Research

The activities of EFPTA include:

  • Research in psychology education – see the Presentations and Resources tabs for research outputs (posters, reports, conference presentations)
  • Educational Projects – including student exchanges and network collaborations
  • Addressing key issues on how and where psychology is taught

Key Issues

EFPTA debate and campaign on issues in pre-university education, including:

  • In many countries, psychology is not taught in schools at all – should it be taught to ALL young people?
  • Where psychology IS taught  in schools, should it be  optional (as in most countries currently) or compulsory, as in Finland?
  • Teacher qualifications vary between countries – how can we ensure that psychology teachers are well qualified?
  • Should psychology be taught from 12-13 years, or is 15-16 years a more suitable age to start?
  • Should a pre-uni psychology qualification  be made a pre-requisite to gain entry to a university psychology course?

Projects

Examples of projects both past and current include:

  • Twin your psychology class with students in another country! Click here for more details.
  • Teacher and student exchanges – e.g. Denmark / Scotland
  • Student collaboration online, on practical research activities – Iceland /England
  • Student contributions to events & Newsletter
  • Visiting speakers at national association events,including Germany / Scotland, Finland / Scotland
  • Contribution by teachers from several countries to a book on pre-university psychology teaching – Italy
  • Numerous contacts /networks across Europe, online or in person, e.g. for specialist interest groups

Funding for EFPTA / European activities

One possible source of funding is the ERASMUS+ programme from the European Commission. Both students and teachers can apply for funding for various projects.

ERASMUS+ is the EU programme for education, training, youth and sport
http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/node_en

ERASMUS+ Programme Guide
http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/resources_en#tab-1-0