HUMAN LEARNING
PSYED 2127/EDUC 2007
SPRING 2014
Instructor: Dr. Roger Klein
Office: Posvar Hall 5945
Office Hours: TH 11:00 ---noon, or by appointment
Office Phone: 648-7043
Email: rklein@ pitt.edu
Note: When emailing please put HUMAN LEARNING in subject box.
Text: None
Course Overview: The purpose of this course is to introduce students to a variety of theories, research
methods, applications, and interventions in the field of learning. We will explore, often through the use of
real-world events and experiences how different researchers contribute to our understanding of learning,
by studying their work in biology, behaviorism, communications, information processing, cognitive, and
social-cognitive psychology. Students will be evaluated in terms of 3 papers and class participation.
Date
Jan. 14
Topic
th
Pavlovian (Classical Conditioning) psychology and real-world applications (I).
Videos: Watson, NBC, phobias, Tragedy at Sandy Hook, Resilience
Jan.21st
Pavlov (II), Social-Cognitive Theory (I), and clinical/educational applications.
Videos: Hurricane Katrina and Race, **Snake phobia (Ost), CNN (Skip Rizzo).
Jan.28th
Body & mind (Psycho-neuro-immunology, or PNI) and the brain.
Videos: **Health and Stress (S. Cohen), *PBS: Unnatural Causes: Is
Inequality Making us Sick?
Feb. 4th
The Cognitive Revolution I: Strengths, Issues and Problems
Videos: Constructivism (in class) and at home watch CNN News Report on
Reggio Emilia Italy Early Childhood Schools in US at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVv5ZL9nlgs
Reading:
http://www.hse.org.uk/hse/hexagon/Site_Test/HSP12_files/C2%20The%20REGGI
O%20EMILIA%20approach%20SUMMARY.pdf
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Feb. 11th
The Cognitive Revolution II: Strengths, Issues and Problems
Feb. 18th
Social-Cognitive I. The General Aggression Model.
Videos: ESPN, Jackass, Penn and Teller, Nightline: Strasburger vs.Ferguson
Note: Take the IAT race-test & age test online prior to Feb. 25th class. The URL is
https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/demo/takeatest.html
Click on “proceed” at the bottom of the page and various test options will appear.
Feb. 25th
Social Cognitive II: Aggression: Theory (General Aggression Model), Research
Paper 1 due
and Applications
Videos: **IAT(Banaji), 20/20: Sex and Race
Mar. 4th
Biology and Learning I: Science and applications
Videos: Amnesia, Amazing Brain, Paralyzed man, Fear Conditioning,
Emotional Learning.
March 11th
Biology and Learning II: Practical applications and critique
Videos: Omega III, Issues with Omega III *Then Came Baby, Nightline.
March 18th
SPRING BREAK
March 25th
Twin Research: History of the learning/biology controversy.
Paper 2 Due
Videos: Evolutionary Psychology, Babies and Heredity, Twin Research,
Reading Minds.
April 1st
Operant Conditioning: History, theory and applications
Videos: Killing in the military
Pigeon rescuers, **Reducing pain at the Doctor’s Office (Cohen)
April 8th
Operant Conditioning: Single subject research design (teacher friendly research
designs you can use)
April 15th
Information Processing and learning from broadcast media:
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Videos: WPXI and others
April 22nd
Future Issues in Learning.
Paper 3 Due
NOTE: Cell phones are to be off.
*Videos: Three longer VHS videos: And Then Came Baby, Making Schools Work, and Is
Inequality making us Sick, are on reserve at Hillman Library.
** Two DVD’s entitled Research in Action Videos Vol. 1 & 2, produced by Roger Klein, are also on
reserve at Hillman. There are 55 videos on these 2 DVD’s.
Grading:
Three 7-8 page papers. All papers are based upon the questions listed below. Papers are due Feb. 25th,
March 25th and April 22nd. The papers are worth 80% of your grade and class participation is 15% and
attendance is 5%. Papers are graded 50% for content and 50% for clarity and acceptable writing style. If
you are an International Student whose native language is NOT English, your paper is graded
based primarily upon content. Links to readings will be sent via email through Course Web and some
of these will be part of class discussion. No material may be introduced that comes from sources
outside of this class OR the Internet, and ALL writing must be in your own words.
Doctoral students in ADP (Applied Developmental Psychology) are to write 9-10 pages, use the
additional references cited, and must select choice # 10 as one option. Any other student can do this
as well, if you choose.
PAPER QUESTIONS:
1. Discuss the issues involved in creating smart babies and other discoveries in brain science. How
does brain science relate to practice (i.e., the claims of the Better Baby Institute)? Discuss several
class videos including “And Then Came Baby” (also at Hillman)--and the Sowell video (Hillman)
on brain development in childhood and adolescence, what is known about enriched environments,
synapse development and critical periods. Doctoral students also cover Thompson and Nelson.
2. Discuss Pavlov circa 2014. Compare his original work (very briefly) to what is known today
about classroom fears, school phobia, advertising, prejudice, and terrorism. Use the Gigerenzer
and/or Myers articles, as well as video segments on race and hurricane Katrina, woman and
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feathers, wolves, & Skip Rizzo on soldiers and PTSD. Doctoral students also cover either Till
and Priluck paper OR the Ohman and Olsson articles (read Ohman first).
3. Examine social cognitive theory using one of the following approaches:
a. Discuss the videos on snake phobia and virtual reality (both at Hillman). Also summarize
the Dingfelder and Winerman articles.
b. Discuss the research presented in class on the General Aggression Model and class
videos on violence in the media (e.g., ESPN, Jackass, etc), and summarize one article by
Olson. Doctoral students also use Gentile.
c. Summarize the article by Huesmann and one by Olson.
d. Summarize the 2 articles by Betz and Pajares.
e. Compare the articles by Ferguson (2013, American Psychologist) and Strasberger &
Donnerstein.
4. Have someone take the IAT for race and age. Summarize their results and the articles by
Kersting Plant, and Eberhardt.
5. Summarize the PBS video Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making us Sick (shown in class &
@ Hillman), and the articles on PNI. Doctoral students also review article by Pressman.
6. Summarize the video on sexual prejudice (Hillman) and the article by Herek.
7. Summarize the video on stereotype threat (Hillman) and the article by Johns. Doctoral
students also summarize article by Steele.
8. Do one of the following:
a. Summarize the video on mirror neurons (Hillman) and the articles in the Monitor on
Psychology listed under 8 “c” below.
b. Doctoral students review the Sowell, and Pineda videos, the “Monitor” articles
on mirror neurons, Beck, Thompson and Carey articles.
c. Summarize de Waal video on Chimpanzee Culture (Hillman) and two of his articles
below under 8 “d-g”.
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9. Summarize the Crick video on Relational Aggression (Hillman) and her article in Current
Directions in Psychological Science.
10. Summarize, analyze, and critique the article in School Psychology Review on extrinsic
reinforcement in the classroom, and compare it with the article on Bribery from Time
Magazine. Include your reactions and personal experience as an educator (personal exp. not
more than 2 pgs out of 7).
11. Summarize the Elias video on social-emotional learning in the classroom (Hillman) and then
summarize, analyze and critique the article by Elias.
12. Review/critique all 3 of the following: (a) the video on Self Control at Hillman (Baumeister),
(b) the self-control article from the APA website: What you Need to Know about Willpower,
and (c) the article from the January 2012 Monitor on Psychology.
13. Review/critique the 2 articles on Motivation and Learning. Incorporate your personal opinion
(not more than 2 pgs).
14. Constructivism vs. Direct Instruction. This paper counts as two and is twice as long. You are
to synthesize, analyze, compare, contrast, and voice your opinion, based upon research
articles, opinion pieces, and newspaper columns. All material will be provided in class.
Special instructions apply.
Articles/videos to use for above questions. All available at Pitt Virtual Extranet, if url is not
provided:
https://sslvpn.pitt.edu/dana-na/auth/url_default/welcome.cgi
1. Smart babies
a. Thompson & Nelson, (2001). Developmental science and the media. American
Psychologist, 56, 5-15.
2. Pavlov
a. Till, B, & Priluck, R. (2000). Stimulus generalization in classical conditioning: An
initial investigation and extension. Psychology and Marketing, 17, 55-72.
b. Gigerenzer, G. (2004). Dread risk, September 11, and fatal traffic accidents.
Psychological Science, 15, 286-287.
c. Ohman, A, (2005). Conditioned fear of a face: A prelude to ethnic enmity? Science,
309, 711-712.
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d. Olsson, A., Ebert, J., Banaji, M., & Phelps, E. (2005). The role of social groups in the
persistence of learned fear. Science, 309, 785-787.
e. Myers.D. (2004). Do we fear the right things? American Psychological Society
Observer http://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/1201/prescol.html.
3. Social Cognitive Theory
I. Phobias
a. Winerman. L. (2005). A virtual cure. Monitor on Psychology (July-Aug), pgs. 87-89.
http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug05/cure.html
b. Dingfelder, S.(2005). Fighting children’s fears, fast. Monitor on Psychology (JulyAug), pgs. 90-91. http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug05/fighting.html
II. Violent Media
a. Ferguson, C.J. (2013). Violent video games and the Supreme Court. Lessons for the
scientific community in the wake of Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association.
http://www.christopherjferguson.com/SCOTUSPaper.pdf
b. Gentile, D., Saleem, M., & Anderson, C. (2007). Public policy and the effects of
media violence on children.
http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/faculty/dgentile/pdfs/GSA_SIPR(2007).pdf
c. Huesmann, L., R. (2007) The impact of electronic media violence: Scientific
theory and research. Journal of Adolescent Health 41, 6, Supplement #1 S6–S13.
d. Olson, C.K. (2010). Children’s motivations for video game play in the context
of normal development. Review of General Psychology, 14, 180-187.
e. Olson, C.K., Kutner, L.A., Baer, L., Beresin, E.V., Warner, D.E., & Nicholi,
A.M. Jr. (2009). M-rated video games and aggressive or problem behavior
among young adolescents. Applied Developmental Science, 13, 188-198.
f.
Strasburger, V.C. & Donnerstein, E. (2013). The new media of violent video
games: Yet same old media problems? Connect to Pitt’s Health Sciences
Library,
go
to
journal
called
Clinical
Pediatrics,
then
enter
http://cpj.sagepub.com.pitt.idm.oclc.org/content/early/2013/08/21/000992
2813500340.full.pdf+html
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III. Self-Efficacy
a. Betz, N. (2004). Contributions of self-efficacy theory to career counseling: A personal
perspective. The Career Development Quarterly, 52, 340-353.
b. Pajares, F. (2002). Overview of Social Cognitive Theory and of Self-Efficacy.
http://www.emory.edu/EDUCATION/mfp/eff.html
4. Implicit Associations
a. Kersting, K.(2005). Not biased? Monitor on Psychology, March, pg. 64
http://www.apa.org/monitor/mar05/biased.html
b. Plant, E. & Peruche, B. (2005).
The consequences of race for police officers' responses to criminal suspects.
Psychological Science 16 (3), 180-183.
c. Eberhardt, J.L. et al. (2006). Looking deathworthy: Perceived stereotypicality of
Black defendants predicts capital-sentencing outcomes. Psychological Science 17,
383-386.
5. PNI (Psychoneuroimmunology)
a. Adelson, R. (2005). Only the lonely. Monitor on Psychology, 36, 26
http://www.apa.org/monitor/may05/lonely.html
b. How Inequality is Undermining our Health. Monitor on Psychology.
http://apa.org/monitor/2013/10/health-wealth.aspx
c. Various authors http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun02/index.aspx
d. Pressman et.al. (2005). Loneliness, social network size and immune response to
influenza vaccination in college freshmen. Health Psychology, 24, 297-306.
http://www.apa.org/journals/releases/hea243297.pdf
6. Sexual Prejudice
a. Herek, G.M. (2000). The psychology of sexual prejudice. Current Directions
in Psychological Science, 9, 19-22.
7. Stereotype threat
a. Johns, M., Schmader, T., & Martens, A. (2005). Knowing is half the battle.
Psychological Science 16 (3), 175-179.
b. Steele, C.S. (1997). A threat in the air. How stereotypes shape intellectual
identity and performance. American Psychologist, 52, 613-629.
8. Biology, Evolution and Learning
a.
Carey, B. (2005). Can brain scans see depression? New York Times. Article will be emailed.
b. Thompson, C. (2003). There’s a sucker born in every medial prefrontal cortex. New York Times.
Article will be emailed.
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c. Monitor on Psychology, Oct. 2005, pgs. 48-56. Mirror neurons.
http://www.apa.org/monitor/oct05/mirror.html
http://www.apa.org/monitor/oct05/mimicry.html
http://www.apa.org/monitor/oct05/autism.html
d. de Waal, F. (2002) Evolutionary psychology: The wheat and the chaff .Current Directions in
Psychological Science,11 187–191.
e. de Waal, F. B. M. (2005). A century of getting to know the chimpanzee. Nature 437: 56-59.
f. de Waal, F. B. M., Dindo, M., Freeman, C. A., & Hall, M. (2005). The monkey in the
mirror: Hardly a stranger. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 102: 11140-11147.
g. de Waal, F. B. M. (2004). Evolutionary ethics, aggression, and violence: Lessons from
primate research. Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 32: 18-23.
9. Relational Aggression:
a. Crick, N. R., Casas, J. F., & Nelson, D. A. (2002). Toward a more complete
understanding of peer maltreatment: Studies of relational victimization. Current
Directions in Psychological Science, 11, 98-101.
10. Extrinsic Reinforcement:
a. Extrinsic reinforcement in the classroom: Bribery or best practice? School
Psychology Review, 2004, 33, 344-362.
b. Time magazine April 2010
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1978758,00.html
11. Social Emotional learning:
a. Greenberg, M, O’Brien, U, Zins, J, Resnik, H & Elias, M. (2003). Enhancing
school-based prevention and youth development through coordinated social, emotional,
and academic learning. American Psychologist, 58, 466-474.
12. Self Control:
a. DVD @ Hillman. Self control with Roy Baumeister.
b. http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/willpower.pdf
c. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/01/self-control.aspx
13. Learning and Motivation.
a. Hong, Huang-Yao;& Lin-Siegler, Xiaodong (2012. How learning about scientists'
struggles influences students' interest and learning in physics. Journal of Educational
Psychology,104, 469-484.
b. Lin, X. & Branford, J. D. (2010). Personal background knowledge influences crosscultural understanding. Teachers College Record, 112, 1729-1757.
14. Constructivism and Direct Instruction. A series of approximately 12 articles will be emailed and/or
links will be sent. I am still collecting some of these. This will count as 2 papers and must be twice as
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long. Will be discussed in class and relates to the 2 Cognitive Revolution lectures. This paper should be
turned in on the last day of class. Do another paper for the first paper due date.
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