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Class Hours: 6:30 - 9:30 pm Monday

Room: HH G10

Text: Myers, D. G. (2003). Exploring Psychology: Fifth Edition in Modules. New York, N.Y.: Worth Publishers.

Goals: This course is designed to meet Goals # 9 - Social and Behavioral Sciences - Students will gain an understanding of mental processes and behavior, including the underlying principles, the methods and models commonly used to study them, and the theories proposed as explanations.

Class Format: This course will be primarily lecture, along with individual and small group projects. Students are expected to attend all class meetings and have readings and assignments completed before class to allow for discussion of topics, meaningful demonstrations, and activities.

Grading: Grades will be based on class attendance, completion of in- and out-of-class assignments/quizzes, preparation of newsletter materials, and exams. The person receiving the highest number of points will set the curve for the class. From that point, the following percentages will be used to compute letter grades: 100-97% = A; 96-93 = A-; 92-90 = B+; 89-87 = B; 86-83 = B-; 82-80; C+; 79-77 = C; 76-73 = C-; 72-70 = D+; 69-67 = D; 66-64 = D-; <63 = F.

Attendance: Class attendance is required. Not all material covered in class is presented in the text. It is the student's responsibility to get notes and information from a classmate when a class is missed. Missing a class is not an excuse for turning in an assignment late or making-up an exam.
    Attendance will be taken at the start of each class. Anyone not in the classroom by 6:45 will be noted as late\absent for the day. Anyone leaving before the end of a class period will also be counted as absent. Students with perfect attendance - that is, no more than one absence/late arrival/early departure - will receive 25 points. Fifteen (15) points will be awarded to students with 2 or fewer misses. Ten points (10) will deducted for each class missed after 2. Anyone missing more than 5 classes will automatically receive a E for the course. No exceptions will be made to the attendance policies. Total = 25 points.

Lecture Summaries: Each week students will write and submit a brief summary of the previous week’s lecture information. Specifically, each student is to summarize the main points covered in class and tie at least one aspect to a current personal experience (e.g., noting of a developmental norm in a family member). Summaries must be typed, double-spaced, and in paragraph form. There is a one page length limit. Be concise! Late summaries will not be accepted. Each summary will be worth 25 points each (x 12 topic classes) for a total of 300 points.
    For 20 points, students may opt to complete these summaries based on text information when absences occur. Refer to the syllabus for the day’s topic. Pages from which information is summarized must be included. Similarly, absent students may submit summaries by e-mail prior to 7:00 pm of the topic due date for 15 points. Students’ full names must be included in e-mail submissions.

• 25 points = Typed paragraphs summarizing the main issues, terms, theories & theorists/researchers covered in lecture. Inclusion of at least one personal experience fitting the topic areas.  Appropriate grammar (full sentences), punctuation, and spelling are used. Length is no more than 3/4 of an 8" X 10" page, with minimum print size of 12 & double spacing. Student’s name is clearly identified & the lecture topic/date.  Point deductions are specified in the syllabus.

Exams: There will be 3 exams. The format will be one-hour 50-60 item multiple choice questions, with the possible addition of short-answer essays. The exams will not be comprehensive. Each exam is worth 100 points, for a total of 300.

Bonus: Students from the Experimental Psychology course may invited students to participate in their studies for extra credit. Up to 20 points (5 points per experiment receipt) may be earned in this manner. However, the following criteria for bonus credit must be met:

• Bonus credit will only be given to students providing the instructor with signed and dated participation receipts.
• Bonus credit will only be given for participant in experiments conducted by FSC students during the Spring of 2003.
• Only students who have missed 4 or fewer classes will be eligible for bonus credit.
• Bonus points will not affect the course curve. They will be added to students’ cumulative points after the curve is set. There is no penalty for nonparticipation in student research.
• For students not interested in participating in student research, some on campus lectures may be available during the semester. Announcements will be made. With 48 hours of attending such lectures, a typed, one page summary of main points or issues is to be submitted.