PSY 101, Section 731
Introductory Psychology
2010 Summer Session B
July 6 – August 19
******
Note: This course is entirely online. There are no face-to-face meetings, lectures,
or examinations in this course. Please read all instructions carefully, particularly
those regarding exam procedures and policies. It is your responsibility to
familiarize yourself with the policies and procedures of this course.
******
Instructor: Brittany Lannert, M.A.
Email: lannertb@msu.edu (Please
put “PSY 101” in the subject line)
Office Hours: Tuesdays, 1-2p.m.
Office hours will be held on ANGEL
in the course Chat Room at the
scheduled time (or by appt.)
Course designed by Cathleen E.
McGreal, Ph.D.
PROBLEMS WITH ANGEL?
Call the MSU Help Line:
1-(800) 500-1554 or
1-(517) 355-2345
24 hrs./ 7 days a week!
Required Text
Psychology, by David G. Myers, 8th
edition, 2007, Worth Publishers.
ISBN: 0-7167-6428-8.
The textbook is available at the
Student Book Store
(http://sbsmsu.com), 417 East Grand
River Avenue, East Lansing, MI
48823. The store number is (517)
351-4210. The text is also available
at Amazon.com, Half.com, and other
online booksellers.
ANGEL materials correspond to
chapters and page numbers from the
8th edition of this text only.
About This Course
Welcome to Psychology 101: Introductory Psychology Online, Summer Session
B, 2010. This course consists of online materials corresponding to the 18
chapters of the textbook, Psychology, by David Myers. This course takes place
entirely online.
The purpose of this course is to provide a basic understanding of what
psychology is all about, and how psychologists go about the business of studying
human behavior. The course provides an overview of topics in all areas of
psychology, including biological, cognitive, social, developmental, and personality
psychology. For example, we will consider such topics as genes and behavior,
human intelligence, attitudes, social development, and mental disorders. We
hope the course will stimulate your interest in psychology, and that you will
pursue advanced courses in the discipline.
Online Course Materials
Online materials are available for each chapter
(listed to the right). In addition, many chapters
have additional PowerPoint presentations that
focus on one or more topics in the chapter.
It is STRONGLY recommended that you use
ALL of the online materials in addition to
reading the chapters in your textbook.
By taking the practice quizzes, you will get
feedback about your understanding of the
course material. Quiz questions are drawn
from the same pool of questions that is used to
construct the exams and final exams (although
the practice quizzes do NOT contain the same
questions as the exams and final exam). Using
all of the online materials AND reading the
chapters carefully is the best way to prepare
for the 4 online exams and comprehensive
online Final Exam.
o Objectives
o Narrative Summary
o Overview (PowerPoint
presentation)
o Practice Quiz (multiple
choice)
o Practice Essay Questions
o Review
o Web Links
About Online Courses
Since this course is completely online, it is your responsibility to make sure that
you will have consistent access to the Internet throughout the course. Vacations
do not fit well with accelerated summer course. Remember, each week of an
accelerated summer course is equal to two weeks of a regular semester! You
MUST be present and able to take exams during the posted 24-hour period.
Similarly, accelerated summer courses do not fit well with Study Abroad
programs. MSU has over 250 programs! Study Abroad faculty cannot take
responsibility to ensure reliable Internet connections in order to take exams and
finals for online classes. Also, the timing of our Final Exam is not changed to
accommodate various departure dates for Study Abroad. Whether a Study
Abroad program can fit with accelerated summer courses depends on the timing
of the program and the availability of Internet access.
If there is a problem during a test or activity, report is as soon as possible to the
MSU HELP LINE at (517) 355-2345. If you experience a problem during an
exam, please contact the instructor and contact the MSU HELP LINE. They will
log the problem and, in turn, report the details to us. These technical problems
should be reported immediately (maximum within 6 hours). If there is a system
problem then hearing about what happens from more than one student will help
us to fix what is wrong. If it is just a problem with your computer, the help desk
can help troubleshoot that issue, too. If we find out a day or two later that there
was an issue, then it is difficult to resolve the issue in regard to a particular exam
or activity.
How do I view my grades in ANGEL?
1. Go to the Report Tab.
2. Choose Report under the Category Setting.
3. Pick Grades from the Drop-Down List.
4. Go over to the Right and click on Run.
5. You will see all your points for each graded activity.
6. By adding up these points you will be able to compare your current
grades at all times. Please see the section on grading below for point-GPA
conversions.
MSU Summer Final Exam Schedule
All Summer Session courses have their finals on the last day of class.
Please make note of this and plan for a day off work or other activities. MSU
policy states: “No student should be required to take more than two examinations
during any one day of the final examination period.” In order to avoid this
problem I am scheduling the final to begin on the Wednesday night prior to the
final day. It seems unlikely that anyone will have more than two finals on
Wednesday AND on Thursday!
Assessment Method
The exam method used in the Department of Psychology is one that enhances
exam security during online testing. It is called “single-question, no backtrack.”
In this type of exam only one question is delivered at a time. A student makes a
decision about that question, answers the question and submits it. Then the next
question is presented. It is not possible to go back to previous questions and
change answers that you already submitted. Instructors can ask questions
knowing that the question “gives away” the answer to a previous question. Of
course, this could not happen with a regular pencil-and-paper test.
This method requires a different strategy for test-taking. You may have learned
to answer all the questions that you know and then go back to the others. This
strategy is not possible in a single-question, no backtrack method. In order to
familiarize you with the assessment method used, we have created a singlequestion, no backtrack practice quiz about the course syllabus. The quiz is
available at ANGEL under the Units page. If single-question, no backtrack is a
method with which you will be comfortable, then this online PSY 101 class is
probably a good fit for your assessment style.
IMPORTANT:
a. Exams 1, 2, 3, and 4 each contain 50 multiple-choice questions,
randomly selected from a larger pool of questions. Thus, no two students
will receive the same exam. The Final Exam contains 100 questions,
randomly selected from a larger pool of questions. Thus, no two students
will receive the same final exam.
b. Exam questions are presented one at a time. Once you choose an
answer on an exam, you CANNOT go back to change your answer.
c. Upon exam submission, you will receive feedback about your overall
score in the exam but NOT detailed feedback about the correct answers to
each of the exam questions. Such detailed feedback is provided only for
the practice quizzes (so I encourage you to take advantage of the practice
quizzes). Exams, once taken, are NOT available again.
d. You will have 1 hour to complete each of Exams 1 through 4, and 110
minutes (1 hour, 50 minutes) to complete the Final Exam.
e. Exams will appear on the Units page during the time period scheduled
(see Exam Schedule, below).
f. THERE ARE NO MAKE-UP EXAMS. You must take each exam within
the dates and times that it is scheduled.
******
Exams will be accessible on the Units page within the dates and times scheduled.
Note, once an exam is accessed you will have either 60 minutes (for Exams 1
through 4) or 110 minutes (for the Final Exam) to complete the exam. You MUST
complete the exam in the given time. Once the exam time has passed, ANGEL will
automatically submit your answers and you will receive a score of 0 for unanswered
questions. You WILL NOT be able to access the exam once the allotted time has
passed. Thus, you CANNOT save your answers and return to the exam at a later
time once the clock has started. Do not access an exam unless you are prepared to
complete it in the allotted time.
Similarly, you may ONLY access the exams during the given 24-hour period. Once
the 24-hour period has passed, all exams will close and you will no longer be able to
access the exam. This means that if an exam is scheduled from 5:00pm on
Wednesday to 5:00pm on Thursday, and you access the exam at 4:40pm on
Thursday, you WILL NOT have the full allotted exam time to complete the
assessment. Because all exams will close at 5:00pm on Thursday, if you begin the
exam at 4:40pm you will only have 20 minutes to complete the exam. It is your
responsibility to find adequate time within the 24-hour testing period to complete
the exam.
******
Course Requirements
There are 2 major course requirements, described below:
(1) 4 Exams and 1 Final Exam. As described in the Assessment Method and
Grading Policy sections of this syllabus, exams are CLOSED BOOK and
CLOSED LECTURE NOTES. You may NOT visit other online course sites while
taking an exam, including other sections of the PSY 101 site. Such visits will be
recorded by the ANGEL courseware system and will result in a penalty grade of
zero.
The following directions will appear on each exam:
READ THESE DIRECTIONS CAREFULLY. THEY ARE VERY
IMPORTANT. NOTE THE SECTIONS IN YELLOW. There are 50
multiple-choice questions in this exam and you will have 60 minutes
to complete the questions. If you begin the exam shortly before the
closing time you will not have all 60 minutes. The questions will be
presented one question at a time. Angel automatically submits
your exam when 60 minutes is up or when the designated closing
time is reached. The exam questions are closed book. You may
not consult with any other individuals or share the questions with
others. See the syllabus for complete details regarding academic
integrity.
The quiz questions progress in a forward manner. When you have
answered a question click on NEXT QUESTION. Once you go to
the next question then you cannot return to a previous question.
You must close other browser windows. Choose the best answer
for each of the 50 questions. Each question is worth 2 points.
Remember, you have 60 minutes to complete the exam time.
Similar instructions will be displayed for the Final Exam. They will, however,
describe an exam that is 100 questions and that lasts for 110 minutes.
(2) Research Participation. You are required to participate in online
psychological research studies through the psychology department’s Human
Participation in Research (HPR) pool from the MSU Psychology Department
website (http://psychology.msu.edu/HPRSystem/). Students receive 1 HPR
credit for every 30 minutes spent in research.
The research participation requirement for this course is 15 HPR credits
(approximately 7 hours of research participation). Research participation must
be completed no later than 5pm (EST) on August 17, 2010.
Instructions for registering as a participating student in the HPR Subject Pool are
posted on ANGEL. If you have questions or problems with the Subject Pool,
please contact the HPR Subject Pool Secretary, Leslie Baldwin at
lbaldwin@msu.edu.
DO NOT contact the course instructor about problems with the HPR system.
Course instructors do not have access to the HPR system and will not be able to
assist you.
If you wish not to participate in research, you may choose to complete an
alternative assignment. Alternate assignments typically consist of research
review papers or other written assignments. Please contact the instructor for
more information on alternate assignments if you are interested. Please note
that all alternate assignments will be due to the instructor by 5 PM, August 17,
2010.
Extra Credit
You can earn up to 20 points of extra credit by participating in online studies
(above and beyond the required 15 HPR credits). Studies are worth 4 extra
credit points for each additional HPR credit – so you can participate in up to 20
HPR credits total for the course (15 required HPR credits + 5 extra HPR credits).
Studies must be online studies hosted by the Human Participation in Research
(HPR) pool from the MSU Psychology Department. Availability of studies,
however, cannot be guaranteed. Instructions for registering and using the HPR
System are available on ANGEL. If you have any questions about or problems
with the Subject Pool, please contact the HPR Subject Pool Secretary, Leslie
Baldwin (lbaldwin@msu.edu).
Additional online studies must be completed before 5 PM (EST) August 17, 2010.
Grading Policy
All of the online exams consist of multiplechoice questions. You may access an
exam ONLY ONCE. Once you have
accessed an exam you must submit your
answers within the allotted time. The
course system will automatically SAVE your
answers every 5 minutes.
Grades from research participation will be
computed at the end of the semester.
Please note that the course instructor will
NOT be able to see your completed credits
before that time. You will be responsible for
tracking your completed credits during the
semester.
Course grades will be computed as follows:
Range
Percent
Grade
495-550
90-100%
4.0
467-494
85-89%
3.5
440-466
80-84%
3.0
413-439
75-79%
2.5
385-412
70-74%
2.0
357-384
65-69%
1.5
330-356
60-64%
1.0
< 330
0.0__
*Grades are calculated by points,
and will NOT be rounded for any
reason.
Exam 1 (50 questions, 2 points each)………………………100 points
Exam 2 (50 questions, 2 points each)………………………100 points
Exam 3 (50 questions, 2 points each)………………………100 points
Exam 4 (50 questions, 2 points each)………………………100 points
Final Exam (100 questions, 1 point each)………………….100 points
Research Participation
15 HPR Credits, 3.33 pts/credit………………………50 points
5 extra HPR credits, 4 points/credit………………(20 EC points)
_______________________________________________________________
Total possible course points………………………………….550 points
NOTE:
-
NO notes, books, or other materials may be used while taking an exam.
Obtaining or sharing exam information from or with other students is
considered cheating.
Collaborating on exams with other students is considered cheating.
Exam Schedule
The course begins on Tuesday, July 6 and ends Thursday, August 19, 2010.
There are 4 regular Exams and 1 comprehensive Final Exam, scheduled as
follows and covering the specified chapters:
*** NOTE: All times are Eastern Standard Time (EST). ***
Exam No.
Chapters
To be completed between
1
Prologue and
Chs. 1 to 4
5 PM Thursday, July 15 and
5 PM Friday, July 16
2
Chs. 5 to 8
5 PM Monday, July 26 and
5 PM Tuesday, July 27
3
Chs. 9 to 13
5 PM Wednesday, August 04
and 5 PM Thursday, August 05
4
Chs. 14 to 18
5 PM Thursday, August 12 and
5 PM Friday, August 13
Final
Prologue and
Chs. 1 to 18
5 PM Wednesday, August 18
5 PM Thursday, August 19__
It is YOUR responsibility to ensure that you take the exam during the allotted 24hour period. Please see the sections on Course Requirements and
Assessments for more details about Exams. Be sure to familiarize yourself with
the method of testing and the expectations of this course!
Makeup Exams are VERY RARELY granted. You must have a documented
medical illness or documented family emergency in order to make up an exam in
this course. Forgetting is NOT an acceptable excuse for missing an exam. If
you have a technical problem during an exam, you MUST contact the MSU Help
Line within 6 hours. They will contact the instructor regarding the problem and I
will make a determination about making up the exam. Please see the sections
on Assessment Procedures for more information.
Academic Integrity
Article 2.3.3 of the Academic Freedom Report states that, "The student shares with the
faculty the responsibility for maintaining the integrity of scholarship, grades, and
professional standards." In addition, the Department of Psychology adheres to the
policies on academic honesty as specified in General Student Regulations 1.0,
Protection of Scholarship and Grades; the all-University
Policy on Integrity of
hh
Scholarship and Grades; and Ordinance 17.00, Examinations. (See Spartan Life:
Student Handbook and Resource Guide and/or the MSU Web site:
http://w w w.msu.edu.) Therefore, unless authorized by the instructor, you are expected
to complete all course assignments without assistance from any source other than the
course Web site, textbook, and ancillary materials you may have chosen to purchase
from the publisher when you purchased the textbook (e.g., access to the publishers
w ebsite).
You MAY NOT use any student-based websites for completing the work in Psych 101
online. These sites are known to faculty members w ho are updated about their contents
on a regular basis by honest students and others concerned with academic integrity.
Students who violate MSU rules may receive a penalty grade of ZERO, applied either to
a specific assignment/exam or to the entire course, the decision to be made by the
instructor. In addition, a letter describing the transgression will be sent to the Dean of
you college and the Dean of the Social Science College.
For more information about permitted and forbidden activities see the very useful web
site prepared by the MSU Ombudsman, http:// w w w.msu.edu/unit/ombud/. When in
doubt, contact the course instructor BEFORE engaging in the activity.
Every student is held responsible for knowing the academic integrity policy at MSU. The
policy can be found at https://w w w.msu.edu/unit/ombud/RegsOrdsPolicies.html. Here
are some examples of academic dishonesty:
• Having another student provide academic assistance or coaching during an
online quiz or test.
• Having another person take a quiz or test for you. •
Copying questions or
ans wers from your online quiz or test and sharing them with another student.
• Copying questions or ans wers from your online quiz or test and posting them on
a website for others to view.
• Getting questions and/or ans wers from students w ho have already taken an
exam or quiz you are scheduled to take.
• Collaborating with other students on projects or assignments without your
instructor's permission.
Please be a ware that ANGEL tracks all student login information. For example, it tracks
w hen you have logged into ANGEL and when you have logged out. It also tracks when
you begin your quiz and when your quiz is submitted. This is helpful for the instructors
because it allows us to resolve issues if there is a problem with the ANGEL system in
terms of logging on and/or gaining access to the various sections of the site. Tracking
can also help us resolve disputes about exams and assignments, particularly those that
are timed. ANGEL tracking also can reveal academic misconduct.
Com mercialization of any material in this course is not per mitted.
ANGEL Recommendations and Requirements:
Please follow these suggestions to prevent problems during your participation in
this course:
1. Use a recommended browser.
2. Clear your cache and cookies before starting an exam.
3. Have ANGEL open only to the exam browser. If you have the course
open in a second browser then you may have guest status in the exam browser
and be logged in with your NETID in the other. Your exam could end up with
blank sections even after you enter data or it can skip questions.
ANGEL Supported Browsers: Especially Important at Exam Times!
When taking the exam, it is important to use a Browser that gets along well with
ANGEL! Even if you use Safari or Opera for much of your everyday activity,
when it comes to a timed situation such as an exam, you’ll want to make sure
you’re using a highly compatible browser. There are browsers that ANGEL has
been tested on and with which it has been shown to be compatible; at this time,
Safari is not one of them.
Sometimes students think that Safari has been working well since the first day of
class, but then discover that there are problems during the exam! It is best to
play it safe and use a supported browser. You can see a list of these browsers
by looking at the Question Mark over by the Guide at the left of the course. That
is where you find answers to other Help Questions about ANGEL, too. Overall,
the best browser to use is Firefox 3.x.
Recommended Browsers
Windows
- Firefox 3.x (Highly Recommended)
- Internet Explorer 7.x
Macintosh
- Firefox 3.x
UNIX/Linux
- Firefox 3.x
If you are not sure about what browser
you are using or don’t understand how
to get Firefox, remember that we have a
great Help Desk! Just call 1 (517) 3552345 or 1 (800) 500-1554. They are just
as happy to help you prevent a problem
as they are to help you in the middle of
one.
You can download FireFox at
http://www.getfirefox.com/
Please let the Help Desk know if you
have any questions.
Note that if you are accidentally disconnected before submitting a completed
exam you must e-mail the course instructor IMMEDIATELY and contact the MSU
HELP DESK within 6 hours (see About Online Courses, above). The instructor
will attempt to respond within 48 hours, informing you about whether or not you
may re-enter the exam to complete it. Note that only in RARE instances will such
permission be granted.
The best way to avoid technical problems while taking a course exam is to use a
FAST Internet connection (e.g., cable, modem, DSL) and a reliable computer.
Always plan on completing an exam BEFORE you enter it.
GETTING HELP
Questions about course content:
Instructor: Brittany Lannert
lannertb@msu.edu
Questions about HPR Subject Pool website:
HPR Secretary: Leslie Baldwin
lbaldwin@msu.edu
Questions about technical aspects of the course:
ANGEL Technical support:
1-800-500-1554
Local Help Line:
(517) 355-2345