An Overview of the Potential Impact of Cognitive Psychology on School Psychology

Abstract

This article extends previous discussions of the potential impact of cognitive psychology on school psychology. Specifically, it reviews themes in cognitive psychology on the relationship of children's knowledge and strategies to learning, memory, and the performance of academic tasks. A review of the literature indicates, not surprisingly, (a) the content-related knowledge of children is often related positively to academic performance; (b) situations exist, however, in which children's knowledge can affect performance on some types of tasks more than others, or in which knowledge can have a deleterious effect on performance; (c) the ability to access knowledge can be a problem, especially in certain content areas and for certain types of children; (d) types of knowledge other than content knowledge, such as metacognitive, can have a substantial impact on academic performance. The literature on strategies indicates that strategic competency is related to changes in the structure and efficiency of strategies with development, the context in which the strategies are used, and the ability to apply and regulate the use of strategies. The implications of some of these data for assessment and consultation with teachers about instruction are discussed.

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Notes on contributors

Stephen T. Peverly

Stephen T. Peverly, PhD, is an Associate Professor and Director of The School Psychology Program at Teachers College, Columbia University. His research interests include cognition and instruction, studying, and memory.