Cognitive Processes

Student Learning Outcomes, Goals, Objectives:

Students successfully completing this course will be able to:

• Demonstrate factual knowledge of research and concepts in foundational areas of experimental psychology (cognitive psychology).

• Critically evaluate theory and research in foundational areas of experimental psychology (cognitive psychology).

• Lectures will explore major theories, concepts, and research findings in cognitive psychology, with a focus on classic findings (SLO 1).

• Readings will focus on current theories, concepts, and research findings in cognitive and experimental psychology (SLO 1).

• Students will engage in discussions where they communicate their factual knowledge and critical analysis of assigned readings (SLOs 1-2).

• Students will provide reaction papers each week that demonstrate analytical, critical thinking about assigned readings (SLOs 1-2).

• Students will present at least one summary of assigned empirical papers that demonstrate knowledge of current theories, concepts, and research findings in cognitive and experimental psychology (SLO 1).

Course Grading Information:

Typically the course has no midterm or final exam. However, if I suspect that ANY student is not keeping up and participating, we will replace half or all of the participation and presentation scores with a midterm and/or final exam taken in class. This is explained in more detail in the course guide.

Activity/Performance Measure	Percentage/Points
Participation	30% [or 15% or 0%]
Reaction Papers	40%
Empirical Article Presentation(s)	30% [or 15% or 0%]
Midterm and/or Final Exam	0% [or 15 or 30%]

If one or more exams are included, the weightings above change – see the beginning of this section.

A course grade of “B” indicates satisfactory mastery of all learning outcomes.

Participation for each class, each article summary, and each reaction paper will be graded as high pass (100), pass (92.5), low pass (85), unsatisfactory (75), or incomplete (0). Grades for each category will be averaged at the end of the semester to form an overall score. In the absence of any feedback, the grade is a “pass.”

Late papers will be reduced by 5% per hour, starting 1-min after the due date (e.g., 6:01pm).

Grading Scale

Percentage	Letter Grade
100-93%	A
92-90%	A-
89-87%	B+
86-83%	B
82-80%	B-
79-70%	C
69% and below	F

Attendance/Participation:

Attendance at all class meetings is required. Frequent, high-quality contributions to class discussion are expected. Participation should be based on assigned readings and should reflect your mastery of SLOs 1-2.

Participation for each class, each article summary, and each reaction paper will be graded as high pass (100), pass (92.5), low pass (85), unsatisfactory (75), or incomplete (0). Grades for each category will be averaged at the end of the semester to form an overall score. In the absence of any feedback, the grade is a “pass.”

Late papers will be reduced by 5% per hour, starting 1-min after the due date (e.g., 6:01pm).

Course Materials Purchased by the Students:

No course materials are required.

DIsclaimer:

This course engages diverse scholarly perspectives to develop critical thinking, analysis, and debate, and inclusion of a reading does not imply endorsement.