Class Syllabus - General Psychology

Professor: Alexander Marvin

“A life-oriented course in psychology designed to give students a factual foundation in the techniques and vocabulary of psychology and a general understanding of human behavior. Surveys research and applications of psychology in areas of learning, intelligence, motivation, emotion, personality, behavior disorders, mental health, and therapy.”

Course Description (from the Valencia Community College catalog)  

I welcome you to this class. I think you will find this introduction to psychology to be a challenging course, but also a thought-provoking and enlightening one. We are all students of human nature, and in this sense we are all psychologists. But psychology is also a science because it aims to explain the greatest numbers of facts with the fewest number of assumptions, its hypotheses are supposed to be falsifiable by empirical tests, and its theories are lawfully connected to other sciences, particularly biology. At the same time psychology is also intimately connected to the social sciences, because social phenomena arise when individual people perceive and react to one another. And it is connected to the arts and humanities, because works of art and scholarship are products of the human mind.

My hope is that you will approach this wondrously diverse field with a spirit of discovery and open-mindedness, and my goal is to see each of you succeed in this class to the best of your ability.

Required Text: Saul Kassin, Psychology (4^th Ed)  

Other Required Materials: an Atlas account and access to the internet; Valencia ID.

 Familiarity with the internet and email, and regular access to them, are a basic requirement of this course. You will be required to regularly check your Atlas email account, to participate in online discussions on WebCT, and to visit various websites relevant to psychology. It is helpful but not necessary to have an internet-enabled computer at home or at work; if you don’t, you will have to use one of the many computers available to students in the LRC and at other computer labs on campus. However, unless you are capable and willing to spend time online, I advise you to take this class with another professor.

Communications

Office: 2–114

Office Phone: (407) 582-2096

E-mail: amarvin@atlas.valenciacc.edu

Office Hours (rm. 2-114):

Mondays and Wednesdays: 1:10 - 2:25 / 3:45 - 4:45

Tuesdays and Thursdays: 8:55 - 9:55 / 12:45-1:15 / 3:45 - 4:45

Fridays: 10:50 - 11:20  

I encourage you to contact me whenever you encounter any problems in this class, or simply to discuss matters of interest. I have listed my formal office hours above, but I am on campus at other times as well and I can arrange to meet with you by appointment. You can reach me any time by email, and I generally reply within hours.  

Websites

www.faculty.valenciacc.edu/amarvin

I maintain this website specifically for my classes, and all materials passed out in class are posted here. Therefore, if you misplace a handout, or you were absent and never got it to begin with, don’t come to me for a copy. Instead, download it from this website.  

http://webct6.valenciacc.edu/

This is the address for the log-in page to WebCT; to log in, you type in the same user name and password you use to enter Atlas. Many of your required assignments, such as practice quizzes and online discussions, will require access to WebCT. In addition, you will be able to access your grades here.  

http://wps.prenhall.com/hss_kassin_psychology_4

This is the companion website for the required Kassin textbook. Here you will find extensive review materials specifically developed for use with our textbook, some of which will be required for assignments.

Grading  

From a student’s point of view, probably the most important aspect of a syllabus is its explanation of how grades are calculated. Please familiarize yourself with these criteria; you should be fully capable of calculating your own grade at any point throughout the term.  

A) Unit Tests (60% of the final grade):

Five tests, based on material presented in class as well from the text, will be administered at regular intervals throughout the term. Each of these unit exams will be objectively scored (i.e., multiple-choice, matching, true-false, or short-answer questions), and non-cumulative (i.e., each test covers only the material covered in that particular unit). I will provide a study guide to help in preparation before each test, but students are responsible for all assigned readings.  

The lowest score of the first four tests will be dropped from the calculation of the final grade. The fifth test, which will be administered during finals week, is required for all students. However, it is not a cumulative final exam, and it is given the same weight and covers roughly the same amount of material as the other four tests.  

Make-up tests will be offered only in exceptional circumstances (e.g., an illness verified by a doctor). Ordinarily a missed test will be counted as the student’s drop grade. If I accept your documented excuse for a missed test, the make-up must be completed at the make-up test center within one week.  

B) Assignments and Online Activities (20% of the final grade):

A series of brief assignments will be assigned throughout the term. The first of these be an essay articulating your values and goals in life; others will involve participating in online discussions and visiting and reporting on various websites. You will also be required to demonstrate 90% mastery on practice tests for each unit. Assignments and activities that are completed on time and in a satisfactory manner will receive full credit, or 100%; if you submit unsatisfactory work you will be asked for revisions. Late assignments, as well as assignments that are returned for revision, will receive reduced credit.  

C) Attendance, Preparedness, and Participation (20% of the final grade)

Attendance is required in all classes at VCC in any case, but in this class it also contributes 10% to your final grade. It is easy to calculate your attendance grade; it is simply the percentage of classes at which you are present and on time. I recognize that sometimes absences are unavoidable, but if you do the math you will see that missing an occasional class will have a negligible effect on your final grade (though of course you might be missing important material). For that reason excuses are really not worth the trouble, and under normal circumstances I won’t accept them. Note that I consider punctuality a component of attendance, so keep in mind that roll is taken at the beginning of class. You are expected to make every effort to be on time, but in the (rare!) event that you are late, remember to speak to me after class so that you receive credit.   

You are expected to keep up with the assigned reading (“preparedness”) and actively engage in classroom activities (“active engagement”); together these two factors combine for 10% of your overall grade. Since I have found that my assessment of student preparedness and engagement tends to be subjective and prone to error, I rely on your own weekly self-evaluation for this component of your grade. This is an honor system – but you can expect me to let you know when I see discrepancies between what you report and my own observations!  

Keep in mind that while “active engagement” means participation in classroom discussions and group work, it also refers to what goes on inside your head as you sit quietly in the classroom. To what extent are you alert and attentive, and actively processing the information under discussion? You can‘t just sit and let the words waft over you and expect to recall very much. Effective retrieval of information depends entirely on how adequately it is encoded in the first place, and that means the more connections and associations that you attach to the information as you are hearing it, the better.  

Calculating Grades

At the end of the term, letter grades will be assigned on the following basis (note that numerical grades are rounded up or down to the nearest whole number):

             90-100  = A

            80-89    = B

            70-79    = C

60-69    = D

<60      = F

 You should never be in any doubt about your overall grade; it’s very easy to calculate. As an example, consider a student who has earned the following grades: Tests = 69, 77, 54, 79, and 81; Assignments = 100, 90, 60, 100, 90, 100, and 100; Attendance = 25 days present out of 30 class sessions; and Preparedness and Participation weekly average = 90.  

Tests: (69+77+79+81)/4 = 76.5 X 60% = 45.9 (lowest score dropped)

Assignments: (100+90+60+100+90+100+100+75+85+100)/10 = 90 X 20% = 18

Attendance: 25/30 = 83 X 10% = 8.3

Preparation & Preparedness: 90 X 10% = 9

Overall Grade = 45.9 + 18 + 8.3 + 9 = 81.2 = B

 Extra-Credit

As a matter of policy, extra-credit assignments are not offered. The way to succeed in this class is to keep up with the material day-by-day and week-by-week; don’t expect to bail yourself out at the last minute.

 Studying

Good performance in a survey course such as this one requires a heavy investment in time spent studying, and for top students that generally means two-to-three times the hours actually spent in class. This is a revelation to most students, and yet it is true. How you study is equally important. Don’t read a textbook the way you would read a book for entertainment. Remember that the key to a good memory is active processing of the information; to understand and remember the material it is imperative to make a conscious effort to engage the material by questioning the content, making connections, and drawing implications.  

Withdrawal Deadline: November 11

Why is this date important? Answer: withdrawals on or before this date automatically result in a grade of “W” on your transcript, which does not affect your academic record one way or the other. After this date, a withdrawal will result in either a “withdraw pass” (WP) or a “withdraw fail” (WF), depending on your grade in the class at the time. Every term I see a number of students who, for whatever reasons, simply stop coming to class early in the term. Unless they take the simple step of filling out a withdrawal form prior to the deadline, they will always wind up with a permanent WF on their records (which for practical purposes is no different than an F). Don’t let that happen to you; if things get out of hand in the first half of the term, you need to take the initiative in withdrawing yourself from the class before it’s too late. Also, please remember that you can only receive a WP before the week of final exams (i.e., you must withdraw no later than 12/11).  

Final Exam Dates

Please note the exam date for your specific class; all students are required to attend the final exam, without exceptions.

M/W 2:30 – 3:45 : exam is Wednesday 12/14 at 1:00

T/R  10:00 – 11:15 : exam is Tuesday 12/13 at 10:00

T/R   11:30 – 12:45 : exam is Thursday 12/15 at 10:00

T/R    4:00 – 5:15 :   exam is Tuesday 12/13 at 5:00

F       8:00 – 10:45 : exam is Friday 12/16 at 8:00

Cheating

I will not tolerate any cheating on tests or plagiarizing on assignments. If I suspect cheating or plagiarism, I may initiate formal proceedings as outlined in the VCC catalog; the result could range from an F in the course to expulsion from the school.

Additional Policies and Procedures

(as found in the VCC catalog)

Valencia Student Core Competencies

Valencia faculty have defined four interrelated

competencies (Think, Value, Communicate, Act) that

prepare students to succeed in the world community.

These competencies are outlined in the College Catalog.

In this course, through classroom lecture and discussion,

group work, and other learning activities, you will further

your mastery of those core competencies. Additional

information is available in the College Catalog

(hftp://valenciacc.edu/catalog/04-05/default.htm on page

14).

CLAST Competencies

The College-Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST)

measures the following: reading skills, essay skill, English

language skills, and mathematics skills. To the extent

possible, you will be encouraged to develop these skills as

part of you work in this course. Additional information is

available in the College Catalog (hftp://valenciacc.edu/catalog/04-05/default.htm on pages 81-82 .)

Academic Dishonesty

All forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited at

Valencia . Academic dishonesty included, but is not limited

to, plagiarism, cheating, furnishing false information,

forgery, alteration or misuse of documents, misconduct

during a testing situation, and misuse of identification with

intent to defraud or deceive. Sanctions available to the

professor should a violation occur are described in the

Valencia Student Handbook or online.

Student Conduct

Valencia is dedicated not only to the advancement of

knowledge and learning, but is concerned with the

development of responsible personal and social conduct.

By enrolling at Valencia , a student assumes the

responsibility for becoming familiar with and abiding by the

general rules of conduct. The primary responsibility for

managing the classroom environment rests with the

professor. Students who engage in any prohibited or

unlawful acts that result in disruption of a class may be

directed by the professor to leave the class. Violation of

any Valencia policies/procedures or classroom rules may

lead to disciplinary action up to and including expulsion

from the College. Disciplinary action could include being

withdrawn from the class, disciplinary warning, probation,

suspension, expulsion, or other appropriate and authorized

actions. Valencia 's Student Code of Classroom

Conduct (Policy 10-18) can be found in the current

Student handbook, or online at hftp://Valencia.cc.fl.us/policies/PDF/10-18.pdf.

Additional information is available in the College Catalog

(hftp://valenciacc.edu/catalog/04-05/default.htm on page

      68 – 69).

Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities who qualify for academic

accommodations must provide a notification from the

Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) and discuss

specific needs with the instructor, preferably during the first

two weeks of class. The Office for Students with

Disabilities determines accommodations based on

appropriate documentation of disabilities. The East

     Campus Office is located in Building 5, Room 216.

General Psychology

Professor Alexander Marvin

Provisional Schedule of Readings and Exams

Monday and Wednesday Classes

Important: The key word here is “provisional”; the schedule is subject to revision, and probably will be revised in the course of the class. I will give you at least a week’s notice of any changes in exam dates (and any changes will be updated on the website), but you are responsible for keeping abreast of these changes. 

Unit One: Overview; Research Methods; Statistics

Pages 1-29 and 746-752

8/29, 8/31,  (9/5 – Holiday ), 9/7, 9/12

Exam 1: 9/14

Unit Two: Behavioral Neuroscience; Sleep and Dreaming; Emotion; Evolutionary Psychology

Pages 42-78; 140-156; 124-131; 466-495; 308-314

9/19, 9/21, 9/26, 9/28, 10/3

Exam 2: 10/5

Unit Three: Learning; Memory; Thought and Language

Pages 177-208; 213-256; 259-297

10/10, 10/12, 10/17, 10/19, 10/24

Exam 3: 10/26

Unit Four: Intelligence; Personality; Cognitive Development; Behavioral Genetics

Pages 391-428; 352-358; 579-617; 314-322

10/31, 11/2, 11/7, 11/9, 11/14

Exam 4: 11/16

Unit Five: Psychological Disorders, Treatment, and Social Psychology

Pages 621-664, 669-707, 499-544, and 562-575

11/21, (11/23 – Holiday ), 11/28, 11/30, 12/5, 12/7

Exam 5: 12/14 at 1:00

General Psychology

Professor Alexander Marvin

Provisional Schedule of Readings and Exams

Tuesday and Thursday Classes

Important: The key word here is “provisional”; the schedule is subject to revision, and probably will be revised in the course of the class. I will give you at least a week’s notice of any changes in exam dates (and any changes will be updated on the website), but you are responsible for keeping abreast of these changes. 

Unit One: Overview; Research Methods;  Statistics

Pages 1-29 and 746-752

8/30, 9/1, 9/6, 9/8

Exam 1: 9/13

Unit Two: Behavioral Neuroscience; Sleep and Dreaming; Emotion; Evolutionary Psychology

Pages 42-78; 140-156; 124-131; 466-495; 308-314

9/15, 9/20, 9/22, (9/27 – Holiday ), 9/29, 10/4

Exam 2: 10/6

Unit Three: Learning; Memory; Thought and Language

Pages 177-208; 213-256; 259-297

10/11, 10/13, 10/18, 10/20, 10/25

Exam 3: 10/27

Unit Four: Intelligence; Personality; Cognitive Development; Behavioral Genetics

Pages 391-428; 352-358; 579-617; 314-322

11/1, 11/3, 11/8, 11/10, 11/15

Exam 4: 11/17

Unit Five: Psychological Disorders, Treatment, and Social Psychology

Pages 621-664, 669-707, 499-544, and 562-575

11/22, (11/24 – Holiday ), 11/29, 12/1, 12/6, 12/8

Exam 5

Special Final Exam Dates:

Section E014 ( 10:00 ) - 12/13 at 10:00

Section E009 ( 4:00 )   - 12/13 at 5:00

Section E022 ( 8:00 )   - 12/16 at 8:00