Course Information

Lifespan Growth & Development

Course Number: PSYC 2314

Semester & Year: Spring 2025 DC

Instructor Information

Name: Melanie Allen

Office: Social Science Office “B"

E-mail: melanie.allen@texarkanacollege.edu

Phone: 903-823-3364

Cell: 

Textbook Information

Lifespan Development: A Psychological Perspective (2^nd Edition), Martha Lally & Suzanne Valentine-French

Click the link for a copy of the text: http://dept.clcillinois.edu/psy/LifespanDevelopment.pdfOpen this document with ReadSpeaker docReader

Course Description

The study will concern the physical, mental, and emotional characteristics of the individual from conception throughout the lifespan. Specific topics will include basic theories and research in developmental psychology; parent-child relationships; identification, peer relations, self-concepts, language learning, and perceptual, and cognitive development.

You can print this syllabus by going to the Settings block and selecting Print Book.

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Instructor Biography

Hello! My name is Melanie Allen. I have a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction, a Master Mathematics Teacher Certification, and I have completed the extra required graduate hours in Psychology to be qualified to teach in this area. I taught fourth grade for 17 years, and have been at Texarkana College for the past 8. I have been married to my husband, Steve for 28 years, and we have two wonderful kiddos and our FIRST grandbaby! Outside of work, I am also the manager and one of the coaches at CrossFit Texarkana.  I am so excited to have you in this course, and I look forward to getting to know you! 

Course Description

The study will concern the physical, mental, and emotional characteristics of the individual from conception throughout the lifespan. Specific topics will include basic theories and research in developmental psychology; parent-child relationships, identification, peer relations, self-concepts; language learning, perceptual and cognitive development.

Required Texts

The following text is required for this course:

Lifespan Development: A Psychological Perspective (2^nd Edition), Martha Lally & Suzanne Valentine-French

 Click the link for a copy of the text: http://dept.clcillinois.edu/psy/LifespanDevelopment.pdf

Any other required readings that you do not need to own a copy of (such as online journal articles) can be accessed via hyperlink in the weekly Required Resources areas of this course.

Student Learning Outcomes for PSYC 2314:
 
1.      Describe the stages of the developing person at different periods of the lifespan from birth to death.
2.      Discuss the social, political, economic, and cultural forces that affect the development process of the individual.
3.      Identify factors of responsible personal behavior with regard issues such as sexual activity, substance abuse, marriage, and parenting.
4.      Explain the biosocial, cognitive, and psychological influences throughout the lifespan as an ongoing set of processes, involving both continuity and change.
5.      Describe the different developmental perspectives of the major theories of development (i.e., cognitive, learning, humanistic, and psychodynamic).
6.      Identify examples of some of the cultural and ethnic differences that influence development throughout the lifespan.

Student Expectations

Performance and Participation

Regular and active participation is required. The student must notify the instructor immediately if they are experiencing any obstacles in maintaining optimal performance. All performance will be monitored and swift action is taken to remedy any problems. Student behavior in the course is to be respectful at all times to the professor and peers. Students are expected to actively participate in the course. Each week of the course is designed to be completed over multiple days, not just in one sitting.  Active participation includes posting to and responding to discussion forums, completing assigned activities, and other actions as requested by the professor.

Technical Skills

Students must possess the following technical skills in order to succeed in this course:

1. Using Moodle, the learning management system.
2. Using email. 

• CLICK HERE for directions to put your email on your Andriod device.

• CLICK HERE for directions to put your email on your iOs device (iPhone, iPad).
  

3. Using the Microsoft Office Suite, including Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint.
• Microsoft Office is available to students for free. The installation instructions can be found under the Links section of the Student tab in myTC – Free Office 365 for Students! This is NOT required but could be useful to you. CLICK HERE for information about downloading this program. Note: this program is designed for laptops and pcs not for mobile devices.

Minimum Hardware and Software Requirements

In order to view your online course your computer equipment should meet the following requirements: 

 Windows XP, Vista, 7, or later; MacOS X or later

  A minimum of 1 GB of RAM  Cable modem, DSL high-speed internet connection (preferred). Some video content may not display well over a telephone modem. 

 An internet connection through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) 

 The latest version of the Firefox web browser (for both Mac or PC) Currently we are using Moodle as our Learning Management System (LMS) and there have been some issues of students not being able to view PowerPoints and videos with Internet Explorer, Safari, and some of the other web browsers. The following items may be required in some courses in order for you to view course materials. 

Browser Settings

Some items in this course may require you to have your pop-up blocker disabled. To disable your pop-up blocker, click on the browser you are using for more information:

Firefox - http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/pop-blocker-settings-exceptions-troubleshooting#w_pop-up-blocker-settings

Chrome - http://support.google.com/chrome/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=95472

Internet Explorer - http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-vista/internet-explorer-pop-up-blocker-frequently-asked-questions

Safari (these directions are for blocking, do the opposite to stop blocking) - http://support.apple.com/kb/PH5040

Student Requirements for successful completion of the course:
 
Students should:
 
·         Complete the assigned readings.
·         Develop notes for the topic using the reading and viewing guides provided.
·         Participate in the discussion forums as assigned.
·         Complete the weekly quizzes.
·         Complete the topic reflections.
 
Student Assessment:

Critical Thinking Interactives (100 points)

Quizzes for the Assigned Topic (20 points each = 200 points total) 

Activities (100 points)

Discussion Participation (100 points)

Lifespan Project (200 points total)

Participation (50 points)

Total Points Available 750 points

Instructor Expectations

Students can expect the following from the instructor.

Response Time

The instructor will respond to all questions sent via email or phone within 48 hours (Monday through Friday).

Support

Please view the Support drop down menu at the top of the page.

For issues within your course, please contact your instructor via email.

Attention! Dropping this class may affect your funding in a negative way! You could owe money to the college and/or federal government. Please check with the Financial Aid office before making a decision.

Policies

School-wide policies are listed in the Catalog and Student Handbook located at the top of the page in the Policies drop down menu. 

You can also access the Student Handbook by clicking HERE.

Late work policy

Since a core focus of this course is to prepare you for experiences in higher education and/or your future in the workplace, completing work on time, in accordance with the good time- management skills you will learn in this course, is considered highly desirable and an important habit to develop. For this reason, points can be deducted for late work. If you are having trouble completing an assignment on time, please contact me as soon as possible. If possible, I want to work with you so you can submit the assignment without losing points.

Academic Integrity

This college assumes that students eligible to perform on the college level are familiar with the ordinary rules governing proper conduct, including academic honesty. The principle of academic honesty is that all work presented by you is yours alone. Academic dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating, plagiarism, and collusion, shall be treated appropriately. Please refer to the Texarkana College 2016-2017 Catalog and Student Handbook for more information. Texarkana College will utilize as necessary, technology programs/software to ensure academic honesty.

You must complete all work independently unless otherwise instructed. Plagiarism, cheating, or any related offensives will result in an automatic zero for that assignment—no exceptions, no excuses!

Withdrawals

If for any reason you need to drop the course, it is your responsibility to inform me officially either in person or in writing, in a timely manner. If you are considering dropping, please try to meet with me to discuss your options. I may be able to help you find solutions to some of the challenges that may be affecting your progress in class. If I can help, I would like to! Ultimately the decision is yours; therefore, I will not drop students for any reason. All students who remain in the course will receive a grade based on their performance.

Texarkana College complies with all provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act and makes reasonable accommodations upon request. Please contact Tonja Blase at 903.823.3349, or go by the Academic Learning Commons for personal assistance.

Please click HERE for more information.

Disability Act Statement: 

If you have an accommodation letter from their office indicating that you have a disability which requires academic accommodations, please present it to me so we can discuss the accommodations that you might need for this class. It is best to request these changes at the beginning if not before the start of class so there is ample time to make the accommodations..

This college assumes that students eligible to perform on the college level are familiar with the ordinary rules governing proper conduct, including academic honesty. The principle of academic honesty is that all work presented by you is yours alone. Academic dishonesty, including but not limited to cheating, plagiarism, and collusion, shall be treated appropriately. Please refer to the Texarkana College 2016-2017 Catalog and Student Handbook for more information. Texarkana College will utilize as necessary, technology programs/software to ensure academic honesty.

You are required to complete all work independently unless otherwise instructed. Plagiarism, cheating, or any related offenses will result in an AUTOMATIC ZERO- no excuses or exceptions.