Educational psychology has much to offer education in the 21st century
, but it must take account of the great changes in the conditions of e
ducation that will undoubtedly occur-greater diversity of school popul
ations and the enormous problems faced by the Third World. Educational
psychologists must open up new contacts with colleagues in other coun
tries. In the United States, it is unlikely that the goals that were s
et forth in 1990 by the National Governors' Association will be met to
any satisfactory degree, but educational psychology can help define t
hese goals and assess how well they are met. A major problem for educa
tional psychology to solve in the 21st century is how the schools can
deal successfully with individual differences in learning rates.