AP Psychology Syllabus

Mr. Coach Spencer

Weddington High School, Home of the Warriors

 

Course Goal: Psychology is the science of behavior and mental processes. AP Psychology is designed to provide high school students with a college level course for college credit with a passing grade on the AP exam, and of course, give them an understanding of basic Psychology. 

Course Objectives

1. The student will begin to examine human behavior.
2. The student will identify various methods and measuring tools used by psychologists.
3. The student will trace the historical development of psychology.
4. The student will explore major psychological theories and theorists.
5. The student will compare and contrast significant therapeutic approaches.
6. The student will examine a variety of topics common to the study of psychology, such as memory, perception, learning, motivation, personality theories and stress.
7. The student will analyze the human brain and neurological physiology as it applies to behavior(normal and abnormal), learning addiction and emotions.
8. The student will assess his or her own behavior patterns.
9. The student will explore his or her own motivation, goals, fears, developmental patterns, and value structure.

 

Textbook: Psychology For the AP Course, David G. Myers, 3^rd Edition. You will will not receive a hard copy of the text book. We're using an online book. The link is on the main Canvas page for the class.

Grading:

Tests                                      45%

Quizzes                                 20%

Daily Work                           20%

Projects                                 15%

 

Make Up Work

You are required to complete all make up work in a timely manner and it is your responsibility to find out what that is and turn it in. This is high school… and actually a college level class so don’t expect a lot of “hand holding.” Be responsible. All assignments will be posted on Canvas in advance. Late assignments not due to absences are accepted by with a penalty of 10 points off per day.

 

AP Exam

Of course, being an AP class, there is an AP exam. The exam is in early May. You need at least a 3 to get college credit at most schools. Local exceptions are Wake Forest, Elon, Carolina & Duke, which require a 4 or 5. If you:

• Are an AP caliber student
• Pay attention & do what’s required, and
• Study for the exam

I don’t see why you would make worse than a 3. People fail when at least one of conditions is off.

AP Psychology Course Outline

Unit One: History, Approaches, and Research Methods

Objectives:

Comprehend, analyze and explain the historical roots of psychology and the seven approaches to the

field. Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of research methods, including experimental design,

elementary statistics and ethical concerns.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Name significant contributors to the field of psychology since its beginnings and discuss their

specific contributions.

2. Discuss the way in which psychology developed from philosophy and conjecture into a

science.

3. Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the founders, theories, methods, and practices

of each of the approaches to psychology: biological, behavioral, cognitive, psychodynamic,

sociocultural, humanistic, and evolutionary/sociobiological.

4. Compare and contrast the way in which the seven approaches differ in their research

methods, practices, and theories.

5. Discuss self-concept, self-esteem and personality assessment techniques.
6. Explain the advantages and disadvantages of various research practices, including

experiments, observations, case studies, surveys, standardized tests, and clinical trials.

7. Define validity and reliability in the scientific method and critique given experiments based on

these principles.

8. Demonstrate an understanding of correlational relationships versus cause and effect

relationships.

9. Explain the different purposes and uses for descriptive statistics and inferential statistics.
10. Analyze given experiments with a working knowledge of terms such as: hypothesis,

independent variable, dependent variable, experimental condition, control condition, random

assignment, single-blind study, double-blind study, and participants.

11. Design authentic experiments using the terminology above.

 

Unit Two: Personality

Objective:

Compare, analyze and explain theories of personality.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Define personality as a relatively stable pattern of thoughts, behaviors and motives.
2. Explain the characteristics of the biological, learning, cultural, psychodynamic, and humanist

theories of personality.

3. Identify important contributions to the understanding of personality.

 

Unit Three: Developmental Psychology

Objective:

Compare, analyze and explain theories of developmental psychology in terms of physical, cognitive, social

and moral development.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Discuss factors during pregnancy that can affect psychological development after birth.
2. Explain important concepts from infancy including contact comfort, separation anxiety, and

insecure/secure attachment.

3. Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the developmental theories of Sigmund Freud,

Jean Piaget, Noam Chomsky, Eric Lenneberg, Lawrence Kohlberg, Erik Erikson, Carol Gilligan,

and Elisabeth Kubler-Ross.

4. Explain the biological and social factors that influence gender development.
5. Explain the advantages and disadvantages of various methods of parenting, including

induction and power assertion.

6. Describe the ways in which physiological and environmental changes affect adolescent

development.

 

Unit Four: Cognition and Intelligence

Objective:

Discuss the nature of intelligence and the processes involved in cognition.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Discuss the elements of cognition, such as concept, prototype, proposition, schema, mental

image, and metacognition.

2. Explain the problem solving strategies human beings use, such as algorithms, heuristics,

deduction, induction, dialectics, and critical thinking.

3. Explain the various barriers to reasoning that sometimes lead human beings astray, such as

the availability heuristic, confirmation bias, hindsight bias, cognitive dissonance, biases due

to mental sets, and justification of effort.

4. Explain the role of genetics and the environment in the formation of intelligence.
5. Discuss and evaluate the methods that researchers use to study intelligence, including

psychometric measures (such as the IQ test) and alternative measures (such as Sternberg’s

triarchic theory and Gardner’s Multiple Intelligence theory).

6. Explain the differences between crystallized intelligence and fluid intelligence.
7. Explain cognitive ethology and what this field reveals about the nature of intelligence in

animals.

 

Unit Five: Learning

Objective:

Explain, analyze and compare the various ways by which human beings learn.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Describe and explain the process of classical conditioning using the following terminology:

unconditioned stimulus, unconditioned response, conditioned stimulus, conditioned response,

acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, higher-order conditioning, generalization,

discrimination, and counterconditioning.

2. Describe and explain the process of operant conditioning using the following terminology:

reinforcement, punishment, primary reinforcer or punisher, secondary reinforcer or punisher,

positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, extinction, generalization, discrimination,

continuous schedule, intermittent schedule, shaping, successive approximations,

discriminative stimulus, and behavior modification.

3. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of systems of punishment and systems of

reinforcement, including the roles of intrinsic and extrinsic reinforcement.

4. Discuss the contributions of the major scientists in the field of behaviorism, including Ivan

Pavlov, John B. Watson, and B.F. Skinner.

5. Explain social-cognitive theories and discuss the ways in which they differ from behavioral

theories.

6. Describe the processes of observational learning and latent learning.

 

Unit Six: Abnormal Psychology: Disorders and Treatment

Objective:

Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of the causes, symptoms, treatments, and effects of the

psychological disorders covered in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of the American Psychological

Association.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Distinguish common definitions and characteristics of abnormal behavior and discuss the role

of society in forming these.

2. Explain the purpose of the various methods used to explore abnormal behavior, including

subjective diagnosis, the Rorschach test, the MMPI, and the role of the DSM.

3. Discuss the symptoms of various disorders form the thirteen major categories outlined in the

DSM.

4. Evaluate the history of treatment of the mentally ill and discuss current stigmas today.
5. Describe the appropriateness of various treatments for individuals with psychological

disorders, including drug therapy, psychotherapy, hospitalization, and crisis intervention.

6. Write case studies of given patients identifying the patient’s symptoms, the type of therapy

recommended, the psychological approach underpinning that recommendation, and the

probable outcome for the long term.

 

Unit Seven: Biological Bases of Behavior

Objective:

Describe and explain the biological bases of behavior through an understanding of neuropsychology.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Name and describe the anatomical and functional relationships between the various parts of

the central and peripheral nervous systems.

2. Demonstrate an understanding of brain function at the cellular level by explaining the

structure and function of neurons, neurotransmitters, and electrical impulses.

3. Identify the structure and function of the major regions of the brain.
4. Explain the operations of the various lobes of the brain and the functions of the right and left

hemispheres.

5. Explain the role of genetics as it pertains to human behavior and brain function.
6. Describe the techniques scientists have used to study the brain, including ablation, direct

stimulation and dissection, as well as modern technologies such as EEG, PET, MRI, fMRI, and

CAT scans.

7. Explain the various states of consciousness human beings experience, including REM and

non-REM sleep, hypnosis, meditation, dreaming, daydreaming, and drug-induced changes in

consciousness.

 

Unit Eight: Sensation

Objective:

Analyze and discuss the processes of sensation using scientific vocabulary and appropriate terminology.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain top-down and bottom-up processing and the key differences between them.
2. Describe the operations of each of the sensory systems using the correct anatomical terms.
3. Define and use the following terminology in discussing the processes of sensation and

perception: absolute threshold, difference threshold, sensory adaptation, sense receptors,

sensory deprivation, and selective attention.

4. Explain the causes of various sensory disorders including deafness and color blindness.

 

Unit Nine: Perception

Objective:

Analyze and discuss the process of perception using scientific vocabulary and appropriate terminology.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain the Gestalt principles, perceptual constancy, binocular cues, monocular cues,

trichromatic theory, and opponent-process theory.

2. Explain why perceptual illusions happen.
3. Discuss perceptual influences gained from culture and experience, including the perceptual

set and inborn abilities.

 

Unit Ten: States of Consciousness

Objective:

Define states of consciousness and discuss sleep, hypnosis, and drug-induced changes in consciousness.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain the sleep cycle and discuss theories that explain why we sleep.
2. Recognize and explain types of sleep disorders.
3. Compare different theories about the use and meaning of dreams.
4. Describe theories of hypnosis including dissociation theory and hidden observer.
5. Characterize the major categories of psychoactive drugs and their effects.
6. Evaluate the effects of narcotic, depressant, stimulant, and hallucinogenic drugs.

 

Unit Eleven: Memory

Objective:

Discuss the process of memory from psychological and biological perspectives.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain the process of encoding information into memory using terminology such as

explicit/implicit memory, priming, recall, recognition, the Atkinson-Shiffrin Model, and

retrieval cues.

2. Describe the operation of short-term memory.
3. Describe the process of long-term memory.
4. Analyze and discuss what happens when memory fails people.
5. Identify brain structures crucial to memory.
6. Describe strategies for improving memory.

 

Unit Twelve: Motivation and Emotion

Objective:

Demonstrate an understanding of human motivation and emotion.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain the biological and environmental cues that motivate human beings.
2. Discuss and evaluate the major theories of motivation, including Maslow’s hierarchy,

intrinsic/extrinsic motivation theory, expectancy-value theory, and instinctual/biological

theories.

3. Discuss the physiological, affective, cognitive, and behavioral aspects of emotions.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, and Schachter-Singer

theories of emotion.

5. Describe the effects of motivation and emotion on perception, cognition and behavior.

 

Unit Thirteen: Stress and Health

Objective:

Discuss and analyze issues in social psychology, including group dynamics, social expectations, and

organizational behavior.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Identify and explain major sources of stress
2. Explain the psychological and physiological impact of stress.
3. Identify cognitive-behavioral strategies for dealing with stress.

 

Unit Fourteen: Social Psychology

Objective:

Discuss and analyze issues in social psychology, including group dynamics, social expectations, and

organizational behavior.

List of facts, skills, concepts, and generalizations to be covered:

Students will be able to . . .

1. Explain the structure and function of a given group using such terms as norms, roles, group

polarization, deindividuation, bystander apathy, bias, and discrimination.

2. Discuss the process by which we form judgments in terms of attribution theory and attitude

formation.

3. Discuss the research that has been conducted regarding conformity, obedience, altruism and

aggression (specifically the work of Stanley Milgram, Philip Zimbardo, and the story of Kitty

Genovese), and the various theories formed from these studies.

4. Explain the negative impact group identity can have on society (including stereotypes,

prejudice, and ethnocentrism), and the means by which these effects can be reduced.