ABSTRACT
In 1969, George Miller gave a landmark Presidential Address to the American Psychological Association entitled, Giving Psychology Away. In it he argued that as a mature science, the discipline of psychology should focus substantial attention on how to make the fruits of scientific investigation useful in various important human endeavors. Transcripts, videos and tailored study protocols can open an avenue to reflective practice. However, in the real world, no example of teaching ever neatly illustrates a particular principle or practice. If one observes a classroom for longer than a few minutes, one sees multiple things happening. Psychology provides articulated theories of learning and some demonstrations that these theories work for education when faithfully applied. Of all the social sciences, probably the best known one to psychologists is that particular branch of anthropology that has become known as “sociocultural” theory or, in its variants closest to psychology, “situated learning”.
