to manage behaviour and create a safe an calm learning environment.  But for a small minority the usual strategies just don't work and the pupils end up in a escalating cycle of punishment, usually resulting in exclusion. New research is showing that there are alternatives to the systems of reward and punishment in most schools that are more effective for...

Many of you will have heard that journaling can be of benefit to mental health, but in the new digital age there is evidence that blogging can also benefit wellbeing, especially for young people.  Dennis Relojo-Howell shares his insights into the world of blogging, how it may be able to help build resilience in young people and how it can be used in the classroom to aid learning.  His passion for...

As a psychology teacher with many years of experience Trevor is passionate about the wellbeing of teachers.  In this interview he raises concerns of many teachers about workload amongst other things and the challenges that new teachers faces when they enter the profession.

Dr Polly Waite works both at Oxford University and University of Reading as a Clinical Psychologist and Research Fellow with a particular interest in Panic disorders in Adolescents.  In this interview she discusses the difference between 'normal' anxiety, clinical anxiety and how this may then become a panic disorder.  She also offers excellent advice on how to manage a panic attack in the moment...

Aletia Hagedorn is Head of Psychology at a College in Guernsey and a committee member for the Association of the Teaching of Psychology. She is passionate about evidence based teaching and learning which she strives to use in her practice. Following the completion of a master's in education, Aletia embarked on a PhD in Psychology. She is a year into her part-time course and continues to teach full...