Educational psychology comprises an important part that is quantitative methods. They are concerned with numbers, measurements and statistics to investigate the manner in which people learn as well as the functioning of schools. One of the uses is in psychometrics, a branch that designs and researches learning and intelligence assessments. Quantitative in an example of such standardized tests are the SAT, IQ tests or achievement tests which provides a fair and structured way of testing the ability of a student. These tests help psychologists to get an insight into how students think, their skills, and areas of their weaknesses. As an example, when a student performs poorly in reading comprehension, the teacher can develop a learning plan to assist him or her. On a broader level, test scores can be used by schools to observe trends of performance in classes or even in entire districts. It assists in equitable options regarding programs, teaching strategies and resources. The advantages of quantitative methods are obvious. Numbers enable a researcher and teachers to make comparisons between the results of the various students within a group of students in a consistent manner. Massive data can indicate patterns, e.g. whether particular teaching practices are enhancing learning or students are underachieving. Due to this fact, schools can be more effective and fair because of the support of evidence-based decision-making methods with the help of quantitative methods. But these approaches as well have boundaries.

Learning cannot be fully explained by numbers, as emotions, culture and social context are also important factors. There are also cases when a student can perform poorly in a test, not because he or she is incapable, but due to nervousness, exhaustion, or not knowing the language of the test. This way, the results of the test may be at times deceptive in the event they are viewed as the sole indicator of intelligence or learning. The issue of cultural prejudice is another one: certain tests can favor students in a particular background and complicate the achievement of the others. This is why results are to be employed carefully and in combination with other methods of knowing students, i.e., observations and interviews. One such advantage and disadvantage can be observed in the case of big international assessments such as PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment). PISA gathers test results of numerous countries to compare the student results in reading, math and science.

These findings assist governments in enhancing their education systems since they reveal the strengths and weaknesses. Nevertheless, critics argue that an overemphasis on scores would encourage schools to teach toward the test instead of creativity, critical thinking and emotional development.

To sum up, quantitative techniques have been used in educational psychology, particularly psychometrics, and offer effective aids in the measurement and betterment of learning. They assist teachers and schools in making decisions using data and not merely conjecture. There are limits, however, to them, as learning is not all about numbers. The best approach to have the most accurate picture of the way people learn is a combination of quantitative information and familiarity with social and emotional aspects.