UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA PSYCHOLOGY 1001, SUMMER 2012 OVERVIEW & CALENDAR

Transcription

1 UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA PSYCHOLOGY 1001, SUMMER 2012 OVERVIEW & CALENDAR Psychology 1001: Introduction to Psychology is a 4-credit introduction to the scientific study of human behavior and a prerequisite for all other Psychology courses. This course explores how something as complex as human behavior can be studied scientifically; biological, social and environmental influences on human behavior; predictable ways in which humans behave, reason, remember and feel; and ways in which humans differ. Course structure: Each week, students attend (or view online) three lectures by University of Minnesota Faculty and attend discussion sections led by a Grad Student in Psychology. Website: ( Required Textbook: Scott Lilienfeld, 2 nd ed. Psychology: From Inquiry to Understanding. Available at the U Bookstore. Rachel Clark Office: N409 Elliott Hall INSTRUCTOR Office Hours: After class from 3:2-4:2, or by appointment Contact: clar0841@umn.edu COMMUNICATION Expect regular s from the instructor notifying you of Psy 1001 issues, deadlines, and concerns. And, in return, please the instructor with your questions, comments and concerns. You can the coordinator at khbriggs@umn.edu with questions about REP points (see below). Please, use your University x00 and sign with your name for all university correspondence. MOODLE DISCUSSION BOARD: The other communication channel is the student-to-student discussion threads on the Moodle site. There you can post and get answers to general questions about the site. FACULTY TEAM Prof. Thomas Brothen, Research, Morse Alumni award for Outstanding contributions to undergraduate education Prof. Jonathan Gewirtz, Biological Psychology Prof. Sheng He, Sensation & Perception Prof. Randy Fletcher, Memory & Cognitive Prof. Gail Peterson, Learning, CLA Distinguished Teaching Award, Morse Alumni Award for Outstanding contributions to undergraduate education Prof. Melissa Koenig, Developmental Psychology, Institute of Child Development Prof. Jeff Simpson, Personality Prof. Matt McGue, Intelligence, Director, Minnesota Center for Twin and Adoption Research Prof. Marti Hope Gonzales, Social, Morse Alumni award for Outstanding contributions to undergraduate education, Arthur Motley Exemplary Teaching Award Prof. William Grove, Clinical & Treatment 1

2 WEEKLY SCHEDULE Course structure: Each week, students view three lectures online by University of Minnesota Faculty and two discussion sections led by a Grad Student in Psychology. POINTS TO DATE WK DAY DATE TOPIC LECTURER TEXT TOTAL 1 M June 11 Introduction Briggs Ch. 1 Ch 1 quiz W June 13 Statistics Brothen Ch. 2 Ch 2 quiz 10 S June 1 Assignment 1 / Peer Review 1 Assign M June 18 Biological Basis of Behavior Gewirtz Ch. 3 Ch 3 quiz 2 W June 20 Sensation & Perception He Ch. 4 Ch 4 quiz 30 3 M June 2 EXAM 1 (on units covered between June 12-June 21, chapters 1-4 ) 0 80 W June 27 Consciousness Peterson Ch. Ch quiz 8 S June 30 Assignment 2 / Peer Review 2 Assign M July 2 Learning Peterson Ch. 6 Ch 6 quiz 100 W July 4 NO CLASS ENJOY YOURSELVES M July 9 Memory Fletcher Ch. 7 Ch 7 quiz 10 W July 11 Language & Thought Fletcher Ch. 8 Ch 8 quiz 110 S July 14 Assignment 3 / Peer Review 3 Assign M July 16 EXAM 2 (on units covered between June 28-July 12, chapters -8 ) W July 18 Development Koenig Ch. 10 Ch. 10 quiz 17 7 M July 23 Emotion Gewirtz Ch. 11 Ch 11 quiz 180 W July 2 Intelligence McGue Ch. 9 Ch 9 quiz 18 S July 28 Assignment 4 / Peer Review 4 Assign M July 30 Personality Simpson Ch. 14 Ch 14 quiz 200 W Aug 1 EXAM 3 (on units covered between July 19-31, chapters 9-11,14) M Aug 6 Social Gonzales Ch. 13 Ch. 12 Ch 13 quiz Ch 12 quiz 2 W Aug 8 Psychopathology Grove Ch. 1 Ch 1 quiz 260 S Aug 11 Assignment / Peer Review Assign M Aug 13 Treatment Grove Ch. 16 Ch 16 quiz 27 W Aug 1 FINAL EXAM (Comprehensive) *** Note: This point total (380 pts.) excludes participation points. See below. 2

3 EARNING POINTS IN PSY 1001 SOURCE EVENTS POINTS PER EVENT POSSIBLE POINTS EARNED POINTS COUNTED PERCENT EXAMS: Mid-semesters % Final % TEXT Chapters quizzes (webvista) % DISCUSSION SECTIONS: Weekly participation Writing assignments 2 2 Peer Review % Total points in grade base: % Research Experience Program (REP) +20 (+4%) ***PLEASE NOTE THAT ~0% OF POINTS ARE EASY-TO-EARN (CHAPTER QUIZZES AND DISCUSSION SECTIONS) AND ~0% ARE HARD-TO-EARN (EXAMS.) EASY-TO-EARN POINTS ARE A HUGE CUSHION! WORKLOAD EXPECTATIONS The University Senate policy on workload applies to Psy 1001: For undergraduate courses, one credit is defined as equivalent to an average of three hours of learning effort per week (over a full semester) necessary for an average student to achieve an average grade in the course. For example, a student taking a three credit course that meets for three hours a week should expect to spend an additional six hours a week on coursework outside the classroom. In practical terms what this means is that you can expect to spend about eight hours a week outside of class to obtain an average grade in Psy Students typically take 3-4 hours to read each chapter and complete each chapter quiz, several hours reviewing material and one to two hours preparing for and reflecting on discussing sections. Your mileage might differ, of course. During the summer, the pace is intense and it is important not to fall behind. An average grade on exams is around 3-37 points out of 0, or 66-7% of possible points. A student who earns an average grade in Psy 1001 has demonstrated that they have learned as much as the average student in Psy GRADES Final grades are approximately based on the following cut-offs: A ~ %; A- = 90-93%; B+ ~ 87-89%; B ~ 84-86%; B- ~ 80-83%; C+ = 77 79%; C ~ 74-76%; C %; D ~ 60-69%; F ~9% and below. The official final grade that you earn in Psy 1001 is the grade that is submitted to the Registrar and visible on OneStop approximately one week after the Final exam. All students must complete the comprehensive final at the end of the semester. FINAL grades: When calculating final grades, we make a statistical correction for poor performance on one exam based on your performance on other exams and the final. Instructors also may do an adjustment for students who are very close to a grade cut-off. No adjustment is made for Chapter quiz points because those are totally in your control and you have all semester to complete them. REP points are added after grade cutoffs are made. 3

4 Grades are not negotiable. No one can do extra work to raise a grade except by accumulating extra credit during the semester. It is VERY IMPORTANT to monitor how well you are doing. University Grading Standards: See the online syllabus for more details A = achievement that is outstanding relative to the level necessary to meet course requirements. B = achievement that is significantly above the level necessary to meet course requirements. C = achievement that meets the course requirements in every respect. D = achievement that is worthy of credit even though it fails to meet fully the course requirements S = achievement that is satisfactory which is equivalent to a C- or better. F or N = Represents failure/no credit because the student did not complete the requisite work for credit or because the student and instructor did not arrange an agreement about completing coursework. I (Incomplete) = assigned at the discretion of the instructor, may be awarded in the case that the student was prevented from completing work on time. Requires a written agreement between the instructor and student and must be completed within one year. About Incompletes: We give very, very few Incompletes in Psy To receive an I in Psy 1001, you must convince the Coordinator that you will be able to make up the missed work within a year, and you must complete a contract establishing the assignments and the time frame in which you will complete them. Incompletes are not given when students are failing Psy Contact Kate Briggs to discuss further. LILIENFELD TEXT AND CHAPTER QUIZZES Task: You will read all 16 chapters in the Lilienfeld textbook even though several of these chapters will not have accompanying lectures. Your knowledge of the textbook content is measured on chapter quizzes. After reading and reviewing each chapter, go to the Psy 1001 syllabus and lectures webpage and take the -point chapter quiz. Chapter quizzes: Each quiz is unique 10-items are drawn at random from a test bank of items covering all the material in the chapter. Each correctly answered item is worth half a point. You may take each quiz as often as you like; the highest score that you obtain is the one that will be counted towards your final grade. As you do chapter quizzes, you are both demonstrating your knowledge of concepts in the textbook and gaining practice with reading and responding to items online. We find a strong correlation between doing these quizzes and doing well on exams. The chapter quizzes contribute a maximum of 80 points to the Psy 1001 grade, and some items on each exam will be taken from chapter quizzes. Please note that chapter quizzes will be available through the entire semester. You ll get the most benefit from them, however, if you do them before the relevant exam. DISCUSSION SECTIONS In addition to lectures, students participate in twice weekly discussion sections for an active learning component to Psy Discussion sections are an important part of Psy 1001, an opportunity to learn how we create knowledge in Psychology through fun and practical activities. All discussion sections will occur in the STSS active learning classrooms. These beautiful, state of the art classrooms encourage group work, problem solving and discovery. Instructors: Discussion sections are facilitated by graduate students. Your instructor is likely to be your best resource in Psy 1001 and will tell you how to contact him or her. They can answer logistical questions as well as content questions. They hold office hours and monitor your overall performance in class. LECTURES DISCUSSION SECTIONS SIZE Section 001 Online ~ 230 minutes per week allowing additional time for discussion and activities plus review 4 students 4

5 EARNING POINTS IN DISCUSSION SECTIONS: HOMEWORK AND PARTICIPATION worth 16 points weekly (8 points for each discussion section): Each week students will be asked to complete homework assignments BEFORE attending discussion sections and participate in small group activities DURING the discussion section. Assignments will be posted by noon the day before the discussion section. Preparation and Participation: Each week you will be given an assignment to prepare before you arrive at your discussion section typically this consists of a reading and answering questions to prepare you for the activity in the discussion section. Sometimes you will need these assignments will be turned in as part of your participation. During your discussion section, you will work in small groups to complete an activity resulting in some product typically a google doc--that you will share with your instructor. Points will also come from quizzes covering material in the lectures, taken at the beginning of the class. IMPORTANT FOR GRADING: You need to name the documents that you share with your instructor according to a strict naming convention: S12-topic-sec(XX)-table(XX)-your names. So a possible name might be: S12-RES Thao-Luci-Bill-Jamil. In addition, you need to take a photo of your group and put it at the start of the document, along with your full names. Your participation points also include such student conduct factors as showing up on time, prepared and ready to take part in class. The shy people are not obligated to speak to the whole class, but you must all participate in small group discussions. Instructors can deduct participation points if you arrive chronically late, engage in rude or disruptive class behavior, demonstrate a lack of preparation, don t participate in group discussions, leave early, read the Daily, textbook or IM, surf Facebook or Reddit, etc, etc, during the discussion section. In other words, to earn full participation points, you must participate in class. Attendance: You can only earn participation points by attending your discussion sections. Attendance at discussion sections is mandatory and expected; you cannot skip discussion sections and still get credit for the 8-points of homework/participation per week. WRITING ACTIVITIES / PEER REVIEW ACTIVITIES worth 10 points each: There will be writing assignments worth a total of ten points each; points will be awarded for your writing, and points will be awarded for your peer review of other members of your group. Grading is from an algorithm that takes into account the consensus of grades others award you in the peer review system, as well as the accuracy of your grading in the peer review process. Your assignment will be graded on the quality of your writing. What is good writing? One of our goals in Psy 1001 is to help you develop critical thinking skills and a blog post is an excellent way to practice critical thinking as you write. Behaviorally, writing that reflects critical thinking has these features: the author a) asks questions and is willing to wonder; b) defines problems clearly; c) examines evidence; d) analyzes assumptions and biases; e) avoids emotional reasoning; f) avoids oversimplification; g) considers alternative interpretations; h) tolerates uncertainty. (from Wade, C. (199). Using writing to develop and assess critical thinking. Teaching of Psychology, ) I would add to this list, i) takes the perspective of others. What to write about: We have several general topics that can be used for all of your assignments. In addition, we will provide articles, questions and readings on the discussion page on the website to which you can respond if one of these don t work for you. Generic prompt: Explain a concept from Psy 1001 lectures or the Lilienfeld text that has interested you over the past two weeks. Summarize the concept in your own words and provide a real-life example that illustrates the concept. Reflect on how a real life example illustrates that concept. Do other questions occur to you? GRADING CRITERIA: Each assignment is worth points: Concepts, 0-3 points: Have you followed instructions? Have you provided a relevant concept or prompt? How well have you summarized the psychological concept or applied the six principles of critical thinking? Are you thinking beyond the example, that is, making inference and forming connections? Have you provided an original insight?

6 Have you provided evidence to support your claims? Are you demonstrating behaviorally that you are thinking critically? Mechanics: 0-1. points. Have you used paragraphs to divide your thoughts? Have you used correct grammar, spelling, and standard speech (not slang, not jargon)? Is your assignment easy to read? Have you cited your sources? Clarity of writing, 0-1points: Is your writing crisp? Clear? Engaging? Are you using words precisely? Do you have words that are unnecessary or filler words? Are you on-topic? Have you provided clear transitions and a clear flow of logic? Please note: While we encourage students to work together, the essays that you write should be your own work in your own words. You should not copy the answers of another. Homework and assignments should be coherent, written with complete sentences and have no spelling and punctuation errors. We expect sentences, not bullet points; we expect sentences to start with capital letters and end with periods. Students who appear to have essays that are too close in form or language will be penalized for plagiarism. MISSED DISCUSSION SECTIONS If you miss your discussion section, you will lose 8 discussion section points. You can make up points for a maximum of THREE missed discussion sections with your discussion leader s approval. Your instructor will provide an article or activity for you, and you will respond as a writing assignment, in addition to your regular writing assignments. Each approved supplemental post is worth up to 8 points. STUDY AIDS Study guides: a study guide will be posted for each exam containing core concepts that you may see on exams. If a concept is not on the study guide, it will not be on the exam. There are many more items on the study guide than you will see on an exam, but all items on the study guide are possible exam topics. Practice exams: Before each exam a practice exam will appear on the website. This practice exam will contain items testing similar to those that will appear on the exam though it will not be comprehensive. It may contain items on concepts that will not appear on your exam or fail to include items that will be on your exam. EXAMS AND FINAL Exams are mandatory in Psy Exams will be administered in the proctored lab in S121 Elliott Hall. WHERE: S121 Elliott DATES WHEN: Exam 1: 0 minutes Mon, June 2 1:2PM Exam start time Exam 2: 0 minutes Mon, July 16 1:2 PM Exam 3: 0 minutes Wed, Aug 1 1:2 PM FINAL: 2 hours Wed, Aug 1 1:2 PM PLEASE NOTE: The final cannot be made up after Friday, August 17. WHAT TO EXPECT: MIDTERM: You will answer 0 items and have 0 minutes to complete the exam. 90% of students finish in 4 minutes. Items will be similar to those from the discussion section quizzes. FINAL: You will have 100 items. Approximately 60 items will be review concepts from exams 1, 2, & 3. The remaining 40 items will be based on lectures, activities and readings between exam 3 and the end of the term. You will have 120 minutes to complete the Final, but 90% of students finish in 7 minutes. EXAM ITEMS: Exams emphasize lecture content, but overall, it will be similar to the chapter quizzes. Every Psy 1001 student sees a somewhat different set of items, measuring similar concepts. Items have been controlled for difficulty so everyone sees an exam of equivalent difficulty. At the end of the exam, you will receive your score and 6

7 can view the topics that you got incorrect. You can go to Instructor office hours to review the specific items that you got wrong. You must review each exams BEFORE the next exam. DIFFICULTY OF EXAMS: You can expect exams to be challenging. We expect everyone in Psy 1001 to master the obvious topics; exams are designed to measure how much you have learned relative to other students. Exam items cover a lot of information and require mastery and application of new vocabulary and concepts. The practice exams will help you prepare but are not sufficient. We obviously save our best items for the exams. ASKING QUESTIONS DURING EXAMS: We encourage each of you to ask questions of the proctor during your exams. For example, if you find the wording of an item confusing, please ask for clarification. If it seems like there are two correct answers or if you are trying to decide between two answers, ask a proctor. In addition, students who experience exam anxiety, can sometimes calm themselves and get back on task by talking to a proctor. Proctors will not give answers away, but they can paraphrase, clarify, define terms, and reinforce what you know. POLICY ON MAKE-UP EXAMS EXAMS: Students who are unable to take an exam during the regularly scheduled exam periods due to illness, transportation issues, accidents, religious holidays, family emergency, jury duty, personal crises, unavoidable work conflicts and evil bosses, or other unanticipated reasons can complete a make-up exam. Arrangements to take the exam at another time must be made at least three days in advance of the scheduled exam time. If your circumstances for missing the exam are extraordinary and persistent having and recovering from major surgery, for example, please contact your instructor to make other arrangements. FINAL: Students MUST take the Final exam to get a grade in Psy Students who do not complete the Final will get an F unless other arrangements are made.. A conflict/make-up Final will be offered for students who miss the Final for unexpected reasons. The Final must be made up before Friday, August 17. EXAM ACCOMMODATIONS: Students with documented disabilities must provide a letter of accommodation before the first exam so we can make the best accommodation. To obtain this letter of accommodation, they should register with Disability services on campus. This involves providing disability services with documentation of your disability and providing a letter to the coordinator. All students will take their exams in S121 Elliott, but we can provide a semi-private space and extra time. UNIVERSITY POLICIES FOR CLASSROOM & DISCUSSION SECTION CONDUCT Please be considerate of other Psychology 1001 scholars and the lecturers. You may need to be reminded of these guidelines. Please inform other students if they are disrupting your ability to concentrate. Maintaining a classroom environment that is conducive to learning (quiet, orderly) is the responsibility of everyone. Arrive before class starts. Stay quiet. Don t whisper with your neighbors. Please turn off your cell phones. No texting! OTHER UNIVERSITY POLICIES Use of Personality Electronic Devices in the Classroom Scholastic Dishonesty The University Senate policy on Academic Expectations Makeup Work for Legitimate Absences Class notes The University of Minnesota policy on sexual harassment Equity, Diversity, Equal Opportunity, and Affirmative Action Disability Accommodations Mental Health Services Academic Freedom and Responsibility 7

8 EXTRA CREDIT Policies regarding research involving Psy 1001 students as participants: When conducting research, pertinent institutional approvals must be obtained and the research must be consistent with University policies. Students who participate in research have certain rights: the right of informed consent, the right to withdraw from research studies at any time without penalty, confidentiality, appropriate debriefing, and appropriate compensation for their time. Students who do not wish to participate in research studies have other opportunities to earn extra credit. How much extra credit can students earn? Students in Psy 1001 can earn as many as 20 extra credit points--one extra credit point for each half-hour of participation of your 20 points, a maximum of 10 points can be earned by doing online surveys; the rest of your points should be earned in in-person studies. You can earn more than 20 points if you want, but only 20 points will be counted towards your final grade. How to earn extra credit: 1) The Research Experience program (REP) REP provides opportunities for Psy 1001 students to earn extra credit by participating in University-approved research studies conducted by researchers from the Department of Psychology. The purpose of REP is twofold, to provide students with hands-on experience in the topics, goals, methods and ethical procedures of contemporary psychological research and to sustain the department of Psychology s extensive and nationally-recognized program of research. REP studies start recruiting: June 20 and will continue through August 16. Click on the Extra Credit link on the Psy 1001 website to review studies and sign up on-line. In addition, some researchers will recruit students before discussion sections or put up flyers on the REP bulletin board in Elliott Hall. Tracking your points: Researchers are required to submit REP points four times during the semester, corresponding to the Mondays on which Psy 1001 has exams. You can check how many of your REP points are recorded in the REP database by clicking on the links found in the Extra Credit folder on the Psy 1001 website. Points will not be imported to the webvista Gradebook until after the Final. Please note that the REP database is different from the Webvista grade book. While signing up online should reduce errors, please be sure to keep track of the studies in which you participate and the number of extra credit points you have earned. Researchers sometimes make errors when awarding points, and if this should happen to you, these records can make all the difference. It s rare, but you don t want it to be you. Alternatives to REP: If you are uncomfortable participating in REP studies but would like to earn extra points, please talk to your instructor. TROUBLESHOOTING REP ISSUES Problems getting your REP points? Researchers are asked to award points on the Mondays that Psy 1001 students take exams. If you expected to receive REP points and they don t show up in the REP database researcher deadlines, first contact the researcher for that study (this is why it is so important to keep records). If that doesn t work, contact Kate Briggs. Use Problems with REP in the subject line for the fastest response. The researcher doesn t show up? Our policy is that if you go to a study, and the researcher fails to show up within 1 minutes of an appointment, then you are free to leave and should be given the points you would have earned had you participated in that study. If this happens to you you show up for a study and wait 1 minutes-- the researcher, tell them where and when you waited, and they should enter points for you. You are not obliged to complete the study to get the points. If this doesn t produce your points, contact Kate Briggs, the coordinator. What if you can t make a study after all? You have the right, as the participant in a research study, to withdraw at any time without penalty. That includes not showing up to participate in something you signed up for. However, standing up researchers is rude and wastes their time. Please let the researcher know even at the last minute. You can t remember the location and time of your study? This is a hard one. The only people who know for certain where and when your studies are scheduled are you and the researcher. If you sign up online, you can find the location of your study in your points record in the REP database (found via the link in extra credit on the website.) If you sign up after class, researchers may not enter your information, however. If you are in Elliott Hall, wandering around trying to find your study, you can double-check with Kate Briggs in S38 Elliott Hall. 8

9 The bottom line here is contact researchers first and then get Kate Briggs involved to resolve issues. KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR EXTRA-CREDIT POINTS You will need to provide your name and x00 to researchers so they can enter the points that you have earned. Keeping track of REP points will ensure that you get all your extra credit in case of human error. Only you and the REP researcher have information about which studies you have participated in. You can confirm that your points have been awarded by going to the extra credit link and clicking on View REP points. Primary researcher Researcher s Study number (SS12-xxx) Date of participation Study location Number of points 9