This course will explore basic concepts and theories of human development with a focus on the nine major periods of life from prenatal development to death and dying. The nature of interactions between an individual’s biology and their environment will be examined by integrating information from a wide array of research studies. These studies consist of, but are not limited to, ground-breaking historic studies to recent studies of physical, neurological, and cognitive development.
Lally, M. & Valentine-French, S. (2019). Lifespan development: A psychological perspective (2nd edition). Creative Commons. http://dept.clcillinois.edu/psy/LifespanDevelopment.pdf
Mandatory UNE-compliant webcam – To be used during proctored exams
In lecture courses, students should be able to:
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
On the course start date, students will have access to orientation. This must be completed to be able to gain access to the first module in the course. Students must complete the first module to gain access to the next one. We recommend that students spend about 15 hours per week to complete a course in 16 weeks. When trying to complete the course in less than 16 weeks, we typically see students do this successfully within 12-14 weeks. Instructors will be timely in grading and feedback, but it will not be instant.
There is a highly recommended Practice Proctored Exam available to all students. The first attempt is free. This exam does not cover course material and is not included in your overall course grade. It prepares test takers for what the testing environment will be like, what forms of identification are needed, and provides a chance to test your external webcam with a live proctor. This is a great way to become familiar with and prepare for your exam!
Students will be provided a matching bank and will be asked to match key terms with their definitions or related concepts. Self-Assessments are not counted towards the student’s final grade.
Discussions will provide the student with a choice of topics from which they can choose to provide a discussion response. Students will post their initial replies to the discussion board prompts and will also respond to the posts of a minimum of 2 peers.
These written assignments ask students to reflect on different phenomena that occur across the life span in a manner that is informed by their own reading and research.
These written assignments provide the student with a real-world example of a developmental issue and ask them to apply research from life span psychology to suggest a strategy for producing the best outcome.
Students will submit a virtual poster that clearly represents how they want to retire. This presentation will include highly specific information regarding the lifestyle they would like to have in retirement. This will include specific examples of the living situation the student would like to have, their anticipated financial situation, and ideal health for the perfect retirement.
For this project, students will identify two people or a caregiver (as in the case of an infant), who represent two different stages of the life span—ideally, two who do not identify with the student’s own current stage of life span development—and set up a brief 15–20 minute interview to explore their perspective of their stage of the lifespan. These interviews will be video recorded and submitted for credit.
This is a 50-item, multiple-choice exam that is proctored. Students will have 90 minutes to complete the exam. This exam will allow 1 page of notes, front, and back. See UNE’s ProctorU page for information about signing up and scheduling your exam.
Proctored exams are closed for review. You will not be able to review them at any time. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.
Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:
Assignment Category | Grade |
---|---|
Self-Assessments/Matching Activities (3 X 0%) | 0% |
Discussion Boards (2 X 5%) | 10% |
Reflection Papers (5 X 5%) | 25% |
Problem-Based Learning Scenarios (7 X 4%) | 28% |
Creative Assignment ( 1 X 10%) | 10% |
Life Span Interview | 15% |
Final Cumulative Exam | 12% |
Total | 100 |
Grade | Points Grade | Point Average (GPA) |
A | 94 – 100% | 4.00 |
A- | 90 – 93% | 3.75 |
B+ | 87 – 89% | 3.50 |
B | 84 – 86% | 3.00 |
B- | 80 – 83% | 2.75 |
C+ | 77 – 79% | 2.50 |
C | 74 – 76% | 2.00 |
C- | 70 – 73% | 1.75 |
D | 64 – 69% | 1.00 |
F | 00 – 63% | 0.00 |
Week |
Topic |
Readings |
Assignments |
1 |
Introduction to LifeSpan Psychology |
Textbook – Chapter 1 |
Discussion 1 Self-assessment – Perspectives in Lifespan Development |
2 |
Heredity, Prenatal Development, and Birth |
Textbook – Chapter 2 |
Reflection Paper – Exposure to teratogens, Self-Assessments – Teratogens & Birth Defects & Chromosomal Disorders |
3 |
Infancy and Toddlerhood – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 3 pages 71 – 96 Key Study: Animal Research on Neuroplasticity |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Design a daycare |
4 |
Infancy and Toddlerhood – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 3 pages 97 – 114 |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Cry It Out |
5 |
Early Childhood – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 4 pages 115 – 138 |
Reflection Paper – Would you have been a good eye-witness as a child? |
6 |
Early Childhood – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 4 pages 139 – 163 |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Discipline and Parenting |
7 |
Middle and Late Childhood – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 5 pages 164 – 192 |
Reflection Paper – Disabilities in the Classroom |
8 |
Middle and Late Childhood – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 5 pages 193 – 214 |
No assignment this week! |
9 |
Adolescence – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 6 pages 215 – 232 |
Discussion 2; Problem-Based Learning Scenario – Teen Driving |
10 |
Adolescence – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 6 pages 233 – 245 |
Reflection Paper – Adolescent Identity |
11 |
Emerging and Early Adulthood – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 7 pages 246 – 273 |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Career Development and Employment in Early Adulthood |
12 |
Early Adulthood – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 7 pages 274 – 306 |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Modern Parenting |
13 |
Middle Adulthood – Physical and Cognitive Development |
Textbook – Chapter 8 pages 307 – 337 |
Reflection Paper – Preventing Decline |
14 |
Middle Adulthood – Socioemotional Development |
Textbook – Chapter 8 pages 338 – 371 |
Problem-based Learning Scenario – Type A Personalities and Stress |
15 |
Late Adulthood |
Textbook – Chapter 9 |
Creative Project – Plan Your Own Retirement |
16 |
Death and Dying |
Textbook – Chapter 10 |
Life Span Interview; Cumulative Final Exam – See UNE’s ProctorU page for information about signing up and scheduling your exam. |
Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you - they will monitor course progression and provide assistance or guidance when needed. Please don’t hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, course materials, billing, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.
Questions? Visit the Student Support Science Prerequisites page
Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.
The Student Lounge Discussion Board is a designated support forum in which students may engage with each other and grapple with course content. Feel free to post questions, seek clarification, and support each other, but be mindful of UNE's Academic Integrity Policy.
Your instructor will monitor this forum. However, if you are seeking specific and timely answers to questions about course content or your personal grades, please contact your instructor via course messages. For questions about course materials, program policy, and how to navigate and proceed through the course, please contact your Student Service Advisor through the Student Portal.
The University of New England has contracted with ProctorU to provide students with the most convenient online exam proctoring system. This system provides a simple, no cost to the student, secure, online proctor for exams and allows the student to take all the exams at home and on their own schedule.
Upon enrollment into the course, each student will register with ProctorU and establish a login name and password. This will give the student access to all of ProctorU's services. When ready, students will schedule each of their proctored exams with ProctorU. Exams must be scheduled at least 72 hours in advance to avoid fees. Prior to taking their exams, students must be sure that they have downloaded any required additional software. They must also be sure their testing site's connection meets the minimum requirements by using ProctorU's "Test It Out" utility.
Upon the exam day and hour, students will log in to ProctorU and click on "exams". After following the procedures outlined at ProctorU's website, the student will log in to Brightspace and locate their correct exam. The proctor will then allow student access to that exam.
Students must use ProctorU and must follow all proctoring requirements for their exams to be credited. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.
Students will receive two attempts at all proctored examinations. The higher score of the two attempts will be calculated into the final grade. Students can schedule their second attempt by following the same ProctorU instructions as with the original exam.
All students are encouraged to utilize a second attempt on their exams in order to improve their overall performance in the course.
Discussion topics cover events or materials related to this course that contribute to a deeper understanding of key concepts and allow you to interact with your classmates and the instructor. Each discussion topic may require you to conduct internet research, read additional materials, visit a specific webpage, AND/OR view a short video before writing a response following the specific guidelines in the discussion topic prompt.
To earn full credit you will need to post a response to the discussion topic, respond to the original posts of other students, and then contribute meaningfully to an ongoing discussion. You may need to post your initial response before you will see any posts from your classmates. For special cases where one or two students are accelerating faster through the course, the instructor will participate in the discussion so that everyone has the opportunity to interact.
Please see Brightspace for a full description, along with specific guidelines, for each discussion topic. Discussion board assignments should be completed, along with all other assignments in the course, in the order that they appear. Due to the course design, you may be unable to take a proctored exam if you do not complete all assignments that appear prior to that exam.
Please also refer to the Grading Policy/Grade Breakdown section of the syllabus to learn the percentage of your grade that each discussion is worth.
Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements
A schedule of lectures and assignments is included in this syllabus. This is, however a self-paced course and you can complete the course in less time.
Please visit the enrollment page to review the withdrawal and refund policies.
Students are expected to attempt and complete all graded assignments and proctored exams by the end date of the course. View the incomplete grade policy..
Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, only the student may request official transcripts. This may be done online by going to the University of New England Registrar website and following the directions on the page.
To view your unofficial UNE student transcript:
To request your official UNE student transcript:
Please review your Unofficial Transcript prior to requesting an Official Transcript.
After you click Submit Request, your official transcript will be put into the queue to be printed in the Registrar's Office.
The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:
Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations. Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final. Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.
© 2024 University of New England Online | 1 (855) 325-0896