Psychology 1315.001 – Introduction to Psychology University of Texas at Arlington Summer 2010, 2nd Semester Class: M-Th 8:00-9:50, Life Science #102 Instructor: Jeff Swanson, MA Office: Life Science #521 Email: [email protected] Office Hours: T, Th 10:15-11:15 Course Goals and Objectives: This course will cover a wide range of psychological concepts, theories, and topics. In particular, students will be exposed to various psychological fields, including social, personality, neurological, cognitive, developmental, and clinical psychology via the textbook, lectures, audio/visual media, class discussions, and activities. Successful completion of this course will lead students to a wide range of knowledge about psychology as an academic and applied discipline. Student will gain basic competency in the following areas: a) knowledge of major fields and approaches within psychology, b) grasp of basic methods of psychological research, and c) the application of psychology to “real-world” problems. Required Textbook: 1) King, L. A. (2008). The science of psychology: An appreciative view. McGraw-Hill: New York. ISBN: 978-0-07-353188-5 Course Requirements: Participation and Attendance Regular class attendance is not mandatory but is highly recommended. Students will be accountable for all lecture material, and each examination will contain questions from the readings and lectures. Assignments There will be four assignments to complete throughout the course, each worth 25 points. These will generally involve answering questions regarding an activity or paper or summarizing an article. Please see the tentative schedule for assignment topics. You will submit your assignments on WebCT before class on the day that they are due and bring a copy to the class for discussion as appropriate. For assignments that have definite answers, they will be provided to you during the next class. Exams Four exams will be given throughout the semester. Each exam will be worth 100 points and the lowest scoring exam will be dropped from your final grade. There will be no curve applied to scores. The exams will be structured with a combination of multiple choice and short answer questions. Exam questions will be taken from class lectures and assigned readings. You are expected to on time during examination times. I will not give exams to any students who come in after the first exam is turned in. If you come in after this point, it will be considered a“missed” exam. The first missed exam will be the exam dropped from your final grade, and subsequent missed exams will each receive a grade of 0. Make-up exams will only be administered if the student provides a university approved excuse (see Catalog) or any documented catastrophic events. If students miss an examination due to a university-approved absence or any documented catastrophic event of which they provide written approval to the instructor, they will be given an equivalent make-up exam at a time approved by the instructor (i.e., not during class time). If students misses an exam due to unapproved reasons, they will not be able to make up the examination and will receive a zero on the examination missed. Exams require the use of Scantrom Form No. 886-E Mini Essay Book. Research Participation Requirement Students enrolled in Psychology 1315 must complete a research participation requirement. Research participation is an experiential learning opportunity which enhances and deepens students’ understanding of and appreciation for the scientific study of psychology. This requirement may be satisfied by serving as a participant in psychological research or by summarizing and evaluating published studies, in journals or in other approved sources. More details will be provided in an orientation session and in an informational handout. FAILURE TO COMPLETE THE REQUIREMENT WILL RESULT IN AN INCOMPLETE FOR THE CLASS. You will then need to complete your requirement during the next semester or the incomplete will turn into an F regardless of your academic standing. In order to satisfy this requirement, you MUST have an account in SONA, REGARDLESS of whether you participate in research or write reviews. Grading Final grades will be based on the three highest exam scores and the assignment grades There are 400 points that can be earned during this course. All exam and assignment grades will be posted on WebCT. Final grade letters will be given according to the following scale: A = 360-400 points B = 320-359 points C = 280-319 points D = 240-279 points F = < 240 Things you need to know: Cell Phones, Tardiness, etc. Please be respectful of the instructor and your fellow classmates. Silence cell phones before entering class and refrain from sending text messages during class. Please be on time and do not leave early without communicating your need to the instructor beforehand. Your thoughts and comments regarding the material are valuable and I encourage you to state them. However, do not be disruptive by interrupting or having conversations outside the scope of the class while the lecture is being conducted or another student is attempting to speak.Electronic Communication Policy I receive many e-mails throughout the semester. Please help me identify your e-mails by including “PSYC1315” in the beginning of the e-mail subject line, followed by the full subject of your e-mail. The University of Texas at Arlington has adopted the university email address as an official means of communication with students. Through the use of email, UT-Arlington is able to provide students with relevant and timely information, designed to facilitate student success. In particular, important information concerning registration, financial aid, payment of bills, and graduation may be sent to students through email. All students are assigned an email account and information about activating and using it is available at www.uta.edu/email. New students (first semester at UTA) are able to activate their email account 24 hours after registering for courses. There is no additional charge to students for using this account, and it remains active as long as a student is enrolled at UTA. Students are responsible for checking their email regularly. I will only use your UTA email account when sending you information. E-mail communication regarding class-related issues is encouraged with the following exceptions: 1) If a class
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