Course Description

Introduction to Psychology is a science-based class designed to establish a basic understanding of the major concepts, theories, and research findings throughout the field of psychology. Topics will include the historical foundations of psychology, learning and memory, biological psychology, social interactions, personality, psychological disorders, and therapy options. The main goal of this class is to not only introduce psychological topics, but also provide you with the ability to discuss those topics, understand how psychologists conduct science, and critically think about information pertaining to the topics.

 

Course Objectives

LaGrange College Student Learning Outcomes (LC SLO):

1. Students will demonstrate creativity by approaching complex problems with innovation and from diverse perspectives.

2. Students will demonstrate critical thinking by acquiring, interpreting, synthesizing, and evaluating information to reason out conclusions appropriately.

3. Students will demonstrate proficiency in communication skills that are applicable to any field of study.

 

Course Learning Objectives:

There are 6 categories of learning objectives listed below along with the assessment tools used to evaluate both your performance as a student and my performance as an instructor. Additionally, each course learning objective is associated with the corresponding LC SLO. This list is adapted from the Assessment Cyberguide for Learning Goals and Outcomes (Pusateri, Halonen, Hill, & McCarthy, 2009) and APA Guidelines for the Undergraduate Psychology Major (American Psychological Association, 2007) both produced by the American Psychological Association.

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1.    Knowledge Base of Psychology (Assessed by Exams) LC SLO 2, 3

• Understand the major perspectives of psychology (e.g., behavioral, biological, cognitive, evolutionary, humanistic, psychodynamic, and sociocultural).

• Identify the leaders in the following fields of psychology: learning, personality, development, and memory. 

• Understand the broad theories that explain behaviors within the following fields: learning, personality, development, memory.

• Understand the broad theories that explain abnormal behaviors and psychological diseases.

• Understand the basic anatomy of the brain and cellular structure of neurons.

• Understand and accept that some amount of ambiguity is present when discussing the cause of behavior, no matter which perspective is used

2. Research Methods in Psychology (Assessed by Exams) LC SLO 2, 3

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• Understand the basics of each step of research including research design, basic data analysis, and interpretation.
• Understand why research is so important to science and psychology specifically.
• Value empirical evidence and discount assumptions or common myths regarding psychology and behaviors

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3. Applications of Psychology (Assessed by ETHOS Project) LC SLO 1, 2, 3

• Apply psychological concepts, theories, and research findings as these relate to everyday life.

• Reflect on personal and social experiences and find meaning in them.

• Enact self-management strategies that maximize healthy outcomes.

• Apply knowledge of psychology (e.g., decision strategies, life span processes, psychological assessment) when formulating career choices.

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4. Communication skills (Assessed by class discussions, emails, and note-taking *these are ungraded activities) LC SLO 2, 3

• Demonstrate effective writing skills in various formats (e.g., essays, correspondence, note taking) and for various purposes (e.g., informing, explaining, persuading, questioning, teaching).

• Develop professional communication skills through email and class discussions.

 

5. Professional development (Assessed by discussion and one-on-one meetings *these are ungraded activities) LC SLO 1, 2, 3

• Demonstrate ability to apply psychological content and skills towards chosen career path

• Apply psychological principles to promote personal development, including self-efficacy and self-regulation

• Exhibit the ability to collaborate effectively.

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Course Requirements

All graded activities should follow the LaGrange College Honor Code and should be your own work. Unless otherwise noted, all work receives an individual grade; thus graded items cannot be completed with the input of others.

 

Exams and Quizzes

There will be 6 exams during the course of the semester, each covering about two chapters of course material. All exams, including the final, are NOT cumulative. The exams may entail multiple choice and short answer questions. These exams will be based on lectures, in-class exercises, film clips, and outside readings and assignments including material covered in the textbook and online assignments. It is very important to attend each class and to take good notes. To take the exam you must arrive before the first person leaves the room. To see the specific dates for all exams, please check the course calendar at the end of the syllabus.

 

To do well on the exams: you will need to regularly attend class, take good notes, keep up with the reading material, and study both this material and the notes with the aim of fully understanding it (not just memorizing it). The exam questions will emphasize understanding and mastery of concepts and theories rather than memorization of information. Completion of the Certify modules (see later section) and online study aids are also good ways to study and test understanding. However, these should not be your ONLY method of study, as stated, the exams will focus more on understanding than memorization. I will focus mainly on questions that assess whether you have a thorough understanding of these concepts and theories and whether you can apply this understanding to new situations.

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Final exam: The final exam will take place on Friday, May 8th at 11:30 am. The final exam will cover information from the last 2 sections only. There will be no make-ups or early exams given for the final exam.

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Absence during an exam: Please notify the instructor on the day of your absence from a test by phone or e-mail. To make up an exam, a student must have an excused absence. An excused absence is determined by the instructor and may include an illness that requires the student to remain at home/in their dorm room, a death of someone close to the student, court date during class time, school-sponsored event that occurs during class time, or other events at the discretion of the instructor. To notify the instructor of an excused absence, you must turn in an absence form (this can be found on Connect). If documentation is available, that should be submitted along with the form. This form will not be accepted electronically. Only one undocumented exam absence will be counted as excused per student. After that one, all exam absences must be accompanied by written documentation to count as excused. To designate a missed exam as excused (whether it has documentation or not), you must submit an absence form on the day you return to class to be able to make up the exam and receive full credit; 20% will be deducted from your exam grade if you turn in the absence form after the day you return to class. You must then arrange to make up the exam as soon as it is convenient, but definitely within 1 week of the original exam date. If more than one student needs to make up the exam, one common time may be arranged for all makeup exams to be given. If no absence form is turned in, the exam cannot be made up and the student will receive a grade of "0" for that exam. If the exam has not been made up within one week of the original exam date (unless prior approval has been obtained by the instructor), the exam cannot be made up and the student will receive a grade of "0" for that exam. The instructor will not contact the student to determine if a missed exam is excused. If no contact is made by the student, it is assumed the missed exam is unexcused. Zeros will be given for exams when it is determined that the absence is unexcused. Please note the following examples of unexcused absences: absences due to vacations or leaving early before a scheduled break, except under extenuating circumstances, work schedules are not considered an excuse for missing an exam. 

 

Quizzes: There will be at least one planned quiz given throughout the course of the semester. This quiz will be over information found in the syllabus and will be given through Connect. See Connect for more information. No make-ups will be given for this quiz as it is online and students can complete it at any point before the due date. The instructor reserves the right to give pop quizzes in class at any time.

 

Participation and Assignments

Another contribution to your overall grade will be your participation in active learning exercises such as in-class activities, in-class discussions, completion of personality scales, doing fun field experiments outside of class, and tweeting about class topics, and so on. These activities are designed to help you learn concepts in an active and memorable manner. By participating in these active learning exercises, you will learn much more (and have more fun) than would be possible if this class consisted solely of lectures and multiple choice tests. These activities will often not be announced in advance.

 

Twitter: For some of the in-class assignments we will be using Twitter. Therefore, students should set up a Twitter account if they do not already have one. Students will also need to approve follow requests from the instructor for this course; if students would prefer to set up an account specifically for this course (instead of using their personal account), that is perfectly acceptable, and in most cases, highly recommended. The Twitter participation will occur in-class, therefore, students must have a device which can access Twitter with them in class (e.g., smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc...). To get credit for these activities, you must fill out the survey (linked at the beginning of the syllabus) in which you provide the Twitter handle that you will be using for the course.

In addition, I will use Twitter to send out additional reminders and announcements (in addition to what I post on Connect). Students are strongly encouraged to follow me to easily receive this information. When I post information relevant to our class, I will use #PSYC1101. I encourage students that have questions or comments related to class to post using this # as well or send me a direct tweet. I will also post a list of all students Twitter handles on Blackboard (for those students who have indicated they are willing to share this information) so that students may connect using Twitter. This offers an easy way to ask questions of other students, post information relevant to the class, set up group study sessions, etc...

 

Online Forums: For some topics this semester, you will be asked to participate in an online forum discussion on Connect. This will consist of you reading a short article, posting your thoughts about the reading including a question to further discussion, and then you will respond to another student's question. These will be announced in class.

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Psychology in the Workplace Reflection Paper: Throughout the course of the semester students will work on completing a paper for inclusion in their ETHOS e-portfolio. The finished paper will then be uploaded into the student's e-portfolio as part of their ETHOS requirements. If a student is not under ETHOS, completion of this paper is still required. This paper will be completed in several steps throughout the course of the semester. The final draft is due at the final exam. All information regarding this paper can be found on Connect. 

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Missed Participation: To make up a graded assignment that was due on the day a student was absent, a student must have an excused absence. An excused absence is determined by the instructor and may include an illness that requires the student to remain at home/in their dorm room, a death of someone close to the student, court date during class time, school-sponsored event that occurs during class time, or other events at the discretion of the instructor. To notify the instructor of an excused absence, the student must turn in an absence form (this can be found on Connect). If documentation is available, that should be submitted along with the form. This form will not be accepted electronically. Only two total undocumented absences will be counted as excused per student (an undocumented exam absence is counted in this two). After two, all missed participation must be accompanied by written documentation to count as excused. To designate a missed participation as excused (whether it has documentation or not), the student must submit an absence form on the day they return to class to be able to make up the exam and receive full credit; half credit will be given if the student turns in the absence form after the day they return to class. The student must then arrange to make up the missed participation as soon as it is convenient, but definitely within 1 week of the original participation date. If no absence form is turned in, the participation cannot be made up and the student will receive a grade of "0" for that participation. If the participation has not been made up within one week of the original participation date (unless prior approval has been obtained by the instructor), the participation cannot be made up and the student will receive a grade of "0" for that participation. The instructor will not contact the student to determine if a missed participation is excused. If no contact is made by the student, it is assumed the missed participation is unexcused. Zeros will be given for participation when it is determined that the absence is unexcused. Please note the following examples of unexcused absences: absences due to vacations or leaving early before a scheduled break, except under extenuating circumstances, work schedules are not considered an excuse for missing a class. Once answers to a graded item have been distributed in any format (orally, online, returned work, etc.) the graded item may no longer be made up and the instructor will provide the student with other options to make up the missing grade. Twitter participation cannot be made up as these assignments involve reflecting on class discussion. However, students may drop two excused Twitter assignments from their grade. Absence forms are still required for a missed Twitter participation. If an assignment is assigned on a day that a student is absent but is not due until a later date, the student is still responsible for completing this assignment on time unless prior approval has been obtained by the professor. There will be opportunities throughout the semester for students to earn extra credit toward their participation grade. Students are encouraged to complete these opportunities as much as possible to help in case of more than two missed Twitter assignments, less than ideal performance on a graded participation assignment, etc.

 

Participation in Research: The Psychological Science Program regards your exposure to psychological research as an educational experience. The participation of students is appreciated and essential to the research of our program. Students' research contributions become a lasting part of the body of scientific psychological knowledge. Therefore, all students registered for PSYC 1101 will be required to participate in research. 
 

Step 1: All students should read the user guide before proceeding with this requirement! This can be found on the course’s Connect page and linked above. The user guide contains important information on how to effectively use this system and earn credits.  This will count as part of your Participation grade. 
 

Step 2: Then you must activate your account on the Research & Experiment Participation System (REPS) using the username and password emailed to you and complete the prescreen survey, link found on the course’s Connect page. The deadline for completing the prescreen is Friday, February 21st. In this survey, you are freely giving researchers some basic information. This information includes your demographic information so that researchers can choose appropriate participants that fit their study and questions that are specific to a certain study. These questions will change each year depending on what research projects are currently in progress. Some projects might include an electronic survey while some require a face-to-face meeting. 

 

Step 3: You must earn 1 credit by participating in research studies or completing the alternative assignment. Once researchers are ready to begin collecting data, they will post their available timeslots on REPS. You should periodically check REPS to see if new sessions are available and you can receive emails with updates on new timeslots. Spots will be filled on a first come, first served basis. If you sign up for a session, please don't miss it. If you accrue 3 no-shows, you will be barred from REPS and will have to complete your credits using the alternative assignments. You are required to participate in as many studies as you need to reach 1 credit. The amount of credits earned per study is stated in REPS (please note, most studies will be worth less than 1 credit so you will most likely have to participate in multiple studies). After you participate in a study, the researcher will note on REPS that you participated. There is nothing that you have to turn in. You can track your own credit progress directly on REPS. 

Participation in research is voluntary. Thus, if you choose not to complete the research option or are unable to complete it, you have a different option to earn these required points. The alternative assignment can be found below and more information can be found on Connect. 

 

Step 4: The deadline for completing your participation or alternative assignment is the last day of classes, Tuesday, May 5th. As soon as there are sessions that fit your schedule, you should sign up. Do not wait to complete this participation as there is no guarantee when study sessions will be offered. 
 

Alternative Assignment - In some situations, you may not be able to participate in research. Perhaps it is held at a time that is not possible for your schedule. Perhaps there were no timeslots due to a shortage of research projects. Or, perhaps you decided you did not want to participate! Remember, ethically, no one can force you to. In any of these situations, you can complete the following alternative assignment in lieu of research participation. The fact that you chose this assignment will not alter your grade and you will be able to earn as many points as your other classmates.

Step 1: Navigate to the Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Science. This is a journal of undergraduate research projects submitted by college students. You can look through the most recent issue and several past issues. Find one that you would like to read.
Step 2: Read your chosen article. Be sure to read it carefully and take notes if needed. 
Step 3: Fill in the following information. These should be typed following all paper formatting guidelines for this course. Once you have completed this last step, submit the document to the REPS administrator at research@lagrange.edu. Your submission should be a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file type. The deadline for submitting this assignment is the last day of classes. Remember, these papers should be written in your own words! Do NOT copy and paste information from the article, this is plagiarism. Evidence of plagiarism will be turned over the Honor Council and the student will receive an "F" for the course.
Title of article:
Year of publication:
Authors:
Location of Authors:
Summary of article in your own words:
Discuss 4 things you found interesting:
Discuss 4 things that confused you:
Discuss 4 things that you learned:
 

Certify Modules: For each chapter, there will be an online Certify modules that you will need to complete. These are NOT a substitute for reading the book. Each module is meant to assess understanding and comprehension of the material covered in that section. You should first complete the Learn module, then the Practice module, and then move on to the Certify module. You may skip the Practice module if you already feel confident with the material. When you enter the Certify module, you will have a certain number of strikes that you can obtain. Once you receive that number of strikes (wrong answers), you will be be forced to quit that attempt and will be asked to go back to Practice and Learn since you do not yet understand the material. If stay under the maximum number of strikes and successfully meet the set number of learning objectives you will receive your points. These are meant to prepare you for in-class discussion as well as to serve as one possible means of studying for exams. As such, they will point out areas where you might need some work. It is highly encouraged that you plan to complete these assignments well in advance of their due date as they are difficult to complete to 100% at the last minute.

Certify modules are due at the beginning of class when each chapter will be covered (see schedule for actual due dates). Because these are online assignments and are all available for completion starting on Day One, late submissions will be penalized. For each day the assignment is late, students will receive a reduction of 20% to their earned grade. After 3 days, no late assignments will be accepted. There are also Certify modules to review each chapter. These review modules are due at beginning of the exam time for the corresponding exam (see the course schedule for actual due date). Students are encouraged to complete the assignments well in advance of the due date to avoid any conflicts or technical mishaps. You will receive a grade for each module based on the percent of the assignment that you have completed by the due date (i.e. if you complete half of the learning objectives, then you will receive a 50% for that module). 

The Certify and Practice modules also serve as an excellent study tool. The modules will point out areas that need to be refreshed so you can go back to previous modules and use them as study guides for upcoming exams. The software also offers many study options including quizzes.

Please note: These modules only pull information from the book. My lectures often include other relevant information that was not included in the book. Therefore, Certify and Practice modules should not be your only study tool as they will not cover all of the information that may be present on an exam

 

Overall Grading

The different types of assignments that you will encounter in this class will each contribute a unique amount of weight towards your final grade in the class. The following table lists the percent of your final grade that will come from each of the designated types of assignments. Note: an average grade of D or F on exams may lead to a final grade of D or F in the course.