Psychology for High School Students

In this course, high school students will learn about the fundamentals of psychology such as why we need psychology, research methods, the history of psychology, the various subfields within the field (cognitive, social, clinical, etc.), biological bases of behavior in psychology, motivation, and needs in psychology, memory & cognition in psychology, developmental psychology, memory and cognition, sleep and other states of consciousness and the basics of abnormal psychology. 

This is a weekly class that will meet for 55 minutes and will last for 8 weeks. Students will meet each week for a lecture on the different topics of psychology. The first 10 minutes of class the teacher will ask a question relevant to the topic and hear what students already know and facilitate focus for the class, followed by a lecture from the instructor on the topic of the week, the last 15 minutes of each class will be open for questions/discussion. Students will be assigned homework, after each class, the student will be required to write a 500 word summary of what they have learned within the course, and what was most interesting/surprising for them. The students will receive feedback from the instructor. No experience or background in psychology is required. Students will also receive a PDF, (around 3 pages for each week) for personal review. 

The syllabus and a brief outline of course flow:

Week 1: History of Modern Psychology - Definition of psychology, early psychological theories, and theorists, psychology after 1950, sub-specialties within psychology

    - Psychology looks past intuitions and feelings to search for the true roots of our behaviors.
    - Psychology is the scientific study of how we think, feel, and behave.
    - 5 Main approaches to psychology: humanistic, psychodynamic, behavioral, biological, cognitive 
    - 5 main specializations: cognitive, humanistic, social, developmental and clinical.

Week 2: Introduction to Research Methods in Psychology - Definition, and purpose of research, scientific and non-scientific research, research tools, why social research is needed

     - Research is a careful and detailed study into a specific problem, concern, or issue using the scientific method.
     - Students will be able to provide an example of research within the context of using the scientific method
     - Apply the scientific method to the decision-making process
     - Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed Methods
     - The relationship between cause and effect - criteria for establishing a causal relationship, the difference between correlation and causation, and more.


Week 3: Biological Bases of Behavior in Psychology - How genetics influences behavior, the connection between the brain and behavior, parts of the brain, neuroplasticity, the central nervous system

      - What are the biological factors that affect our behavior? Biological psychology, which looks at the interplay between biological processes and mental states.
      - What is a neuron (video)
      - 4 oldest parts of the brain 
      - Central/Peripheral Nervous System - Sympathetic/Parasympathetic 
     
Week 4: Theoretical Foundations for Life Span Developmental Psychology - Piaget's cognitive development stages, various theories of development, including Erikson's eight stages of psychosocial development, classical and operant conditioning, Maslow's hierarchy of needs

          - Developmental psychology is the study of how we change over our lifespans. Physical, intellectual, and emotional growth all contribute to psychological development.
           - Piaget focused mainly on cognitive changes; Erikson on changes in motivations; and Kohlberg on changes in moral thinking
           - Learning - psychological perspectives: behavioral, cognitive, developmental, social cognitive and constructivist.
           - Physical development, including childhood and old age, and how physical development contributes to other types of development.

Week 5: Motivation and Needs in Psychology - Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, cognitive dissonance, the expectancy-value theory of motivation

       - Motivation theories - Instinct Theory - all our actions are fundamentally motivated by instincts. Drive Reduction Theory - physiological needs prompt drives, or aroused states, that motivate us to lower the needs in order to maintain homeostasis or a relatively constant internal state. Arousal Theory - we aim for an optimum state of arousal, which may differ from person to person
       -  Self-determination theory - extrinsic motivation/intrinsic motivation
       - Three basic psychological needs 
          
Week 6: Memory & Cognition in Psychology - how information is processed, the difference between retrieval and recognition, memory

        - Information processing - encoding, storage, and retrieval. 
        - Memory categorization - Iconic, visual, sensory, echoic memory, long-term, semantic, implicit, explicit, procedural
        - Infants and children - 5 stages of speech acquisition 

Week 7: Sleep & Other State of Consciousness - Description of various states of consciousness, the sleep cycle, sleep disorders, hypnosis

        - Conscious deliberate behaviors (like texting your friend to go to the movies) and unconscious automatic behaviors, altered states of consciousness 
       - Sleep and dream theories 
       - Altered states of consciousness - meditation/hypnosis  

Week 8: Abnormal Psychology Basics - Definition of abnormal psychology, historical perceptions, mental health/Closeout the class discussions

        - Abnormal psychology is the study of abnormal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. Abnormal thoughts, feelings, and behaviors may or may not be part of a larger mental illness or psychopathology
        - Theories behind abnormalities 
       - Common disorders 
       - Round the past eight weeks with discussion 
      -