Developmental Psychology: There is a reason why psychology is a necessary course to fulfill the requirements of almost every college major. Understanding people, how they grow and develop, how they learn and how they are influenced are all very important things to be aware of. Even by learning the basics of human psychology, students can gain valuable knowledge that will prove beneficial in many aspects of life. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay Be able to understand human psychology in fields that require close interaction with a wide variety of people, such as an education major, is not only beneficial but also necessary. Exploring how humans develop physically, emotionally, and mentally is essential to understanding others, and when dealing with many different people, such as in a classroom full of students, this knowledge is vital. Developmental psychology delves deeper into why humans are the way they are and how they become who they are, or as Laura Berk puts it. Developmental psychology is “a field of study devoted to understanding constancy and change across the lifespan” (Berk, Lifespan Development Pg. 3) These studies have led to many discoveries about humans, but why would this apply to someone like me who is considering becoming a teacher? Berk again emphasizes that "public education in the 20th century led to a demand for knowledge about what and how to teach children of different ages" (Berk, page 5). Before entering a classroom to teach, one should remember that the students they will be teaching may have many different learning needs. Developmental psychology helps paint a picture of the different student personalities that a teacher may encounter, as well as influences on a child's behavior that might not otherwise be considered. I can now understand why developmental psychology is part of the curriculum for grades 7-12 here at Southern Maine Community College. Unlike Introduction to Psychology, which could be useful to most majors, this course explores psychology in more depth and is necessary for anyone interested in working with children or young adults. America is known as the melting pot of the world, you can see that. the diversity of our country on a daily basis. The people who make up our country come from a wide variety of different cultures and bring with them many different religions, beliefs and customs. It is important to take away from this course an understanding of diversity and how it affects the development of each person. For me, it's possible that I'm getting used to my students learning one way and then being confronted with a student who was raised in a culture with different ideas about how children should be educated. This does not make the child less intelligent, but rather provides an opportunity for diversity to be celebrated in a classroom. It is also a welcome challenge for me to provide the student with the skills they will need to succeed in a new environment. Influences dating back to the child's conception could help explain why the child is the way he is today! As a teacher, I suppose I don't.