Course Description

This course introduces students to the basic principles underlying human behavior and cognition. Research methods related to psychology are presented.

Learning STARTS WITH YOU, and your contributions are valuable. You will learn a great deal from each other.� You will get the most from this course if you come prepared, actively listen to others, and contribute your own ideas, experiences, and insights.� I will collaborate with you to establish a safe and fun atmosphere.You will be expected to participate in small group exercises, and class discussions.� We will cover a lot of material in a short time.� It may be helpful to have a study buddy who will help you get notes, handouts, etc., if you miss class.

 

Treat this course like a job (that you want to keep!) If you want to do well, show up on time and prepared, take initiative, contribute to class, turn in quality work, ask for help when you need it, and treat others with respect.

 Course requirements include doing the reading, attending class, participating in classroom discussion and exercises, writing assignments, and exams.This course has a serious amount of reading and you will not be able to do well on the assignments or exams if you do not do the reading. Please do not take this course if you anticipate missing class, or cannot manage the reading and assignments.Eligibility for English 68 is a requirement for this course.

 Among the measurable objectives of this course, students will also be able to differentiate the major theoretical perspectives of psychology and be able to explain why psychology is considered a science.

 

Required Materials

 

Required Text:Psychology (3^rd ed) by Ciccarelli & White

Copyright 2012 by Pearson Publishers

Required Scantrons: four 882 (long green form)

 

Grading Rationale

 Your final grade is based on the percentage of points you earn during the semester.There are 500 points possible in this class. Grades are not posted publicly. You are welcome and encouraged to examine your grades at any time during the semester.

 

Percentage of Points > 90%= A 80% to 89.9% = B 70% to 79.9%� = C 60% to 69.9%� = D <60%= F

Point Distribution 500 to 450 points = A 449 to 400 points =� B 399 to 350 points =� C 349 to 300 points =� D 299 and below� =� F

Percentage Composition of Grade Exams = 40% of final grade Written Assignments = 40% of final grade Active Learning/Participation = 20% of your grade

 

Course Requirements

 Tests are 40% of your final grade.There will be 5 tests @50 points each.Test will be based on assigned readings each week.Quiz questions may be multiple-choice, short answer or essay.� You will need a Scantron #882 for the quizzes.� I will not provide scantrons or pencils. You will not be given credit for erasures after the test so mark your scantron carefully.I drop the lowest test score so there are no make-ups due to tardies or absences.

 

You may not use any electronic devices during the exam.� Cell phones are to be turned off during exams. No one may leave the room after an exam has begun.If you go to use the restroom or take a phone call during an exam, I will assume you are finished with the exam.���

Active Learning (Activities/Debates) is worth 20% of your total grade.To earn your active learning points, you will be asked to collect information outside class and bring to class for discussion.� If you fail to bring in requested material, you will be unable to participate in the class discussion and will not earn participation points.Learning activities will be not be accepted outside of class.If you are absent, you will not be eligible to participate.After 4 unauthorized absences/tardies, or failure to prepare for class you may fail the course. College authorized absences include class field trips, jury duty, military service, and other college recognized activities (e.g., athletics, choir, student senate, etc.). The college does not authorize absences due to car trouble, illness, oversleeping, child care, vacations, or work.� Do not take this class is you cannot get to class on time, will not participate, or plan on being absent.

 

Thought Papers (40% of your grade): In a separate handout you will be asked to think and answer some questions applying your own personal experiences as well as documented scientific information.You should use your text, and one outside reference when answering these questions. Your reference source should be college-level and scientific such as journals or books.Do not use encyclopedias (including Wikipedia or about.com).�� You must site your references in the body your text AND in a works sited page.Each Thought Paper may not be longer than 4 pages (not including the work sited page).I will only grade the first four pages.� Each Thought paper is worth 100 points.At the end of the semester, these papers will represent your comprehensive perspective of introductory psychology.

Note: ALL assignments must be professional in appearance (i.e., proofread, typewritten, double-spaced, and stapled.)You do not need a report cover.In addition, all assignments must adhere to APA or MLA style guidelines.� After 5 typos, spelling errors, etc., I will stop reading the assignment and return it to you without credit.You may submit the revision within 1 week, but you will be docked 10%.

References:Anytime you refer to the ideas of others to support your writing, you must use citations and references.A reference to an author does not mean you can copy what the author wrote.If you copy word-for-word, you MUST use quotation marks.You must include a citation within the body of the paper, as well as a reference page at the end.The Mt SAC Writing Center can review your papers and help you with citations .They will not write your paper but if you feel uncomfortable about your writing skills, ask for help.

 

Course Policies

 

Email:When you send email, always include your full name and your class time (e.g., M@1pm).If you send an attachment, tell me in the body of the email. You can expect me to answer you within 48 hours during the week and 72 hours over the weekend (except during a holiday weekend).� If you do not hear from me, it means that I did not receive your email.� Email should be professional in appearance.Please use punctuation and spell out all words.� I will not respond to an email that looks and reads like a text message.

 

Turning in Assignments:For Thought Papers, you must submit a printed copy unless you have printing problems.Either the electronic or printed copy is due during the first 15 minutes of lecture on the due date.� If you submit an electronic copy, you must submit a paper copy by the next class meeting.If you send me an assignment by e-mail, the date and time that the message was sent will serve as the time you turned in the assignment.� I will reply to your e-mail message to notify you that I have received your assignment.If you do not hear from me, it means that I did not receive your assignment, and you are responsible for re-sending it.You will have up to 1 week to turn in late Thought Papers and will receive a 10% penalty. After the extension, you may submit it for evaluation, but you will not receive credit.If you anticipate being gone when an assignment is due, you are responsible for making arrangements to turn it in early.Learning Activities may only be turned in during class the day that they are due.Learning Activities are not accepted early, late, or outside of class.

 

Make-up tests:I will drop the lowest of the test scores when calculating your final grade� For this reason, there are NO MAKE-UP tests for credit. If you miss a test, you may arrange a no-credit make up within 1 week in order to test your own understanding of the material.Travel plans or forgetting is not considered emergencies.You may arrange to take a test early in case of a college authorized absence such as a field trip or sporting event.

 

Disruptions: It is disrespectful to me and your classmates when you engage in side-talking, chronic lateness, sleeping, walking in and out of the classroom, or if your cell-phones/pagers goes off. Texting during class is not permitted. If I consider you to be disruptive, I will excuse you from class for that day, and you will be considered absent.

 

Dropping this course: Because of the demand for classes, if you are absent at any of the first four class meetings, and you do not inform me that you intend to stay in the class, I will drop you from the class.After the first four class meetings, I will not necessarily drop you simply due to absences.If you decide to drop the course, you are responsible for completing a drop form and turn it into Admissions, or you will receive an F.

 

Academic Honesty: You are expected to present your own ideas and work for evaluation.Academic dishonesty of any kind will not be tolerated.I consider it academically dishonest to (a) use in any way papers that you or other students wrote from previous semesters, (b) to ask for or give information about the content of my exams or (c) to represent work done by someone else as your own (i.e., plagiarism) by failing to provide appropriate quotation marks and or references.I will refer all students who violate Academic Honesty policy to Academic Discipline office. Please see me if you have questions.

  

 

Master Calendar - Schedule of Classes & Topics

Tentative Schedule � Subject to revision