Syllabus

Post Baccalaureate in Pre-Health

PSYO 1020: Developmental Psychology – 6w – Summer 2023

Credits - 3

Description

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.

This is a 6 week long, accelerated course. 

Materials

Textbooks

Lally, M. & Valentine-French, S. (2019). Lifespan development: A psychological perspective (2nd ed.). Creative Commons. 

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

Program Outcomes

In lecture courses, students should be able to:

  • Communicate scientific concepts and information clearly.
    Illustrate fundamental laws, theories, and principles of scientific disciplines.
  • Apply knowledge and critical thinking skills to scientific problems.

Course Objectives

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

  • Describe the scientific methodology and research designs typically employed in research in human development
  • Identify the nature of interaction between biology and environment and its influence on development throughout the lifespan
  • Discuss human genetics and issues related to prenatal development, birth, and infancy
  • Discuss the major developmental milestones in physical, cognitive, and socioemotional domains throughout the human lifespan
  • Analyze significant theories of cognitive development, including those of Piaget, Vygotsky, and the information-processing approach
  • Examine key issues of development in adulthood, including marriage and divorce, parenting, midlife, and careers choices
  • Analyze the key issues of development in late adulthood, including retirement, living arrangements, cognitive changes, death and grieving
  • Judge the alignment of expected milestones of development with observed/reported milestones reached by an individual in childhood or adolescence
  • Judge the alignment of expected milestones of development with observed/reported milestones reached by an individual in early, middle, or late adulthood 

Assignments

Discussions

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.

Reflection Papers

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.

Problem-Based Learning Scenarios

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.

Creative Assignment

You will create a virtual poster that visually represents how you want to retire. 

Lifespan Interview

In this activity, you will think critically and reflect on the lifespan. You will identify two people who represent two different stages of the lifespan—ideally, two people who do not identify with your own current stage of lifespan development—and set up a brief 15- to 20-minute interview with them. You should start this early, though it will be due in Week 6.

Final Cumulative Exam (Proctored)

This is a 50-item, multiple-choice exam that is proctored. Students will have 1 hour and 2 attempts 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.

Grading Policy

Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:

Grade Breakdown

AssignmentPoints
Introduction4
Week 1 Discussion4
Week 1 Reflection Assignment5
Week 1 PB Scenario5
Week 2 Discussion4
Week 2 Reflection Assignment5
Week 2 PB Scenario5
Week 3 Discussion4
Week 3 Reflection Assignment5
Week 3 PB Scenario 5
Week 4 Discussion4
Week 4 Reflection Assignment5
Week 4 PB Scenario5
Week 5 Discussion4
Week 5 Reflection Assignment5
Week 5 PB Scenario5
Week 6 Discussion4
Week 6 Interview Assignment5
Week 6 Creative Assignment5
Cumulative Exam12
TOTAL100

Grade Scale

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

Schedule

Week 1: May 22 – May 28
Week 2: May 29 – Jun 4
Week 3: Jun 5 – Jun 11
Week 4: Jun 12 – Jun 18
Week 5: Jun 19 – Jun 25
Week 6: Jun 26 – June 30 (Short Week )

Week  Topic  Assignments Due Dates
1 Prenatal, Infancy & Toddlerhood
  • Introductions
  • Discussion
  • Reflection Assignment
  • Problem-Based Scenario

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

Response Posts & Assignments Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday 

2

Childhood

  • Discussion
  • Reflection
  • Assignment
  • Problem-Based Scenario

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

Response Posts & Assignments Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday 

3 Adolescence
  • Discussion
  • Reflection Assignment
  • Problem-Based Scenario

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

Response Posts & Assignments Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday 

4 Early Adulthood
  • Discussion
  • Reflection Assignment
  • Problem-Based Scenario

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

Response Posts & Assignments Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday

5 Middle Adulthood
  • Discussion
  • Reflection Assignment
  • Problem-Based Scenario

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

Response Posts & Assignments Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday

6 Older Adulthood
  • Discussion
  • Interview Assignment
  • Creative Assignment
  • Final Exam (proctored, cumulative)

Discussion Initial Post Due by 11:59 PM EST Sunday

Response Posts, Assignments, & Exam Due by 11:59 PM EST Friday

 

Student Resources

Accommodations

Any student who would like to request, or ask any questions regarding, academic adjustments or accommodations must contact the Student Access Center at (207) 221-4438 or pcstudentaccess@une.edu. Student Access Center staff will evaluate the student's documentation and determine eligibility of accommodation(s) through the Student Access Center registration procedure.

Online Student Support

Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you. Please don't hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies. Questions? Email: prehealth@une.edu.

Instructor and Support Contact Information

Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.

UNE Libraries

Further Assistance

Your student service advisor monitors course progression and provides assistance or guidance when needed. They can assist questions regarding ordering course materials, University policies, billing, navigating the course in Brightspace, and more.

Online Student Support

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

Instructor and Support Contact Information

Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.

Student Lounge

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.

Policies

Attendance Policy

Online students are required to submit a graded assignment/discussion prior to Sunday evening at 11:59 pm ET of the first week of the term. If a student does not submit a posting to the graded assignment/discussion prior to Sunday evening at 11:59 pm ET, the student will be automatically dropped from the course for non-participation. Review the full attendance policy.

Assignments

Late assignments will be accepted up to 3 days late; however, there is a 10% grade reduction (from the total points) for the late submission. After three days the assignment will not be accepted. Discussion posts: If the initial post is submitted late, but still within the discussion board week, there will be a 10% grade reduction from the total discussion grade (e.g., a 3 point discussion will be reduced by 0.3 points). Any posts submitted after the end of the Discussion Board week will not be graded. Please make every effort ahead of time to contact your instructor if you are not able to meet an assignment deadline. Arrangements for extenuating circumstances may be considered by faculty.

Proctored Examinations

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 the ProctorU Chrome or Firefox extension and are using the most current version of Chrome or Firefox. 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.

Information about exam attempts can be found in your course.

Technology Requirements

Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements

Course Length

A schedule of lectures and assignments is included in this syllabus.

Courses in the program are equivalent to one-semester courses designed to be completed in 6 or 8 weeks

  1. Enrollment in the course begins the day your section opens which is listed in the Academic Calendar found on the Student Success Portal.
  2. Course due dates, start and end dates are in respect to Eastern Time.

Withdrawal and Refund Policies

Please review the policies in your confirmation email. Contact PreHealth@une.edu with any questions.

Grade Policy

Students are expected to attempt and complete all graded assignments and proctored exams by the end date of the course. Contact support with any questions.

Transcripts

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:

  1. Log into uonline at http://uonline.une.edu
  2. Select Student Services
  3. Select Student Records
  4. Select Academic Transcript

To request your official UNE student transcript:

Please review your Unofficial Transcript prior to requesting an Official Transcript.

  1. Log into uonline at http://uonline.une.edu
  2. Select Student Services
  3. Select Student Records
  4. Select Request Printed/Official Transcript
  5. Follow the prompts

After you click Submit Request, your official transcript will be put into the queue to be printed in the Registrar's Office.

Academic Integrity

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:

  1. Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
  2. Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
  3. Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
  4. Multiple submission of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
  5. Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.

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.

Proctored Examinations

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.

Course Discussions

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.

Technology Requirements

Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements

Course Length

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.

  1. Courses in the SPHP program are equivalent to one-semester courses designed to be completed in 16 weeks
  2. Enrollment in the course begins the day your section opens which is listed in the Academic Calendar found on the Student Success Portal.
  3. Course start and end dates are in respect to Eastern Time.

Withdrawal and Refund Policies

Please visit the enrollment page to review the withdrawal and refund policies.

Grade Policy

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..

Transcripts

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:

  1. Log into uonline at http://uonline.une.edu
  2. Select Student Services
  3. Select Student Records
  4. Select Academic Transcript

To request your official UNE student transcript:

Please review your Unofficial Transcript prior to requesting an Official Transcript.

  1. Log into uonline at http://uonline.une.edu
  2. Select Student Services
  3. Select Student Records
  4. Select Request Printed/Official Transcript
  5. Follow the prompts

After you click Submit Request, your official transcript will be put into the queue to be printed in the Registrar's Office.

Academic Integrity

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:

  1. Cheating, copying, or the offering or receiving of unauthorized assistance or information.
  2. Fabrication or falsification of data, results, or sources for papers or reports.
  3. Action which destroys or alters the work of another student.
  4. Multiple submission of the same paper or report for assignments in more than one course without permission of each instructor.
  5. Plagiarism, the appropriation of records, research, materials, ideas, or the language of other persons or writers and the submission of them as one's own.

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.