GENERAL COURSE INFORMATION:

• This is an introductory course for first year college students. It is conducted in English and entirely as a face-to-face course. This on-line syllabus should be regarded as an example; the "real" syllabus is passed out in class. 

COURSE OBJECTIVES
1. To learn the language of psychology.
2. To learn basic principles for understanding behavior, especially human behavior.
3. To become a critical reader of information about psychology presented on television and in newspapers and     magazines.
4. To increase self-understanding and understanding of others.
5. To gain psychological knowledge that may be applied in various occupations.
6. To understand what psychologists do and what they cannot do.
7. To learn how psychological research is conducted and how the findings may be interpreted.
8. To acquire informed skepticism about the use and meaning of various psychological tests.

REQUIRED TEXTBOOK
Baron, R.A. (1998). Psychology (4th ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Recommended: The student study guide that accompanies the text is highly recommended as a useful aid in learning and in preparing for exams.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. Exams - 250 points, distributed as follows:
- Four unit exams, each worth approximately 50 points. Exams will be mostly or entirely multiple choice, possibly with a few true-false and matching.

- Final examination, worth 50 points. The final exam will consist of questions taken from material covered after the fourth unit exam, plus questions taken from the rest of the course.

2. Chapter quizzes - 50 points
To give you an extra incentive to keep up with the reading assignments, there will be at least 10 chapter quizzes, each worth 5 points. Only the 10 highest quiz grades will be counted toward your final grade. 

There will be no make-ups for quizzes; you must be present to have the chance to earn the points.

TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE: 300

GRADING SCALE
A: 270-300 points*
B: 240-269 points*
C: 210-239 points*
D: 180-209 points*

*Grading scale may be adjusted downward, depending on student performance on exams, but it will not be raised.

ACADEMIC POLICIES
Attendance and Participation

• Regular, prompt attendance is expected, and attendance will be taken at each meeting.
• It is the student's responsibility to sign the attendance sheet.
• It is important that you arrive on time to class so that you do not disrupt the learning experience for other class members. During the first five minutes of class the classroom door will be left open for those who are unavoidably late; after that time, the door will be closed, and you should not enter.
• If you have an important reason for needing to leave class early, please notify the instructor beforehand.
• It is especially important that you be present on exam days. An acceptable excuse (e.g., illness) must be provided in order for you to be allowed to make up an exam.
• In accordance with university policies on student conduct (see the current edition of Hilltopics), it is expected that you will treat other students and the instructor with courtesy and respect. Disruption of the learning environment will result in appropriate disciplinary action.

A student with an acceptable excuse for missing an exam will be able to replace the missing exam score by taking an essay make-up exam.
Note that it is to your advantage to contact the instructor as soon as possible regarding your absence on an exam day. If you know in advance that you will be absent (and have an acceptable excuse, such as university-sanctioned travel), it may be possible for you to take the regular exam early. Generally speaking, exams will be returned at the next scheduled class period. Therefore, you should contact the instructor as soon as possible to discuss make-up exam arrangements.

Academic Honesty
The following guidelines and expectations are quoted from the 1999-2000 Hilltopics, page 5:

- "The maintenance of academic integrity is of fundamental importance to the university. Thus it should be clearly understood that acts of plagiarism or any other form of cheating will not be tolerated and that anyone committing such acts risks punishment of a serious nature."
- " Plagiarism - to represent written work taken from another source as one's own is plagiarism. Plagiarism is a serious offense. The academic work of a student must be his/her own. One must give any author credit for source material borrowed from him/her. To lift content directly from a source without giving credit is a flagrant act. To present a borrowed passage without reference to the source after having changed a few words is also plagiarism."
- "Cheating - No student shall give or receive assistance not authorized by the instructor in taking an examination or in the preparation of an essay, laboratory report, problem assignment, or other project which is submitted for purposes of grade determination."

TOPICS

Course Introduction

What Is Psychology?

Psychology: A Science...and a Perspective

Statistics

Biological Bases of Behavior

Sensation and Perception

States of Consciousness

Learning

Memory

Developmental Psychology

Motivation and Emotion

Stress and Coping

Intelligence

Personality

Psychological Disorders

Social Psychology
 

***The above schedule, requirements, and policies are subject to change due to extenuating circumstances.
 

A final message from me to you: If you hope to do well in this class, here is my advice on what it will take:
1. Read and study all assigned material; read it at least once before coming to the class in which it will be covered, and at least once after it has been covered in class. You will be tested over reading assignments whether or not the material is covered in class.
2. Attend every class unless you are absolutely physically unable to. If you miss class, you will not only miss the opportunity to take chapter quizzes, but you will also miss presentation of material that is not in the text but which you will be required to know.
3. Be an active member of the class: participate in class discussions, ask questions, share your ideas, and contribute not only to your own but also your classmates' learning.
4. Take good lecture notes. If you don't know how to do this, see me for suggestions.
5. Purchase and use the student study guide that goes with the text. 
6. Review and/or copy over your lecture notes as soon as possible after each class; fill in missing words, examples you think might fit, etc. Also, mark in some way the points that you think are important and should be emphasized when you start to study for an exam.
7. Take notes from the textbook and develop active strategies for learning and retaining information. Many students make heavy use of highlighting, but since highlighting is a relatively passive activity, it is probably a less effective study technique than note-taking. Whenever possible, try to think of an example from your own experience to illustrate the terms, concepts, and principles we cover. This often helps students to retain the material.
8. Form a study group with others from your class; this will not only make your experience in this course more enjoyable, but it will help you to get together with classmates to quiz one another.
9. Plan to average at least 15 hours per week studying for this course. Some students may need even more study time, and additional study time will be required in the days preceding an exam. Many new college students significantly underestimate the amount of study time that is needed for each course; a good rule of thumb is that you should study 2-3 hours outside of class for every one hour in class.
10. If you need help, come see me. College students sometimes perceive their professors as unapproachable, but most of us teach college because we like to. Please remember that not only have I been teaching since before most of you were born and have therefore worked with hundreds of college students, but I also am the mother of one college student and one May '99 college graduate. I know that some of you will need help in this class, and I hope you will let me give you that help. 

Created May 26, 2000.  Last modified: May 26, 2000.
All contents copyright (c) 2000 Retta E. Poe