Introduction

PSYC 2314 230 - LIFESPAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT

NORTH CENTRAL TEXAS COLLEGE

COURSE SYLLABUS

Course Title: Lifespan Growth & Development
Course Prefix & Number: PSYC2314	Section Number: 230	Semester: 162T
Semester Credit Hours: 3	Lecture Hours: 3	Lab Hours: 0
Course Description (NCTC Catalog): Life-Span Growth and Development is a study of social, emotional, cognitive and physical factors and influences of a developing human from conception to death.
Course Prerequisite(s):
Required Course Materials: **A Topical Approach to Life-Span Development, 8^th Edition. Santrock. McGraw Hill.** Access card only

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Name of Instructor:	Dr. Franz Klutschkowski
Campus/Office Location:	Flower Mound/ Faculty Offices
Telephone Number:	972-899-8400
E-mail Address:	fklutschkowski@nctc.edu

GRADING CRITERIA

# of Graded Course Elements	Graded Course Elements	Percentage or Point Values
15	Chapter Exams	375
15	Reading Assignments	375
1	Research Paper	100
1	Topic Paper	25
1	Discussion Forum	25

STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES

	At the successful completion of this course the student will be able to:
1.	Describe the stages of the developing person at different periods of the life span from birth to death.
2.	Discuss the social, political, economic, and cultural forces that affect the development process of the individual.
3.	Identify factors of responsible personal behavior with regard to issues such as sexual activity, substance abuse, marriage and parenting.
4.	Explain the biosocial, cognitive and psychological influences throughout the lifespan as an ongoing set of processes, involving both continuity and change.
5.	Describe the different developmental perspectives of the major theories of development (i.e. cognitive, learning, humanistic and psychodynamic).
6.	Identify examples of some of the cultural and ethnic differences that influence development throughout the lifespan.
7.	Discuss the various causes or reasons for disturbances in the developmental process.

ATTENDANCE POLICY

Students are expected to complete all assignments and should check the class on a regular basis for any updates or announcements.

Grades are determined on the following basis:

A=90% 810 points or higher

B-80-89% 720 – 809 points

C=70-79% 630 – 719 points

D=60-69% 540 - 629 points

F=Below 60% Below 629 points

Exams:

Fifteen exams will be given weekly (multiple choice or true false). All exams are to be taken online and must be completed before the deadlines. The exams may be found within the Assignments tab of this Canvas course (you will need to have the online version of this textbook in order to access the exams).

There are no exceptions for missing an exam deadline. Exams will be available in the modules section of this course. Exams will be over the assigned chapters with one 25 question exam per chapter, worth 25 points. Each exam may be taken twice (highest score is recorded) and will have a specified time limit. Please remember once an exam is started, it must be completed within the time limit. If the exam you are taking is stopped for any reason, only that score will be recorded when the exam is stopped (because you cannot return to the exam once stopped).

The first exam will not have a time limit so you may get used to this testing. All other exams will have a time limit of 25 minutes.

Reading Assignments:

Each chapter has a graded reading assignment. These assignments may be found within the MODULES tab of this Canvas course & then the McGraw Hill Connect tab (you will need to have the online version of this textbook in order to access this assignment). Each reading assignment is worth 25 points each and you must complete them before the assigned deadlines.

Topic Paper:

Students are required to complete one topic paper, worth 25 points. Topics for this first paper must be selected from ideas found in one of the chapters of the textbook.

For example: a student selects a topic from Chapter 1, say, the student selects the topic of ‘Psychoanalytic theory’, then, the paper may consist of the definition of this theory from the textbook (a reference and page number from the textbook MUST be included) and ANY aspects that the student wishes to write about the theory-such as, the history of it, how it relates to other theories, how does it work, what are examples of it, does it work for everyone, etc.

These topic papers are intended to be less formal than the developmental paper (but must be typed). Grading: 2 pages=A; 1&1/2=B; 1=C; ½ =D.

Late papers, for any reason will lose 10 points.

Papers may be emailed in this Canvas Class by selecting the MODULES tab and clicking on ‘topic paper.’

Developmental Paper (DP):

Students are required to complete a paper which meets the following requirements (no late papers will be accepted):

The topic is over grief--- everyone has had grief experiences. For this paper you are to select one of your grief experiences (death of a loved one or pet, loss of a job or relationship, etc.); describe it and apply one, or more, of the grief theories in the textbook (Chapter 17) to your experience (Kubler Ross Stages of Dying; Dual-Process Model). Be sure to include definitions and an overview of the theory.

The textbook MUST be a reference.

Format; American Psychological Association (APA) or MLA style, with a complete reference page, fully identifying all references used in the paper.

Grading Rubrics:

A = 3 pages related to the topic, double spaced, no larger than 12 pt font, not counting title-abstract or reference page, at least 3 references.

B = 2 & 1/2 pages related to the topic, double spaced, no larger than 12 pt font, not counting title-abstract or reference page, at least 3 references.

C = 2 pages related to the topic, double spaced, no larger than 12 pt font, not counting title-abstract or reference page, at least 2 references.

D = 1 page related to the topic, double spaced, no larger than 12 pt font, not counting title-abstract or reference page, at least 1 reference.

NOTE THAT REFERENCES MUST BE USED AND SHOWN WITHIN THE BODY OF YOUR PAPER

Some extra credit may be earned for exceeding these expectations.

Discussion Forum (DF)

One discussion forum will be required. The discussion forum will be accessed within the modules section of this Canvas class. The forum is in two parts; an initial posting (20 points) and at least one reply to another students posting (5) points. For the initial posting students are to select any topic from the chapters we are studying in this class, describe the topic (a page number from the textbook is required); give your thoughts about the topic; and/or give related information about the topic (if you are quoting from other resources than the textbook, please note the reference). Grading; A=1page, B=1/2 page, C or D=less than ½ page depending on the quality of the posting. Postings may NOT be uploaded, they must be typed within the DF tab.

Reply postings may be made within the modules section and clicking on the initial postings and selecting any other students posting and clicking on the reply tab to make your reply. Replies may consist of adding information (give reference) to the posting as well as giving your opinions. Thoughtful responses will earn full credit. Responses such as, ‘I agree’ or ‘I really like what you presented’ etc, will not earn any credit.

Also, please note that demeaning, abusive replies are not acceptable and may be cause for loss of discussion forum points as well as possible removal from the course.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE : All exams & readings close at 11:59pm on due date

Dec 12 Introductions, review syllabus and class expectations

Start working on dev. paper, discussion forum & topic paper

Dec 14 Ch 1 Exam & Ch 1 reading assignment due

Continue working on dev. paper, discussion forum & topic paper

Discussion Forum A closes

Dec 17 Ch 2 & 3 Exam_& Ch 2 &3 reading assignment due_____