General Psychology Syllabus for 2016-2017
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Instructor Information

Course Information

Recording Policy

Disability Statement

If you have a disability (learning, mental, physical) that affects your ability to participate effectively and have access to any program or service at Amarillo College please contact Disability Services at (806) 345-5639 . Our offices are located in the Student Service Center office 112. More information may be found at www.actx.edu/disability.
Disability Services facilitates access to all programs and services according to the ADA, Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, as well as other federal and state laws.

Amarillo College Web Accessibility Policy Statement

Amarillo College is committed to providing equal access to all programs and services, including all working, learning, and service environments that affect equal access for persons with disabilities. This commitment to provide equal access and opportunity for persons with disabilities is in compliance with federal and state law. Amarillo College also strives to provide Electronic and Information Resources (EIR) that are accessible to all authorized users.

If you find you are unable to access material in an accessible format please contact the Disability Services Office at (806) 345-5639 . This office will work in conjunction with other campus resources to address and accommodate your issue in a timely manner.

Statement for Mental Health and Advocacy & Resource Center:

As a student you may experience a range of issues that can cause barriers to learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, alcohol/drug problems, feeling down, difficulty concentrating and/or lack of motivation. These mental health concerns or stressful events may lead to diminished academic performance or reduce a student's ability to participate in daily activities. Amarillo College offers services to assist you with addressing these and other concerns you may be experiencing. If you or someone you know are suffering from any of the aforementioned conditions, you can learn more about the broad range of confidential mental health services available on campus by calling the AC Counseling Center at 806-371-5900. The AC Counseling Center website is https://www.actx.edu/counseling/ . Also, if you are in need of social services (affordable housing, utilities, transportation, food, clothing, childcare, medical/dental/vision, legal), please call the AC Advocacy & Resource Center at 806-371-5439. The AC Advocacy & Resource Center website is https://www.actx.edu/arc

Amarillo College Tutoring for Success Policy:

Administrative Drop Policy

Students who do not attend class on or prior to the census date will be administratively dropped. Effective Fall, 2016

Student Withdrawal Procedures

Students who wish to withdraw from a class must:

• consult with their instructor to obtain a signed academic withdrawal request form to submit to the AskAC department for processing
• consult with the financial aid office if receiving financial aid
• consult with the Veterans Benefit Coordinator if receiving veteran benefits
• consult with their academic advisor to determine how withdrawing may affect their enrollment in future semesters
  • NOTE:  The Texas Education Code stipulates that students attending Texas institutions of higher education for the first time fall 2007 and later may not withdraw from more than six courses during their academic career, including courses from which transfer students have withdrawn at other Texas institutions of higher education. (Senate Bill 1231) Rule 4.10.

Privacy Statement

The Amarillo College Privacy Policy is found at https://www.actx.edu/-amarillo-college-privacy-notice , and applies to all Amarillo College students.  If you have questions about this privacy statement or you believe that your personal information has been released without your consent, send email to humanresources@actx.edu .

Course

PSYC-2301-HS01 General Psychology

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: RDNG 0331-minimum grade of C or a score on a state-approved test indicating college-level reading skills

Course Description

General Psychology is a survey of the major psychological topics, theories and approaches to the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.

Student Resources Student Resources Website

Department Expectations

Occupational License Disclaimer

Hours

(3 sem hrs; 3 lec)

Class Type

Hybrid

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

Exploring Psychology, 9^th  Edition with DSM-5 Updates, David G. Myers

 

Supplies

Access to a computer is required. If you do not have your own computer, you will need to use AC computers located on the 4^th floor of the Ware Student Commons.

Student Performance

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Identify various research methods and their characteristics used in the scientific study of psychology.

2. Describe the historical influences and early schools of thought that shaped the field of psychology.

3. Describe some of the prominent perspectives and approaches used in the study of psychology.

4. Use terminology unique to the study of psychology.

5. Describe accepted approaches and standards in psychological assessment and evaluation.

6. Identify factors in physiological and psychological processes involved in human behavior.

Students Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Log in using the AC Connect Portal

In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .

If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

My expectation is that you will read every assigned chapter in this textbook and (gasp :)) find yourself enjoying it.  Dr. Myers is a terrific author who clearly writes with an eye to providing interesting information.  I promise that you will experience much less frustration with all assignments if you first actively read the assigned chapters in the textbook.  The points are best read in context and not picked through to simply answer questions.  Decide to enjoy and get the most out of Dr. Myers’ presentation!

My expectation is that you will attend class, complete all in-class and online assignments, ask questions when something needs clarification, ask questions related to the material just for the fun of it, be prepared for exams, complete your service learning project, respect everyone in this class at all times, and engage in academic honesty with zero cheating or plagiarism. 

My expectation is that you will do your own work.  Please use your textbook and notes for online assignments, but make sure they are yours. 

My expectation is that each of you will do well in this course. Purposeful effort and experience with trying a variety of strategies is the way to develop intelligence and ability. Good academic performance comes from persistent effort and good strategy choices:  Poor academic performance comes from a lack of effort and poor strategy choices (APA, 2015).  Below is a good example of an effective strategy to choose when reading your textbook. Before even beginning to read the chapter, survey the entire assigned reading noting its key sections. Once you begin reading, think about the Learning Objective Questions given at the beginning of each major section. Be sure to note and process all photos, graphs, and captions.  As you are reading, take the time to mentally answer the Retrieve It boxes scattered throughout the chapters. Finally, after reading the entire assigned material, test yourself using the three sections of the Chapter Review. Taking advantage of the textbook’s opportunities for practice in information retrieval will aid you in retaining the concepts presented.  After reading a chapter in the textbook, watching the videos provided in each week’s folder gives you an opportunity for another quick review.

Grading Criteria

Grading criteria:  There will be a total of 1,000 possible points in this course.  They will be allocated as follows:

Exams			Total of 360 points or 36%
	Unit 1 Exam	90 points
	Unit 2 Exam	90 points
	Unit 3 Exam	90 points
	Unit 4 Exam	90 points
Service Learning Project			Total of 100 points or 10%
Syllabus Quiz			Total of 20 points or 2%
Chapter Assignments			Total of 280 points or 28%
	14 Multiple-Choice Study Guides (20 pts each)
Class Discussions / Participation (requires attendance)			Total of 225 points or 22.5%
	15 Class Meetings (15 pts each)
Online Attendance / Pop Quizzes			Total of 15 points or 1.5%

Letter Grades:

For Exams & Assignments                                      For Final Course Grade

A = 90 – 100%                                                         A = 895 – 1000

B = 80 – 89%                                                           B = 795 – 894

C = 70 – 79%                                                           C = 695 – 794

D = 60 – 69%                                                           D = 595 – 694

F = 0 – 59%                                                              F = 0 – 594

Hint:  To calculate your grade divide the number of points you did earn on an assignment by the number of possible points you could have earned on that assignment. To check the status of your overall grade the same process applies: Total points you earned divided by the overall total points you could have earned for the same assignments equals your overall grade at that point.

Brief assignment descriptions:

Multiple-Choice Exams (4 units) will be taken in class without notes or textbook.

The Service Learning Project gives you the opportunity to volunteer for four hours at a community organization and describe your experiences in an essay format.  Details are located under the Service Learning Project tab.  Review the project instructions immediately to begin arranging your volunteer hours and give yourself plenty of time to complete the project.  Past students have expressed appreciation for this aspect of the course.

Syllabus quiz covers the material presented in this syllabus document to make sure all are prepared and aware of the class structure. It will be under the Exams tab.

Multiple-choice Study Guides for each chapter (14 chapters) will be in a quiz format. You will be allowed to attempt this assignment as many times as you want until the assignment deadline.  If you reach 100% correct (20 points) before the deadline, then a hint for the upcoming exam will become available.  The hint will pop up as a file in that week’s folder underneath the Study Guide assignment. This is a good opportunity for you to make 100% (20 points) for each chapter Study Guide with the added bonus of exam hints. The highest grade on your attempts for each Study Guide will be what goes in the grade book.  They will be located in the weekly folders under Assignments.

I recommend watching provided YouTube videos as an entertaining review of each chapter’s content.  They will be located in the weekly folders under Assignments. 

In-class discussions and activities will augment your personal reading and studying of assigned chapters.  Come to class having read the week’s chapters and be prepared to participate in discussions and activities over the material.

APA Style and Formatting power points can be found under Assignments. Download and print them.  Plan on becoming familiar with the information in the power points.  Hold on to them as a reference for use during this course and perhaps for use in later classes.  An extra-credit multiple-choice quiz over the material in the power points can be found under the Exams tab. It is available to take one time on any date you choose before December 11.  Another resource for questions related to citing and referencing in APA style format is the website for the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL; https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/).  

The absolute last day that I will accept late assignments is Friday, December 9, at 11:55pm midnight.

Attendance

Regular attendance is necessary for satisfactory achievement in this course. It is your responsibility to attend class. You will need to check online every day for updates and assignments.  If you miss class, assignment deadlines or exams then your course grade will be negatively affected.

Calendar

Additional Information

Makeup Policy:  Please review the exam and assignment dates for this course.  If your schedule cannot accommodate these dates and times, you will need to drop this course and find a course that does fit your schedule.  This is an accelerated, eight-week course: You will need to have arranged your affairs to accommodate keeping up with reading the textbook and completing all assignments.  More than likely I will not allow you to make up any exam. If there are extreme circumstances, please contact me, so we can figure something out. We both want you to be successful.  All exams or assignments turned in after the deadline will have points deducted.  The highest grade given will be 80% of the available points for the exam or assignment.

Office Hours:  The best way to reach me is by e-mail.  I prefer that you email me using your AC Connect Google class email account.  It lets me know which course you are in and helps me keep track of your messages. Remember that when you email me within the AC Connect class that my reply will go to your gmail account that is connected with this course.  Please be sure to check that gmail account regularly.

If you need to contact me by phone or text, my number is 806.654.0805.

Technical Problems:  If you experience a technical problem with some online aspect of the course, you will need to contact the HelpDesk / AskAC at 371-5000 or 371-5373.

Dropping the Class: The last day to withdraw with a grade of “W” on your transcript is December 7, 2016.  You must visit with me about your concerns regarding completing the class and desire to withdraw.  Only then am I able to initiate the process of withdrawal.  You must officially drop a class through the Registrar’s office.  If you simply stop attending and turning in assignments, a grade of F will appear on your transcript.