Gender ND physical differences are only the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the surface are students from different socioeconomic strata; students who come from various family configurations; students with special needs, differing interests, and abilities; students with different cultural backgrounds, different languages, different learning styles, and different attitudes toward school. Abstinence’s: (about individual differences) Individual differences psychology focuses on this second level of study.
It is also sometimes called Differential Psychology because researchers in this area study the ways in which individual people differ in their behavior. For example, in evaluating the effectiveness of a new therapy, the mean performance of the therapy in one group might be compared to the mean effectiveness of a placebo (or a well-known therapy) in a second, control group. In this context, differences between individuals in their reaction to the experimental and control manipulations are actually treated as errors rather than as interesting phenomena to study.
Some of the main causes of individual differences are as follows: All differences between individuals may be interpreted by the facts of heredity or nature, environment or nurture, and training. The factors which are molly designated as causative of individual differences are as follows: 1. Race: The ethnologists have explained many of the supposed differences, and have been inclined to place the various races upon a more equal footing with respect to inborn capacity.
There may be some difference in behavior among different races, but there is little scientific evidence that favors the theory of native differences in mental traits The superiority of the Nordic stock in mental ability has been asserted by many, but recent and more accurate investigations tend to show that this so-called superiority is largely the result of environmental intuitions. In America the question of racial superiority has usually narrowed down to the rivalry between the white race and the Negro race. That the white race is much superior to the Negro race cannot be considered absolutely final.
Such conclusion must be tempered by a consideration of the superior intellectual opportunities available to the white Americans. Differences in mentality, reflecting influence of country and city life, is shown by the study of Negro mentality in relation to time lived in the city. Glibness’s study shows a distinct improvement in the test performance with increasing length of residence of Negroes in cities. This study suggests that the superiority of city children over rural children is a direct consequence of better cultural opportunities.
In causing differences in physical traits this factor is prominent. 2. Sex: The general results of all studies made point to the fact that the differences between sexes are quite insignificant. In detail, the exact measurements of intellectual abilities show a relatively slight superiority of the women in receptivity of memory, and relatively slight superiority of men in control of movement and in grasp of concrete mechanical situation. Investigations also how an apparent superiority of girls in language and a somewhat better showing of boys in logical processes.
In interests, which cannot be definitely measured, the difference would seem to be that women are more interested in people while men are more interested in things. Difference in instinctive equipment is shown by the fact that women excel in the nursing impulses and men in the fighting impulses. As to physical equipment, men are much taller, stronger, and bigger than women. However, girls grow more rapidly than boys, especially before adolescence. The girls reach physiological maturity earlier. Heredity: By heredity is meant the influence of factors inherent in the child himself from the time he is conceived. Research has shown that heredity proceeds according to certain laws. The first laws of heredity were formulated by Gallon who made the direct investigation on heredity. Gregory Mendel also formulated some well-known laws of heredity. Heredity influences are intrinsic or innate. Individual differences in mental and physical traits are due to heredity and to environmental factors. Heredity as a cause of individual differences may be due either to remote or immediate ancestry.
G. R. Conklin has affirmed that although we inherit approximately equally from our parents, we also inherit unequally from our grandparents. 4. Maturity: Differences in maturity of individuals have always been observed. The pupils in any grade present a considerable range of maturity. The maturity of pupils varies along three lines of development, namely: chronological, anatomical, and organic. The chronological aspect of maturity is that which is presented by differences in mental development considered in terms of actual number of years.
Anatomical growth is shown by different degrees of development of the ones of the skeleton. Studies made in this line have revealed differences of from two to three years in the anatomical development of the vital organs of circulation and of reproduction. The organs most affected are the organs of the circulatory system and those of reproduction. Psychological studies reveal that girls mature earlier than boys. It is an accepted fact that the development of an individual is determined by a long interplay of heredity and environment on him. 5.
Social and economic status: On the basis of data supplied by the Army Alpha Test, people living in large enters of population are more intelligent than those living in rural areas; higher intelligence is found along with better educational facilities. Higher intelligence likewise exists in those states which rank high in their economic condition. There exists a close relationship between occupational socio-economic condition and the general level of intelligence. Parents found in high occupational levels usually provide good physical and intellectual environments, which favor the speedy cultural development of their children.
A considerable body of evidence is available to show that children belonging to the so-called higher social classes re superior in intelligence to those of the lower classes. What are major areas of individual differences. Differences in Physique: Differences in physical characteristics is the most obvious and visible difference among people. The differences between people with regard to their height, weight, color are all examples of physical differences among people. For instance, some people are tall while others are short some are fat while others are thin, some are fair while others are dark and so on.
There are differences in the physical characteristics among people belonging to different races and different regions. For example, Indians differ from the Chinese. Africans and Europeans in their physical characteristics. 2. Differences in Intelligence: Intelligence is the ability to reason with symbols. In simple words, intelligence refers to our ability to learn and to utilize what has been learned. Intelligence also includes our ability to adjust to new situations and solve new problems. 3. Differences in Ability: Ability is defined as what a person can do now and what he can learn to do in the future.
It is total of all that an individual has acquired and all that he is capable of acquiring. 4. Differences in Aptitudes: Aptitude is the ability of an individual to benefit from a certain type of training. It is the potential of an individual to acquire with training some specified knowledge, skill or set of responses. Such s the ability to speak a language, to learn music etc. 5. Differences in Interests: Interests refer to a person’s liking for something. When we say a person is interested in something, it means that the person likes that thing.
Different people have interest in different things. For example, one boy may be interested in cars, another boy may be interested in films, while a third boy may interested in young girls! 6. Differences in Achievement: While aptitude refers to what a person can do, achievement refers to what a person has done. Achievement is often an outcome of an individual’s intelligence, aptitude, interest and the availability of opportunities. These days there is a lot of parental and societal pressure on young boys and girls to be ‘high achievers. Unfortunately we tend to see a person as a high or low achiever by comparing the person with other people. This causes a lot of distress and leads to the development of inferiority complexes. 7. Differences in Personality: An individual’s personality refers to a person’s characteristic way of thinking. Feeling and behaving. For instance, some people are generally quiet and shy while others are talkative and outgoing. 8. Difference in respect of development Difference in the development is in evidence not only in individuals of different age groups but also between individuals of the same age 9.
Differences of interest Every individual has different interest from other . My be one’s interest in math but the other person does not like it 10. Special abilities Abilities are concerned with artistic, personality, or motor activity . N respect of such abilities individuals are divided in junior and senior sections. Steps to meet individuals differences It is the duty of every school to devise and plan their educational programmer in such a manner that every individual benefits from those for the fullest development of his capabilities . The school can do this in the following ways . : paying individual intention 2: grouping according to ability 3: skipping and acceleration 4: enrichment of curriculum 5: separate arrangement for physical handicapped 6: making special provisions for the gifted and slow learners 7: provisions for the socially disadvantaged children 8: adoption of modern individual methods of teaching the theorists’ views on individual differences Bandeau Bandanna’s theory of learning relies heavily on the concepts of self-efficacy, self- regulation, and modeling. Each of these components is largely influenced by individual differences between learners.
Self-efficacy describes how an individual feels about his or her capabilities to accomplish a particular task. Bandeau notes that self-efficacy influences an individual’s choices, amount of effort, persistence, and esteem. Self-efficacy is a purely individual concept. Within a classroom of dents, it is likely that there are as many different levels of efficacy for a specific learning as there are students. These differing levels have a complex influence on how best to conduct instruction. Bandeau also notes the importance of modeling.
Modeling is learning vicariously through watching others and seeing them receive rewards or punishment. Modeling is largely influenced by individual differences. In order for modeling to be effective, a learner must find the model competent, powerful and/or prestigious, and relevant. For modeling to be effective, the rewards a model receives must be relevant to the learner. This value is determined by the individual. The determination of a model’s overall effectiveness is determined solely by the individual learner. Self-regulation is important for learning.
Self-regulation is the ability an individual has to make choices concerning in which behaviors he or she will participate. Through self- regulation the learner can decide not to do something that he or she was directly reinforced for or something that he or she learned through modeling. There are three steps of the self-regulation process: 1. Self-monitoring 2. Judging performance 3. Self-response. Each of the steps in this process is conducted at the individual level. An individual’s ability to successfully conduct the self- regulation process greatly influences success in learning.
Bandeau believes that instruction should be altered to account for individual differences. Instruction must be based on modeling, self-regulation, and self-efficacy. Instructors should develop environments that create and encourage self-efficacy within individual learners, which is most effectively done by direct encouragement of students and providing opportunities for students to experience mastery or success in particular learning tasks. Self-efficacy can also be influenced through positive modeling in which students observe others experiencing success at a particular academic task.
Instruction on self-regulation includes the introduction of strategies, how to use them, and what the benefits are of self-regulated learning. Viscosity Viscosity believes that the Zone of Proximal Development (ZIP) is the prime determinant of individual differences and development among students. He defines the Zone of Proximal Development as the discrepancy between the child’s capacity to solve problems independently and the child’s ability to solve problems with assistance. Viscosity maintains that social interaction with a more knowledgeable person is critical for cognitive development.
This interaction helps the child attain a higher level of development than can be achieved alone. The adult should scaffold instruction by adjusting the level of his or her assistance in response to the child’s performance. If these adjustments are not made then the student will not attain a higher level of cognitive development. Viscosity also believes that individual differences can be attributed to culture. He states that students first make learning connections on the social level with their environment and other people; then, learning connections are manifested at the individual level.
Since culture plays an essential role in cognitive development, it should be incorporated during instruction. Out of school experiences should be related to school experiences for optimal learning to take place. Although Viscosity acknowledges the relevance of individual differences, he does not believe that we should focus on a child’s individual differences in isolation. Instead, educators should focus more on the student’s potential by facilitating problem solving in a social context. Summary harmonistic, such as temperament, energy level, Friendship patterns and parent-child attachment. To meet individual differences there has been recognition only of intellectual and educational variations among the children. It is possible and desirable to adapt the nature of instruction to accommodate individual differences in ability, style or preferences among individuals to improve learning outcomes Different leaning outcomes require different skills, or abilities Individuals differ in their abilities to process information, construct meaning from it, or apply it to new situations There are no. F steps which are used by teacher to meet individual difference.
