Human Growth & Development
Course Syllabus
COURSE TITLE
COURSE NUMBER
PREREQUISITES
CREDIT HOURS
CONTACT HOURS
CLASS MEETING TIMES
CLASS METHOD
INSTRUCTOR
OFFICE HOURS
COURSE DESCRIPTION
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Human Growth & Development
DEP2004
ENC 1101, English Composition I with a grade of “C”, or ACT Reading 018
and ACT English 017, or CPT-R 083 and CPT-L 083, or SAT I Verbal Enhanced 440, or FCAT Reading 355
3
45
Monday and Wednesday 2:00 to 3:15 in room C234
This course blends traditional face-to-face and online learning. Students are
expected to attend classroom sessions on Monday and Wednesday 2:00 to 3:15
as well as participate in online activities as assigned.
Dr. Katheryn A. Eads, PhD
Email: katheryn.eads@fkcc.edu or keads27@att.net
Office Location: C210
Office: 305-809-3169 Cell: 305-890-6383
Mon & Wed 4:00-7:00, Tues & Thurs 12:00-2:00
An introduction to developmental psychology, the course explores the
different stages of human life- Prenatal, Infancy, Childhood, Adolescence,
Adulthood- and the biological, psychological and social changes occurring in
individuals during them. Topics include: theories of development, genetics and
development, birth and the neonate, cognitive and brain development, early
experience, attachment, motor and language development, social, sex-role and
moral development, aging and death.
1. Demonstrate an understanding of theories, methods and research findings of
life-span psychology.
2. Describe how people change in terms of their cognitive, physical, social &
emotional development.
3. Compare and contrast the major developmental theorists and discuss what each
brings to or adds to the study of human development.
4. Summarize and evaluate the research on the relative contributions of heredity
(nature) versus environment (nurture) to various aspects of development.
5. Identify some of the factors that put people at increased risk for developing
psychological problems at each stage of the lifespan.
6. To think critically about each of the developmental theories and research.
Students will demonstrate critical thinking skills in written assignments.
7. Apply basic principles of developmental psychology to one’s own life
experiences.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOK
PUBLISHER
AUTHORS
ISBN
Please note:
Discovering the Lifespan
Pearson Custom Library
Feldman, R.S.
etext with MyPsychLab 978-0205982493
OR
Loose-Leaf with MyPsychLab 1269703080
PROPOSED COURSE SCHEDULE
The course schedule is subject to change to meet the needs of the course and its
students. If you miss a class, it is YOUR responsibility to stay current.
Week
Week 1
Textbook Chapters—Topics
Chapter 1: Introduction
Aug 21st- 31st
Week 2
Sept 1st- 7th
Assignments
Quiz
Homework: Unethical Studies
2.1: The Start of Life: Prenatal Development
Difficult Decisions
2.2: The Start of Life: Prenatal Growth and
Change
Quiz
Human Genome
Course Project: Register MVC
Week 3
2.3: The Start of Life: Birth and The Newborn
Infant
Sept 8th-14th
3.1: Infancy: Physical Development in Infancy
Week 4
3.2: Infancy: Cognitive Development in Infancy
3.3: Infancy: Social and Personality
Development in Infancy
Sept 15th-21st
Week 5
Sept 22nd- 28th
Week 6
Sept 29th- Oct 5th
4.1: The Preschool Years: Physical
Development in the Preschool Years
4.2: The Preschool Years: Cognitive
Development in the Preschool Years
4.3: The Preschool Years: Social and Personality
Development in the Preschool Years
5.1: Middle Childhood: Physical Development
in Middle Childhood
Quiz
Homework: Cost of Having a
baby
Quiz
Homework: Infant Toys
Course Project: MVC Infant
Ques
Quiz
Homework: Preschool TV
Quiz
Homework: Obesity in
Childhood
Course Project: MVC M.C.
Questions
Week 7
Oct 6th – 12th
Week 8
Oct 13th – 19th
5.2: Middle Childhood: Cognitive Development
in Middle Childhood
5.3: Middle Childhood: Social and Personality
Development in Middle Childhood
Review
Quiz
Homework: Dyslexia
Midterm
10/ 15 @ 2PM: Midterm: Chapters 1-5
Week 9
6.1: Adolescence: Physical Development in
Adolescence
Quiz
Oct 20th -26th
6.2: Cognitive Development in Adolescence
2 Discussions
Homework: Body Image
Course Project: MVC
Adolescent Questions
Week 10
6.3: Adolescence: Social and Personality
Development in Adolescence
Oct 27th- Nov 2nd
Week 11
Nov 3rd -9th
Week 12
Nov 10th- 16th
Week 13
Nov 17th- 23rd
Quiz
Homework: Socialization
7.1: Early Adulthood: Physical Development in
Early Adulthood
7.2: Early Adulthood: Cognitive Development in
Early Adulthood
7.3: Early Adulthood: Social and Personality
Development in Early Adulthood
8.1: Middle Adulthood: Physical Development
in Middle Adulthood
8.2: Middle Adulthood: Cognitive Development
in Middle Adulthood
8.3: Middle Adulthood: Social and Personality
Development in Middle Adulthood
Quiz
Homework: All Grown Up
Course Project: Early
Adulthood Questions
Quiz
Homework: Relaxation
Course Project: ScrapBlog
Due
Quiz
Homework: Year 2050
Course Project: Middle
Adulthood Questions
Week 14
9: Late Adulthood
Nov 24th- 30th
Unit 15
Quiz
Homework: Health Care Costs
Course Project: Late
Adulthood Questions
10: Death and Dying
Quiz
Dec 1st- 7th
Unit 16
Homework: Funeral
12/8 @ 11-5: Final Exam: Chapter 6-10
Final Exam
STUDENT EVALUATION AND COURSE POLICIES
STUDENT GRADE DETERMINATION
140 pts
210 pts
100 pts
200 pts
225 pts
125 Pts
1000 pts
Quizzes (10 pts each)
Assignments ( 15 pts each)
Midterm
Final
MyVirtualLife (15pt Reg/ 35pt Ques)
Scrapblog
Final Grade
FKCC GRADING
SCALE
1000 possible points:
900 and higher
800 to 899
700 to 799
600 to 699
500 and below
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
Below 60%
Exam and Quiz Policy
 I recommend the following general process for studying each chapter:
o Read each chapter once to get an idea of its contents.
o Read the chapter carefully, ensuring you understand each concept.
 A total of fourteen quizzes will be given during the term. Quizzes will be given through the
FKCC D2L courseroom. Quizzes are to be completed by the end of each week (Sunday by
Midnight).
 The midterm and final exams will be open book/open note; and I will conduct a review in order to
answer any questions prior to you taking the exams. The questions will be challenging. You
should study as if the exams were closed book, because you won’t have time to look up every
answer. If you have to look up more than a few answers, you will run out of time.
 The midterm exam will be given in week eight. The midterm will consist of 50 questions with 5
bonus questions; covering material from the beginning of class to the midterm date. Questions
will be a mixture of multiple choice, true/false, fill in the blank and short answer. The midterm
will be given in the library on 10/15 from 2-4 PM. You will have a total of 120 minutes to
complete the exam. A makeup Midterm exam may be offered to students with emergencies,
but only if they can provide acceptable documentation of the emergency (e.g., hospital
admit slip, etc.). The instructor reserves the right to change the format of any makeup exams
(e.g., to essay questions).
A
B
C
D
F
 The final exam will be given in the library on 12/8 from 11-5 pm; and will consist of 100
questions with 10 bonus questions; covering material from the date of the midterm until the date
of the final. Questions will be a mixture of multiple choice, true/false, matching, fill in the blank
and short answer. The final exam cannot be made up for any reason.
Reading Assignments and Homework
 To succeed in this course, you should do all assigned textbook readings and review class notes
frequently.
 Homework is due on Sunday of each week. Any assignment not submitted by the specified date is
considered late, unless you have contacted me and I have approved an extension in advance.
 Homework will be accepted late; however you will lose points for any late work. If turned in
during the week due a 3 point penalty will be assessed. Submissions over a week late will be
accepted for half credit.
 In class assignments & quizzes cannot be made up. If you do not attend class on the day they are
assigned you will not be provided with the assignment to complete.
 If you are out of contact and miss a deadline due to an extenuating circumstance, I expect you to
contact me as soon as possible to discuss the situation. No exceptions will be made to the above
policies unless you can provide documentation of the situation that I consider adequate.
 Internet connection problems are not an acceptable excuse for late work. You should have a
plan in place for internet access in case your primary method is unavailable. I strongly
recommend submitting assignments at least one full day early to allow time to recover from
technical problems.
Attendance & Participation
Students will attend classes in accordance with the FKCC Attendance Policy. I will take attendance
each class, so it is important that you attend each scheduled class session. NOTE: An instructor
may withdraw a student from courses for excessive absences and/or non-attendance up to the 70%
point in the semester.
Class participation is defined as actively participating in classroom activities and discussions. In
order to receive credit for class participation, students must be present in class. There will be at
least one assignment due every week of the semester. These may include class participation,
quizzes, homework, exams, or a combination of these. In other words, class absences will have a
direct impact on your class participation grade. It is expected that students will properly participant
in class and act in a professional manner by:
 Attending class daily, arriving on time and prepared.
 Respecting the views of others before, during and after class.
 Turning off cell phones & pagers while in class unless express permission is granted to have them
on for a limited time. Answering a phone during an exam will result in expulsion from the
classroom.
 Not attending to outside matters during class (text messaging & work for other courses). If I see
you texting in class I will ask you to leave the classroom.
 Not using computers or other devices unless as a part of the course itself.
 Following the provided course calendar in order to remain up to date on all assignments, reading,
quizzes and tests.
 Turning in all work on time.
 Promptly communicating about absences or other problems affecting your ability to participate
and be successful in class.
 Staying until class is dismissed.
Classwork will be provided throughout the course and are to be completed in the course of or
following the lecture. Failure to attend class on the day the work is assigned will result in the
student being unable to complete the work.
Academic Honesty & Plagiarism
 Students are expected to respect and uphold the standards of honesty in submitting written work
to instructors. Though occurring in many forms, plagiarism in essence involves the
presentation of another person’s work as if it were the work of the presenter. This
INCLUDES use of a prior student’s homework, assignments, reaction papers or course project
materials; and cutting and pasting from ANY source.
 Any cheating or plagiarism will result in disciplinary action to be determined by the instructor
based on the severity and nature of the offense. It is the student’s responsibility to review the
College’s policy on Academic Honesty.
Special Needs
 If you have any special needs or requirements pertaining to this course, please discuss them with
the instructor early in the term.
 If you have special needs as addressed by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and need
assistance, please notify the Office for Students with Disabilities at 305-809-3292via email at:
karla.malsheimer@fkcc.edu or the course instructor immediately.
Reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate your special needs.
Copyright Notice
The materials and content provided in this course is intended only for registered Florida Keys Community
College students who have paid their tuition and fees to attend this course. Materials that are affected
include, but are not limited to, text, still images, audio recordings, video recordings, simulations,
animations, diagrams, charts, and graphs. Every effort has been made to insure these materials are not
disseminated to anyone beyond those who have legally registered for this course. Download, revision, or
distribution of course material with anyone other than registered classmates and the instructor is strictly
prohibited.
Students are expected to familiarize themselves with FKCC Policies,
which can be found in the current Student Handbook.