INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

OFFICE HOURS

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES (From Academic Course Guide Manual/Workforce Education Course Manual/NCTC Catalog

GRADING CRITERIA

GRADING SCALE:

A = 90-100%; B = 80-89%; C = 70-79%; D = 60-69%; F = 59% and below

COURSE SUBJECT OUTLINE (Major Assignments, Due Dates, and Grading Criteria)

ASSIGNMENT DETAILS____________________________________________________________

1. Exams (3 at 100 pts each and Final is 200 pts for total of 500 pts):  The exams will be administered in class.  You will have 50 minutes to complete section exams and 2 hours to complete the final.  Questions will be taken directly from class lectures and chapters from the assigned book.  The tests will consist of multiple-choice questions.  Please bring your own Scantron to the exams, as you will not be allowed to take the test without one.  There will be no make-up exams, unless proof of valid absence is given; then it will be Instructor’s discretion.

2. Formal Research Paper (200 pts): SHOULD BE RESEARCH-BASED! Not opinion-based! If you merely write your opinion on the topic, you will receive a 0 for this assignment. This assignment is a formal research paper. You should write in 3^rd person focusing on what academic sources have reported in their research (e.g., “Blashfield et al. (2014) conducted a review…”), and not in 1^st person (“I think that…”; “I enjoyed…”; “It seems to me…”; et cetera).

      For this assignment, you will write a formal research paper in APA format related to one specific mental health disorder. This paper will be submitted via Canvas. You will write a 3-4 page, typed & double-spaced, 12-point font paper. Please include a cover page and reference page in APA format. Cover page and reference page DO NOT count toward the 3-4 page requirement. Please DO NOT INCLUDE AN ABSTRACT for this assignment. Directly after your cover page, begin writing your paper. Reviews are to be typewritten, and most importantly CITED in APA format throughout the body of your paper. Please google OWL Purdue APA format for a good resource on how to use APA formatting. You will choose one mental health disorder to research and write your formal research paper over the mental health problem you chose, according to the guidelines below.

      Utilizing academic articles, your textbook, and Curtis & Kelley’s (2018) Foundations of Abnormality: Myths, Misconceptions, and Movies, discuss the mental health problem you are researching in light of the 4 F’s of abnormality discussed in Chapter 1, theories of abnormality discussed in Chapter 2, assessment and diagnosis discussed in Chapter 3, and research methods discussed in Chapter 4. 

      Your paper should contain the following elements:

1. Describe some of the historical influences and early schools of thought that shaped how mental health has been conceptualized (See Chapters 1 & 2 of Curtis & Kelley on History and Theories of Abnormality).
2. Describe some of the prominent perspectives and approaches used in the study and treatment of mental health (See Chapter 2 of Curtis & Kelley on Theories of Abnormality).
3. Identify research methods used in the study of mental disorders, and some specific findings of these research methods related to the disorder you are researching, including a discussion of the ABC’s of the 4F: Frequency (See the 4F’s of Abnormality in Curtis & Kelley – Chapter 1; See also Chapter 4 on research methods).
4. Describe the psychological assessment and evaluation of this mental health problem, including a discussion of the 4F: Function (See the 4F’s of Abnormality in Curtis & Kelley – Chapter 1; See also Chapter 3 on assessment & diagnosis).
5. Identify some of the physiological and psychological processes involved in the behaviors related to this mental health problem, including a discussion of the 4Fs: Feeling Pain & Fatal (See the 4F’s of Abnormality in Curtis & Kelley – Chapter 1).
6. Discuss individual and social responsibilities in regard to individuals with mental health problems. Within the context of social responsibility, you may discuss familial responsibilities related to individuals with mental health problems.

Your paper will be graded according to these required elements. Including 3 or fewer of these elements will result in a grade of D or lower. Including 4 of these elements will result in a grade of C or lower. Including 5 of these elements will result in a grade of B or lower. Including 6 of these elements will result in a grade of A or lower. You must include all 6 of these elements to be able to receive an A (90% or above) on this assignment, but may not receive an A if your paper contains significant problems with incorrect grammar, spelling, punctuation, citations, et cetera, sufficient to impact the overall quality of your paper. 

This grade is 20 percent of your overall grade in the class, such that failing to turn in the assignment will likely lead to a grade of C or lower. You should not write more than four pages, and no extra credit will be given for doing so. As with all other assignments, no late papers will be accepted.

3. Weekly Assignments (10 at max of 20 pts each):  PRINT OUT, do not send electronically.  For 10 of the chapters in the book, which you select, you will write a one- or two-page, typed, and double-spaced paper to illustrate important psychological principles, terms, theories, or concepts.  For each chapter, pick from one of the following options for the essays:  chapter summary, alternative projects TBD, or more extensive research about a particular topic in a chapter.  Analyses containing plagiarism will receive a grade of 0 pts.  Good quality, with regard to writing skill and comprehensive content, is required to receive full credit.  With a valid excuse (validity to be determined by the Instructor), late assignments will be accepted for partial credit.  The chapter assignments for each week will be due on the Thursdays marked on the calendar.

4. Participation/Attendance (100 pts):  Attending regularly, speaking up, turning in work on time, and making attentive eye contact will all contribute to this discretionary grade.

5. Extra Credit Essay (0-20 points depending on quality):  Read the book entitled “Out of My Mind” by Sharon M. Draper.  Then, write a two-page, typed, and double-spaced essay describing your cognitive and emotional reaction to the material in the book.  Be sure to include enough details to show that you truly read the book and are not just copying from a review.  Or, make your own proposal to me about an extra credit essay topic, and we will discuss the viability of your proposal.  Extra credit essays are due on the date of the final class period.

Students are expected to follow all rules and regulations found in the student handbook and published online.  Scholastic dishonesty shall include, but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, academic falsification, intellectual property dishonesty, academic dishonesty facilitation and collusion.  Faculty members may document and bring charges against a student who is engaged in or is suspected to be engaged in academic dishonesty.  See Student Handbook, “Student Rights & Responsibilities: Student Conduct ([FLB(LOCAL)]”. 

Regular and punctual attendance is expected of all students in all classes for which they have registered.  Grades for attendance and participation (verbal or with attentive eye contact) will be given at the end of the semester.  All absences are considered to be unauthorized unless the student is absent due to illness or emergencies as determined by the instructor.  It is the student responsibility to provide documentation as to the emergency for approval and judgement by the faculty member.  Approved college sponsored activities are the only absences for which a student should not be held liable and only when provided by a college official ahead of the absence.  Valid reasons for absence, however, do not relieve the student of the responsibility for making up required work.  Students will not be allowed to make up an examination missed due to absence unless they have reasons acceptable to the instructor.  A student who is compelled to be absent when a test is given should petition the instructor, in advance if possible, for permission to postpone the exam.  Student will be dropped from a class by the Registrar upon recommendation of the instructor who feels the student has been justifiably absent or tardy a sufficient number of times to preclude meeting the course’s objectives.    Persistent, unjustified absences from classes or laboratories will be considered sufficient cause for College officials to drop a student from the rolls of the College.   Last day to withdraw with a “W” is November 8.

CORE CURRICULUM FOUNDATIONAL COMPONENT AREA (For classes in the Core)_______     

o         Communication

o         Mathematics              

o         Life and Physical Science

o         Language, Philosophy & Culture

o         Creative Arts

o         Government/Political Science

X         Social and Behavioral Sciences

o         Component Area Option

o         American Histo

X             Critical Thinking

X              Communication

X              Empirical and Quantitative

o           Teamwork

o           Personal Responsibility

X              Social Responsibilit

COURSE TYPE