Introduction to Psychology – Summer 2009 Psyc 1315.001 Life Sciences Building: Room 102 Mon., Tues., Weds., Thurs.: 8:00-10:00 Instructor: Colleen Thompson Office: 505, Life Sciences Building Office Hours: Tuesday and Wednesday, 10:00 – 10:30, or by appointment Mailbox: Psychology Department, UTA Box 19528 E-mail: [email protected] Course Website: http://www.uta.edu/webct/ Required Textbook: “The Science of Psychology" by Laura A. King, 1st edition McGraw Hill (study guide optional, but recommended). The text is also available as an eBook at http://www.coursesmart.com or http://textbooks.vitalsource.com. Additional Course Materials: Additional course materials (readings, exercises, etc.) will be passed out throughout the semester and/or placed on WebCt. Course Description: The course is designed to explore the fundamental methods and content of scientific psychology, with a concentration on the understanding of basic principles. It is a broad survey course, covering a wide range of topics, and it is therefore suited to meet the needs and interests of majors and non-majors. Course Learning Goals and Objectives: It is the goal of this course to provide a basic understanding of psychology concepts, facts, and theories. Therefore, at the end of the course students should be generally familiar with psychological terminology, concepts, people, theories, facts, and well-known experiments from a variety of disciplines in psychology and be able to apply the material (when relevant) to everyday life. Attendance Policy: Attendance is not formally required, however it is highly recommended. Students who attend every class will receive an extra 3 points on their FINAL grade. Students who only miss one class will receive an extra 2 points, and students who only miss two classes will receive 1 point. Several exam questions will come from material discussed in class, which can only be learned by attending! Grading Format: The final grade will be based off of a total of 280 points. The grading distribution (see below) is set, therefore borderline grades will remain borderline, i.e. if thestudent has 251 points they will receive a B, I will not round up for them to receive an A. Students can receive extra points only through their class attendance, no extra credit opportunities will be given. Exam 1 70 points Exam 2 70 points Exam 3 70 points Final Exam 70 points 280 Possible Points Letter Grade Points Required A 252-280 B 224-251 C 196-223 D 168-195 F 167 and below Description of Course Requirements: Exams: There are 4 non-comprehensive required exams for this course. Exam questions will be derived from the lectures, assigned readings, textbook chapters, and any other material presented in class including audio/visual media, exercises/handouts, guest speaker presentations, class discussions, etc. Questions on the exams will consist of a combination of multiple choice, true/false, matching, fill in the blank, and short answer. Exams will start at 8:30 a.m. Late students will NOT be allowed to take the exam after the first exam has been turned in. Please review the missed exam policy stated below. Research Participation Requirement: The Psychology Department requires that all students taking Introduction to Psychology complete a 6-credit research requirement. The main way in which you will be able to complete this requirement will be by participating in experiments conducted by department faculty and their research assistants. In lieu of participating in experiments, you may choose to write reviews of approved research articles. Completing this assignment will be done via Sona (http://uta.sona-systems.com/). A departmental handout detailing this requirement (and important deadlines) can be found at www.uta.edu/psychology, under links. Any questions pertaining to this assignment that are not covered in the handout can be sent to [email protected]. Points are not added to the course grade for completion of the research participation requirement. 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 if you participate in research or write reviews. Daily Assigned Readings and Discussion: Daily readings will be assigned. Readings will generally consist of 1 – 4 pages of one or two news stories or articles that are related to thatday’s subject. Please read them before coming to class. These readings will be discussed in class as a group. This is designed to help engage students in the topic and to provide them with real world application of psychological principles. Some exam questions will come from the articles and/or class discussion. Other Relevant Information: Missed Exam Policy: Makeup exam requests will be approved only when appropriate documentation is provided indicating that compelling circumstances prevented a student from taking a scheduled exam. Examples of such circumstances include funeral attendance, religious holidays, and illness. No information should be provided in a makeup exam request that is private or confidential in nature. A note from a friend or family member is not acceptable documentation. A request for a makeup exam must be made in writing, and must be supplied prior to the next exam. Make-up exams will be held at a time convenient to the instructor. Make-up exams will be a different exam from the in-class exam, and may include essay questions instead of, or in addition to the types of questions listed above. Americans With Disabilities Act The University of Texas at Arlington is on record as being committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public Law 93112 -- The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of new federal legislation entitled Americans With Disabilities Act - (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of The Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same opportunities enjoyed by all citizens. As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide "reasonable accommodation" to students with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility primarily rests with informing faculty at the beginning of the semester and in
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