Course Syllabus

Fall 2024 gen psych syllabi-2.pdf

 

Course Syllabus

Psychology 101

“General Psychology”

Term:              Fall 2024

CRN:               21198

Credit:             3 Semester Units, for a letter grade

Location:         K - 20

When:              Tuesday & Thursday: 8:00 am – 9:20 am

Instructor:       Annamarie Darnell, LMFT, LEP           

Office Hours: email to set up

E-mail:             annamari.darnell@hancockcollege.edu

 

Text/Materials:

**Required**:

Spielman, R.M, Jenkins, W.J, and Lovett, M.D. (2020) Psychology 2e. (2nd edition) Open Education resources. https://openstax.org/details/books/psychology-2e

 Course Description

An introduction to the concepts, methods, and techniques of psychology - covering topics such as: the biology of behavior; consciousness; thinking, language, intelligence and memory; motivation and emotion; stress health and human flourishing; personality; psychological disorders; and therapy.

 Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes

Psychology Program Learning Outcomes

  • 101 SLO1: Explain the procedures for case studies, correlation studies, and experiments, and will be able to evaluate each method in terms of its advantages and disadvantages.
  • 101 SLO2: Interpret a psychological problem and suggest therapy advice from the perspectives of a psychoanalytic, behavioral, and socio-cognitive therapist.
  • 101 SLO3: Explain brain plasticity and inter-neural connections and will be able to briefly describe their role in learning and perception.

Housekeeping:

► Be responsible, realistic, and optimistic
► Be respectful, supportive, and courteous of your fellow peers, instructor, and boundaries.
► Honor different opinions and experiences that are different from your own.
► Agree to disagree.
► Discussions will maintain healthy dialogue and will be freely expressed, in a manner that is
not hurtful/harmful to others, and without fear of discrimination or retaliation.
► Stay organized and exercise good time-management.
► Communicate often.
► Give this course your best effort (including assignments and class participation)
► Check work and recheck.
► Be open and receptive to challenges and feedback.
► Do not have side conversations in the middle of lecture or discussion, save them for later
► Please refrain from eating in the classroom, bags/chewing/rustling can be distracting
► Be mindful of your time and mine

 

Important Dates:

  • Check Course Calendar for assignment due dates
  • Start Date of Fall class: 8/19/2024
  • Last Date to drop without a “W”: 9/2/2024
  • Last Date to drop with a “W”: 9/20/2024
  • End Date: 12/12/2024

 

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT: Any personal learning accommodations that may be needed by a student covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) must be made known to the instructor as soon as possible. This is the student's responsibility. Information about services, academic modifications and documentation requirements can be obtained from the Learning Assistance Program (LAP). 

For more information about services available to AHC students with disabilities, contact: 

(805) 922‐6966 ext. 3274 (Santa Maria Campus) 

(805) 922‐6966 ext. 5274 (Lompoc Valley Center from Santa Maria) 

 (805) 928‐7834 (TTY/TDD for the Deaf) 

(805) 922‐69‐6966 (Video Phone)

Learning Assistance Program: Students with physical, learning, or mental health disabilities who believe they need accommodations in this class are encouraged to contact the Learning Assistance Program (LAP) as soon as possible to ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.  Learning Assistance authorization, based on verification of disability, is required before any accommodation can be made.  Students who do not have formal documentation but feel that they may have a disability are encouraged to call the Learning Assistance Program at (805) 922-6966 x 3274. 

The Course Canvas Internet Site

  • You can check your progress toward your grade by finding out how many points you have and doing simple arithmetic to figure out what your grade is up to the point that you check.
  • You’ll find the course material and a number of informative and useful files (all readable online or downloadable and printable).
  • If you misplace your copy of the syllabus, you may find the Course Calendar and the syllabus in .pdf format on the course Canvas site.
  • If you have any difficulty accessing the Canvas site, or if you cannot locate any of the materials that are supposed to be there, let me know immediately.
  • Important Caution: When checking your grades in Canvas, pay attention only to the total number of points, not to other numbers, such as percentages, because other numbers can be misleading. Students have received failing grades as a result of believing that a number other than total number of points was an accurate representation of their grades.

 

Course Requirements and Assignments

  1. Attendance: Attend every class meeting without arriving late or leaving early, and do not leave during the break. Actively participate in all class discussions and other activities.
  2. Complete all reading assignments on time. YOU are required to read each chapter. Time does not permit coverage in each chapter’s entirety. Lecture will cover main topics and concepts, but it is up to you to ensure you are covering ALL material.
  3. Exams: You will have a total of 4 quizzes, each worth 50 points. The final is NOT cumulative.
  4. Weekly Discussion Boards: You must write a reflection of the chapter we are covering for that week, on a topic that is provided. If no topic is provided for that week, you must write about what you found particularly interesting, something you relate to, something you would like to study more of, etc. This is where you have a chance to practice and demonstrate your critical thinking skills, as well earn points for participation. You are expected to respond to at least 1 of your classmates’ posts for full credit. DB posts and responses must be well thought out, meaningful, challenging, and thought-provoking. A simple response such as “cool, I agree with that” or “Yeah, I thought the same thing” will not suffice. Discussion Boards will be due each Sunday by 11:59pm. There is no Discussion Board due on the last week.
  • Using Canvas, all students must participate in all discussion board(s). This is done by answering the question(s) of the discussion board, posting opinions/questions and/or responding to other students post and/or questions. To post to the discussion board, enter the appropriate chapter forum, and click “Reply” located below the discussion board prompt. A new window will open, and you may begin typing your post or you can cut and paste from your word processor. When you have completed your post, click “Post Reply”. The maximum number of points that a student can earn for the chapter discussion boards is 30 points per week and for a total of 450 points. For each section that the discussion boards are assigned you must have: 150 words for original post and 100 words per response to another student’s post.
  • A minimum of one (1) post to the section’s discussion board.
  • A minimum of one (1) response/question to another student’s post or the class/instructor.
  • Posts are due Sunday’s, a grace period of two days is allowed, and 5 points will be taken off for each day late.
  • Note - Posts and responses that do not completely or adequately answer the question of the discussion board and/or contribute meaningfully to the thread will not receive full credit.

Evaluation/Grading

Grades will be based on:

  1. Discussion Board Posts: 12 posts worth 30 pts each (20pts for original post, and additional 10 for response) for a total of 360, loss of 5 points for each day late. Due Sunday’s.
  2. Previous points: 135 (include exam, assignments)
  3. Exams:
    1. 3 Quizzes each 50 points
  4. (worth a total of 150 points)
  5. Final worth 200 points
  6. Participation: worth 100 points total

 Total Possible Points: Total Possible Points: 360 + 150+200+100 + 135 (previous assignments)= 945

 Based on this score, the following grades will apply:

A=900 or above

B=800-899

C=700-799

D=600-699

F=599 or below

There will be no pluses (+) or minuses (-) attached to letter grades. This is a college policy.

If you are taking the course Pass/No Pass, you must qualify for a grade of C or better in order to receive credit for completing the course.

              Errors. Giving you a grade requires that I employ careful record-keeping, accurate tabulation of every score, and accurate arithmetic. I am a human being and can sometimes make an error (such as failing to write down the points for an assignment, for example), and items can sometimes get lost, including items emailed to me. I would feel terrible if I gave you an unsatisfactory grade that you did not earn. So, if you think after you receive your final grade (or at any time during the course) that I might have made an error, please let me know. I won’t hold it against you; in fact, I will be very happy to correct any errors that I might have made. But I will not tolerate excessive arguing or bargaining over grades, especially during class time.

Late Assignments and Missed Exams

              Late Assignments. Late discussion board assignments will be accepted up to two days late, with a subtraction of 5 points each day. There will be NO exceptions after the second day!

Missed Exams/Quizzes. I do not give make-up exams. Communication and adequate reasoning is required in advance for the potential of alternative arrangements to be made. If you know in advance that you will be missing an exam/quiz, please talk to me about it as early as you can. Quizzes will be open with enough time in advance, work to get these done ahead of the due date.

Policies and Behavioral Expectations:

              Office Hours and Contacting me: I will be holding office hours at the above-mentioned times (see top of syllabus). Please utilize this time wisely to address any questions or needs that arise. Be mindful, this time is carved out specifically for you! If your schedule doesn’t allow you to meet during my scheduled office hours, tell me, and we can find other times, I try my best to be flexible. I encourage you to reach out at any time, but if you must contact me outside of office hours, understand that I may not be immediately available to respond. However, I will make a great effort to get back to you within a 48-hour period. Please do not send multiple emails expecting a quicker response, this only overloads my inbox and makes it difficult to keep up with needs. If there is an emergency, or need to get ahold of me ASAP, I am best reached via email, with high importance notice. Keep in mind, I will periodically check my emails, messages, etc., but I am not on-call 24 hours a day.

              Attendance Policy. Students should treat classroom attendance the same way they would treat attendance at a job. Make every effort to attend all class meetings, and to arrive and depart on time. If you are not going to be able to make it to a class session, please notify me in advance. If you are going to be late, or if you are going to leave during a class session, also please notify me in advance. Use the telephone or email—but preferably email.

Drop Policy. Failing to attend 3 or more classes will cause a student to miss too much essential classroom experience. Therefore, I may drop a student who misses 3 classes. And I will be very likely to drop a student who misses 4 classes—as long as the 4 missed classes take place before the mandatory drop date for that course. However, it is in the best interests of students who have missed 4 or more classes to withdraw and not count on me to drop them, because I may be too busy to submit the paperwork to drop them, in which case they would receive a grade—probably an F. 

 

Learning Assistance Students. If you take your exams at the Learning Assistance Program office, and both a lecture and an exam are scheduled for class on the same day, you will be expected to attend the lecture portion of the class, and then leave before I give out the exams. Failure to attend the lecture portion of the class will be treated as a failure to attend and participate in the entire class.

Registering, adding, and dropping. You are responsible for ensuring that you have actually registered for this course. If you have not registered—even if you attend every class and complete every assignment—you will not receive credit or a grade. You are also responsible, if you drop the course, for making sure that the paperwork is complete so that you do not receive a failing grade. Finally, if you are adding the course late, you are responsible for ensuring that the registration process is completed properly.

              Academic honesty. No form of cheating or dishonesty will be tolerated. Please read the section on Academic Honesty in the College Catalog.

              Other forms of cheating. I also have a zero-tolerance policy for cheating on exams or copying of assignments. If I discover that you have been cheating in any way (e.g., copying another student’s answers, discussing answers during exams, using cellular telephone or text-messaging during exams or looking up or discussing exam questions during a bathroom break, etc.), you will certainly lose credit for the assignment or exam on which you cheated. 

Behavior in the classroom. It is important that every student’s behavior be supportive of—and not disruptive to—the educational process. This is true in the classroom, but also outside of the classroom, during my office hours, and at other times when students may be interacting with each other or me. I tend to tolerate, even encourage, lots of spontaneity, discussion, and activity in my classes—as long as it is appropriate to the educational process. Do not to carry on side conversations, jokes, gossip, etc., in class during lectures, discussions, or exercises; and do not behave in ways that may interfere with any other student’s learning or that degrade or demean another student. Do not carry on cell phone conversations in class or engage in text-messaging. Do not view or listen to portable media in class. The only screen you should be looking at is the screen at the front of the classroom on which I project lecture notes or videos—unless you are legitimately taking notes on a computer. Respect is the key in this class—both respect for the learning process and respect for individuals who are here to learn. If your behavior is causing a problem, I will talk with you about it. If this approach does not resolve problems, then more serious disciplinary measures may be necessary, such as asking other college officials to become involved. If your behavior is extremely disruptive, I may eject you from the class.

              Smoking and such. Smoking is not allowed in the classroom or anywhere on the campus other than designated smoking areas. Children are not allowed in class. Pets are not allowed in class, but service animals are. Eating and drinking are not allowed in class either, but this rule is not enforced as strictly as the others.

Additional Considerations: This syllabus (including the Course Calendar) is subject to change at any time—it is a “living document” and may have to be adjusted to fit the reality of what takes place during the course, particularly in the area of the course calendar.

 

 

Course Calendar

  • Holidays This Semester that may affect this class:
  • November 28th-30th Thanksgiving

Week:

Date

Topics Covered

Assignments

Major Assignments due

Week 1

 

8/19-8/22

 

 

Introductions and Syllabus

 

Introductions

 

 

 

 

Week 2

 

8/26-8/30

 

Chapter 1 Intro to Psychology

 

 

 

Assignment #2 25 points

 

Week 3

9/2-9/6

Chapter 2 Psychological research

 

 

 

 

Assignment #3 25 points

Week 4

9/9-9/13

 

Chapter 3: Biopsychology

 

 

 

 

 

Quiz 1 50 points

 

Week 5

9/16-9/20

Chapter 4: States of Consciousness

 

 

 

 

Discussion Board 4

 

Discussion Board 4

Due Sun 9/22 at 11:59pm

 

Week 6

 

9/23-9/27

 

 

Chapter 5: Sensation and Perception

 

 

 

Discussion Board 5

 

Discussion Board 5.

Due Sun 9/29 at 11:59pm

Quiz 2: Ch 3-5

Due Mon 9/30 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 7

 

9/30-10/4

Chapter 6: Learning

 

 

 

Discussion Board 6

 

 

Discussion Board 6:

Due Sun 10/6 at 11:59pm

Week 8

10/7-10/11

Chapter 7: Thinking and Intelligence

Discussion Board 7

 

 

Discussion Board 7:

Due Sun 10/13 at 11:59pm

Week 9

10/14-10/18

 

Chapter 8: Memory

 

 

 

 

Discussion Board 8

 

Discussion Board 8

Due Sun 10/20 at 11:59pm

Quiz 3: Ch 6-8

Due Mon 10/21 at 11:59pm

Week 10

10/21-10/25

 

Chapter 9: Lifespan Development

Discussion Board 9

 

Discussion Board 9

Due Sun 10/27 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 11

 

10/28-11/1

 

 

Chapter 10: Emotion and Motivation

 

Discussion Board 10

 

Discussion Board 10.

Due Sun 11/3 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 12

 

11/4-11/8

Chapter 11: Personality

Discussion Board 12

 

 

Discussion Board 11:

Due Sun 11/10 at 11:59pm

 

Quiz 4: Ch 9-11

Due Mon 11/11 at 11:59pm

Week 13

11/11-11/15

Chapter 12: Social Psychology

Discussion Board 12

 

 

Discussion Board 12

Due Sun 11/17 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 14

11/18-11/22

Chapter 13: I/O Psychology

Discussion Board 13

 

Discussion Board 13

Due Sun 11/24 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 15

11/25-11/29

 

No Class 11/28 Thanksgiving

Chapter 14: Stress Lifestyle and Health

Discussion Board 14

 

Discussion Board 14

Due Sun 12/2 at 11:59pm

 

 

Week 16

12/2-12/6

 

Chapter 15: Psychological Disorder and treatment

Chapter 16: therapy and Treatment

 

Final exam due on canvas

Discussion board 15

Discussion board 15

Due by 12/9 at 11:59pm

 

 

12/9-12/12

FINALS WEEKS

 

FINAL (Chap 12-15) due MONDAY 12/16 at 12:00pm

 

Final will open the week before

 

                       

FINAL NOTE: I look forward to getting to know each of you.  If you are having any problems with the course, please do not hesitate to talk with me directly or email me to discuss it.  It is my goal for everyone to have a successful learning experience in this class.  I want to help you gain the information you need to, not only, have a successful experience in this class, but to also, perhaps, find a genuine interest in psychology and realize the usefulness of the information in applying it to your everyday life.

Textbook:

Great news: your textbook for this class is available for free online!
Psychology 2e from OpenStax, ISBN 978-1-975076-45-0

You have several options to obtain this book:

You can use whichever formats you want. Web view is recommended -- the responsive design works seamlessly on any device.