College of Southern Nevada
Office Phone: 651-4598 ext. 4878
Email: warren_shillingburg@ccsn.nevada.edu
Office: N/A
Office Hours: By appointment only via online chatrooms
Course Description
Psychology is the study of the thoughts and actions of individuals. Educational Psychology applies the concepts and methods of psychology to the study of learning, teaching, and schooling. This course will cover some of the major theoretical perspectives of educational psychology and how these theories apply to teaching and learning. A major focus of this course will be on the practical applications of educational psychology to schooling.
Course Objectives
Upon completion of this course students will be able to:
1. demonstrate knowledge
of the major learning theories and how these
theories apply to education.
2. observe and document student learning and diversity of learners in the
classroom.
3. describe and demonstrate the qualities necessary for effective teaching.
4. describe several journals in the field of education and how these
journals could assist the students as teachers.
5. state the importance and components of an effective lesson.
6. demonstrate professional teacher behaviors.
Required Text
Slavin, R. E., Educational Psychology: Theory and Practice.
Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Course Requirements
| 300 Points | Three Exams | 100 points each |
| 50 Points | Online Group Discussion | Groups of three or four |
| 25 Points | Website Review | Educational Site |
| Minus any points for not | participting in the daily | chapter questions |
| 375 | Total Points for Class |
Exam
There will be three exams, each being worth 100 points. Each exam will be a multiple-choice test consisting of 50 questions worth two points each. Students will take each test on the assigned day at a computer of their choice, and this may be on their home computer.
Online Group Discussion
Students will group themselves in groups of three or four students
and will select an educational topic to research and discuss with
their group members from a list provided; each group only selects one topic
and schedules one group chat for the semester. You will determine among your
group when you will meet in our chatroom to discuss the topic. You will let
me know when you will
be chatting, and I will print out your chat for my records. I will be looking
for involvement from all participants and references to your readings, at
least
three from each participant; these readings must be from sources other than
our textbook or other college textbooks. Each of your three references must
be listed at the beginning or at the end of your chat and must include the
author and title of the source or complete web address to receive credit.
Students will be expected to chat for 30 minutes, and your grade will be
based on the chat meeting these minimum requirements. Please note that you
must work with your group members to
facilitate this chat, which means you must return emails and be checking
your messages at least daily. Group members will be expected to email the
group members twice before emailing me to drop the nonresponsive person
from the group; the nonresponsive person will then receive no credit for
this assignment. Students are only required to have one group chat before
the posted deadline.
These questions will focus your studying for the exams and will get you thinking about important topics within the chapters. Students should also be aware that any student who does not log into this course for two straight weeks or who does not answer chapter questions for two weeks in a row (summer session - two days in a row) will automatically be dropped from the course. If you are not able to keep up with the course material and do the assigned work, you will not be able to learn the material and will not be able to pass this course; therefore, I reserve the right to remove students who are taking my time but not putting in their time.
A Few Course Guidelines
1. Logging in to course - students should be aware that the instructor is able to verify how often and when each student logs in to the course. Students are expected to check the bulletin board and their email weekly (summer session - daily). This is the only way to keep up with the class material. Any student not keeping up with logging in to the class should expect their grade to be affected.
2. Daily Chapter Questions - It is very important that students read the bulletin board postings regarding each chapter. You must answer the questions assigned to your group, but you should also read all other postings. This information will guide your studying for the exams. Each question is given to guide you to the important points within each chapter and to stimulate thought regarding important educational psychology issues and how they will relate to your teaching career.
3. Email - All email correspondence for this course must be through the email icon of this course. Email will not be accepted from students in this Internet class on my campus email address. This will enable the instructor to keep up with the course email and to return your email much more quickly. Also, please be careful in how you word your emails; what you say in person can sound much more harsh when written in an email. Remember, I am your instructor, not your classmate, and I expect students to maintain professionalism when writing an email. I do not expect students to agree with everything I do and welcome student opinions, but I will not accept rude or unprofessional email from students. Students who do not follow this guideline will be blocked from the course until a face-to-face meeting is set up with the instructor. Also, realize that I have to write many emails and sometimes I will keep them very short and to the point. This is not meant to be rude, only to be efficient.
To access the class email, click on the email icon, then click on browse. This will give you the names of everyone registered in our class, including the instructor. Click on the name you want to email and then compose and send your message.
4. Bulletin Board - Because the bulletin board is being used as an instructor
tool for this class, it is important not to overuse the bulletin board for
unnecessary postings. If you want to ask an individual student or the
instructor a question, you should do so through private email. Please only
post messages on the main bulletin board that are relevant to all members of our
class. This means you should post one message to request members for a group discussion, but those interested should then reply to you privately, which you simply do by clicking on "reply privately" once you have read the bulletin board message; this will send a private email to the person instead of posting a public message that is not necessary for all of us to read. Messages that are incorrectly posted will be deleted by the instructor.
When responding to the chapter questions or statements, be sure to reply to the instructor's question when answering the question posed by the instructor; you do this by clicking on the instructor's question and then replying to this question. This will keep all required responses organized along the left margin. If you wish to comment on a student comment, you should click on the student comment and then reply to the student's message. This will then indent your comment from the left margin, keeping these comments separate from the required responses. . Students need to understand that your responses to the chapter questions must be posted as directed to receive credit for the posting. You do not lose points if your response is not correct, as long as you are at least trying to answer the correct question. Students are encouraged to email the instructor if they do not understand how to post a response. The instructor will give individual guidance for those having problems with chapter one, after that you are expected to do them correctly.
The instructor will also comment on student comments individually or as a whole, depending on the type of question and what way is best to focus the discussion. Some questions that are opinions will not get feedback from the instructor. Typically, the instructor will give one comment at the end of all student comments.
5. Orientation Information - Students need to be certain they also read the orientation information. This icon is found on the homepage and students are responsible for following all information listed in the orientation information as well as this syllabus.
A = 336 - 375
B = 299 - 335
C = 261 - 298
D = 224 - 260
F = below 224 points