SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY PSY-3063
online

Professor:  Dr. Travis Langley

Required textbook: Social Psychology, by David Myers.

OVERVIEW:
This course is designed to provide an overview of the scientific study of how people interact.  Topics of discussion include social behavior, intimate relationships, aggression, prejudice, propaganda, various means of intentional and unintentional manipulation.

SCHEDULE

UNIT 1 (Monday at the start of week 5, after week 4 has ended)
Chapters 1-4.

UNIT 2 (Monday at the start of week 9, after week 8 has ended)
Chapters 5-8.

UNIT 3 (Monday at the start of week 13, after week 12 has ended)
Chapters 9-12.

UNIT 4 (Wednesday of week 16)
Chapters 13-16.

FINAL EXAM (40% of the course grade)

The final is a large portion of the grade because it’s when we find out how much you have actually learned from all the other work you’ll do in the class.

You must come to campus to take the comprehensive final exam at one of these times:

SPRING

• Tuesday of finals week, 3:00-5:00 (McBrien 311)

FALL

• TBA

You are NOW responsible for making sure you can and will be here at one of those times. Do not ask to take it early or late unless you have other finals at EVERY time listed above, and if so, tell me as soon as possible. Find out now when all your finals will be held. It’s no big deal if I need to add an extra time slot, but we all need to know that soon so I can make that time available as an option anybody in the class can choose.

Bring a #2 pencil, Scantron sheet, and identification (driver’s license or HSU ID) to take the final. If your photo on the roster looks like you, I’m unlikely to ask for your identification, but have it with you just in case.

ONLINE EXAMS (30% of the course grade)

Each unit will conclude with a 40‑item multiple-choice exam covering any of the course material. Unlike the final exam which you will take in person, you will take each of the unit exams through Canvas when the time comes.

There will be NO makeup tests. As long as you do not miss any tests, your lowest test will be dropped, unless it is the final exam. If you do miss a regular test but have an excused absence, the missing test will be the one that gets dropped. Don’t miss the final; you can’t drop it.

Test dates will be announced in the Discussions forum. You will have an 8-hour window (noon until 8 p.m.) during which you can take each test. Once you start it, a timer will begin and will not stop even if you log out. Do not start the test until you are ready to complete it in one sitting.

GRADING

Test questions range in difficulty to get an accurate idea of exactly how much you know and understand about the course material. They provide a very accurate indication of how much each person does and does not know compared to everybody else in the class. I do not feel it is right to establish a curve based on the highest grade in the class, in which case only one score would determine everyone’s grade. The scale on the 40‑point tests is simply this:

F <‑‑ 20.0          D 20.1 ‑ 25.0          C 25.1 ‑ 30.0          B 30.1 ‑ 35.0        A 35.1 ‑‑>

The professor also reserves the right to subtract any number of points from the grade of someone who disrupts class (whether online or while taking the final) or to assign a course grade of F to someone caught cheating. Anyone caught cheating will also be referred for University disciplinary measures. A single instance of plagiarism in any task counts as cheating.

There can be essay questions to assess your understanding of material.

INTERNET ASSIGNMENTS (30% of the course grade)

We will never use chat rooms and you will not have to be online at any specific time of day to do the assignments. Chat room technology for that is still too awkward, not every student’s computer will be able to handle it, and part of the reason for taking an online class is to keep your time flexible.

To do your assignments, check the discussion forum on the Canvas discussion page for this class several times each week. You will either do each assignment on that discussion forum or learn from the forum where to go to do each task, such as when you have to take some practice quizzes in Canvas. Each response you’re required to make counts as one point simply for following the instructions or minus one point (-1, negative credit) if you don’t do it. You will have several assignments every week. Because missing an assignment in an online class counts as missing class, anyone who fails to do three or more of the assignments may be dropped from the course without further notice. Think of the Discussions section as your classroom. 

The “total” or “average” listed in Canvas for your grade can be misleading when it includes things that do not count as part of your grades and leaves out some things that do. Ignore it.

Do NOT email your work to your professor. Emailing it instead of posting it where it’s supposed to go counts as missing the assignment altogether, plus you’ll lose points from your overall grade.

DEADLINES

Assignments are due at the end of each week, indicated in the assignments’ subject headings. The week’s assignments are posted on the discussion forum by the end of each Wednesday, and they often appear earlier in the week. If you see no new assignments by Thursday, ask the professor in case of a Canvas error.

The deadline is 5 minutes until midnight at the end of each Saturday. For assignments that don’t lock you out at the end of Saturday, you get half credit for up to three assignments completed Sunday – only three, no more. No later work will be accepted. Meet the deadlines.

If you wait until that last day and something goes wrong that keeps you from doing the assignment, well, you should have done it earlier because you’ll have several days to complete each task. If your Internet is out all day, you are responsible for going somewhere with Internet access. If your wifi is out, you could use a phone to create a hotspot with access. The Internet is all around us, the ways to access it are many, and you have chosen to take an online class. Accessing the Internet and keeping track of your schedule are your responsibilities.

PERSONAL COMMITMENT

While you enjoy great flexibility in taking this course online, you and you alone are responsible for your success. It requires motivation and devotion. You must make sure you follow instructions and do your work before the deadlines. Developing the habit of following instructions and doing things when you’re supposed to do them is probably more important in your life than any specific bit of information that any class can teach you.

COMPUTER TIPS

To make sure your computer can interact with our system, you may need (1) the most current version of your Internet browser, (2) Windows updates, and (3) Java updates. Do not use Safari for your browser. Sorry, but some of the systems we’re using don’t work as well with Safari.

Call the HSU Computer Help Desk at 230-5678 or email helpdesk@hsu.edu if you have non-Canvas account difficulties.

Contact George Finkle at finkleg@hsu.edu about Canvas login or access problems. George has nothing to do with the course content.

CONTACTING YOUR PROFESSOR

For an online course, the easiest way to contact me with questions or comments is by email. Write me at langlet@hsu.edu any time and I will respond after I see the message if a reply is necessary. If you cannot email me, you will need to leave a message on my voicemail at  (870)230-5222. Email works best, though. Every time you send me a message without saying who you are or which course you’re talking about, you will lose a point from your grade for Internet assignments, just as you’ll lose a point every time you could have found your answer by checking the syllabus instead of cluttering the email. We all get too much email. Be responsible and don’t lose those points.

I will send messages to the entire class via email at times. The email system is set up to send messages to your HSU student email address. If you prefer to use some other address, you must go into your campus email system and set up your mail options so that it will forward email to you. I do not plan to use Canvas’s mail system except for the welcome message.

If I can help you with anything else, always feel free to ask. Every online class is different, so do not be embarrassed when you occasionally goof here or there. That’s part of the learning process, and I’ll endeavor to help you get things running smoothly.

Syllabus Part II: Expected Learning Outcomes, Computer Tips, Disability Services

The schedule and other details in this syllabus may be subject to revision.