Contributions of the Psychology of Education: Perception of Elementary School Teachers

Abstract

In this research are presented the perceptions of elementary school teachers about the contributions of Psychology of Education in their training and professional performance. The research sought to identify the training and professional trajectories of these teachers and what perceptions they have about the relationship between psychology and education. Individual interviews were conducted with a semistructured script with six teachers from a municipal school and later the data collected were transcribed and analyzed through Content Analysis. Three categories were elaborated based on the participants’ interviews and articulated with existing scientific productions: Psychology Training; Contributions of Psychology to the Practice; and Opinions about Performance and Teachers Training. In general, it was observed that the participants had psychology contents in their training, having as the main content the following: human development, learning processes and learning difficulties. The participants perceive that the psychology knowledge contributes to their performance, however a considerable number of participants believe that the training process was insufficient in relation to these contents and affirm that the it was very broad and theoretical. Most also reported that they lack of knowledge to play their educator’s role more effectively and are dissatisfied with the training they have received. Participants perceive teachers’ unpreparedness in dealing with certain situations and believe that if teachers had a better training, they would be better prepared, ant it is necessary to reflect on the of educators’ training to contribute to the important work of these professionals.