Dr. Anita Meehan http://faculty.kutztown.edu/meehan
PSY 380 Office:
Senior Seminar Email: meehan@kutztown.edu
Spring 2005 Office
Hours: MW 11-12, T 1-4 and by appt.
Course
Objectives
Integrate,
synthesize, and apply learning from earlier coursework in psychology
Read
and evaluate reports of psychological research published in journals
Demonstrate
the ability to absorb, analyze, and evaluate information disseminated by the
media
Gather,
analyze, summarize, and present information in a professional manner
Use
and enhance oral and written communication and technology skills
Foster
independent learning and creativity
Course Overview
This
course gives you the opportunity to integrate, synthesize, and apply learning
from previous coursework in psychology by pursuing a topic of interest. The
overall theme will be “Psychological Science in the Public Interest.” Your grade depends on how much work you are
willing to do for a course portfolio. Each
of you will inform me of the grade you are contracting for: A, B, or C...I
won't sign a contract for a D.
You
will receive full credit for each assignment unless I judge that it is below
average, does not meet my requirements, or that you cheated. You may be asked to redo “unacceptable”
assignments; however, submitting more than one incomplete, unacceptable, or
late assignment will result in a reduction of the contracted grade (e.g. from an A to a B). Cheating or plagiarism (passing off someone
else's work or writing as your own) will result in an F in the course.
Requirements for a C are:
1. Class attendance
I will reduce your contracted grade by one letter grade for
every two absences, unless you present me with a valid excuse. You will owe me additional work to compensate
for excessive absences, even if excused.
2. Seminar Proposal DUE JAN. 24
Propose a seminar topic. Topics are to be “original,”
meaning that they must go beyond standard textbook material. In your 1-2 page proposal, identify the topic
and describe what you intend to study and why.
Tell me how the topic fits the theme of “Psychological Science in the
Public Interest.” Provide the reference for one academic source you have
examined. Click
here for details and suggested topics.
3. Seminar Oral Presentation FEB.
7 – MARCH 21
Prepare a 30-35 minute PowerPoint presentation, including a
class activity. Click here for oral presentation requirements and
suggested topics. There is a PowerPoint tutorial on the course website. On the day of your oral presentation, submit
your PowerPoint file to me on a floppy disk or CD-ROM.
4. Poster
Presentation DUE MARCH 28
Prepare a poster identifying how psychological principles
(theories/concepts/research findings) from different fields of psychology apply
to your topic. Click here for poster requirements and information.
5. Complete Electronic Portfolio of Your Work DUE FINALS WEEK IN MAY
Turn in a complete electronic portfolio of your files
(seminar proposal, PowerPoint of oral seminar, file with your poster content,
and any web page or other files you create).
Requirements for a B are the requirements for a C plus ONE of the following:
6. Web Version of Seminar Topic DUE APRIL 6
Create a web version of your seminar topic, but do not
create an exact duplicate of your oral presentation. Include new content and web design
elements. See the course website for a tutorial about creating
elementary web pages in Microsoft Word.
Your web page must include:
at least five working hyperlinks to
scientific (scholarly) web sites related to your topic. Underneath each web address provide the site
name; an indication of why this is a reputable, professional site; and the type
of information that can be retrieved.
Write the description yourself; do not simply copy it from the website.
six relevant images including two
graphs of data
two “internal” hyperlinks that jump
within your own web page rather than going to an external site
7. Video Project
DUE APRIL 13
Create a 10-15 minute video that relates to your seminar
topic and show it to the class. This might
be an interview with a psychologist who does related work, or you might
videotape research facilities, or have a creative idea. Discuss your project with me BEFORE you
start. Be sure to get written
permission from any people you videotape).
8. Survey or Correlation Research Project DUE
APRIL 18
Design and conduct a small survey or correlational research
project related to your seminar topic. Discuss
your project and show me a copy of your informed consent form and
questionnaires BEFORE starting.
Collect and analyze data from at least 15 research participants and write up a brief APA research report. Use APA 5th edition citation
style. References must include at least
3 psychology journal articles and 1 book. (Magazines and web sites may be
included only as extra sources; they do not count as academic sources). Submit physical copies of your 3 journal
articles along with the paper.
9. Observation Research Project DUE
APRIL 18
Design and conduct a small observational research project
related to your seminar topic. Discuss
your project with me BEFORE starting. Collect and analyze the data
and write up a brief APA research report. Use APA citation style. References must include at least 3 psychology
journal articles and 1 book. (Magazines and web sites may be used as extra
sources). Submit copies of your 3 journal
articles along with the paper.
Requirements for an A are the requirements for a C, plus TWO for a B, plus ONE of the following:
10. Present web
page to class and navigate through it (10-12 min.) DUE
APRIL 13-18
11. Present
survey/correlation project to class using PowerPoint (10-12 min). DUE
APRIL 20-27
(Include
at least one graph of your data, made in Excel or SPSS).
12. Present
observational research to class using PowerPoint (10-12 min.)
DUE APRIL 20-27
(Include
at least one graph of your data, made in Excel or SPSS).