Spring 2025 Course Syllabus Course: PSYC-2301 (Section: 72, CRN: 10940) General Psychology

Instructor Information
Instructor	Carol Barbay
Email	barbacm@lamarpa.edu
Phone	(409) 984-6311
Office	Educational I - Room: 110
Office Hours	By appointment
Additional Contact Information
Course Information
Description	General Psychology is a survey of the major psychological topics, theories and approaches to the scientific study of behavior and mental processes.
Required Textbooks	Textbook Purchasing Statement: A student attending Lamar State College Port Arthur is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from the college-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer. REQUIRED TEXTBOOK Textbook Purchasing Statement: A student attending Lamar State College Port Arthur is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from the college-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer.     Textbook Purchasing Statement: A student attending Lamar State College Port Arthur is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from the college-affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be available from an independent retailer, including an online retailer. The required textbook for this course is Psychology published by OpenStax. The link to the textbook is as follows:  https://assets.openstax.org/oscms-prodcms/media/documents/Psychology2e_WEB.pdf?_gl=1*gz4153*_ga*MTA4NTc2MzQyMS4xNjgzOTg4MjE4*_ga_T746F8B0QC*MTY4NTM3MjYzNy4yLjEuMTY4NTM3MjY0OC40OS4wLjA. Students may also review course lecture notes for required quiz and exam question content, as well as completing required special rqa assignments and required regular rqa assignments in the Blackboard section of the course. You must have access to the following Microsoft Office applications to view the course lecture notes: Word and PowerPoint. If you do not have access to Microsoft Office applications, you can gain access by going to the following webpage: http://lamarpa.edu/Departments/Information-Technology-Services/Microsoft-Office-Pro-Plus-for-Students
Additional Materials/Resources	None.
Corequisites/Prerequisites	ENGL-0302 College Reading Skills
Learning Outcomes	Learning outcomes 1. Identify various research methods and their characteristics used in the scientific study of psychology. (Core Skills 1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 2. Describe the historical influences and early schools of thought that shaped the field of psychology.(Core Skills 1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 3. Describe some of the prominent perspectives and approaches used in the study of psychology.(Core Skills 1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 4. Use terminology unique to the study of psychology.(Core Skills  1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 5. Describe accepted approaches and standards in psychological assessment and evaluation.(Core Skills  1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 6. Identify factors in physiological and psychological processes involved in human behavior.(Core Skills 1,2) Measured by course assignments and activities. 7. Calculate current course grade accurately, using information provided by instructor relating to individual scores from projects, assignments, quizzes and exams.(Core Skill 3) Measured by course assignments and activities. 8. Explain how personal ethnic heritage is similar to and different from other cultural perspectives in effects on social cognition. (Core Skills 1, 2, 5 ) Measured by course assignments and activities.
Core Objectives	Core objectives * Communication skills: Students will demonstrate effective written, oral and/or visual communication. * Critical Thinking Skills: Students will engage in creative and/or innovative thinking, and/or inquiry, analysis, evaluation, synthesis of information, organizing concepts and constructing solutions. * Empirical and Quantitative Skills: Students will demonstrate applications of scientific and mathematical concepts. * Social Responsibility: Students will demonstrate intercultural competency and civic knowledge by engaging effectively in local, regional, national and/or global communities.
Lecture Topics Outline	MODULE 1 Syllabus review; Chapter 1 introduction to psychology;  Chapter 2 psychological research; ; Chapter 15 psychological disorders;  Chapter 16 therapy and treatment; MODULE 2 Chapter 3 biopsychology; Chapter 6 learning Chapter 7 thinking and intelligence Chapter 8 memory ; MODULE 3 Chapter 9 lifespan psychology; Chapter 10 emotion and motivation; Chapter 11 personality  Chapter 14 - stress, lifestyle and health MODULE 4 Chapter 4 states of consciousness; Chapter 5 sensation and perception; Chapter 12 social psychology;  Chapter 13 industrial-organizational psychology;
Major Assignments Schedule	MAY MINI 2025 ASSIGNMENT PLANS MODULE 1 PSYC 2301 WEEK 1 REQUIRED  TED Talk ASSIGNMENT 1; _FRI __MAY 16___20 WEEK 1 BONUS SOAR ASSIGNMENT 1 FRI _MAY 16__0 WEEK 1 Required Attendance Assignments  1 and 2; FRI _MAY 16_20 WEEK 1 Required Preview Version  Core Assignment 1; FRI  ___MAY 16___10 WEEK 1 Required Special RQA Assignment 1 _SAT __MAY 17___10 WEEK 1 Required Regular Assignment 1 SAT ___MAY 17_____25 WEEK 1 Course Pretest MON-FRI ONLINE ____SUN __MAY 18__0 WEEK 1 Required Quiz 1 - CHAPTERS 1,2,15,16 - SUN  __MAY 18___25 WEEK 1 Required Exam 1 CHAPTERS 1,2,15,16 -SUN   _MAY 18___100 MODULE 2 PSYC 2301 WEEK 2 Required Attendance Assignments 3 and 4; _MON __MAY 19___20 WEEK 2 Optional BONUS Grade Calculation Assignment MON  MAY 19__0 WEEK 2 Required TED Talk Assignment 2 ; TUE __MAY 20_20 WEEK 2 BONUS SOAR Assignment 2; _TUE __MAY 20__0 WEEK 2 Required Special Assignment 2; TUE ___MAY 20__10 WEEK 2 Required Preview Version 2 Core Assignment; _TUE __MAY 20__10 WEEK 2 Required Regular Assignment 2; _WED __MAY 21_25 WEEK 2 Required Quiz 2 Chapters 3,6,7,8; Online THU __MAY 22____25 WEEK 2 Required Exam 2 - Chapters  3,6,7,8; Online THU MAY _22___100 MODULE 3 PSYC 2301 WEEK 2 Required Attendance Assignments 5 and 6; __FRI __MAY 23__20 WEEK 2 Optional  PERMA Bonus Assignment _FRI  _MAY 23 __0 WEEK 2 REQUIRED TED Talk Assignment 3 ;_FRI_MAY 23__20 WEEK 2  BONUS SOAR Assignment 3 _FRI _MAY 23__0  WEEK 2 Required Preview Version 3  Core Assignment; _FRI __MAY 23__10  WEEK 2 Required Special Assignment 3__SAT __MAY__24_10 WEEK 2 Optional  Bonus AA 123 Assignment SAT   MAY 24__0  WEEK 2  Required Regular Assignment 3; SAT__MAY_24__25 WEEK  Bonus Syllabus Quiz Module 3 _SAT _MAY _24_0 WEEK 2 Required Quiz 3 - Chapters 9,10,11,14; ONLINE SUN MAY  _25___25 WEEK 2 Required Exam 3; Chapters 9,10,11,14; Online SUN MAY  ___MAY 25___100 MODULE 4 PSYC 2301 WEEK 3 Required Attendance Assignment 7 MON__MAY 26_ __10 WEEK 3 Required Grade Calculation Assignment MON __MAY_26_20 WEEK 3 Bonus SOAR Assignment 4   _MON__MAY_26_20 WEEK 3 Required  TED Talk Assignment 4; MON MAY__26___40 WEEK 3 Optional Bonus Orientation Assignment TUE MAY _27___0 WEEK 3 Required Special Assignment 4 TUE _MAY 27__20 WEEK 3 Required Final Version Core Assignment TUE  MAY 27 ____130 WEEK 3 Required Regular Assignment 4; TUE MAY 27 _____25 WEEK 3 Required Final Quiz 4; Chapters 4,5,12,13; WED MAY 28    ; __25_ WEEK 3  Required Final  Exam 4; Chapters 4,5,12,13; WED MAY 28  ;_100
Final Exam Date	May 26, 2025 - 12:0 AM   Through  May 28, 2025 - 11:59 PM
Grading Scale	90 - 100=A 80 - 89=B  70 - 79=C   60 - 69=D  Below 59 = F
Determination of Final Grade	DETERMINATION OF FINAL GRADE  Your FINAL course letter grade will be based on an approximate percentage of 1000 total possible points as follows: Letter Grades                                      Point Totals                                   Approximate Percentages A                                                          900-1000+                                     90%+ B                                                          800-899                                        80-89% C                                                          700-799                                        70-79% D                                                          600-699                                        60-69% F                                                          599 and lower                               59% and below HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR GRADE AT ANY TIME DURING THE SEMESTER 1. Add all of the points you have earned as of today's date, excluding any points from practice activities. 2. Request current required total course points from instructor. 3. Divide your total points by the total number of required points as of today's date. 4. For your final semester grade divide your current total by 1000 or use the grade chart above. 5. Your final grade or interim grade will be calculated based on total points only, NOT AN "AVERAGE" GRADE. 6. Remember a request for an AVERAGE GRADE IS MEANINGLESS and should be avoided. 7. Your grade at any time during the time of the semester is based on a percentage of total earned points relative to total required points at the time of calculation Your FINAL course letter grade will be based on an approximate percentage of 1000 total possible points as follows: Letter Grades                                      Point Totals                                   Approximate Percentages A                                                          900-1000+                                     90%+ B                                                          800-899                                        80-89% C                                                          700-799                                        70-79% D                                                          600-699                                        60-69% F                                                          599 and lower                               59% and below HOW TO CALCULATE YOUR GRADE AT ANY TIME DURING THE SEMESTER 1. Add all of the points you have earned as of today's date, excluding any points from practice activities. 2. Request current required total course points from instructor. 3. Divide your total points by the total number of required points as of today's date. 4. For your final semester grade divide your current total by 1000 or use the grade chart above.   CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR FINAL GRADE FROM REQUIRED POINT SOURCES REQUIRED EXAMS = 400/100 = 40% REQUIRED QUIZZES = 100/1000 = 10% REQUIRED REGULAR ASSIGNMENTS = 100/1000 = 10% REQUIRED SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS = 50/1000 = 5% REQUIRED CORE ASSIGNMENT = 160/1000 = 16% REQUIRED TED ASSIGNMENTS = 100/1000 = 10% REQUIRED GRADE CALCULATION = 20/1000 = 2% REQUIRED ATTENDANCE ASSIGNMENTS = 70/1000 = 7% TOTAL 1000/1000 REQUIRED POINTS = 100%
Course Policies
Instructor Policies	INSTRUCTOR COURSE POLICIES THE CONTENT OF THIS DOCUMENT MAY BE CHANGED AS NECESSARY DURING THE SEMESTER *For further details about assignments, see additional information using link in Blackboard section of this course. 1. This course will be a 3-week, 21-day course. The content of this course is the same as the regular semester, 16-week version of this course. As you might imagine, this course will be intense with very few if any non-course-work days.  2. Please review the major assignments section above. There will be both required and extra credit activities in this course. 3. Both required and extra credit activities will result in adding to your course points, which will be the basis of your final grade. 4. Please consider this message your invitation to explore the Start Here section of this course once you have access to the course as well as a welcome to this course. 5. As part of 2 required assignments (Preview Version 3 Core Assignment and Final Version Core Assignment), you will be creating 2 tables, one of which will require listing 200 numerical values and the other requiring 60 numerical values. Each of these tables will require having appropriate titles. Failure to complete and include these tables, will result in significantly lower scores on these assignments.   6. The Start Here section of this course has useful information for assisting you in being more successful in online courses in general and in this course specifically. 7. This course will involve an introductory survey of the major areas of psychology, such as learning, social, testing, personality, developmental and physiological. 8. The emphasis in this course will be on psychology as the scientific study of behavior and we will study both human and animal behavior. In order to do your best in this course, you will need a basic level of skill in reading English. 9. This course is a completely online course.  10. All assignments, projects, quizzes, exams and other course activities will be completed online. 11. In order to complete this course you will need a reliable computer with a reliable connection to the internet in order to complete the course activities. 12. If you do not have a computer with reliable connection to the internet, you will need to arrange access to these resources. 13. You should have basic computer-related skills as described in Step Five of the Start Here section of the course (Technical Requirements for the Course). 14. Because this course is a completely online course, you will need computer-related skills and a reliable connection to the internet. 15. There will be an online orientation meeting during the semester, probably during the first week of the course. 16. If you cannot attend the orientation meeting, please get in touch with me if you have questions about the course. I hope to record the orientation meeting for review by students who cannot attend the live orientation.  17. During this orientation meeting, we discuss the syllabus for the course as well as course policies and procedures. 18. The required written assignments and optional written project documents will be graded as they are received. There will be no re-submissions or corrected documents accepted. 19. You will have 2 opportunities to complete each required quiz and exam. The higher of the 2 grades for each required quiz and exam will be used as the recorded score for purposes of calculating your final course grade. 20. All quizzes and exams in this course will be completed online using the Blackboard Learning System. Students must use a wired, dedicated connection to the internet for completing exams and quizzes, which will be timed activities. . This requirement means that difficulties because of dropped internet connections associated with wireless connections will not be used as a reason for extended quiz or exam availability time. 21. All submitted assignments will be graded and marked with the number of points assigned. An explanation for the grading details result will be available by email request. The purpose of this policy is to encourage more effective two-way communication between the course instructor and individual students. 22. All late assignments will be assigned a point credit of 1 point. Late reception of assignments will be defined as reception by the Blackboard system after the due date and due time. There will be a 15 minute grace period after the due date and due time, during which there will be no late penalty assessed. 23. All assignments created by students must be saved doc or docx file format. Using any other file format will result in a 1-point penalty for each assignment not created in doc or docx file format. Any document submitted in pages file format (default format for Apple devices, such as imac notebooks, ipads and iphones) will receive zero points credit.  24. GRIEVANCES, COMPLAINTS, AND CONCERNS REGARDING THIS COURSE: If you have a grievance, complaint, or concern about this course that cannot be resolved through discussion with the instructor, please consult GEDS Department Chair.  Physical location: EDUC 1- Room 131-133. 25. Research has shown a strong positive relationship between attendance, participation and college success. 26. I STRONGLY recommend regular participation in this course, both mental and physical. Participation will help you succeed in this course!! Caution: I will not automatically drop your name from the class roll because you do not participate in class activities. 27. MAKEUP POLICIES - There are limited opportunities to make up missed work in this course. 28. Required assignments, quizzes and exams may be submitted late by instructor approval. 29. Students who have missed required work because of official college business and who can provide verification from a college official such as an athletic coach or student organization sponsor may turn in required work late for credit such as an assignment, quiz or exam. Bonus or extra credit work may not be submitted late for any reason. 30. No other justification will be accepted for turning in or completing work after the published due date. 31. If there is a technical problem with BlackBoard which affects all students, such as the system not working properly, there may be an extension of the availability for the quiz or exam or due date for a required assignment. 32. All students are responsible for reading and understanding these guidelines. 33. All students are responsible for maintaining a reliable connection to the internet for completing work in this course. 34. Failure to complete an exam or study guide quiz because of a failed wireless connection is not an acceptable reason for an extension of quiz or exam 35.  All work will be graded as submitted. 36. The instructor will accept NO re-submissions or corrected documents.  37. The instructor will consider an assignment submission with no document attached as an incomplete and incorrect submission.  38. There will be no due-date extensions for assignments missed or late because of individual or personal travel reasons.
Attendance Policy	ATTENDANCE POLICY Research has shown a strong positive relationship between attendance, active participation and college success.  You might wonder how a student shows attendance in this online course. You will demonstrate attendance by regular participation and completion of assignments, quizzes and exams which are a required part of this course. I STRONGLY recommend regular participation in this course, both mental and physical. Participation will help you succeed in this course!! Caution: I will not automatically drop your name from the class roll because you do not participate in class activities.
Additional Information	ADDITIONAL INFORMATION to be revised later FIRST CLASS DAY THU MAY 15 CENSUS DAY FRI MAY 16 FINAL DAY TO DROP WITHOUT PENALTY WED MAY 21 DROP CLASS WITH PENALTY WED MAY 28 CAMPUS CLOSED – MEMORIAL DAY - HOLIDAY MON MAY 26 LAST CLASS/FINAL EXAM DAY WED MAY 29 GRADES DUE FRI MAY 30 - 12:00 NOON     The office of Steven Zani, chairperson for the GEDS Department, is EDUC 131-133
Institutional Policies
MyLSCPA	Be sure to check your campus email and Course Homepage using MyLSCPA campus web portal. You can also access your grades, transcripts, academic advisors, degree progress, and other services through MyLSCPA.
Academic Honesty	Academic honesty is expected from all students, and dishonesty in any form will not be tolerated. Please consult the LSCPA policies (Academic Dishonesty section in the Student Handbook) for consequences of academic dishonesty.
ADA Considerations	The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination statute that provides comprehensive civil rights for persons with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the Disability Services Coordinator, Room 117, in the Student Sucess Center. The phone number is (409) 984-6241.
COVID 19 Information	The Lamar State College Port Arthur (LSCPA) Student Code of Conduct COVID 19 Policy requires students who have been diagnosed with COVID 19 to report their condition directly to their local health department. Students should also contact their course faculty to report their quarantine status. In addition, this policy requires all students to wear face coverings when directly exposed to COVID 19 in compliance with the criteria included in the policy. For more information please refer to the COVID 19 link on the LSCPA website.
Facility Policies	No food or tobacco products are allowed in the classroom. Only students enrolled in the course are allowed in the classroom, except by special instructor permission. Use of electronic devices is prohibited.
HB 2504	This syllabus is part of LSCPA's efforts to comply with Texas House Bill 2504.
Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect	As per Texas law and LSCPA policy, all LSCPA employees, including faculty, are required to report allegations or disclosures of child abuse or neglect to the designated authorities, which may include a local or state law enforcement agency or the Texas Department of Family Protective Services. For more information about mandatory reporting requirements, see LSCPA's Policy and Procedure Manual.
Title IX and Sexual Misconduct	LSCPA is committed to establishing and maintaining an environment that is free from all forms of sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, sexual violence, and other forms of sexual misconduct. All LSCPA employees, including faculty, have the responsibility to report disclosures of sexual misconduct, including sexual harassment, sexual assault (including rape and acquaintance rape), domestic violence, dating violence, relationship violence, or stalking, to LSCPA's Title IX Coordinator, whose role is to coordinate the college's response to sexual misconduct. For more information about Title IX protections, faculty reporting responsibilities, options for confidential reporting, and the resources available for support visit LSCPA's Title IX website.
Clery Act Crime Reporting	For more information about the Clery Act and crime reporting, see the Annual Security & Fire Safety Report and the Campus Security website.
Grievance / Complaint / Concern	If you have a grievance, complaint, or concern about this course that has not been resolved through discussion with the Instructor, please consult the Department Chair.
Department Information	General Education and Developmental Studies Chair: Dr. Steven Zani Email: zanisj@lamarpa.edu Phone: (409) 984-6431