Developmental Psychology 2004

The Online Sections

Social Science Department, Seminole State College
Professor K. G. Noone
Classroom L-015 Library Building
Office L-016B Library Building
Phone 407-328-2086
Fax 407-328-2419

Course Description:
[DEP-2004, Developmental Psychology (3 credit-3 hours); Prerequisite/co-requisite: PSY 2012 and ENC 1101 - General Psychology and English or permission of the instructor of the department chair.] The study of the effects of biological, psychological, maturational, and social factors on human behavior at various stages of development. This course partially satisfies requirements of S.B.E. 6A-10.30.

List of Basic Units:
Death
Introduction and brief review of General Psychology
Attachment
Methodology
Childhood
The structure of the professional literature
Adolescence
Writing for research purposes
Adulthood
Genetics
Intelligence
cognition
Prenatal, birth, Infancy
Writing for clinical purposes & testing

Office hours Monday and Wednesday 9:00am to 2:00pm
Please call 407-328-2086 for an appointment.

Course Objectives:
The purpose of the present course is to provide the student with a superficial view of how humans change across time. The course has two themes: firstly, to present to the student the academic and professional structure of psychology including the nature of research and clinical writing; secondly, to provide to the student how biological health and proper nurturance can combine to maximize psychological health across the lifespan.

Grading Scale:

93-100=A

82-92=B

70-81=C

60-69=D

Required reading:
The current text available in the bookstore is The Developing Person Through The Lifespan by Berger, 6^th edition.

Course Rationale:
This course should benefit education, nursing psychology and social science majors for their degree requirements as well as being necessary for their professional knowledge. It should also benefit any other student as it provides one with knowledge as to how the self develops. A quantum theoretical (non-Cartesian) and cross-cultural approach to the subject is defined and explored.

Course Management Guide:
1. MAKE UPS No make-ups are allowed unless there are serious mitigating circumstances that can be documented. Makeups provide a burden on the instructor and an unfair advantage to the person making up the exam in that they have more time to study than students who take exams at regularly scheduled times. If there is a serious circumstance that can be documented such as hospitalization or death of a family member, this policy will be reviewed at the professor’s discretion.

2. COMPUTERS At times a computer can stop functioning during test taking. For the distance learning classes, the student must acknowledge that any problems they have that are the consequence of difficulties with their server or their computer or their knowledge of computers cannot be excused. However, if the problem is the result of the college server, website or any college maintained computer, we will make appropriate amends for the student. If there is a problem with the College server or if there is a problem with a computer that student is using on the college premises while taking a test, we will re-set the test. However, if the problem is with the student’s server or the student’s computer, we cannot document this and we will not re-set the test. THAT IS WHY WE OFFER EXTRA CREDIT.

3. CHEATING When Cheating or plagiarism has occurred, the instructor may take academic action ranging from denial of credit for or assigning a grade of "F" on a specific assignment, examination, or project, to assigning a grade of "F" for the course. The student may also be subject to further sanctions such as disciplinary probation, suspension or dismissal from the college. This is a very serious aspect of course management. STUDENTS NEED TO UNDERSTAND THAT NOT HAVING EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL CITATIONS ON ALL WRITTEN WORK LEAVES THE WORK VULNERABLE TO CHARGES OF PLAGIARISM. This means that in writing a research paper the student must credit where they learned the material used. They must cite this within the paper. Further, if appropriate, a bibliography must be provided. If this is not done, the paper will receive no higher than 10 pts out of 100. Remember that using the web is the same as going to the library. There are bad sources and good sources. All must be evaluated and credited. Further, this instructor will use a program to identify and compare papers with familiar sources. Plagiarism is a growing problem and this instructor will give a student an "F" in the class if plagiarism is discovered. Failure to cite sources, internally or externally, makes any writing vulnerable to charges of plagiarism and, as such, constitutes cheating. In all cases of cheating, the maximum penalty will be asked for. Certainly, turning in tests or writings that are the work of someone other than the student is cheating.

4. ATTENDANCE/WEB PARTICIPATION While participation on the web and attendance at the orientation is at the discretion of the student, it is the instructor’s observation that the fewer times one visits the web, the lower the grade earned. The scholarship, grant, or Veteran's Administration students are given today requiring attendance records. Some scholarships and awards must be repaid if the student fails to visit the web or turn in assignments. Students are now required to attend, as administration requires records of their attendance.  In distance learning courses, student participation is constantly monitored. A mandatory minimum of ten postings of substance must be made during the course of the semester. For the ten posting, a minimum of two a month must be made. A maximum of ten points can be made for each posting. Please realize that not all postings well receive 10 points.

5. INCOMPLETES The policy on Incompletes has changed. No one can receive an Incomplete without a specific contract and reason.

6. PRIMARY SOURCES For this course, the student must educate themselves as to the difference between a peer-reviewed piece of research from a professional journal (refereed research) and information from a trade magazine. Research for the annotated bibliography that has magazines or most other secondary sources will not be graded and a zero will be entered for the grade. Magazines and books are secondary sources.

7. CITATION STYLE Only APA citation style is acceptable in this course. Do not use MLA. If you have doubts, consult an English Handbook or the American Psychological Association web site.

8. ASKING FOR EXCEPTIONS While it is the policy of this instructor to make the student feel welcome so to maximize learning, students must be aware that there can be no flexibility in terms of what is required of the student in terms of quality of work, fulfillment of the terms of the syllabus, etc. The rules of the syllabus are applied to all students and there can be no exceptions.

9. WITHDRAWALS The policy on withdrawals has changed and the dates of withdrawal must be adhered to. Please check the college website. If one has not finished the work at the proper time, a withdrawal or incomplete will not be given. All withdrawals are the responsibility of the student only and must be handled by the student. This professor will only enter withdrawals in the final grade forms that have been processed by the records department in their official capacity through regular records procedures. DO NOT ASK THE PROFESSOR FOR A WITHDRAWAL. You must handle the process your self. This means the student must initiate any and all withdrawals before the official date of withdrawal. If a student does not file for withdrawal, they must realize that the possibility of the grade of “F’ exists. LAST DAY TO WITHDRAW IS OCTOBER 28.

10. TURNING IN WRITTEN ASSIGNMENTS AND WRITTEN WORK. All papers emailed to the instructor (via ANGEL EMAIL) must be in Microsoft Word and sent as an attachment. If you do not have Microsoft Word at home, go to either the Seminole State library or any public library and convert your file to Microsoft Word. This is necessary because of the volume of students and the manner in which the papers are graded. Papers emailed to the instructor in other formats will be deemed unacceptable and returned ungraded to the student. Late papers will automatically have one letter grade deducted. Put your name and the assignment in the subject area.

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11. LATE PAPERS Regardless of the reason, will automatically receive a 20% reduction in grading. This means that for a paper that could receive 100%, that the highest possible score for a perfect paper would be 80%. If an attachment cannot be opened and is not resent and opened by the due date; it will be counted late.

12. INCOMPLETES This professor does not encourage the grade of incomplete. This grade will only be given under extraordinary circumstances and in written contract with the student prior to the end of the course.

13. GORDON RULE All Social Science classes are under the Gordon Rule and require a minimum of three thousand written words. This means that the student must complete every writing assignment of this class in order to pass the class. This means that a student could conceivably perform perfectly on all tests, fail to write and still receive a grade of “F”.

14. RESPECT The professor – student relationship is to be respected. This means that a respectful tone of voice and respectful diction must be maintained in any communication. Further, the student is advised that if there are any problems, that the proper chain of communication should be respected. First, make your problem known to the professor. The professor will cordially refer the student to the chair if the student is not satisfied. Students are to be assured that this professor is interested in the success of students and encourages inquiries. Any respectfully submitted difficulty or perceived slight will be cordially and enthusiastically dealt with.Students are required to treat their classmates professionally as well.

15. GRADING QUESTIONS This professor thoroughly reads all writing assignments. If the student has a question about the grade received, they are encouraged to ask about it. If the distant learning student has a problem with a particular test question, they must mail in their inquiry, as all electronic tests are different for each student. The test item in question will be investigated and the student will cordially receive proper credit if warranted.

16. EXTRA CREDIT will not be calculated as part of the student’s final grade unless the student completed all the assigned course requirements.

17. QUESTIONS The Distant Learning student is expected to have read all the instructions, emails and discussion items that are posted on the class website.

18. END OF THE CLASS The class Website will be closed down when the testing is finished.

19. ASKING QUESTIONS This is a DISTANT learning class. Most questions have been answered within the syllabus, under some icon on the web site, or in a posting. The student must read all of these before asking a question. There are more than likely over 100 DL students in any given semester. The professor is human and as such would not have enough time to individually type out explanations for each student personally. While the professor is committed to the success of each student, the student must be responsible for the information made available on the web. Certainly if after having read the material and there are still questions, one is encouraged to ask questions. A good process is to post the question to the entire class. Personal questions can be sent privately to the professor via private email.

20. TESTS Absolutely no test grade will be accepted after the date posted on the course requirements portion of the syllabus. Tests must be completed by the date and time stated. This is an important part of the class responsibilities. DO NOT ASK FOR AN EXCEPTION!!! Exams must be finished by the published time. You will be given grades on each of the tests. Once the student has finished the required amount of tests, those are the tests that are accepted for grading. There is no, “drop the lowest score” policy. There is no gain for taking extra tests.