Psychology 2410B-001
Introduction to Developmental Psychology
If there is a discrepancy between the outline posted below and the outline posted on the OWL course website, the latter shall prevail.
1.0 CALENDAR DESCRIPTION
A survey of theory and research in developmental psychology including: learning, cognition, perception, personality, and social development in infancy and childhood.
Prerequisite: A mark of at least 60% in 1.0 credits of Psychology at the 1000 level.
Unless you have either the prerequisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enrol in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.
Antirequisites: Psychology 2040A/B, Psychology 2480E, Health Sciences 2700A/B, and the former Psychology 2044
Antirequisites are courses that overlap sufficiently in content that only one can be taken for credit. So if you take a course that is an antirequisite to a course previously taken, you will lose credit for the earlier course, regardless of the grade achieved in the most recent course.
2 lecture hours, 1 tutorial hour; 0.5 course
2.0 COURSE INFORMATION
Instructor: Michal Bak, M.A.
Office: Westminster Hall, Rm. 234A,
Office Hours: Drop in on Mondays at 12:00pm-1:00pm or by appointment
Email: mbak7@uwo.ca
Phone Number: 226-235-0690
TA: Christine Moreau TA: Lital Yosopov
Office: WIRB, 5th Floor Office: SSC 7313
Office Hours: By appointment Office Hours: By appointment
Email: cmoreau5@uwo.ca Email: lyosopov@uwo.ca
TA: Christopher Kowalski
Office: SSC 7315
Office Hours: By appointment
Email: ckowals@uwo.ca
Time and Location of Lectures:
Mondays at 9:30am-11:30am in Social Science Centre, Rm. 2036
Time and Location of Tutorials:
Wednesdays at 9:30am-10:30am OR 10:30am-11:30am in Middlesex College, Rm. 17
Wednesdays at 11:30am-12:30pm OR 12:30pm-1:30pm in Talbot College, Rm. 203
Students who are in emotional/mental distress should refer to Mental Health@Western
http://www.uwo.ca/uwocom/mentalhealth/ for a complete list of options about how to obtain help.
Please contact the course instructor if you require material in an alternate format or if you require any other arrangements to make this course more accessible to you. You may also wish to contact Student Accessibility Services (formerly known as Services for Students with Disabilities) at 519-661-2147.
3.0 TEXTBOOK
Shaffer, D.R., Kipp, K., Wood, E., Willoughby, T., Roberts, K.P., Gottardo, A., …, Newton, N. (2020). Developmental Psychology: Infancy and Childhood (5th Ed.). Toronto: Nelson Education Ltd.
NOTE: You may purchase this in paperback at the bookstore, or in electronic format. A copy of the textbook will be placed on reserve at DB Weldon Library.
4.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES
The goal of the lecture component of the course is to introduce theoretical, methodological, and empirical foundations of Developmental Psychology. The goal of the tutorials is to provide students with experience generating and testing hypotheses. Students will plan and conduct a study on some aspect of development included in the course data set and will serve both as research participants and researchers in this process. The project will culminate in a group presentation, and each student will submit three small writing assignments throughout the semester. The tutorial assignments build a variety of scholarly skills that are essential to researchers in psychology, including critical thinking, research design, and oral and written communication. More details about tutorial assignments will be provided by your tutorial leader.4.1 STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of this course, successful students will be able to
- Memorize main theories, concepts, principles, and findings of developmental psychology (mid-term and final exams).
- Access relevant literature and generate a hypothesis based on an assessment and synthesis of existing literature on some aspect of human development included in our course data set (introduction to paper; discussion of findings; presentation).
- Apply knowledge of research design and methods to test the hypothesis (method and results section of paper; research presentation).
- Apply t tests or correlations to analyze data, and interpret findings in the context of existing research and theory (method and results and discussion papers; research presentation).
- Orally present prepared material in a formal academic setting using visual aids (research presentation).
- Write papers that demonstrate correct use of the English language and adherence to discipline-specific (APA) writing requirements (introduction, method and results, and discussion papers).
7. Work collaboratively with others to achieve a goal (group presentation).
5.0 EVALUATION
Students will be evaluated based on lecture and tutorial components as follows:
|
% of Final Mark |
Due Date |
|
|
Lecture Component (60%) |
||
|
Mid-Term Exam 1 |
20 |
February 3rd |
|
Mid-Term Exam 2 |
20 |
March 9th |
|
Final Exam |
20 |
Final Exam Period |
|
Tutorial Component (40%) |
||
|
Research Project |
||
|
Introduction (2 pages plus title page and references) |
10 |
February 4th (11:55pm) |
|
Method and Results (2 pages plus references) |
10 |
March 3rd (11:55pm) |
|
Discussion (2 pages, plus title page, 150 word (max.) abstract, and references) |
10 |
April 3rd (11:55pm) |
|
15-minute group presentation |
10 |
March 18th, 25th, or April 1st |
NOTE 1: Tutorial attendance is mandatory. You will lose 2% of your tutorial mark for every undocumented absence.
NOTE 2: All written assignments will be submitted electronically on the course website and run through Turnitin for plagiarism checks. Further instruction will be given regarding paper submission processes
NOTE 3: If you wish to appeal a paper mark, you must submit your appeal in writing to your tutorial leader. The appeal should list your concerns and reasons for your concerns. Your tutorial leader will respond to your appeal in writing. If you wish to appeal the response, submit your paper and appeal documents to Michal Bak.
Although the Psychology Department does not require instructors to adjust their course grades to conform to specific targets, the expectation is that course marks will be distributed around the following averages:
70% 1000-level and 2000-level courses
72% 2190-2990 level courses
75% 3000-level courses
80% 4000-level courses
The Psychology Department follows Western's grading guidelines, which are as follows (see http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/general/grades_undergrad.pdf):
A+ 90-100 One could scarcely expect better from a student at this level
A 80-89 Superior work that is clearly above average
B 70-79 Good work, meeting all requirements, and eminently satisfactory
C 60-69 Competent work, meeting requirements
D 50-59 Fair work, minimally acceptable
F below 50 Fail
6.0 ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION SCHEDULE
There will be three non-cumulative exams in this course, each worth 20% of your final mark. Exams will consist of multiple choice questions. The first mid-term exam will be held on February 3rd and will cover lecture and reading material up to January 27th. The second mid-term exam will be held on March 9th and will cover material from February 10th to March 2nd. The final exam will be held during the final exam period (April 6-26) and will cover material from Mar. 16th to the end of term.
NOTE: I strongly urge you to take the exams as scheduled. If you miss a scheduled exam for any reason, the make-up exam will consist entirely of short-answer and/or essay questions. Make up Exams will take place in Westminster Hall, Room 221, on February 10th (Mid-Term 1) and March 16th (Mid-Term 2) at 1:00pm. The make-up date for the final exam will be released after the exam schedule is released. You are strongly urged not to make any travel plans before the final exam make-up date. If you need to write a make-up exam but there is a conflict with a another course, you may request to write the make-up exam before the scheduled make-up exam dates upon providing evidence of the scheduling conflict.
7.0 CLASS SCHEDULE (TENTATIVE)
|
Lecture |
Tutorial |
||||
|
Date |
Topic |
Reading |
Date |
Topic |
Assignment |
|
Jan. 6 |
Introduction to Developmental Psychology and Its Research Strategies |
Ch. 1 |
Jan. 8 |
Introduction and Overview of the Research Project |
Complete Online Survey Due: January 15, 11:55pm |
|
Jan. 13 |
Theories of Human Development |
Ch. 2 |
Jan. 14 or 15 |
Participate in Class Study: Computerized Tasks in SSC 3133 |
SSC 3133 sessions Tue., Jan 14th 9:00am – 9:45am 9:45am – 10:30am 10:30am – 11:15am 11:15am – 12:00pm
Wed., Jan 15th 5:00pm – 5:45pm 5:45pm – 6:00pm
|
|
Jan. 20 |
Hereditary Influences and Prenatal Development |
Ch. 3 & Ch. 4 |
Jan. 22 |
Generating Research Questions and Performing a Literature Search
|
|
|
Jan. 27 |
Birth and Physical Development |
Ch. 5, Ch. 6 |
Jan. 29 |
Introduction, Research Questions and Hypotheses
|
|
|
Feb. 3 |
Mid-Term Exam 1 |
Feb. 5 |
Research Methods |
Introduction (Title Page, Introduction, Hypotheses) Due: February 4, 11:55pm |
|
|
Feb. 10 |
Early Cognitive Foundations and Cognitive Development |
Ch. 7 |
Feb. 12 |
Data Analysis: T-Tests and Correlations, Part 1
|
|
|
Feb. 17 |
Reading Week |
|
Feb. 19 |
Reading Week |
|
|
Feb. 24 |
Cognitive Development |
Ch. 8 & Ch. 9 |
Feb. 26 |
Data Analysis: T-Tests and Correlations, Part 2 |
|
Lecture |
Tutorial |
||||
|
Mar. 2 |
Intelligence and the Development of Language |
Ch. 10 & Ch. 11 |
Mar. 4 |
Discussion, Limitations, Future Directions, Abstract |
Method and Results Due March 3, 11:55 pm
|
|
Mar. 9 |
Mid-Term Exam 2 |
|
Mar. 11 |
Overview of Oral Presentations
|
|
|
Mar. 16 |
Emotional Development, Development of the Self, and Social Cognition
|
Ch. 12 & Ch. 13 |
Mar. 18 |
Oral Presentations I |
|
|
Mar. 23 |
Moral Development and Aggression
|
Ch. 15 |
Mar. 25 |
Oral Presentations II |
|
|
Mar. 30 |
Family Influences and Development Beyond the Family Context |
Ch. 16 & Ch. 17 |
Apr. 1 |
Oral Presentations III |
Discussion Due Apr. 3, 11:55 pm |
8.0 STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES
Students are responsible for understanding the nature and avoiding the occurrence of plagiarism and other scholastic offenses. Plagiarism and cheating are considered very serious offenses because they undermine the integrity of research and education. Actions constituting a scholastic offense are described at the following link: http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/scholastic_discipline_undergrad.pdf
As of Sept. 1, 2009, the Department of Psychology will take the following steps to detect scholastic offenses. All multiple-choice tests and exams will be checked for similarities in the pattern of responses using reliable software, and records will be made of student seating locations in all tests and exams. All written assignments will be submitted to TurnItIn, a service designed to detect and deter plagiarism by comparing written material to over 5 billion pages of content located on the Internet or in TurnItIn’s databases. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between Western and Turnitin.com http://www.turnitin.com
Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams may be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.
Possible penalties for a scholastic offense include failure of the assignment, failure of the course, suspension from the University, and expulsion from the University.
9.0 POLICY ON ACCOMMODATION FOR MEDICAL ILLNESS
Western’s policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness can be found at:
http://www.westerncalendar.uwo.ca/PolicyPages.cfm?PolicyCategoryID=1&Command=showCategory&SelectedCalendar=Live&ArchiveID=#Page_12
The full policy for consideration for absences can be accessed at: https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/academic_policies/appeals/Academic_Consideration_for_absences.pdf
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation:
http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
If you experience an extenuating circumstance (e.g., illness, injury) sufficiently significant to temporarily make you unable to meet academic requirements, you may request accommodation through the following routes:
- Submitting a Self-Reported Absence form (for circumstances that are expected to resolve within 48 hours);
- For medical absences, submitting a Student Medical Certificate (SMC) signed by a licensed medical or mental health practitioner in order to be eligible for Academic Consideration;
For non-medical absences, submitting appropriate documentation (e.g., obituary, police report, accident report, court order, etc.) to Academic Counselling in their Faculty of registration in order to be eligible for academic consideration. Students are encouraged to contact their Academic Counselling unit to clarify what documentation is appropriate.
Students must see the Academic Counsellor and submit all required documentation in order to be approved for certain accommodation. The self-reported absence form may NOT be used for absences longer than 48 hours; coursework/tests/exams/etc., worth more than 30% of the final grade; or exams scheduled in the December or April final-exam periods: http://counselling.ssc.uwo.ca/procedures/medical_accommodation.html
Students seeking academic consideration:
- are advised to consider carefully the implications of postponing tests or midterm exams or delaying handing in work;
- are encouraged to make appropriate decisions based on their specific circumstances, recognizing that minor ailments (upset stomach) or upsets (argument with a friend) are not normally an appropriate basis for a self-reported absence;
must communicate with their instructors no later than 24 hours after the end of the period covered by either the self-reported absence or SMC, or immediately upon their return following a documented absence
10.0 OTHER INFORMATION
Office of the Registrar web site: http://registrar.uwo.ca
Student Development Services web site: http://www.sdc.uwo.ca
Please see the Psychology Undergraduate web site for information on the following:
http://psychology.uwo.ca/undergraduate/student_responsibilities/index.html
- Policy on Cheating and Academic Misconduct
- Procedures for Appealing Academic Evaluations
- Policy on Attendance
- Policy Regarding Makeup Exams and Extensions of Deadlines
- Policy for Assignments
- Short Absences
- Extended Absences
- Documentation
- Academic Concerns
- 2019-2020 Calendar References
No electronic devices, including cell phones and smart watches, will be allowed during exams.
Copyright Statement: Lectures and course materials, including power point presentations, outlines, and similar materials, are protected by copyright. You may take notes and make copies of course materials for your own educational use. You may not record lectures, reproduce (or allow others to reproduce), post or distribute lecture notes, wiki material, and other course materials publicly and/or for commercial purposes without the instructor’s written consent.
