Psychology

Instructor    Lucas Rewa
Phone         269-323-5537
Building      Northern High School
Room         2.124
E-mail  lrewa@portageps.org 


Course Description

Psychology is the science of the mind and behavior.  It involves the study of the mental and behavioral characteristics of an individual or a group. This survey course is designed to introduce the student to the science of psychology. Three major areas of psychology are covered: critical thinking (research methods), the brain, and states of consciousness.  Additional topics may include: the behaving organism; psychological growth; human relations; personality and psychological disorder.   

Goals

  • Students will study human behavior and explain why that behavior occurs
  • Students will understand that Psychology is a disciplined, scientific exploration of human behavior
  • Students will practice the scientific method to investigate behavior
  • Students will discover things about themselves and how they interact with the world
  • Students will apply an understanding of psychological principals to their experiences and observations of others in order to make better decisions about how to respond to others, and even to make better public policy decisions in their future.       
Course Requirements: 
  • Tests and Quizzes
  • Papers and Projects
  • Participation
  • Homework
  • Comprehensive Semester Exam
  • Online Course Work

Text used and other recommended materials: 

  • Blair-Broeker, Charles T. and Randal M. Ernst. Thinking About Psychology: The Science of Mind and Behavior. Worth Publishers. 2013.

  • Psychology and You, 3rd ed. (McMahon & Romano)
  • Various articles and text excerpts 

Evaluation
At the end of the marking period, the teacher will calculate students’ grades from tests, daily quizzes, specific assignments, etc.  Letter grades will be assigned by the scale below.  

Assignments are weighted. Tests, Quizzes, and other Assessments are worth .7. Homework and classwork are worth .3. 

Student scores that result in .05 or higher should be rounded up.  The following percentage scale applies.
 
100 - 91.5  = A
91.4 - 89.5 = A-
89.4 - 87.5 = B+
87.4 - 81.5 = B
81.4 - 79.5 = B-
79.4 - 77.5 = C+
77.4 - 71.5 = C 
71.4 - 69.5 = C-
69.4 - 67.5 = D+
67.4 - 61.5 = D
61.4 - 59.5 = D-
59.4 - 0      = E
 
Grades will be rounded up only to the tenth place during this calculation.  Students will only earn a passing grade for a marking period if they achieve at or above 59.45%, which rounds to 59.5%.

TO CALCULATE FINAL SEMESTER GRADE
The final semester grade is based on a composite of two nine-weeks’ grades and the final examination/culminating assessment/project.  Each nine weeks is worth approximately 40%, and the semester exam/project or District Culminating Activity assessment is worth approximately 20%.