SYLLABUS
PSYC
121H
Honors Introduction to Psychology
INSTRUCTOR
John R. Lakey, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology
206 Hyde Hall: 488-2531 or 488-2520 (Home: 858-9378)
COURSE DESCRIPTION: A
comprehensive survey of the diverse areas of psychology. Emphasis of major
influences, basic principles, and current directions. Concern
for personal growth. Traditional
lecture-discussion format with textbook, outside readings, standardized
examinations, and frequent written assignments.
HONORS COURSES: Honors courses
move more quickly, intensely, and deeply through course materials than do their
non-honors counterparts.
Faculty should expect a higher level of “discourse” from students in
honors courses. Honors courses emphasize
active learning through class participation; critical reflection;
interdisciplinary perspectives; independent, higher-order thinking; and
innovative pedagogical methods. They are
expected to be small learning communities where students learn from one another
as well as from the instructor. (UE Honors Program Student Handbook)
Provide a
solid knowledge base in psychology.
Advance “critical thinking” skills. Promote scholarship skills. Refine writing skills. Foster positive, open, and optimistic
values.
COURSE ORGANIZATION: Basic
chapter-a-week textbook format with an exam every five weeks, a formal
five-page paper on an outside reading every four weeks, and an informal
one-page paper on something thought important every week or few days. The class may vote to move any exam or paper
due date.
REQUIRED
MATERIALS:
Textbook:
Wayne
Weiten (2011). Psychology: Themes and
variations, Briefer Version (8th ed.).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson [ISBN: 978-0-495-81133-6]. Packaged with Concepts Charts.
Major-Influence
Readings:
B.F. Skinner (1948). Walden
Two.
V.S. Ramachandran (1998). Phantoms
in the brain.
Sigmund Freud (1910/1943). Five lectures on psycho-analysis [translated and edited by
James Strachey, 1977].
Viktor E. Frankl (1946/1984).
Man's search for meaning.
RECOMMENDED MATERIALS:
Hacker,
D., & Sommers,
N. (2012). A
pocket style manual (6th ed.). Boston, Bedford/St. Martin’s [ISBN
978-0-31254254-2]. Excellent
quick reference for writing and
up-to-date MLA, APA, Chicago, and CSE formatting style.
Strunk, W., Jr., &
White, E.B. (2000).
Elements
of style (4th ed.).
EXAMINATIONS:
Three (3) examinations, two
one-hour Preliminary Exams and one two-hour Final Exam. The Prelims will each have about 50
multiple-choice questions covering successive portions of the textbook. The Final will have about 100 multiple-choice
questions covering the last part of the textbook. Each Prelim is worth 100 points and the Final
is worth 200 points toward the course grade.
These exams are structured to simulate standardized examinations similar
to the GRE.
MAJOR INFLUENCE PAPERS: Four (4) papers, one on each of the
major influences in psychology (Behaviorism, Neuroscience, Psychodynamic
Theory, and Existentialism/Humanism).
Papers will be 4-6 double-spaced printed pages that provide (1) a brief
summary of the reading (show you have read it) and (2) a discussion of those
ideas that you consider important or meaningful (show you understand it). These papers will be evaluated for thoughtful
appreciation, critical thinking, and effective writing: You have full freedom for creative
interpretation and imaginative expression.
Each is worth 100 points toward the course grade (extra points awarded
for exceptional work). With exception of
the last paper, revision and resubmission may be permitted for a higher
grade. Copies of papers must be submitted to TurnItIn.com. Individual
performance for these papers is typically high—sometimes impressively so.
STUDY NOTES:
Twelve (12) weekly one-page
papers. The topics will vary but usually you will obtain information (class
lecture, news report, article, other on-line website), summarize that
information (half page) and react (half page). These papers provide a brief
opportunity (strictly limited to a single printed page) to organize your
thoughts about an important topic, current issues, or recent findings.
Topics appear on Blackboard "Assignments" one week before
the due date and remain for a week after. These papers will be evaluated
for comprehension, critical thinking, and meaningful insight--with only casual
evaluation of composition. You need only submit ten of the assigned study notes
as the lowest two grades will be dropped. Study notes are worth 10 points
each and count for 20% of the course grade. A check mark indicates a
score of 10, a check-plus a score of 11 and a check-minus a score of 9, etc.
ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
Grades will be assigned on a point-percentage system: Exams (400 for 40%), formal papers (400 for
40%), and study-notes (120 for 20%). The
weight total grading criteria are:
95% A
88% B+ 80% B-
75% C 68% D+
90% A-
85% B 78% C+
70% C- 50% D
EXTRA
CREDIT: An extra 2½% “bonus” may be
earned by three (3) units/credits of participation in the Psychology
Department’s subject pool or by completion of alternative projects arranged by
the instructor. The standard alternative
is a PsychINFO
or PsychARTICLES search (APA databases of all its
journals – see class webpage links for access) on a topic of interest and a
one-page summary of one journal article: one summary is worth one (1) unit/credit. You keep track of your credit and, if you have
earned the minimum three units/credits, then you simply claim it at the Final
Exam (honor system). This credit will
not show in Blackboard’s Gradebook and must be added
by hand when reporting the grade. This
is a substantial bonus that will raise your course grade one step, e.g., B+ to A-, and everyone is expected
to take advantage of it.
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES:
>BLACKBOARD:
This
course will use http://acebb.evansville.edu/
extensively. BLACKBOARD will link to our Class Website (http://faculty.evansville.edu/jl3/psych121h/index.htm)
that posts our current “official” syllabus and class calendar: you will refer to this “master copy” for schedule
changes, new due-dates, and course requirement modifications. Changes in
the syllabus will be alerted by email. “Study notes” will be assigned by Blackboard
“Assignments”. We will communicate with one another by email, especially
when a formal in writing record is required. You must
maintain your university email account, make sure your mailbox isn’t full, and
check it periodically. If you have problems accessing
ACELINK or maintaining your email account, please contact the OTS Help Desk (helpdesk@evansville.edu
or 488-2077) for assistance.
> AUTHORIZED AID: Acknowledge
as a footnote all aid and outside assistance you obtain in preparing
written assignments. You may freely obtain help from the Writing
Center (located in the Excel Center in front of the Library). You
may ask other students to read your paper and make verbal suggestions
for improvement, but they may not provide any written help.
Provide a footnote to the title of your paper acknowledging the aid. You
may (and should routinely) run your word-processor’s “Spelling and Grammar”
check without footnote acknowledgement.
>CITATION
SYSTEM: Failure
to correctly cite and properly reference others’ work is plagiarism. Usually,
writers use one of four citation systems: APA (social sciences), CBE
(natural sciences), Chicago (history), and MLA (humanities). Most have
been taught a variation of the MLA system in high school, but you should use
and learn the system appropriate for your college major and probable career. Updated guides for all four systems are found
in Hacker & Sommers (2012), A pocket style manual (6 ed.); links to reliable online APA format guides are also listed on our
class webpage. Please indicate which system you are using on our
major papers with a footnote. The
instructor is current with and corrects only the APA system.
> DROPPING A COURSE: A course may be
dropped without a designated grade during the first two weeks of a term of the
regular academic year. From the third through the eleventh weeks, a grade
of W is assigned. After the eleventh week, a grade of F is assigned in
this course (a higher grade requires that you actually complete the
course). Discontinuance of attendance does not automatically constitute a
withdrawal; you must formally withdraw at the Registrar’s Office.
Regardless the reason, those who can not complete seventy percent of the course
(attendance, assignments, and tests) should drop the course.
>GRADE POSTING: The
instructor's grade book is that on Blackboard and fully assessable to you at
all times. Should you detect errors or omissions, please report these to the
Instructor.
>HONOR CODE: The University
of Evansville requires your support for the following statement: "I
understand that any work I submit for course credit will imply that I have
adhered to the Academic Honor Code: I will neither give nor receive
unauthorized aid nor will I tolerate an environment which condones the use of
unauthorized aid." If you have any problems with this, you’re at
the wrong school.
>DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION: It is the policy of the
>INCOMPLETE GRADES: The grade report
of I (Incomplete Grade) will be submitted only when justified by personal
crisis or legitimate sickness; otherwise, missing scores are entered as zeroes
for computation of the course grade. If you request an Incomplete, please
provide a specific time schedule for completion of the course by email
(in writing). To be assured of the Incomplete Grade report, you
must receive the instructor's written approval (make sure you keep a
copy for future reference). Incomplete grades carry no academic credit
and affect your GPA as an F until removed.
They are best avoided. Note that
all Incomplete grades are reported with a suspense
date: if no grade has been submitted by
that date, then the grade is automatically changed to F. Your instructor usually enters the final
examination date with the following year.
Thereafter you must formally repeat the course to remove the F (UE
allows you to repeat any course once for a higher grade).
>PAPERS:
Major papers and revisions must be submitted to the Instructor and a file
copy must be submitted to TurnItIn.com. Papers are assumed
“missing” and zeroes until submitted and reviewed by TurnItIn.com. Course grades are incomplete, and reported as
Incomplete, until all four papers
have been uploaded to TurnItIn.com. Information to establish your
TurnItIn.com account is available on Blackboard’s “Course Information.”
>PLAGIARISM: Plagiarism
in this course is usually a citation error without intent to deceive. Any copied word phrases
in your paper must be in quotation marks (or if long, 25
or more words, then offset, or double indented, without quotation marks) with citation of the specific source (author, publication and page
or website name and paragraph number). Any
paraphrased ideas in your paper should be attributed to their author
(at least by name, usually but not always citing the publication
or website). Plagiarism occurs when you do not adhere to either
of these two basic rules. Then, you are presenting someone else’s work as your own, and it always violates our Academic Honor Code. [Yes, you can plagiarize
yourself.]
>QUOTATION
LIMITATION: In this
course, quoted material may not exceed
five percent (5%) of the word count of any paper. Papers that exceed this percentage are not
accepted.
>REVISIONS:
With
the exception of the fourth and last paper where no revision is permitted,
most papers will be returned with notation that you may re-write and re-submit a
revised copy for a specified higher grade. If you wish to take advantage
of this option, you must consider the revisions indicated, make those you deem
appropriate, prepare a revised version, submit this new file to
Revisions at TurnItIn.com, and submit a printed copy to the Instructor with
the original paper stapled to it.
>LATE PAPERS AND STUDY NOTES: Late papers are
determined by TurnItIn.com submission date and
penalized one grade step (A to A-, B+ to B, etc.) for each week past due, but
no more than three grade steps maximum. Missing papers are scored as
zeros. The short “study notes” must be
submitted at the specified class; if late, they are penalized one point. Note that a few missing notes will not affect
your course grade if you submit 10 of the notes. If you have less ,
the necessary scores to total 10 are zeros.
>MAKE-UP EXAMS: Students will regularly sit for
scheduled exams. Should you miss an exam without that absence being excused by
the Instructor, the score is zero. If excused, you will be
allowed to take a substitute exam to replace the zero. Usually this
“makeup” will be administered by the Department Assistant, Mrs. Miller, and you
must schedule it at her convenience (call 488-2520 to make
arrangements).
>OBLIGATIONS:
(1) Attend class. Come
mentally prepared, focused and ready. Have a commitment to engage the
material at hand. Be interested in the material and what others have to
say.
(2) Take responsibility for your
own learning. Be organized and have a sense of time
management. Put in the necessary effort. Be accountable to and for
yourself. Appreciate growth.
(3) Have and share positive
attitudes. Be optimistic. Be open and confident. Acknowledge
and embrace risk. Have a willingness to accept and incorporate
constructive criticism. Love learning.
>OFFICE HOURS:
Walk-In Hours will be posted on the Instructor’s door and his Faculty
Website (http://faculty.evansville.edu/jl3/).
I am also available at other times, and you need not make formal
appointments. Graded major papers
must be picked up during these hours (allow 10 minutes for comments and
discussion) – major papers will not be returned in class – I want to tell you
directly what I think are the strengths and weaknesses of your work and how it
can be improved. If uncomfortable
with direct praise and criticism, you’re in the wrong course.
SELECTED RESOURCES AND
HYPERLINKS:
Go to our class website at http://faculty.evansville.edu/jl3/psych121h/index.htm.