How much of our behaviour is learned or innate? How much does the culture in which we are raised affect the person we become? What is the relationship between our childhood behaviours and experiences and our adult self? Developmental Psychology is the study of developmental processes across the range of human experience and abilities. This course provides a broad foundation in the discipline, with a primary focus on child and adolescent development. The course takes a topic-based approach, covering: (i) Biological and Motor Development, (ii) Perceptual Development, (iii) Cognitive Development, (iv) Play, (v) Language Development, (vi) Social Development, (vii) Emotional and Moral Development, and (viii) Developmental Disorders. A particular feature of the course is a dual emphasis on research and application. Students complete a laboratory report based on original research, and apply their theoretical and research-based knowledge to practical real life issues by writing  a popular scientific article for the public and by raising their own ‘virtual child’.

This course can be taken as an HPO, please discuss with course convener.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will have the knowledge and skills to:
1. Describe and evaluate different theoretical approaches to development.
2. Outline the course of development in several domains, including perception, cognition, language, emotion, and social and motor skill.
3. Identify factors which facilitate or impair typical development.
4. Demonstrate research skills through the writing of a lab report.
5. Demonstrate an understanding of how research in developmental psychology is relevant to understanding the behaviour of children and adolescents in daily life situations.

 

Examination Material or equipment

All students will be required to attend the examination in person (i.e., there are no take-home examinations for this course). Other relevant information will be provided at a later date. Be sure to attend all lectures and read all information provided on the PSYC2002 Wattle site once you have enrolled in this course. Information about the scheduling of the examination will be posted by the University at http://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/assessments-exams/examination-timetable

Required Resources

Ability to attend lectures and laboratory classes, and access to the internet are essential.

Staff Feedback

Students will be given feedback in the following forms in this course:

• Written comments
• Verbal comments
• Feedback to the whole class, to groups, to individuals, focus groups

Student Feedback

ANU is committed to the demonstration of educational excellence and regularly seeks feedback from students. Students are encouraged to offer feedback directly to their Course Convener or through their College and Course representatives (if applicable). The feedback given in these surveys is anonymous and provides the Colleges, University Education Committee and Academic Board with opportunities to recognise excellent teaching, and opportunities for improvement. The Surveys and Evaluation website provides more information on student surveys at ANU and reports on the feedback provided on ANU courses.

Other Information

Please note, that where there are multiple assessment tasks of the same type, e.g weekly quizzes, a date range is used in the Assessment Summary. The first date is the due date of the first task, the return date is the return date for the final task. Further information is provided in the assessment section of the class summary, and details are provided on the course wattle site.

Honours Pathway Option

PSYC2002 has an Honours Pathway Option. Students who are completing the Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) must complete 24 units of HPOs throughout their degree. Students studying other degrees are not required to take any HPOs, but are encouraged to do so if they wish. This year’s HPO assignment will develop your skills in translating current research to a lay audience. You will be required to write a 750-word popular science article on a current topic in Developmental Psychology. The assignment must be submitted by midnight Monday 25th March 2019.

 

Note: If you enrol in the HPO only your mark for this assignment contributes to your final grade (and not your overall quiz grade). HPO students do not need to complete the weekly quizzes, but are encouraged to do so to monitor their learning.

Class Schedule

Week/Session	Summary of Activities	Assessment
1	1x lecture	Quiz
2	1x lecture	Quiz
3	1x lecture, 1x lab	Quiz
4	1x lecture, 1x lab	Quiz
5	1x lecture, 1x lab	Quiz; HPO
6	1x lecture, 1x lab
7	1x lecture	Lab report
8	1x lecture, 1x lab
9	1x lecture, 1x lab
10	1x lecture, 1x lab
11	1x lecture, 1x lab	My Virtual Child
12	1x lecture

Tutorial Registration

Students must attend eight two-hour laboratory classes across the semester. Laboratory enrollment procedures will be provided at a later date.

Assessment Summary

Assessment task	Value	Due Date	Return of assessment	Learning Outcomes
Quizzes	10 %	25/03/2019	23/04/2019	1,2,3
Lab Report	30 %	23/04/2019	20/05/2019	1,4
My Virtual Child Assignment	20 %	20/05/2019	06/06/2019	1,5
End of Semester Examination	40 %	06/06/2019	04/07/2019	1,2,3

* If the Due Date and Return of Assessment date are blank, see the Assessment Tab for specific Assessment Task details

Policies

ANU has educational policies, procedures and guidelines, which are designed to ensure that staff and students are aware of the University’s academic standards, and implement them. Students are expected to have read the Academic Misconduct Rule before the commencement of their course. Other key policies and guidelines include:

• Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure
• Special Assessment Consideration Policy and General Information
• Student Surveys and Evaluations
• Deferred Examinations
• Student Complaint Resolution Policy and Procedure

Assessment Requirements

The ANU is using Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website Students may choose not to submit assessment items through Turnitin. In this instance you will be required to submit, alongside the assessment item itself, hard copies of all references included in the assessment item.

Moderation of Assessment

Marks that are allocated during Semester are to be considered provisional until formalised by the College examiners meeting at the end of each Semester. If appropriate, some moderation of marks might be applied prior to final results being released.

Participation

Note that laboratory attendance includes participating in the laboratory experiments, interacting with other students (both interpersonally and with the laboratory class as a whole), completing tasks on a computer, and hand-written tasks.

Examination(s)

There is one end of semester exam.

The date range in the Assessment Summary indicates the start of the end of semester exam period and the date official end of semester results are released on ISIS. Please check the ANU final Examination Timetable http://www.anu.edu.au/students/program-administration/assessments-exams/examination-timetable to confirm the date, time and location exam.

Assessment Task 1

Quizzes

In Weeks 2 to 6, you will be required to complete five on-line weekly quizzes. Each quiz is worth 2% and will be on the material covered in that week’s lecture (i.e., lectures 2 to 6). The quizzes are on Wattle, in multiple choice format. Each quiz will go live directly after each lecture (i.e., at 10am on Wednesday), and will close at 5pm the following Tuesday. You will get only one opportunity to answer each question. Quiz marks and feedback will become available online when the quiz closes.

For students undertaking the HPO, please see the "Other information section" for additional details.

Assessment Task 2

Lab Report

Research is the backbone of Psychology, informing both theory and application (e.g., therapy). In PSYC2002 you will write a lab report based on a piece of original research that you will complete in your lab classes. The report will allow you to delve deeper into an area of developmental psychology and hone both your analysis and report writing skills. The lab report will be 2000 words long and must be submitted by midnight Monday April 23rd 2019.

Assessment Task 3

My Virtual Child Assignment

In lab classes, you will “raise” a virtual child using the knowledge you have acquired throughout the course. You will then write a 1200-word report on raising your virtual child. The assignment must be submitted by midnight Monday 20th May 2019.

Assessment Task 4

End of Semester Examination

The exam will be in the formal mid-year exam period. Check the exam timetable for date and location. It will comprise multiple-choice and short essay questions based on lectures, lab material, and required lecture readings.

Please check the course Wattle site and the ANU Examination Timetable to confirm the date, time and location of the end of semester exam.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a core part of our culture as a community of scholars. At its heart, academic integrity is about behaving ethically. This means that all members of the community commit to honest and responsible scholarly practice and to upholding these values with respect and fairness. The Australian National University commits to embedding the values of academic integrity in our teaching and learning. We ensure that all members of our community understand how to engage in academic work in ways that are consistent with, and actively support academic integrity. The ANU expects staff and students to uphold high standards of academic integrity and act ethically and honestly, to ensure the quality and value of the qualification that you will graduate with. The University has policies and procedures in place to promote academic integrity and manage academic misconduct. Visit the following Academic honesty & plagiarism website for more information about academic integrity and what the ANU considers academic misconduct. The ANU offers a number of services to assist students with their assignments, examinations, and other learning activities. The Academic Skills and Learning Centre offers a number of workshops and seminars that you may find useful for your studies.

Online Submission

The ANU uses Turnitin to enhance student citation and referencing techniques, and to assess assignment submissions as a component of the University's approach to managing Academic Integrity. While the use of Turnitin is not mandatory, the ANU highly recommends Turnitin is used by both teaching staff and students. For additional information regarding Turnitin please visit the ANU Online website.

Hardcopy Submission

For some forms of assessment (hand written assignments, art works, laboratory notes, etc.) hard copy submission is appropriate when approved by the Associate Dean (Education). Hard copy submissions must utilise the Assignment Cover Sheet. Please keep a copy of tasks completed for your records.

Late Submission

All forms of assessment must be handed in on time. Late submission of assessment tasks without an extension are penalised at the rate of 5% of the possible marks available per working day or part thereof. Late submission of assessment tasks is not accepted after 10 working days after the due date, or on or after the date specified in the course outline for the return of the assessment item.

Referencing Requirements

Accepted academic practice for referencing sources that you use in presentations can be found via the links on the Wattle site, under the file named “ANU and College Policies, Program Information, Student Support Services and Assessment”. Alternatively, you can seek help through the Students Learning Development website.

Returning Assignments

Assignment feedback will be returned via the PSYC2002 Wattle site. We aim to return feedback within 3 weeks of the assignment due date for assignments that are submitted on-time, and by the end of semester for assignments submitted after the due date.

Extensions and Penalties

Extensions and late submission of assessment pieces are covered by the Student Assessment (Coursework) Policy and Procedure The Course Convener may grant extensions for assessment pieces that are not examinations or take-home examinations. If you need an extension, you must request an extension in writing on or before the due date. If you have documented and appropriate medical evidence that demonstrates you were not able to request an extension on or before the due date, you may be able to request it after the due date.

Privacy Notice

The ANU has made a number of third party, online, databases available for students to use. Use of each online database is conditional on student end users first agreeing to the database licensor’s terms of service and/or privacy policy. Students should read these carefully. In some cases student end users will be required to register an account with the database licensor and submit personal information, including their: first name; last name; ANU email address; and other information. In cases where student end users are asked to submit ‘content’ to a database, such as an assignment or short answers, the database licensor may only use the student’s ‘content’ in accordance with the terms of service — including any (copyright) licence the student grants to the database licensor. Any personal information or content a student submits may be stored by the licensor, potentially offshore, and will be used to process the database service in accordance with the licensors terms of service and/or privacy policy. If any student chooses not to agree to the database licensor’s terms of service or privacy policy, the student will not be able to access and use the database. In these circumstances students should contact their lecturer to enquire about alternative arrangements that are available.

Distribution of grades policy

Academic Quality Assurance Committee monitors the performance of students, including attrition, further study and employment rates and grade distribution, and College reports on quality assurance processes for assessment activities, including alignment with national and international disciplinary and interdisciplinary standards, as well as qualification type learning outcomes. Since first semester 1994, ANU uses a grading scale for all courses. This grading scale is used by all academic areas of the University.

Support for students

The University offers students support through several different services. You may contact the services listed below directly or seek advice from your Course Convener, Student Administrators, or your College and Course representatives (if applicable).

• ANU Health, safety & wellbeing for medical services, counselling, mental health and spiritual support
• ANU Diversity and inclusion for students with a disability or ongoing or chronic illness
• ANU Dean of Students for confidential, impartial advice and help to resolve problems between students and the academic or administrative areas of the University
• ANU Academic Skills and Learning Centre supports you make your own decisions about how you learn and manage your workload.
• ANU Counselling Centre promotes, supports and enhances mental health and wellbeing within the University student community.
• ANUSA supports and represents undergraduate and ANU College students
• PARSA supports and represents postgraduate and research students