SYLLABUS HONORS PSYC 1101 - Faculty & Staff, Georgia ...

COURSE INFORMATION
Course title:
Course number: PSYC 1101
Course description:
SYLLABUS
HONORS PSYC 1101 - ONLINE VERSION
PLEASE PRINT THIS OUT
Honors Introduction to General Psychology
Welcome to Honors Principles of Psychology. This course provides an overview of the major
areas in the field of psychology. As a survey course, we will cover a variety of areas within
the field. The course covers major topics in psychology including, but not limited to major
theoretical perspectives, research methodology, biological and social factors influencing
behavior, development, learning, memory, personality, and abnormal psychology. Upon
completion of this course, students should be able to understand theories, terminology,
principles, processes and methods in all of the above areas. The general objective of this
course is to provide you with an overview of the field, to assist you in recognizing how
psychology can be applied in your life, and to develop your critical thinking skills. As an
honors course we will emphasize critical thinking, analysis, and application of the above
topics.
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Name and email:
Tina Stern, Ph.D.
PLEASE COMMUNICATE WITH ME THROUGH iCollege e-mail; My College e-mail is
tina.stern@gpc.edu – PLEASE ONLY USE THIS FOR EMERGENCIES (e.g. if you cannot
access iCollege). I try to respond to email messages that I receive Monday through Friday
within 24 hours. If you must contact me on the GPC e-mail, please be sure to put “online
section #___” in the subject line.
Webpage:
http:/facstaff.gpc.edu/~tstern
Office location: Dunwoody Campus, Building E, Room 2216
Please see the Daily Course Schedule for my office hours this semester. If you are making
Office hours:
a special trip to campus to see me, please confirm that I will be holding office hours that
day as occasionally I must attend meetings that occur during office hours
(770) 274-5426 I try to respond to phone messages that I receive during the week within
Phone:
24 hours.
REQUIRED TEXT AND SUPPLEMENT
1. Experience Psychology, 2 nd edition, 2013, by Laura King –ONLY this text can be used for this course
2. Connect – publisher’s online study system; this requires an access code. This is required; 20% of your grade is based
on performance on Connect activities.
3. Purchasing options for the text book and Connect:
a. GPC bookstore
i. The GPC bookstore has as a special reduced rate package of a loose-leaf copy of the text packaged
with the Connect-plus access code. This package is only available through GPC bookstores. At a GPC
bookstore, the ISBN number for the GPC package is 9781259112072.
b. Text from sources other than GPC online bookstore – the loose leaf version is not available elsewhere
i. The bound soft-cover text book - ISBN # is 9780078035340 (this does not include a Connect access
code).
ii. IF YOUR BOOK DOES NOT COME WITH A CONNECT PASSCODE THEN YOU MUST BUY CONNECT
SEPARATELY! IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT GETTING CONNECT IS BELOW

1. If you are buying Connect separately, there are 2 versions of Connect. Connect Plus
costs almost what a text book costs and that is because it contains the ebook of the
text. If you already have the text book, then you only need to buy Connect (NOT
Connect Plus).
2. You can buy a Connect passcode online and get an access code for Connect immediately
3. You can also get a 21 day free trial period of the text AND Connect immediately
4. To purchase the passcode online or to begin the 21 day free trial follow these steps:
a. Go to the student sign in page: http://connect.customer.mcgrawhill.com/student-start
b. Once there, you will be provided with three user options:
i. 1) Sign In (register with code)
ii. 2) Purchase Access (buy code online – with or without ebook option is
available)
iii. 3) Start Free Trial (instant access to course work and material for a FREE
21 day trial)
REMEMBER THAT EVEN IF YOU CAN’T GET YOUR TEXT AT THE VERY BEGINNING OF THE SEMESTER, THERE IS A 21-DAY
FREE TRIAL OF THE TEXT AND OF CONNECT!!!
Therefore there is no reason that you cannot begin reading and completing Connect assignments immediately!!
Please be sure to have your text book by the second week of classes
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
1. READING ASSIGNMENTS
We will be reading nine, non-consecutive chapters in your textbook. Please note we are covering chapters 1, 2, 5,
6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, so be sure not to go automatically from chapter 2 to chapter 3 since we are not covering all the
chapters in the book. Under the Learning Modules folder you will find a link for the chapters we are studying. For each
chapter you will find the following tools to assist you in your understanding of the material:
• Chapter Introduction
• Chapter Learning Objectives/Study Guides
• Detailed Power Point Presentations
Specific reading assignments and their due dates are in the Weekly Course Schedule which you can find on the course
homepage. Please expect to read all material more than once.
2. CLASS DISCUSSIONS – 10% of grade
• You are required to complete 10 discussions during the 16-week semester. This means that there are several weeks
during which you have no discussion assignment (but you will have another assignment described below). Please
see the Weekly Course Schedule to see the due dates and times. Postings that come in after the deadline get no
credit. Weekly online discussions constitute 10% of your course grade.
Procedures for participation in discussions:
• Discussion topics are on the Discussion Board (click on Discussion on the Course Toolbar left side of the
screen). You have the potential to earn an extra credit point IF you REGULARLY make multiple postings and/or
responses to other students that contain SUBSTANTIAL CONTENT.
• Grading of class participation in discussions – please read carefully:
• Discussion postings are worth 1 point each, for a total of 10 points. Your discussion grade for each week
will be added to the total. If your discussions do not meet all the following criteria you will get partial
credit
• To receive full credit, discussion postings MUST:
• cite information from the textbook that you put INTO YOUR OWN WORDS
• relate information from the textbook to the discussion topic
• reflect effort, thought and time
• show that you understand the reading

• apply the content you have read to the discussion and to “real life”
• go beyond your opinion; while your opinion is welcome, it is NOT enough to get a passing
grade
• answer ALL parts of the question with specific (vs. general) information
• NOT just copy information from the book or from other students’ postings!! You MUST put it
in your own words to demonstrate your understanding. USING INFORMATION VERBATIM
FROM ANY OTHER SOURCE (TEXTBOOK, ONLINE SOURCE, OTHER STUDENTS’ POSTINGS) IS
PLAGIARISM AND CAN CAUSE SERIOUS PROBLEMS IN THIS COURSE. Material from the text
must be referenced in APA style.
• A failing message:
o is brief, incomplete or overly general – it lacks complete and specific information
o contains only your opinion or inadequate information from the text book
o answers only part of the question or one of the questions that I ask
o gives a generic or common sense answer that doesn't demonstrate that you've read the book
o is inaccurate
o does not reflect effort - it looks like something you wrote in two seconds
o comes in after the deadline
o uses inappropriate in language, tone, or content
o is not in your own words...takes the text verbiage verbatim or other students' words
GROUND RULES FOR USE OF ALL COMMUNICATION TOOLS:
Acceptable use of ALL communication tools Unacceptable use of ALL communication tools
1. Disagreeing respectfully
1. Making any response that you would not make to the
2. Responding to discussion threads
person directly
3. Initiating course related discussion threads 2. Making personal attacks or slurs
4. Discussing material in the textbook
3. Making attacks based on a person’s race, ethnicity,
5. Discussing how any course-related material religion, disability, sex, or sexual orientation
applies to you and to your life
4. Sending links that are unrelated to course material
6. Asking any questions related to the course 5. Sending inappropriate (sexual, illegal, threats)
material
information, links, or comments
6. Sending harassing or threatening information or
comments
The instructor reserves the right to delete any posting that violates any of the above rules or is inappropriate for
this course.
3. CONNECT/LEARN SMART QUIZZES – 15% of grade
o You are required to complete a quiz using Connect Learn Smart for each chapter. The text book publisher
has a wonderful online study program called Connect Learn Smart. You will need a pass code to use
Connect which comes with the GPC bookstore version of the text or can be purchased separately (see
above). For each chapter you are required to take a quiz available through this software. The quizzes will be
personalized; that is, the questions you will be asked will be based on the questions that you miss and get
right. In other words, the quiz will be geared to help you address the things you do not understand. You
should keep answering the questions until you get them all right. The goal is for you to get all questions
correct. The only way to get full credit is to answer all questions correctly regardless of how many attempts
it takes to do this. If you stop testing before you get all questions correct then you will get whatever score
you have when you choose to stop testing.
o Please see the Weekly Course Schedule for the due dates of the nine quizzes and post these dates in your
personal calendar. Please see the home page which will give you directions for getting access to and using
CONNECT. Like the discussion postings, the quizzes are due by 11:00 p.m. on Sunday evenings. I will not
accept late quizzes. Nine quizzes, one for each chapter, are required. You should allow one to two hours for
each quiz. Scores on Connect quizzes are worth 15% of your grade.
o Additional information on about Connect/Learn Smart Quizzes is on the iCollege home page

o The BEST way to use these quizzes is to study the material and then take the quiz. These will function as
practice tests and alert you to what you do not yet understand fully. Do not take the quiz before you have
studied.
4. EXAMS – There are 3 exams and a comprehensive final
1. Chapter Exams: 30% of grade
a. There are three exams and each exam will cover 3 chapters.
b. All exams are timed, open book/open note, exams and are administered online.
c. Each exam will require one essay from each chapter the test is covering and 25 multiple-choice
questions (with about the same number from each chapter) so it will be important to pace
yourself and use your time efficiently.
d. Students will have 75 minutes to complete the tests within a 24-hour window. PLEASE CHECK THE
WEEKLY COURSE SCHEDULE FOR THE DATE AND TIME OF YOUR FINAL EXAM.
e. A set of Learning Objectives for each chapter is provided. The Learning Objectives are also study
guides for the exam.
f. Only your two highest scores on Exams 1-3 will count toward your grade. The lowest score from
these exams will be dropped before your final grade is calculated. The lowest test grade is
dropped to allow for student emergencies, so please save it for emergencies.
g. I do not give make-up exams; instead I allow you to drop your lowest exam grade. Each exam is
worth 15% of your final grade. Combined, the two highest exam grades account for 30% of your
grade
2. Final Exam: 15% of grade
a. The final will cover the Learning Objectives from all 9 chapters.
b. The comprehensive final requires students to write five essays and answer 50 multiple choice
questions.
c. You will have two hours to complete the final exam within a 24-hour window….PLEASE CHECK THE
WEEKLY COURSE SCHEDULE FOR THE DATE AND TIME OF YOUR FINAL EXAM.
d. All exams are timed, open book/open note, exams and are administered online.
e. The final exam counts for 15% of your grade. You may not select the final as your dropped test
grade. All students must take the final exam.
f. You will receive a study guide for the final exam.
3. All exams are available for a 24-hour period. Check the Daily Course Schedule for the dates and times.
4. All exams and the final can be accessed by clicking the Exams icon on the homepage or the Assessments link
on the course toolbar at the top of the screen. Be sure to have computer back up in case you run into a
problem with your computer.
5. Make Up Exams: There will be NO make-ups for an exam. Exams will be scheduled so that you have a 24
hour window in which to take them and thus, you should be able to adjust your schedule accordingly. You
will be expected to take your exams when they are scheduled even if you are out of town so be sure if you
are traveling during an exam period that you have internet access. Your lowest exam grade will be dropped,
so if you must miss an exam you may use that as your dropped grade. All students are required to take the
final exam. You may not drop your final. Rescheduling the final exam will be done only in the case of a
true, documented emergency as determined by the professor.
4. WRITING ASSIGNMENTS – 30% of grade
Two writing assignments are required. Detailed instructions for the assignments and specific information on how they will
be graded can be found in the Essays Organizer folder which will appear on the iCollege Course Home Page (AFTER you have
passed the Orientation Quiz) AND on the Assignments Section. The Correlation Writing Assignment counts for 15% of your
course grade and the Abnormal Psychology Writing Assignment is worth 15% of your grade. The due dates for the
assignments can be found on the Course Schedule. Writing assignments are due in the assignment tool AND to TURNITIN
no later than the posted due date and time and will not be accepted after that deadline.
GRADING POLICY
Grades are determined objectively by a point system. I encourage you to keep track of your grade point average throughout
the quarter. Point percentages are converted to letter grades as follows:

3 tests 30% 90-100 A
final 15% 80-89 B
discussions 10% 70-79 C
Connect quizzes 15% 60-69 D
Correlation Writing Assignment 15% below 69 F
Abnormal Psychology Writing Assignment 15%
TOTAL 100%
COMMUNICATIONS
It is essential that you check your iCollege email and home page
3 times a week at a minimum!
Otherwise you may miss out on information and important announcement. As an online class, communications between
students and between students and professor will be structured in the following ways.
Discussion Board: All class discussions occur via the Discussion Board which is accessed from the Course Toolbar on the left
side of the home page. Any message posted on any of the Discussion topics can be read by all members of the class, so be
sure that you are comfortable with any member of the class reading anything that you post on the Discussion Board. I
expect that any communication placed on the Discussion Board will be appropriate in terms of content, language,
professionalism, and respectfulness. I encourage debate and disagreement, but expect that you will do so with respect.
iCollege E-mail: iCollege provides an internal e-mail service that can be used by all members of the class to e-mail each other
and me. All e-mails are private communications – only the sender and receiver can read them. I will use ONLY iCollege e-
mail for communications between myself and students in this class. I will use iCollege e-mail to communicate to you and
require you to use it to communicate with me. I will be using the GPC email for communication with class
members. Therefore, be sure to check your iCollege e-mail on a regular basis (3-4 times per week). This is essential to
success in this course. I will provide a response to emails that I receive from students during the week within 24 hours
during the week. iCollege e-mail is accessed from the Course Toolbar. Remember, it is unacceptable to allow access to your
iCollege account to anyone else. No one else my use the email or any other iCollege feature.
Announcements: There is an Announcements tool that you can access from the Course Tool bar that I will use to post
important information. Be sure to check the Announcements on a regular basis. Announcements will also “pop-up” from
time to time when you log onto the course. Please read them before you delete them!
Technology Requirements: You and your computer must be able to use iCollege and the Internet. If either you or your
computer does not have this capacity, I encourage you to take a traditional course taught in the classroom. There is
technology support provided by GPC at the online support center link found at http://www.gpc.edu/iCollege. Please direct
your technology questions there. Also, please remember that technology problems are not acceptable as reasons for
missed work or deadlines. Because unanticipated technology problems can arise, be sure to have a back up plan that may
include access to alternate computer sites. Unanticipated technology problems also make it essential that you do NOT
wait until the last minute to complete and submit discussion postings and assignments. Also be sure to allow enough time
to complete tests and submit discussions and essays. Do not cut it so close that the computer may time you out before you
are finished.
EXPECTED EDUCATIONAL RESULTS
As a result of completing this course the student will be able to:
1. Explain the differences and similarities between the psychodynamic, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, sociocultural,
and biological perspectives as well as the current perspective on the relative influences of heredity and environment on
human behavior.
2. Describe, compare and provide examples for each of the major research methods used in psychology, including
strengths, limitations, and key terminology associated with each, including how descriptive statistics are used to
analyze data.

3. Identify ethical issues in psychology.
4. Describe in detail the functioning of the nervous system, including the divisions of the nervous system and their
functions, the major structures of the brain and their functions, the types and parts of the neuron, the process of
neurotransmission, the role and functions of the major neurotransmitters.
5. Define learning and describe, identify, compare and contrast the major features and principles of operant
conditioning, classical conditioning, and social learning.
6. Describe the major theories of memory, including factors that contribute to the retention, retrieval, and forgetting of
information.
7. Describe social psychological findings regarding: conformity, obedience, diffusion of responsibility, groupthink, social
loafing, prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination.
8. Describe relevant theories and research on prenatal development, temperament, and early childhood development
and compare, contrast, and evaluate the viewpoints of major developmental theorists including the following:
• Freud - psychosexual theory
• Erikson - psychosocial theory
• Harlow & Ainsworth - attachment theory
• Piaget - cognitive theory
• Kohlberg & Gilligan - moral reasoning
9. Outline the basic principles of psychoanalytic, humanistic, cognitive-behavioral, biological and trait theories of
personality. Compare and contrast these theories.
10. Identify major objective and projective personality tests and evaluate them based on the characteristics of a good
psychological test in terms of reliability, validity, standardization, and norms.
11. Compare and contrast various criteria that can be used to identify a person's behavior as "abnormal." Describe the
current classification system and its strengths and weaknesses.
12. Compare and contrast the major theories on the etiology of psychological disorders, including psychoanalytic,
behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, biological, and sociocultural.
13. List the major characteristics of 1) anxiety disorders, 2) mood disorders, 3) dissociative disorders, and 4)
schizophrenic disorders. Identify the specific disorders that are grouped in each class.
14. Meet instructor-developed learning objectives related to additional topic areas covered by the instructor.
GENERAL EDUCATION OUTCOMES
I. This course addresses the general education outcome relating to communications as follows:
A. Students develop their reading comprehension skills by reading the textbook, handouts, and assigned journal
articles.
B. Students develop their listening skills by listening to lectures, videotapes, and other students (during group
discussions and problem-solving exercises).
C. Students develop their writing skills through written homework assignments, papers, and/or writing essays as
part of exams.
D. Students develop their speaking skills by asking questions, through class discussions, and/or through oral reports
to the class.
II. This course addresses the general educational outcome of demonstration of effective problem-solving and critical
thinking skills by requiring students to apply knowledge gained from the course to analyzing and solving the types of
problems that are often encountered in real life.
III. This course addresses the general education outcome of understanding, interpreting, and communicating
quantitative data by requiring students to use basic descriptive statistics to summarize and analyze data and to
define and interpret key terms used in descriptive statistics.
IV. This course addresses the general education outcomes of recognition and application of scientific inquiry by
requiring students to explain the differences between experimental and descriptive research, to identify examples
of each, and to identify and describe each of the major research methods used in psychology, including strengths,
limitations, and key terminology associated with each.
POLICIES - The following policies apply to ALL Social Sciences courses offered at Georgia Perimeter College.
1. WITHDRAWAL POLICY: Except in the case of “no shows,” the instructor WILL NOT withdraw you from this course.
(A “no show” is a student who never attends class or logs in to an online class during the first week or two of the
course. When students are reported as no-shows, the course is removed from their records, and any financial aid
awarded on the basis of that course is returned to the lender or grantor. If you have logged on to an online course,

you will not be reported as a no show.) If you decide that you do not wish to continue in this course, it is your
responsibility to withdraw yourself prior to the midpoint of the semester. (Exact dates for each term are posted on
the GPC website under “Academic Calendar.”) Withdrawal is a formal process that requires you to fill out a
withdrawal form and submit it to the registrar on one of our campuses. If you have Financial Aid, you may be
required to repay all or part of the Financial Aid awarded to you. Therefore, a Financial Aid advisor must sign off on
the withdrawal form. When you submit the form to the registrar, he or she will stamp the form with the date
received and give one copy to you. You should KEEP this form in case there are ever questions as to whether you
properly withdrew yourself from the course.
If you are unable to come to one of our campuses to fill out and submit a withdrawal form, you may print one
from online: http://www.gpc.edu/forms/withdrawal.pdf. Note that there is a second page with detailed
information about the withdrawal process. If you are unable to submit your form in person, please contact the GPC
Online office at 678-891-2805 for assistance in submitting your form. No matter how your form is submitted, it is
your responsibility to ensure that it is received by Georgia Perimeter College no later than 5:00 p.m. on the day of
the withdrawal deadline.
2. AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT STATEMENT: If you are a student who is disabled as defined under the
Americans with Disabilities Act and requires assistance or support services, please seek assistance through the
Center for Disability Services. A CDS Counselor will coordinate those services.
3. ACADEMIC HONESTY STATEMENT: Cheating is against college policy. Cheating includes any attempt to defraud,
deceive, or mislead the instructor in arriving at an honest grade assessment, and may include copying answers from
other students or using unauthorized notes during tests. Plagiarism is a particular form of cheating that involves
presenting as one's own the ideas or work of another, and may include using other people's ideas without proper
attribution and submitting another person's work as one's own. Violations of the academic honesty policy will result
in a grade of '0' for the assignment in question, and may result in a failing grade for the course at the instructor's
discretion. The College Court may impose additional sanctions, including suspension, expulsion, or dismissal from
the college. Students have the right to appeal a grade awarded on the basis of alleged cheating or plagiarism. See
the Academic Honesty Policy in the Student Handbook for details and for a review of the appeals procedure.
4. STATEMENT OF NON-DISCRIMINATION: No person shall, on the basis of age, race, religion, color, gender, sexual
orientation, national origin or disability, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of, or be
subjected to discrimination under any program or activity of the college.:
5. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION STATEMENT: Georgia Perimeter College adheres to affirmative action policies to promote
diversity and equal opportunity for all faculty and students.