Psychology of Child Development (Taught)

Course Overview

This course is taught through block learning. Find out more at https://www.lancashire.ac.uk/study/block-learning

Our MSc Psychology of Child Development course is designed to advance your knowledge of child psychology. It’s ideal for individuals who aim to pursue further postgraduate research or a career in child development. It also presents a great career development opportunity for professionals already working with children.

Examining development allows us to understand how change takes place from infancy to adulthood. Our course explores in-depth child and adolescent development. You'll explore development in different domains such as cognitive, social and emotional. The course provides a thorough understanding of the methodology, analysis, current research, and theory in the field of developmental psychology.

Studying a range of modules unique to this course you will gain a broad understanding of developmental psychology. You'll be taught by a course team providing a global perspective. Each team member delivers teaching in an area related to their own area of research expertise, such as:

Language
Literacy
Learning
Bullying
Loneliness
Social relationships
Brain development
Developmental disorders.

You’ll gain an in-depth understanding of the latest theories, interventions, and applications of psychology relevant to working with children and adolescents. You will also conduct research using a range of techniques used to understand children’s behaviour and development.

The School is equipped with two laboratories. In these labs you'll develop a deeper understanding of the psychology of child development.

The Child Observation Suite provides a facility for the observation and understanding of children’s behaviour.

The Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience lab enables a detailed examination of the brain and visual systems of young children and adolescents through a range of techniques, including eye tracking and electroencephalography (EEG).

Why study with us

• The course comprises of specialised, dedicated Child Development modules. Each module focuses upon different developmental psychology and is assessed entirely by coursework.

• Learning is supported by dedicated Child Psychology Laboratories. Facilities such as The Child Observation Suite and Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, as well as over thirty extra laboratories.

• Develop your skills in applying psychology in a range of developmental settings. The course includes a placement module and a project of your choice.

What you'll do

• You’ll gain experience of developmental psychology in practice within an organisation such as a school, charity or childcare setting

• You’ll design and conduct research which will further prepare you for a career in child development.

• The teaching for this course takes place on one day of the week. This means you can divide your time between classroom and individual study and work around the other elements of your life.

Future Careers

You'll be given opportunities and support for career development throughout this course. The course has a dedicated placement module that is taken only by students studying on this programme and is not shared with other courses. This provides a clear focus around opportunities to work in areas related to child psychology.

After graduating from this course, you’ll have developed both your understanding of child psychology but also an array of transferable skills. This means that not only might you work in a range of areas related to children such as:

• Special Educational Needs Coordinator (SENCO)

• Specialist charity workers

• Advisors in educational setting

• Teaching assistants

• You might also decide to pursue an academic or research career in developmental or educational psychology.