GEORGIA HIGHLANDS COLLEGE

COURSE SYLLABUS

PSYCHOLOGY 2165

Abnormal Psychology

Spring 2007

 Instructor: Donna Mantooth       E-mail:   dmantoot@highlands.edu          

Messages: 706 368-7617(voice mail) or E-mail

Course Description: This course is an introduction to behavior and mental disorders. The emphasis of the course is upon the emotional and behavioral characteristics of the major categories of abnormal behavior with some attention to current  treatment methods.

 Credit Hours: 3

Prerequisites: Psychology 1101 and one other psychology course or the consent of the instructor.

Course Objectives: To successfully complete this course, students are expected to demonstrate a basic knowledge of the following:

1. The major types of psychological disorders.
2. Research findings on the major psychological disorders.
3. Assessment and diagnosis of psychological disorders.

 Class Format: The course will consist of class discussions, exercises, lectures, debates and exams.

 Required Textbook:  Comer, Ronald J., Abnormal Psychology, Sixth Edition, Worth Publishers, New York, NY.

 ALL ELECTRONIC DEVICES INCLUDING CELL PHONES, PDAs, ETC MUST BE TURNED OFF AND OUT OF SITE DURING CLASS.

Attend all classes – Class attendance is required as there will be daily assignments or activities. You are responsible for all material covered in class. Any student having perfect attendance will receive 10 extra points added to their grade. If you must miss a class for any reason you forfeit the perfect attendance points. For every class you miss over two classes there will be two points deducted from your participation grade.

If you must miss an exam for a valid reason, you must notify the instructor prior to the exam that you will be absent. This can be done via phone or e-mail . If you do not notify the instructor prior to test time, you will receive a zero (0) for this exam and not be allowed to make it up. Make up exams will only be given under special circumstances and must be approved by the instructor. If approved, the make-up exam must be taken during the first class following your absence or at the next division exam make-up session. The division make up sessions for fall semester will be announced at the beginning of the semester.

Class Participation – The expectation is that you will be an active, involved participant in this class. Your participation grade will include not only your active involvement through questions and discussion, but also your exercise grades. In order to be successful, you need to come to class having read all assignments, be a participant and complete all assignments.

Exams – A total of four exams will be given during the course.

GRADE POINTS CAN BE EARNED AS FOLLOWS: 

                                                                     DUE DATES

Exam I                         100 points            January 29, 2007                 

Exam II                        100 points            March 07, 2007

Exam III                       100 points            April 11, 2007

Exam IV                      100 points            May 03, 2007

Debate:                      100 points

Participation:            100 points                                                                       

Grading Point Guide

A = 541 - 600

B = 481 - 540

D = 360 - 420

F = 359 and below

Exams

Each student will participate in a team debate that will focus on the Yes and No answers to various questions that pertain to the field of abnormal psychology. Each team will have their debate topic and resources at least three weeks prior to the scheduled date of the debate. There will be six (6) people assigned to each debate topic with three supporting the yes side and three supporting the no side. Topics and teams will be assigned by the instructor. Grades will be based on the teams preparation (20 points), clarity of arguments (30 points), content of arguments (30 points), and persuasiveness of arguments (20 Points) .  Each class member not currently participating in the debate will also have an assessment sheet they will fill out for each team. Their assessments, along with those of the instructor will determine final grades. Grading rubrics will be given to each team with their debate topic.

Participation

There will be ten in-class exercises worth ten points each that will be conducted at random times. If you miss class on the day of these exercises, you will not be allowed to make up the points.

Policies on student conduct and academic integrity will be adhered to in this course and can be accessed via the following web site:

 http://www.floyd.edu/subwebs/academicaffairs/academicintegritypolicy.htm

Disability Statement: “Any student who feels they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should make an appointment with the College Access Center (706: 802-5003) to coordinate reasonable accommodations.  You are also welcome to contact me privately to discuss your specific needs.”

This message applies only to students receiving financial aid: Federal regulations state that if a student did not attend classes and received failing grades, then the grades were not earned and financial aid needs to be reduced accordingly. Please be advised that any student receiving a 0.00 GPA will be required to prove that the 0.00 GPA was earned by attending classes or completing requirements for each class. Students who have earned at least one passing grade for the semester will not be affected by this regulation. If a student has properly withdrawn from all classes, the student’s financial aid should be adjusted from the time they signed the withdrawal form.

You will find as we go through this class that a lot of psychological theories and methodology are controversial. I never expect you to agree with everything you read or all of my comments. I do expect you to be willing to bring your own ideas, questions, opinions and thoughts to the class and be willing to discuss them openly. Everyone in this class has a right to their own ideas, beliefs and values and I ask all my students to be open-minded, respectful of others who have differing opinions and ideas, and willing to listen and discuss your ideas and those of others. It is also very important to maintain acceptable classroom behavior. Everyone is expected to participate in class discussions, listen when others are talking and HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO PERSONAL SIDE CONVERSATIONS WHEN THE INSTRUCTOR OR ANOTHER STUDENT IS TALKING!

IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER

Classes begin                                  January 8, 2007

Drop/Add dates                           January 8 -10, 2007

MLK Holidays                                  January 13-15, 2007

Midterm                                           March 01, 2007 (Last day to drop with a W)

Spring Break Holidays                   March 19 -25, 2007

Last Day of Class                           April 30, 2007

Final Exam                                       May 02, 2007 6:00 PM