Monitor on Psychology - April 2012 - (Page 64)

Innovativeat psychology the high school level High school teachers nationwide are finding new ways to help students get the most out of psychology. BY EMI LY WOJ CI K I n the 36 years since high school teachers first became APA affiliate members, psychology has become one of the most sought-after subjects in secondary schools — and its popularity is still growing fast. In 2011, 198,000 students took the Advanced Placement (AP) exam in psychology, more than double the number who took it in 2005, according to the College Board, which administers the program. That demand is driven in part by the nation’s high school psychology teachers, who are developing new and dynamic ways to reach students, expand educational opportunities and connect with each other. “I tell any teacher I meet that high school psychology is the single best subject there is,” says Steve Jones, chair-elect of APA’s Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools (TOPSS, see sidebar page 66). “If your class isn’t one of the best classes at your school, there’s something wrong.” Jones, a psychology teacher at City of Medicine Academy in Durham, N.C., is among the many high school teachers finding new ways to help students get the most out of psychology. In 2009, for example, he helped to launch the blog “Teaching High School Psychology” (teachinghighschoolpsychology.blogspot. com) to reach new instructors, connect existing ones and provide teaching resources. The blog fills a significant need, as many high school psychology teachers are trained in fields other than psychology. One of the most common questions posted on the blog is, “I just found out I’m teaching psych — can you help?” “We offer current information, whether it’s something in the press about a new study, a resource or TV show, links to information, and oftentimes our slant on why it’s good and how we would use it,” says Jones. “We’re not ‘lesson-plan central.’ We’re a place for high school teachers, who seem to be overburdened doing more with less, to find information.” Encouraging publication At Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Md., high school psychology teacher Sheryl Freedman is building students’ interest in publishing psychology research. She has served as faculty adviser of the Whitman Journal of Psychology, a MONITOR ON PSYCHOLOGY • APRIL 2012 64

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Monitor on Psychology - April 2012

Monitor on Psychology - April 2010
Letters
President’s Column
Contents
From the CEO
Internship Shortage Continues
Mental Health Services Remain Scarce at Community Colleges
Apa Weighs in on the Constitutionality of Life Without Parole for Juvenile Offenders
Apa Praises Court’s Support for Equality
New Mobile App Answers Psychologists’ Clinical Questions
Nih Offers Free Web Resources for Psychologist Researchers
New and Improved Psyclink
In Brief
Government Relations Update
Time Capsule
Questionnaire
Random Sample
Judicial Notebook
Early Career Psychology
Psychologist Profile
Coal Miners’ Dilemma
The Science of Political Advertising
Science Watch
Science Directions
More Support Needed for Trauma Interventions
The Case Against Spanking
Innovative Psychology at the High School Level
Speaking of Education
Apa Divisions Reach Out to New Psychologists
New Journal Editors
A Home Base for Multiple Fields
Division Spotlight
American Psychological Foundation
Awards and Funding Opportunities
Personalities

Monitor on Psychology - April 2012