Greetings!!
Fall semester is almost upon
us. My records show that you are registered in my section
of Introduction to Psychology. I thought I would welcome you to Psychology (and to UNI) a
little bit early instead of waiting until the first day of
class. I hope we will have a great semester together!
I think Intro to Psych is an
important course for any student to take. I would
recommend it even if a student had already completed
the Liberal Arts Core/General Education requirements. All
of us can benefit from a better understanding of the
causes of behavior as we go through life trying to make
sense of our own actions or feelings or those of
friends, family, lovers, co-workers, politicians -
whoever! Everyone needs to be able to critically evaluate
the claims concerning behavior that are so much
a part of news reports, commercials, and conversation.
This course will help you with each of these. Many of you,
raising children - now or in the future - will be better
prepared with some understanding of developmental
psychology. And all of you, in one way or another,
will cross paths with someone in the mental health field.
Perhaps you already have, in school (counselors, school
psychologists)! Recent statistics suggest that 1 out of 2
Americans will suffer from some sort of psychological
disorder in their lifetime. You or someone you care
about is likely to seek out some type of mental health
treatment or advice. Or you may hear testimony from
someone in this field while on jury duty. This course
will help you understand the qualifications of
and differences between professionals in the field. In
addition, about 1 out of 5 Americans will have some kind
of nervous system disorder or disease which affects
behavior. Biological psychology, the study of how your biology
(brain, hormones, etc.) affects your behavior, can help
you understand what is happening when someone you know is
affected by autism or Alzheimer's disease or other
neurological problem. But psychology is not only
concerned with treating behavioral problems. A good part of
it is focused on normal behavior and improving the
quality of life and our ability to function in a wide
variety of circumstances (education, work, relationships,
etc.). You can use what you learn to improve your
life! There is psychological research relevant to every
major, every career, every world problem. And the
solutions to most world problems will be behavioral solutions
which psychology can assist with.
Our
section of Psych was supposed to be a
special "first year only" section that is part of the First
Year Program here at UNI. We have tried to build in features,
in our syllabus for example, to try help your first year
be a successful one. Both I and our Teaching Assistants are
here to help you. But it turns out the Registrar goofed and
some students not in their first year were allowed to
register. But we'll consider them another potential
info0rmation resource for you!
Students new to college often don't realize that now they
must become independent learners, studying
actively to learn from texts, because there is not enough
classroom time to present all the knowledge and skills of
a typical college course. Think about it - if you took
a college-level (AP) psychology course in high school,
you would usually spend about 180 class periods with your
psychology teacher. But that is unheard of at
universities. Instead, we have about 45 class periods
together to cover that same content. A great deal of
learning (about 135 class periods worth) must occur
outside the classroom while you are reading the text and
working with text material. Perhaps that will help you
understand why you have to spend a couple hours out-of-class
on your Psychology for every hour that we spend in class - to
help make up for those 135 missing class periods! We cannot go
over and over a unit like your teacher probably did in high
school - so YOU must do that reviewing on your own, WHILE we
are covering a topic, not just before an exam.
Our book
(Psychology in Everyday Life by Myers & DeWall) is written in
a conversational style that is easy to read. I think you
will like it - it may be your favorite text! You are
responsible for completing assigned reading, preferably before
or while we are covering that topic in class - it is key
to your success! You'll probably need a minimum of 2 hours per
chapter and additional time to do the study aids in the text
and online (Practicing in as many ways as possible is
important!). It is highly recommended that you map out a
regular Study Schedule for your classes and try to stick
to it. Plan on reading about 10 pages of Psych
per class day and block out specific time in your daily
schedule to do so (preferably during the daytime).Take
condensed notes as you read. Read over those & class notes
regularly and you'll find you already know the material
before it comes time to study for an exam!
To really master material most people have to actively work
with the concepts. For that reason our class will not be
just lecture and tests. We will have several small
assignments during the semester related to the concepts
we are covering. Since you can use your text and other
resources, discuss (but NOT copy) assignments with friends, or
consult with your prof or T.A.s, the conscientious student
should be able to earn almost all assignment points.
Almost all past students voted in favor of having some of
the course points come from something other than
exams. Typically the points from the assignments allow
almost all students to significantly raise their grade
above that which they would earn from test scores alone. You
can take a look at all of the assignments for
the semester by looking at the assignment list at
the end of our online syllabus at:
http://www.uni.edu/walsh/linda8.html <http://www.uni.edu/walsh/linda8.html>
Please
note that in the syllabus those things that are absolutely
required are in BOLD print. There are many other links that
are not required, but are there to help you, improve your
study skills, or pique your interest.
In fact you can even get a head start on the Syllabus Quiz (an
out-of-class assignment) and Who Are You sheet, if you
like! Also notice that, close to the top of our online
syllabus, there is a link to college success tips submitted by
previous Intro students who have been at UNI a year or more -
students who have already survived their first semester.
Also throughout our syllabus and on the associated Sites
to Promote Academic Success webpage at
http://www.uni.edu/walsh/linda7.html <http://www.uni.edu/walsh/linda7.html>
I'll apologize ahead of time for not walking around in class.
Turns out that I need knee replacement surgery (hopefully I'll
be brave enough to do it next summer).
I am excited about
the new semester. I look forward to seeing you on the 22nd!
Dream
Big!
Dr. Linda L. Walsh
Psychology - UNI
walsh@uni.edu
<mailto:walsh@uni.edu>
Whoops - not done yet - keep reading!
P.S. I want to establish good lines of communication with
members of our class, so notice (in the syllabus assignment
list) that you can earn a few extra credit points by
sending me an email introducing yourself.
P.S.S. I will be using our class mailing list through out the
semester to contact you if I have to cancel class, to
provide some extra credit opportunities, to clarify
assignments, provide info on tests, etc. Please do check
your UNI mail regularly or have it forwarded to the email
account you use.