We hear a lot of talk about Pedagogy, but… do we know exactly what it is?

This is the science that studies the methodology and teaching techniques that can be applied to help students learn. Like any science, it includes a number of different branches.

In this article we will talk about the 6 branches of Pedagogy ; we will tell you about their fundamental characteristics, their objectives and some examples of educational strategies used from each of these areas of work.

What is Pedagogy?

Before going into the 6 branches of Pedagogy, let’s first explain what Pedagogy is. It is the science that studies methodology and the different techniques that can be applied in teaching .

Although teaching (and learning) lasts practically all of one’s life, it is also true that it is in the infancy stage that it takes on special relevance, through schooling. That is why Pedagogy focuses especially on children’s learning, although it can also go beyond that.

Through Pedagogy methods are designed to teach students, as well as different educational strategies to enable learning . To do this, it is also essential to know the profile of each student (their interests, motivations, strengths, weaknesses, intelligence, abilities, etc.).

The branches of Pedagogy, summarized

Now we are going to see what the 6 branches of Pedagogy are, as well as their fundamental characteristics.

1. Experiential Pedagogy

The first of the 6 branches of Pedagogy that we are going to explain is Experiential Pedagogy. This is based, fundamentally, on the experiences of the students themselves to enrich their learning process . That is, it uses these experiences (generally lived outside the school context) so that students learn and internalize values such as diversity and equality.

In addition, these life experiences can be very useful for raising discussions in class, listening and expressing different opinions. It is through debates that students can broaden their perspective on things, that is, “broaden horizons”. Experiential pedagogy seeks to do this.

On the other hand, this branch of Pedagogy relies on one’s own mistakes to grow, learn and evolve (in short, on life experiences).

Examples of educational practices that are part of Experiential Pedagogy are: using role-plays to play different “roles” in class, projecting videos on different themes, etc. Many of these resources also serve to work on empathy and what it would be like to live one experience or another in life.

2. Pedagogy of modeling

The second of the 6 branches of Pedagogy is the pedagogy of modeling. In order to develop educational practices through this branch, a person is required to act as a model (that is, someone who is an expert in some subject, process, skill, etc.). It is also essential that what is to be transmitted or taught is reproduced verbally or in images, but in an explicit way.

The function of the model will be to reproduce certain behaviours, actions, tasks and patterns that are intended to be taught to the student, so that the student also reproduces them, through imitation and the internalisation of the explanations .

The message that is transmitted through the pedagogy of modeling is that it can be taught through imitation and thanks to an expert in some subject, who transmits his knowledge to the students through language, his actions, etc.

If, moreover, such a model (beyond the teachers, who are the fundamental models) is well known and prominent in some subject area (i.e. enjoys a certain status), learning is more likely to take place, because its “reliability” increases in the eyes of the learners. Logically, however, learning is also influenced by the learner’s motivations and abilities.

3. Differentiated Pedagogy

Differentiated Pedagogy, another of the 6 branches of Pedagogy, seeks to promote the learning of each student, individually and adapted to their level, age, abilities, difficulties , etc.

In other words, professionals who follow this branch use the pedagogical resources available (and if they do not exist, create them) to be able to adapt to the individual differences of each student; that is, to be able to teach in diversity.

Through adaptations of materials, curricular adaptations, individualized plans , adaptations of contents and more, the aim is to maximize the student’s learning, as well as to adapt to his/her interests, needs and abilities.

As a result of this reality, differentiated pedagogy was born, which is increasingly growing due to the great diversity of students, as well as the existence of so many learning and neurodevelopmental disorders within the classroom.

4. Cyber-education

Cyber-education uses different technologies to enhance student learning. In other words, it is about teaching (or complementing “normative” teaching) through various technological resources , such as: e-learning platforms, tablet or mobile apps, web pages, etc.

It is an undeniable reality that technology has improved our lives in some aspects (one of them, education), although it is true that its use must also be controlled for this improvement to be real. That is, everything in its right measure. As a complementary tool to learning (and above all to facilitate access to it for all students) it can be very effective. The most important thing is the professional, and the use he/she makes of the different technological options available.

In addition, technology can also be used to increase students’ motivation , through videos, images, interactive activities, incorporating sound and/or music, etc. This is of particular benefit to children with neurodevelopmental disorders.

In short, cybernetic pedagogy is a branch of innovative and booming pedagogy, and can be very effective in the learning process, although always with the use of guidelines and through continuous evaluation.

5. Pedagogy of the relationship between theory and practice

This branch of Pedagogy, as its very name indicates, relates theory to practice; that is, it analyzes, through the different contributions and pedagogical theories, how teaching and educational practice can be improved. On the other hand, seeks to make the student himself the one who, through the reflection of his experiences, learns .

6. Multisensory Pedagogy

Multisensory Pedagogy (or Multisensory Learning Pedagogy), the last of the 6 branches of Pedagogy, tries, through the use of all the senses, to promote learning in students .

In other words, it is based fundamentally on the senses, since it is these that allow the student to acquire certain skills, understand certain meanings, etc. It is, therefore, a branch that advocates a more sensory type of learning.

Bibliographic references:

  • Carvajal Alvarado, G. (2002). Differentiated Pedagogy: According to Philippe Meirieu. Diálogos Electronic Journal of History, 3(2-3):
  • De Battisti, P. J. (2011) Classifications of General Pedagogy and Specific Pedagogies: an analysis of the demarcations made by specialists in the pedagogical field. VIII Meeting of Chairs in Pedagogy of Argentine National Universities, La Plata.
  • Piaget, J. (2019). Psychology and pedagogy. Siglo Veintiuno Editores Argentina, S.A.