Psyc 200 Syllabus

Dear Student,
Thank you for considering my Research Methods in Psychology course! The following is a sample of what the syllabus will look like for this class so that you can know what to expect from the beginning (some details may change). In this class, we will focus on how knowledge in psychology is obtained. (And I have to tell you, as a former research psychologist, adding new knowledge to the field is incredibly exciting!) Additionally, an important goal of this class will be to develop critical skills in scientific writing as well as evaluating and consuming research claims. I am confident that what you learn in this class will be extremely helpful for both your future academic career as well as your day-to-day life as a consumer of information. I promise to do my best to make this course engaging! I look forward to having you in my class!

Regards,

Katy

 Your Professor

Your Professor: Katy Dittmer

Email: katherine_dittmer@cuesta.edu

The best way to contact me is via email.

What students call me: Most students call me Katy or Professor Dittmer, pick your preference!  My pronouns are she/her/hers.

Basics: Hello! I'm Katy Dittmer and I have been teaching at Cuesta College in the Psychology Department for 23 years. I am also the Division Chair for Movement and Health Sciences. I commute between Los Osos and Oakland (ever week!) and have three children (my daughter and two stepchildren) and a loving husband.

My Background: My graduate work in Psychology (at Humboldt State and UCSB) was in the area of social psychophysiology. My research focused on using a person’s physiology (e.g., heart rate, breathing, sweating) as an index of their psychological state. Specifically, my graduate work was in the areas of lie detection and subliminal messages. Fun stuff!

 Is an online class right for you?

Yes! But there are a few things to consider before enrolling in my class. First, this course demands that you are self-motivated. It is your responsibility to log-on to the course site frequently, to turn in the required work on time, to take the examinations during the time period specified (you will have a 72-hour window to take exams—more on this later), and to reach out to me if you are struggling in any way with the class.

Second, you can expect to spend at least 6 hours per week dedicated to this course. Much of the instruction in this course will be coming to you in the form of video lectures. Only you can evaluate whether this type of course is for you, but I urge you to take this self-assessment to determine whether you have the learning style that is compatible with an online course. I am also here to support you in meeting the challenges of an online course so do not hesitate to discuss strategies with me early on that will help you succeed.

 Meetings and Communication

No Required Meetings!

This course is an 18-week 3-unit course that is conducted completely online and asynchronous. There are NO face-to-face or scheduled Zoom meetings for this course. Test and other assignment due dates are set dates and will be confirmed at the start of the semester.

Early Access to Class!

I will provide registered and waitlisted students with access to our Canvas course site about 1 to 2 weeks prior to the start of the term to give you time to poke around and get familiar with the course set up. Canvas is the campus Learning Management System (LMS) and if you’re new to the Canvas LMS, Cuesta College has provided students with a quick access guide to Canvas

Instructor and Student Communication

Students can anticipate effective contact with me (the instructor) nearly two times weekly, including Canvas announcements or class-wide emails, plus assignment feedback. 

There are many reasons you may need to contact me throughout the term, but in particular if you are struggling in any way with the material or need extensions on due dates, know that I want to help. I will do my best to answer all email received Monday through Friday within 24 hours, and any emails received on weekends first thing Monday morning, if not sooner.

Please reach out to me at katherine_dittmer@cuesta.edu  or email me directly through Canvas Mail (you can access this feature by clicking "Inbox"  in the left-hand global navigation bar) or leave me a message on my office phone (Voice Mail: 805-592-9683)

Book a Zoom Appointment with me (click on link in Navigation) or email your questions to me katherine_dittmer@cuesta.edu  I would love to help you understand the class material better or talk to you in more detail about preparing for our class exams. This is also a great chance for us to get to know each other a little better.

 Required Books are Free!

1. Jhangiani, R., Chiang, I-C. A., Cuttler, C., & Leighton, D. C. (2019). Research methods in psychology (4^th Ed). Access the book for free! Links to an external site.

2. American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual (7^th). Washington, DC: APA. (ISBN-13: 978-1433832161). Access the APA Style Information for free! Links to an external site.

 Student Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to:

1. Explain the rationale and basic principles of the scientific method and research designs;

2. Search literature and critically evaluate and synthesize research findings;

3. Select appropriate research designs to develop and test hypotheses; and

4. Describe the requirements for ethical treatment of human and animal research participants.

 Example Schedule

The following is an example of what our schedule will look like in this class. This sample schedule covers 6 weeks leading up to a unit exam. This is subject to change.

 Graded Work

Course Assignments and Exams

In order to achieve the student learning outcomes you will be evaluated through the following assignments and exams:

• Exams (150 pts):  We will have 3 exams (each with 50 multiple-choice questions). The last one will take place during the final exam period, but will only cover the third section of the course (NOT a cumulative final). Questions on the exams will come 50% from the lecture material and 50% from the text. All exams will be taken online during a two-day time frame—see the course calendar for dates. Once you open an exam, however, you will have 90 minutes to complete the exam. If you need extended time, please contact DSPS and have them send me your accommodations.

• Myth Papers (75 pts): You will have three homework assignments leading up to a final myth-busting paper. The purpose is to utilize empirical and peer reviewed research to dispel a myth in psychology and to gain experience with scientific writing and APA style and format. The instructions and list of topics can be found on Canvas.

• Discussions (50 pts):  You will have discussions throughout the semester related to a prompt/series of questions regarding something from that week’s text/lecture material. (Discussions are linked in Modules on Canvas.) To earn full credit, you will be expected to write a minimum of two sentences in reaction to each discussion prompt/questions. 

Final Course Grades

Final grades will be based on points accumulated from the above assignments. You will be able to track your course grade on Canvas by clicking on Grades in the left-hand navigation panel. My grading scheme is: 89.5-100% = A; 89.4-87% = B⁺; 86.4-79.5 = B; 79.4-77% = C⁺; 76.4-69.5% = C; 69.4-67% = D⁺; 66.4- 59.5% = D; 59.4 or below = F

 Course Policies

Personal Commitment to Equity in the Classroom

It is my intent that students from all diverse backgrounds and perspectives be well-served by this course, that students learning needs be addressed both in and out of the class, and that the diversity that students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength, and benefit. It is my intent to present materials and discussions that are respectful of diversity: gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, religious backgrounds, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, national origin, culture, perspective, and other background characteristics. Your suggestions about how to improve the value of diversity in this course are encouraged and appreciated. Please let me know ways to improve the effectiveness of the course for you personally or for other students or student groups. And finally, if something is said in class (by anyone) that makes you feel unwelcome, unseen, or at risk, please talk to me about it. 

Waitlist/Add Policy

I do my best to add students off the waitlist. If you are a student on the course waitlist Links to an external site. add codes will be provided if space becomes available. The course cap is 30 students. Enrollment will not exceed 30 students. If you do not hear from me within a few days of the start of the term, please email me if you want to add the class  It is the responsibility of the student to complete the  course-adding process Links to an external site. once administered an add code by the instructor.

Drop Policy

I hope not! However, yes, students who fail to log in on the first day of the class or miss an exam (without contacting me) may be dropped. So please reach out if situations arise that prevent you from staying on top of these requirements. I will be flexible if you are accountable!

Please review the campus add/drop policyLinks to an external site.

NOTE: If you drop this class after the census date (see course calendar) you will receive a “W” on your transcript.  Find out how to drop a courseLinks to an external site. All courses in which you earn a grade of “D”, “F”, “NP” and/or “W” are counted as “unsatisfactory” attempts to successfully complete the course. You are only allowed 3 attempts to repeat courses for which you receive an “unsatisfactory” grade.  A “W” on your transcript will count as an “unsatisfactory” attempt to successfully complete the course

Late Work Policy

I want you to be successful in this course. Each week (or most weeks) you will have some combination of the following: reading, discussion boards, and practice quizzes to complete. You will struggle on the exams and the homework if you put off studying or completing the coursework. So do your best to stay on schedule and on top of your course reading. However, I do understand that life happens, so please reach out if you fall behind. 

Specifically, my policy is to accept late work within a section module up until the exam closes for that section. But please communicate with me about the situation so we can find ways of alleviating the root of the issue and get you back on schedule. 

Attendance

This course has NO mandatory on-campus or Zoom meetings, however, I expect you to log in to the course on the first day of the class and to log in at least once a week thereafter. Students who fail to log in on the first day of the course risk being dropped from the course to make room for waitlisted students. If I do not hear from you and you miss an exam, you may be dropped as well. Please reach out!

Make-up Exams

Again, I want you to be successful in this class and therefore, to make up exams you miss. If you miss an exam, you should contact me immediately with a full explanation as to why the exam was missed and a request for a make-up. However, I withhold the right to refuse a make-up.

Academic Honesty

Taking a college course can be difficult and stressful. Please understand that I am here to support you in any way I can. I believe you can achieve your academic goals. If you are struggling with
learning the concepts in the course, please reach out to me before you decide to act dishonestly with the submission of your work. Some examples of dishonest actions: 

• • • Sharing answers with another student to complete assignments or exams
    • Submitting someone else files as your own
    • Submitting either your assignments or another student’s files from a previous semester
    • Helping someone or receiving help on an exam
    • Getting someone else to take your exams

Civility Requirements & Netiquette Suggestions

For the interactive portion of the course, it is important that you respect your classmates’ comments even if you disagree with their opinions; challenge the idea and not the person. Furthermore, in our discussions, please voice your opinions, yet be sensitive of others’ differences (race/ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, etc.). Please be respectful of these differences and do not say things that could be hurtful to others. Here are some other netiquette suggestions to put into practice when posting to discussions online:

• Use respectful and appropriate language in your forum discussions. 
• Emoticons are acceptable ways to show emotion. 
• Avoid CAPS as they come across like YOU'RE SCREAMING. 
• Read all forum posts. 
• All messages are public, so be careful and courteous when you post. 
• Make your posts thorough and your replies as well. 
• Complete sentences and thoughts are mandatory for forum posts. 
• Use a person's name when you reply to their post. (People really like this!)

Students with special needs or a disability

This course has been designed to be accessible to students with diverse learning needs. At Cuesta, we have the support of our Disabled Students Program & Services office (DSPS), a resource office that helps to make sure that students with diverse learning needs have the right tools to be successful in the classroom. A list of some services offered by DSPS Links to an external site.

If you think that you may qualify for assistance or accommodation, you can make a virtual appointment Links to an external site. to discuss your situation and needs with a DSPS counselor or contact the DSPS office at (805) 546-3148 or dspsinfo@cuesta.edu

I fully support the use of services and accommodations by student who need them! For students who wish to use their accommodations in this class, please complete the following step: 

• If you qualify for services or accommodations that you would like to use in this class, make sure that I receive the electronic notification of your accommodations from DSPS Links to an external site.. (This usually takes the form of an electronic letter written by DSPS that you have the option to "send" if you decide you want to use accommodations in a particular class.)

Contact Expectations

You may email me at any time, I will respond as soon as possible (though please be advised that emails sent after 5pm may not reach me until the following day). Sometimes it may take me a full day to respond. Please allow for 48 hours before sending a follow up email. If you have questions about what we are doing each week, please consult the syllabus first. If you still have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out! In addition to meeting with me in person, you are also welcome to schedule a one-on-one "office hours" conference with me any time over Zoom. When you’d like to schedule a meeting, first check my schedule on Student Connect (see our Canvas navigation) and if there is not a time that works for you there, send me an email and we’ll coordinate a time that works for both of us.  

Authentication Policy

Authenticating student identity will be conducted through the use of the Learning Management System, Canvas. Canvas requires each student to log into the program using a secure login and password to access. 

Regular and Effective Contact Policy

Regular and effective contact between the instructor and the students will be achieved by some of the following means: 1) Weekly online discussions with appropriate instructor participation; 2) Email, phone or messaging to individual students; 3) Weekly announcements to students; 4) Weekly constructive feedback on student work; 5) Instructor office hours will be available by individual appointment; and 6) Weekly Instructor prepared lectures.

General Campus Policies

Follow this link for General Campus Policies Links to an external site.(including: Withdrawal, Repeatability, Student Code of Conduct).

 Technology Tools

A working Cuesta e-mail account, access to Adobe Acrobat Reader. download AdobeYou should also Review the Canvas Quick Reference for Students Online

If you are having difficulty accessing Canvas or any other technical difficulties, visit the Having Technical Issues? page for guidance