GENERAL PSYCHOLOGY SYLLABUS

Course Information

Course Title, Number, and Credit Hours

General Psychology

PSYC 1030

3 credit hours

Course Description

This is an introduction to the methods, finding, and terminology in psychology.

Emphasis will be placed on the following areas: conditioning and learning, memory,

cognition, language, creativity, intelligence, personality, health, stress, coping,

psychological disorders, therapies, and applied psychology.

Learning Outcomes

This course will promote independent and critical thinking through reading, writing,

research, exams, projects, and class discussion. Students of this class will also be able

to:

Learn that the discipline of Psychology aspires to derive laws of human

behavior based in science and will understand the basic research strategies

employed by psychologists to achieve this goal.

Understand the two models of learning, Classical and Operant Conditioning,

and will be able to provide examples of how they shape human behavior.

Students will learn about the current trends in psychology including research

topics ranging from positive psychology, cognitive psychology, biopsychology,

evolutionary psychology as well as traditional areas of investigation such as

research on memory, intelligence, and motivation and emotion.

Learn how psychologists approach the concept of personality and will be able

to identify differences across the four basic theories.

Identify the major categories of psychological disorders described in the current

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and the psychological

and medical treatment approaches used to treat these disorders.

Prerequisites and Co-requisites: None

Course Topics

Introduction

Psychology, Critical Thinking, and Science (Chapter 1)

Brain and Behavior (Chapter 2)

Conditioning and Learning (Chapter 6)

Memory (Chapter 7)

Intelligence (Chapter 9)

Motivation and Emotion (Chapter 10)

Personality (Chapter 12)

Health, Stress, and Coping (Chapter 13)

Psychological Disorders (Chapter 14)

Therapies (Chapter 15)

Instructor Expectations

Students will explore the realm of general psychology through textbook and outside

readings, written assignments, discussion threads, and module exams.

Students are expected to follow the course requirements thoroughly using

the Calendar and Contents as your timeline tools.

The Contents link will lead you through the specific homework assignments, textbook

aided study tools, PowerPoint presentations, study guides, etc.

We will utilize the eLearn medium as our main form of communication. Each student

has a preassigned email address, as do I.

I will attempt to respond to all email (send through eLearn) within a 48-hour

timeframe or sooner during the workweek (Monday through Friday).

Student Requirements

Students must remain up to date with the calendar. This calendar has been formulated

to break the entire course into modules. If you adhere to your schedule, you should

not have any problems successfully completing the course.

I will not accept any assignments, written work, or allow quizzes/exams beyond the

stated calendar due date. If you foresee ahead of time you may have a conflict, I will

allow an early assignment submission and/or quiz/exam. You must confirm this

information with me at least 3 weekdays prior to the original calendar due date.

The Contents section has the specific homework assignment links plus the textbook

chapter study guides, case studies, powerpoint lecture notes, etc.

All of the modules have written assignments. These will include critiques of handouts,

and critical thinking questions, among others. All of these must be submitted in a

timely fashion in accordance with the calendar schedule.

All written work must be titled, typed using 12 point font, Times New Roman format,

double-spaced, with page numbers and your name on each page. You must use

Microsoft Word or Notebook (Word is preferable) as the preparation program. If you

have neither, please convert your document to an “.rtf” file and submit your work.

Please remember the importance of identifying your work.

All written work should be submitted via the Dropbox tool.

Within a few weeks of the course launch, you will be able to view your grades from

the on-line grade book. I will advise you when I have the bugs worked out and your

scores are posted. I plan to update this grade book every other week throughout the

semester.

I will be starting a “Discussion Thread” several times throughout the semester. Each

thread will directly relate to the topics we are covering in the book. Each student

must add a thought/overview/opinion to each discussion thread topic. Additionally,

each student will need to reply to another student’s thought/overview/opinion and

provide appropriate feedback on the student’s comments. The content of your

statements will determine the overall score on the Discussion section of your grade.

Please us this medium to share with the other class members. It is not important that

we all have the same view about a particular topic. In fact, several topics will be

controversial and thought provoking.

There are 11 quizzes during this term. These are timed quizzes. There should be

ample time for you to answer the questions, but remember your time begins when you

press the start button and you won’t be able to stop or restart after you begin taking

the quiz. Again, don’t begin until you are prepared to complete the exam.

Textbooks, Supplementary Materials,

Hardware and Software Requirements

Required Textbooks

Coon/Mitterer - Introduction to Psychology: Gateways to Mind and Behavior

(14th Edition) – REQUIRED

Supplementary Materials

None

System Requirements

You must have access to the Internet and a computer capable of running

a suitable browser, such as Internet Explorer or Google Chrome. Please make

sure your browsers are updated to the newest version, available free from the

homepage of each browser. You must also enable cookies in your browser and

have certain Plug-Ins (listed below).

Because the course content contains images, java script, audio, video, and links

to other Internet sites, full access to the course material will require that your

computer meets certain minimum performance requirements and browser

capabilities. The recommendedminimum system configuration:

o --Windows 98 or Mac OS9 operating system or more recent

o --At least 64 MB of RAM

o --Sound and video capabilities

o --Headphones or speakers

A 10 Mbps Internet connection or faster (such as DSL, or cable). NOTE: access

will be very, very slow with a 56K modem.

The following Plug-Ins are necessary for viewing all course content. Most are

included with the recommended browsers and others are available for free

download:

o -- Java Plug-in for displaying animations, menus, etc. (make sure you

have Java enabled in your browser. In Internet Explorer, go to Tools >

Internet Options. Select the Advanced tab, and scroll down to the

Microsoft VM set of checkboxes. Make sure all three checkboxes below

it are checked.)

o -- Flash media player for playing audio and video clips.

JSCC campus computer labs have computers with all of these features and fast

connections.

Instructor Information

Name and contact information

Dr. Bob Raines

In-person – My office is in the Classroom Building 213G

By mail – JSCC address

Voice – 731 424-3520 x 50438

Email – braines@jscc.edu

On campus office hours – as posted

Virtual office hours

As required by students

Instructor response time

The course will be attended daily. Most questions will be answered within 2 working

days (weekends are not working days)

Assessment and Grading

Testing procedures

All exams will be taken on-line. The exams are timed and students are only given one

attempt. The deadline for each test is indicated on the course calendar.

Discussion procedures

Participation in the on-line discussions is part of your final grade. Your must

participate with constructive discussion on a regular basis. The instructor will have

access to all chat and message board discussions and will periodically monitor the

communications in order to assess your participation. On the course homepage under

“eLearn ‘How To’ Tutorials” there is a link, which explains in detail how to use the

Discussion tool in eLearn. It is vital you review this information. When using the

discussion tool keep the following in mind:

Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the discussion

group. Be respectful of other's ideas.

Be patient and read the comments of other group members thoroughly before entering

your remarks.

Be cooperative with group leaders in completing assigned tasks.

Be positive and constructive in group discussions.

Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

Evaluation procedures

Students will be evaluated using chapter quizzes, discussion board postings, and

various assignments. This information can be found in the course material and

calendar section of eLearm.

Grading Scale

1,090 – total possible points for the course

A = 90% (981-1,090)

B = 80% (872-980)

C = 70% (763-871)

D = 60% (654-762)

F = below 60% (below 654)

Times: All times posted in this course are U.S. Central Time

Assignments and Participation

Class participation

You are expected to participate in all interactive aspects of the course. For example,

you must communicate with other students via elearn emails and discussion board

exchanges. You are expected to communicate with your instructor on a regular basis

and check the course bulletin board frequently for announcements. You must actively

participate in threaded discussion events.

Punctuality

You are encouraged to work at your own pace. However, deadlines are placed on

class activities, assignments, quizzes and exams. You should become familiar with the

Class Calendar to determine when materials are due and adjust your study schedule

accordingly. Once a deadline has passed you will be "locked out" of the material.

Course ground rules

Assignments will be presented as noted in the Course Calendar. You will have until

the due date on the calendar to complete each assignment. You are expected to

communicate with other students, learn how to navigate in eLearn, and stay aware of

course announcements. You should use your assigned eLearn email addresses for all

communication. You should address any technical problems to your instructor

immediately. You should observe course etiquette at all times. Plagiarism, cheating,

and other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited and will result in course and

college disciplinary action. All work is to be completed by the student enrolled in

PSY 1030. Work done by anyone else will be considered cheating and will result in

the grade of "F" for the course.

Guidelines for Communication

Email

Remember your reader cannot see you, without facial expressions some comments

may be taken the wrong way. Be careful in wording your emails.

Use of emoticons :) might be helpful in some cases.

Use standard fonts.

Special formatting such as centering, audio messages, tables, html, etc. should be

avoided unless necessary to complete an assignment or other communication.

Respect the privacy of other class members.

Read the Email link located on the Homepage under “eLearn ‘How To’ Tutorials” to

learn how to utilize the email tool in this course.

Discussion groups

Review the discussion threads thoroughly before entering the discussion. Be an

observer then a discusser.

Try to maintain threads by using the "Reply" button rather than starting a new topic.

Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the discussion

group. Be respectful of other's ideas.

Be patient and read the comments of other group members thoroughly before entering

your remarks.

Be cooperative with group leaders in completing assigned tasks,

Be positive and constructive in group discussions.

Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

Library

Jackson State Virtual Library is available to all students enrolled in a class at JSCC.

Students with Disabilities (ADA)

Students with disabilities should make the instructor aware of any conditions that will

affect the student's ability to complete course requirements.

Qualified students with disabilities will be provided reasonable and necessary

academic accommodations if determined eligible by the appropriate disability services

staff at their home institution. Prior to granting disability accommodations in this

course, the instructor must receive written verification of a student's eligibility for

specific accommodations from the disability services staff at the home institution. It is

the student's responsibility to initiate contact with their home institution's disability

services staff and to follow the established procedures for having the accommodation

notice sent to the instructor.

Syllabus Changes

The instructor reserves the right to make changes in course materials, requirements

and content. Any changes will be made known to you with an email from your

instructor.