Syllabus
Course Description
3 hours lecture; 3 hours laboratory; 4.5 credits. Basic principles of experimental psychology and experimental methodology. A variety of specific content areas in psychology, including those within social psychology, learning, perception, and cognitive psychology. Laboratory replication of classic experiments from these content areas. Writing-intensive course. Prerequisite: Psychology 3400; English 1012.
Objectives
- Critically read and understand of psychological science literature
- Critique quality of hypotheses, propose improvements, and formulate empirically testable hypotheses of their own
- Identify research opportunities and build collaborative skills as a scientific team
- Design and conduct experiments supported by an appropriate analytical plan
- Manage, analyze, and visualize the data to reach valid conclusions
- Communicate research results and interpretations cogently, both orally and in writing
Instructional Materials
Most of the work for lab will be done in the classroom, where computers are available, but students may also wish to use their own computer. This course will require use of a computer with a keyboard (access to a phone or tablet alone is not sufficient for all lab activities), the web, internet tools (Brightspace, Zoom, email, etc.), and computing tools that are available to CUNY students or open-source (free). Required reading, videos, and activities will be supplied by the instructor and posted on Brightspace and this site for student access. The content in lab will be different, but complementary to the content in lecture. You are required to attend both lecture and laboratory and you will receive one grade that incorporates work for lecture and lab. For work related to lab, please see me. For work related to lecture, please see Dr. Nam.
Grading & Evaluation
Your final grade combines your performance in the lab and lecture portions of the course (lecture – 40%, lab – 60%). The percentage grade for lab is determined from the following components.
| Component | Percentage |
| Attendance | 5% |
| QALMRI | 5% |
| Presentation 1 | 5% |
| Presentation 2 | 5% |
| Paper 1 | 20% |
| Paper 2 | 20% |
| Final Paper | 30% |
| Final Presentation | 10% |
| Total | 100% |
Attendance: Refer to the section above for detail on how this is calculated.
QALMRI: A brief exercise in which you’ll read an empirical paper and summarize it using the QALMRI method.
Papers: There will be three lab papers, each of which will involve writing an APA-style research report. For Paper 1 and Paper 2, you will be expected to complete the Abstract, Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion, and References sections. Papers 1 and Paper 2 will be based on predetermined experiments that will be conducted in the lab. For the final paper, you will work in groups to design, conduct, and report on your own research project. However, each member of the group will submit a complete and individually written research report.
Presentation: For Presentation 1 and Presentation 2, you will work in groups to showcase your work on the first two experiments/papers. At the end of semester, your group will give a presentation on your final research project.
Policy on Late Work: Assessments are expected to be submitted by the stated deadline, and extensions will not be granted after the due date has passed. If you are experiencing legitimate disadvantage that impacts your ability to complete work on time, extension requests will be considered at the instructor’s discretion, but please make sure to communicate about the issue in advance of the deadline. Additionally, for fairness in grading, be aware that extensions may not be granted if you have not experienced disadvantage relative to the circumstances of your peers. For work that is submitted beyond the due date without an extension, a late penalty will be applied of 5% per day. (Note: To accommodate unforeseen technical difficulties, a brief grace period will be applied for submissions received shortly after the stated deadline.)
All homework must be submitted through Brightspace as a Word document or Google Doc– no PDFs. Microsoft Word is free through your BC credentials. Other formats, like Pages, aren’t accepted. If a file cannot be opened or commented on, I will request an accessible version, which may delay grading.
Attendance
Attendance in laboratory is expected, and will count for 5% of your overall grade for Lab. This is because many of the activities completed in class – such as participating in studies – will be foundational for your assessments, and it can be difficult to succeed if you are absent. However, I understand that life circumstances or illness sometimes get in the way, and conflicts may be unavoidable. If you know you are unable to attend a specific lab session, please notify me in advance of class. For any class missed without an excused absence, 1/14th of 5% (approximately .36%) will be deducted from your final grade.
Communication: Getting in Touch with You
I will regularly use e-mail and Brightspace to post materials and send out announcements. It is your responsibility to check Brightspace and your email regularly to keep up-to-date with these announcements. I will use the e-mail address you have listed on Brightspace, unless you provide a preferred alternative. Please make sure that you can access the email linked to Brightspace. This must be a CUNY account. I will also send out announcements and post new material on Brightspace, so make sure you receive those announcements.
If you have trouble accessing Brightspace or changing the email address on Brightspace, please contact:
Information Technology Services (ITS) Help Desk Phone: (718) 677-6180 E-mail: [email protected] Hours: Monday – Friday, from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Communication: Getting in Touch with Instructors
The best way to get in touch with me for questions about the course and content is by sending me an e-mail. I strive to respond to all messages promptly; if you do not receive a reply within 48 hours, please feel free to follow up. You can also attend my in-person office hours, particularly for questions or concerns that require a more in-depth discussion. If that time is not convenient, please email me to arrange a Zoom meeting at an alternative time.
Tips for Success in this Laboratory Section
As a “writing intensive” course, Experimental Lab involves more writing than you might be used to, but the class is designed to help you succeed. Only part of our time will be spent on lectures or group activities; much of it will be for you to work on assignments in class, with me available for feedback and support. If you’re ever struggling with content or deadlines, please reach out– I’m happy to help you find solutions, but I can only do so if you let me know what’s going on.
Help with Research and Writing
The Library maintains a collection of links to sites that can assist you with proper citation format and paraphrasing and quoting other authors at http://library.brooklyn.cuny.edu Research Help. The Learning Center has writing tutors available to help you with your writing https://www.brooklyn.edu/lc/.
The best learning is done in conversation with others, whether they are people—classmates, teachers, friends—or texts—books, articles, essays, poems, films etc. It should not be a solitary process. However, the assignments that you hand in for this course must be done on your own, should represent your own thinking, and should be original work that you have done for this particular course. In my opinion, the best way to balance these two seemingly contradictory approaches (collaborative learning and original individually-produced work) without knowingly—or, even unwittingly—resorting to plagiarism or other forms of academic misconduct is to learn what constitutes plagiarism and the correct rules for citing sources—read the information on the following website carefully: https://www.brooklyn.edu/policies
Magner Center: “What will you do after you graduate? The Magner Career Center, located in 1303 James Hall, has valuable resources including resume and interview preparation, finding an internship, choosing a career, and more. Please see: https://tinyurl.com/29uc8sk7
For a complete syllabus with detailed policies, please review the documents via Brightspace.
