Senior Elective: Psychology

Archbishop Stepinac

Mr. Hogan

Overview:                               As a Senior Year Elective, the class will serve as an introduction in to many of the popular topics of Psychology. Setting the foundation for future study during college, this introductory class will expose students to some of the founding members and theories of, “the study of human behavior,” Psychology. Students will cover material from Sigmund Freud, as well as more current developments in the field of Psychology. Students will primarily use the textbook: Psychology, A Way to Grow, but will be expected to develop ideas outside those contained within the covers of the book.

Material Breakdown:            Students will take a half semester to cover the foundation of Psychology. During the first half of the term, students will cover chapters: One, Two, Three, Six and Seven. During the second half of the term, students will cover chapters: Eight, Nine, Ten, Thirteen and Fourteen.

Grades:                                   Students will be graded on chapter tests, which will mostly be comprised of multiple chapters, as well as one essay grade per quarter, however, much of the students grade will come from their ability to reason and discuss material in class as a group. The textbook material serves as a basis for students one ideas and is meant to spark their own reasoning. Tests and Essays will account for roughly 75% of the grade and discussion/class participation will account for roughly 25%.

Essay Topics:                        Each quarter will see a unique essay topic derived from material contained in the textbook, but students are not limited to only textbooks when reasoning and writing the essays. The first quarter of the term will have students comparing Sigmund Freud’s Theories of Psychology (chapter 6), with those of newer groups of Psychology (chapter 7). The second quarter of the term will give students an option of essay topics. Students will either write about the Learned Sexual Roles of Man vs. Woman (chapter 13) or students can write about the mental affects of People’s Belief in the Supernatural (chapter 14).

* Due dates for each term have been set, and will be announced to students in class. It is the students' responsibility to keep track of due dates, not that of the teacher to continually remind each student.