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GWU-Psyc2015-SPRING25syllabus

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7 views

GWU-Psyc2015-SPRING25syllabus

syllabus

Uploaded by

Ria Batta
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Biological Psychology1

Psyc 2015
Spring 2025

Monday & Wednesday 11:10am-12:25pm (1st section)/2:20pm-3:35pm (2nd section)

Instructor: Haedar Abuirqeba, PhD


Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: Tuesdays 11:30am-1:30pm (via zoom) by appointment
Office: Psychology building, room #704/virtual

Graduate Teaching Assistants:


PSYC 2015-10 (2:20pm-3:35pm)- Sanweda Mahagabin, email: [email protected]
Office hours: Wednesdays from 11:30am to 1:30pm via Zoom
( https://gwu-edu.zoom.us/j/7504090315)

PSYC 2015-11 (11:10am-12:25pm)- Rebekah (Beck) Hardy, email: [email protected]


Office hours: Monday and Wednesday from 1:00pm-2:30pm, office: 2013 H street, 5th
floor

Course Overview
This course will provide an introduction to the physiological, sensory, and neuronal
systems that support complex behavior as well as an introduction to the research
methodologies used to study these systems. The course will cover several core topics
including the gross anatomy of the human brain, the basic cellular mechanisms at play
within the nervous system, and basic and complex behavior like perception and language.
However, beyond these core topics, students will play an active role in designing this
course by choosing domains of human or animal behavior of particular interest to them.
These domains will be explored through a final paper and in-class discussions.

Learning Outcomes
At the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Analyze, evaluate, and compare major theories of the biological basis of behavior
• Parse and analyze original research studies in biological psychology
• Understand the complex interplay between theory, hypotheses, data, and methods in
evaluating research findings and theoretical positions
• Present well-formed arguments based on analyses of theories and empirical data

Instruction and Independent Work Time


2.5 hours of direct instruction per week

1
Thanks to Thomas Nassif and Richard Dubbelde for their helpful templates in
creating this syllabus.
5-8 hours of independent work per week

Required Text(s)
The following materials are required for the course and should be available in the
bookstore:

1) Kolb & Winshaw. An Introduction to Brain and Behavior, 6th Edition (2021) or 7th
Edition (2023). Worth Publishers (7th edition: 9781319452667). 6th edition is perfectly
fine to use as well.

This course is included in the library’s Top Textbooks program. There is at least one
copy of the required textbook(s) for this course on reserve at Gelman Library. You can
borrow the textbook for free for up to three hours at a time. For more information on how
to confirm the book is currently available and how to check it out,
visit https://library.gwu.edu/top-textbooks.

Additionally, lectures may be accompanied by several papers from scientific journals


which will be discussed in lecture. It is not required that you read these papers, but they
may help you understand the concepts in the lecture and provide further detail. These
papers will be uploaded to Blackboard.

Computer Accounts
This class will use Blackboard and your GW email for all class announcements and
submitting assignments. It is your responsibility to check Blackboard and your personal
GW email frequently for course announcements and class updates. Blackboard will also
be used for submitting all assignments. If you have any questions or difficulties, please
contact the IT Help Desk at 202-994-GWIT (4948) or by email at [email protected]. You
are strongly encouraged to forward your GW email to the account you read most
frequently.

Attendance + Course Structure


Regular attendance is required. The intent of this course is to teach this admittedly
detailed material through lecture and discussion (as much as possible). As such, your
participation is critical both for your own success and the success of the entire class in
general. Plan to attend every class. The material to be covered is very broad and complex
topics will often be discussed in only single class periods.
Use of cell phones is not permitted in class. As a courtesy to the instructor and your
fellow students, please turn cell phones to silent and refrain from text messaging in the
classroom. Both are distracting and detract from the goal of establishing an effective
learning environment.
Grading

Your final grade is dependent on


exams and your research paper. Grade Point Scale
A 93-100
Item Points A- 90-92
B+ 86-89
Exam 1 100 B 83-85
B- 80-82
Exam 2 100 C+ 76-79
Exam 3 100 C 73-75
C- 70-72
Exam 4 100 D+ 66-69
D 63-65
Paper outline 25 D- 60-62
F <60
Final Draft 75

Total 500

Exams
There will be four exams, including a non-cumulative final exam. Class discussions are
fair game for the exams and only by attending the course can you help determine its
direction. You will have a much more interesting experience and very likely a higher
grade if you attend regularly and take your participation seriously. Exams will be taken
in-person using pencils, scantrons and paper/blue book. Please come prepared with
pencils!

Research Paper
You will write a paper outlining a biological mechanism for a complex behavior. The
paper is worth 20% of your grade in aggregate, with 5% being the outline and 15% for
the final paper. Paper assignments must be submitted electronically via the Blackboard
site as either Word documents or PDFs. Include your name on each page. Up to 10% will
be deducted from the final paper grade for each calendar day that a research paper is late.
Further details about the research paper will be discussed in class.

How to Succeed
Come to class having read the assigned pages in the textbook. Afterwards, review the
slides, your notes, and the textbook pages again. For many of you, particularly those
without a strong background in this subject, it will not suffice to scan the material in the
week before the exam, as we will be covering too much in too great a depth. If you are
unclear on a concept or feel you are falling behind come see either the Instructor or TA
immediately. We are here to help. Further, for those of you continuing on to further
courses within the Psychology Department, particularly the Cognitive Neuroscience
track, this core concepts in this course will be revisited many times and mastering them
now will make your future studies that much easier.

Research Requirement
According to Psychology Department policy, you are required to earn 3 points of
research credit. To fulfill the 3-credit research requirement, you may either participate in
research studies offered by the Psychology Department or write reports about articles that
describe psychological research. Go to the following website for more information:
research.psychology.gwu.edu/ Please be sure to fulfill the research requirement.

University Academic Integrity Code


Cases involving academic dishonesty in this course will result in failure (0%) for the
exam or paper. As quoted from the GW Code of Academic Integrity: “Academic
dishonesty is defined as cheating of any kind, including intentionally using or attempting
to use unauthorized materials, information, or study aids in any academic exercise;
copying from another student's examination; submitting work for an in-class examination
that has been prepared in advance.” For more information, please visit:
http://www.gwu.edu/~ntegrity/code.html

By submitting work for evaluation in this course, you represent it as your own intellectual
product. You may not submit for evaluation any content (e.g., ideas, text, code, images)
that was generated, in whole or in part, by Generative Artificial Intelligence tools
(including, but not limited to, ChatGPT and other large language models). Doing so in
this course constitutes cheating under the George Washington University Code of
Academic Integrity. Please do not use any AI or LLM as a study tool, as it can be
erroneous and if you’re memorizing information from it, it may sound like you are
directly copying from the bot. This is, of course, a breach of academic integrity and goes
against our course policy.

University Policy on Religious Holidays


Students should notify faculty during the first week of the semester of their intention to
be absent from class on their day(s) of religious observance; Faculty should extend to
these students the courtesy of absence without penalty on such occasions, including
permission to make up examinations; Faculty who intend to observe a religious holiday
should arrange at the beginning of the semester to reschedule missed classes or to make
other provisions for their course-related activities. Send me & the TA a picture of a
manatee via email before the first exam date, and you will receive two extra points on
your grade for the first exam of the semester.

Disability Support Services (DSS)


Any student who may need an accommodation based on the potential impact of a
disability should contact the Disability Support Services office at 202-994-8250 in the
Marvin Center, Suite 242, to establish eligibility and to coordinate reasonable
accommodations. For additional information please refer to: http://gwired.gwu.edu/dss/

University Counseling Center (UCC) 202-994-5300


The UCC offers 24/7 assistance and referral to address students' personal, social, career,
and study skills problems. Services for students include crisis and emergency mental
health consultations, confidential assessment, counseling services (individual and small
group), and referrals. For more information:
http://gwired.gwu.edu/counsel/CounselingServices/AcademicSupportServices

Writing Center Support


Much of your work will focus on writing. The university has an on-campus writing center
that can be a valuable resource if you need assistance with any part of your writing
process. Appointments can be made online at https://writingcenter.gwu.edu/.
Security
In the case of an emergency, if at all possible, the class should shelter in place. If the
building that the class is in is affected, follow the evacuation procedures for the building.
After evacuation, seek shelter at a predetermined rendezvous location.

Course Schedule: Readings, Exams, and Assignments


The course schedule is subject to change – any changes will be announced in class and
communicated via email. Please read the assigned text in advance of the day that it is to
be covered so that you are better prepared to understand the material discussed in class
and to answer questions accurately. This instruction excludes the first day, obviously, but
those pages may still be covered in an exam.

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