Tom Coster – Psychology

Tag: health and wellbeing

  • Why Research Studies Still Matter in Teaching Psychology

    One of the quiet revolutions in teaching IB Psychology is this: our students no longer need to memorise outlines of 200 or more studies, each with two strengths and two limitations. That’s worth celebrating. It makes our subject lighter, more engaging, and far more relevant. Students can now focus on developing critical thinking, connecting concepts, and applying their knowledge rather than playing flashcard games with endless lists of studies.

    But let’s not forget: research is the scientific foundation of psychology.

    Would you teach ethics in psychology without telling your students about Little Albert and the white rat, Zimbardo’s appalling Stanford Prison Study, or Milgram’s not-so-appalling obedience experiments? Of course not. These are the stories that not only illustrate concepts but also bring to life the ethical debates that shape our subject.

    Would we introduce social identity theory without Sherif’s Robbers Cave study? Could we possibly explain observational learning without Albert Bandura’s endlessly punched Bobo doll? And when we turn to methods, what better way to anchor quasi-experiments and neuroplasticity than Eleanor Maguire’s London taxi drivers, or to illuminate the case study method than Henri Molaison, whose memory loss is legendary?

    The point is simple: research gives psychology its credibility.

    Yes, assessment criteria don’t explicitly require studies by name. Students aren’t graded on whether they remember that it was 22 boys in Sherif’s camp or 72 children in Bandura’s playroom. But to teach any of the IB Psychology concepts with integrity, we must draw upon the research that produced them. Without robust studies and their conclusions, our discipline risks floating away into abstraction, detached from the science that grounds it.

    So let’s celebrate freedom from rote memorisation, but let’s also celebrate the research itself. Studies are not an add-on; they are the very evidence that makes psychology worth studying.

  • A New School Year – Wherever You Are

    Whether you’re in your very first year of teaching IBDP Psychology or your thirtieth, in some ways it doesn’t matter. You’re standing in front of a new set of students. Fresh faces, fresh questions, and—if we’re honest—fresh challenges.

    Same but different.

    Maybe you’re teaching in the same school you once sat in as a student yourself, or maybe you’re on the other side of the globe—Morocco, Mauritius, Oman, Albania. Again, that’s not really the point. Because teaching, at its heart, is about guiding and supporting your students, wherever you happen to be.

    Yes, I know… the year will kick off with a few staff meetings. Some will be useful. Others… well, let’s just say “less so.” If you find yourself in one of those, you could quietly plan a lesson or even play a quick game of chess from the back row. (Not that I’m encouraging mischief, of course.)

    Your first lessons aren’t about ploughing through the syllabus—they’re about setting the tone. Letting students (and their parents) know they’re in safe, well-prepared hands.

    You might kick off with an introduction to the experimental method—perhaps demonstrating the Stroop Effect to show how something as simple as reading a word can become surprisingly tricky when colour and meaning clash.

    Or you might spark a discussion about human behaviour:

    • Why are some people passionately in favour of immigration to the UK, while others are equally passionately opposed?
    • Why do some students show up every single day, while others are unfazed by missing lessons?
    • Why are some people shy while others brim with confidence?

    Or perhaps you want to open with ethical considerations—just a quick, engaging chat about Zimbardo’s prison study or Watson and Rayner’s famous “Little Albert” experiment. You could even take your students into the playground to observe younger children for prosocial behaviours—psychology in action from day one.

    Whatever you choose, choose something that excites you. That enthusiasm is contagious.

    And, you know, take very good care of yourself.

    So here’s to the start of your year—new students, new questions, new discoveries. Wherever you are in the world, whatever your teaching style, we’re wishing you all the very best.

    —Tom

  • New worksheet: The role of technology in health and wellbeing (HL)

    We’ve just added a new free worksheet designed to support DP Psychology HL students as they prepare for Paper 3, particularly Question 4 on the role of technology in the health and wellbeing context.

    Based on a recent Guardian article exploring how young people are taking control of their smartphone use to manage mental health, the worksheet guides students through a critical reading and reflection process. It encourages them to consider how media shapes public understanding of digital wellbeing.

    A key feature of this activity is a close look at the reference to the Netflix series Adolescence—a dramatized portrayal of online misogyny. The worksheet prompts students to explore the Responsibility of including fictionalised content within an otherwise fact-based article. Is it appropriate? Does it blur the line between evidence and entertainment? What are the ethical considerations?

    The aim is to help students build their own informed responses, drawing on both media literacy and psychological concepts relevant to wellbeing in the digital age.

    You can download the worksheet below.

    Worksheet HL The role of technology in health and wellbeingDownload