The Human Dimension in Education

This is an educational psychology book that focuses on human development, the human being, teaching, and learning. It is appropriate for preservice teachers who are seeking to comprehend essential theories and concepts in educational psychology. It is also appropriate for practicing teachers who want to understand and apply these theories and concepts at increasingly higher levels. As well, it can be used by decision-makers or anybody else who wants to better understand human development, human beings, human learning, and educational processes.
Besides the traditional topics related to human development and learning found in most educational psychology textbooks, this book describes topics that are typically not addressed. These topics include mental health for children and adolescents, intuition, an evolutionary perspective on emotions, poverty, disability and race, systemic racism, critical race theory, culturally responsive teaching, teacher reflection, language learning and reading instruction, and a complete discussion of teacher professionalism, dispositions, and attributes. These are topics that are worthy of our attention, and they will move you forward in your understanding of the human beings whom you teach.

Andrew P. Johnson is Professor of Literacy and Distinguished Faculty Scholar at Minnesota State University, Mankato. He has written 15 books and published over 50 book chapters and articles related to literacy, learning, and the human condition.

Introduction: Being and Becoming Human
I. HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 1: Development of the Human Brain
Chapter 2: Cognitive Development - Jean Piaget
Chapter 3: Lev Vygotsky - From Outside to In
Chapter 4: Language Acquisition and Development
Chapter 5: Toward a Psychology of Being - Abraham Maslow
Chapter 6: Being and Becoming a Person - Carl Rogers
Chapter 7: Sigmund Freud - A Pioneer of Modern Psychology
Chapter 8: Psychosocial Theory of Personal Development - Erik Erikson and James Marcia
Chapter 9: Moral Development - Lawrence Kohlberg and Carol Gilligan
II. HUMAN CAPACITY
Chapter 10: Intelligence
Chapter 11: Creativity
Chapter 12: Intuition
Chapter 13: Emotions
III. COMPLEX THINKING
Chapter 14: Thinking Levels and Skills
Chapter 15: Problem Solving
Chapter 16: Metacognition, Study Skills Strategies, Comprehension Skills, and Note-Taking
Chapter 17: Conceptual Understanding and Transfer
IV. HUMAN DIVERSITY
Chapter 18: Poverty
Chapter 19: Disability and Race
Chapter 20: Systemic Racism and Critical Race Theory
Chapter 21: Culturally Responsive Teaching
Chapter 22: Mental Health for Children and Adolescents
V. HUMAN MOTIVATION
Chapter 23: Motivating Factors
Chapter 24: perspectives on Motivation
V. THE HUMAN TEACHER
Chapter 25: Teacher as Reflective Practitioner
Chapter 26: Professionalism, Dispositions, and Attributes
APPENDIX A: Maslow's 15 Traits of Self-Actualizing Persons
APPENDIX B: Activities to Develop Moral Reasoning