Psychology 201: Human Potential. Fall 2007
Tue 1-4:40, Stv. 3042
8/27/07
SYLLABUS

Basic Information: Professor: Victor Daniels. office Stv 3092D, hours T 10-11:30; W 10-12. Appointment sheet is on my door, or call and ask the receptionist to sign you up. Remaining time is available for drop-ins. E-mail is usually a more reliable way to contact me than phone.

email: daniels@sonoma.edu 707-664-2681
Website: <http://www.sonoma.edu/users/d/daniels/> psych: 664-2411
If you miss a class, be sure to check the "NEWS" link on the website.

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND ORIENTATION

While there are courses at other colleges and universities that have elements in common with this one, with widely varied names such as "Adjustment," "Human Behavior," etc., there is no "standard curriculum" as such. As a result, the students and professor together have the opportunity to create this course to serve our own needs, interests, and inclinations. The first day is devoted to getting acquainted and to planning the balance of the course. Victor will say something about his conception of the course, and then the class as a whole will engage in a process that will result in a mutually agreed-upon curriculum and process for the semester.

         

My initial conceptions are that:

  • Our goal is to help you use your own personal and interpersonal potential more effectively and feel better about what you do. How much we explore how community and societal institutions and processes affect people's development of their potential is up to you.
  • Active participatory learning experiences, and subsequent discussion of them, will form a large part of our work.
  • You will investigate your own learning process--on becoming aware of very specific elements you do and do not include in your approach to learning.This will include a parallel focus on how you interfere with your own learning process, and keep yourself stuck in old cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and social patterns.
  • For the most part, I will not deliver formal lectures, but am likely to insert informal remarks ("mini-lectures) whenever appropriate.
  • Regular writing assignments that are likely to be meaningful to you and interesting to me to read will be part of the coursework.
  • Participation in activities individually, in small groups, and in the large group consisting of the entire class, will be an important course element. Procedures will be introduced to help students who seldom speak in class move toward feeling at ease speaking in the entire group. This is not a class for which you can study the material, cut class a lot, and just show up for exams. Rather, it involves learning by experiencing. If you're not here, it won't work for you.
  • Each student will make one or more presentations during the semester, their length and nature to be determined by class members, probably evaluated by peers rather than the prof.
  • Each class will begin with meditation instruction and a brief meditation period.
 
Texts: V. Daniels & L. J. Horowitz: Being & Caring (at North Light Books) 75% of reading
Other hardcopy and online resources that you find on your own: 25% of reading

Psychology 201: Human Potential. Fall 2007. Schedule, based on class input in planning session. PLEASE DO THE WEEK'S READING BEFORE CLASS.

DATE READING TOPICS ASSIGNMENT
Aug 21 first day. no reading Getting acquainted; agenda; small group discussions; mutual creation of course outline  
Aug 28 DH 1, 3, 5

Traits & states, acts & attributes; heredity & learning. Effects of early experiences in the family & other settings on identity, self-esteem, & authenticity.

 
Sept 4 DH 2, 4, 25 Family roles, dynamics, & patterns. Public speaking skills. paper 1 due
Sept 11 DH 15, 7, 8 Stress & anxiety: Sources of insecurities & stress, time-stress; reducing stress. Communication: Movement, dance, & body language.  
Sept 18 DH 9. 24 Communication: How people's comments make you feel; Listening, talking, speaking tone. Couples interacting; Healthy relationships paper 2 due
Sept 25 DH 10, 27 Social skills: personal power, assertiveness training  
Oct 2 DH 11, 14 What motivates us: Differences in motivation; Wants & Needs, cravings & desires; Emotions & defenses. What causes emotions, how to handle ("treat") them. paper 3 due
Oct 9 DH 18, 20 States of consciousness; interpretations of life experiences (stories, narrative)  
Oct 16 DH 12, 26 Emotions: Influences fear has on us. Anxiety: Causes & effects & handling it. Sexuality. paper 4 due
Oct 23 DH 13, 27 Anger, hostility, & aggression; Conflict  
Oct 30 DH 16, 17 Beliefs, attitudes, & opinions. Principles, rigidity, & flexibility paper 5 due
Nov 6 DH 21 Influence of media, society, & social environment on the self  
Nov 13 DH 19 Dreams & creativity paper 6 due
Nov 20 THANKSGIVING WEEK. INDEPENDENT STUDY. NO CLASS
Nov 27 DH 22, 23 Getting unstuck: changing habits  
Dec. 4 Review 3, 4, 5

Healthy identity development, stuck points, own wishes vs. other;

paper 7 due
Dec. 11 FINAL EXAM WEEK LAST DAY TO TURN IN LATE PAPERS
 
PAPERS: One paper is due every two weeks. The central focus is your application of the reading to yourself, in connection with the topics for the two weeks in regard to which the paper is written. Please cite the pages and passages from D&H or your other reading that you are commenting on. Length: 1 1/2 to 3 pages each. If you do all 7 papers, the one with the lowest grade will be dropped. Or you can skip one paper, and in that case the six that you do will all be counted.
 
GUIDELINES FOR PAPERS. Strive for clear, concise writing that makes its point well. Avoid empty verbiage and padding (no "snow jobs," please). Start with your first substantive point, say what you have to say, and stop.Forget introductions and summations (unless your literary self insists). On the other hand, take as much space as you need in order to say what you have to say. Find your own reconciliation of these elements. Please type.
 

CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION OF PAPERS, (not in any special order, and not including meditation journal):

  • Formulation of a question or thesis
  • Application of the reading material to yourself
  • Number of substantive points made. (A point for each, no extra points for repetition)
  • Explicit reference to and use of ideas from reading assignments, lectures, movies, and websites\
  • Demonstrated thoughtfulness, insight, and understanding
  • Inclusion of an example that shows clearly what you are talking about
  • Specificity, as opposed to vagueness and ambiguity
  • Clarity and understandability
  • Apparent investment of time and effort
  • Do I learn something from it myself?
  • Do I enjoy reading it? (Can you make me smile?)

Correctness of spelling, grammar, etc. are taken into account in grading only to the degree that they make what you are saying unclear or difficult to grasp. If some of these are corrected on your pape (and they probably will be), it is simply to help you improve your writing skills.

What do I consider a poor paper? One that just parrots back material with no thoughtfulness attached.One that does not genuinely make an effort to apply the reading to your own life and the enhancement of your personal potential. One that sounds just like everybody else's. One that puts me to sleep (yes, it happens). One that offers no information about you or someone else. One that was obviously tossed off in half an hour. One that's so vague that it's not clear whether you know what you're talking about. One that does not refer to specific items that you have learned for this course.
 
CLASS CONTRIBUTIONS & PRESENTATION, .There will be opportunities for class discussion both in your small groups and in the class as a whole. Each week please come to class with six items from the reading you might mention. Each item might be a question, a statement of your reaction to something, or simply a passage in the text that was interesting to you that you can read out loud, even without comment. If you have trouble speaking out, work on doing so more. If you tend to be a big talker, say your piece but also make space for quieter students to speak out. Whispering discussions are a no-no (high school behavior). Pass notes instead. They're less disturbing.
 
LATE PENALTY on papers: 1/2 grade per week. But much better late than never.
 
ABSENCES: 2 are permitted without penalty, but you must explain to your small group why you missed class. After 2 absences there will be a 1/3 grade penalty for each additional absence. You can check with the instructor regarding a makeup assignment for a third absence. PERFECT ATTENDANCE will result in a 1/3 grade increase in your final grade (for example, B+ to A-). No excuses are accepted regarding this. Either you are actually here or you are not.
 
MEDITATION JOURNAL --for extra credit, not required. I encourage you to keep a journal in which you comment on the meditations and your reactions to them. I will ask you to email these comments to me at specified dates. Satisfactory completion of this journal will result in a 1/3 grade increase in your final grade (such as B to B+, etc.)
 
UNFINISHED WORK. If you do not complete the course work on time, YOU MUST TURN IN A "REQUEST FOR INCOMPLETE" FORM TO ME BY FINALS DATE. Otherwise, depending on the circumstances, you will receive either a a final grade which counts the incompleted work as an F, which would surely lower your overall grade, or a "U" ("unauthorized withdrawal") for the course, which turns into an F on your records. I AM REQUIRED BY UNIVERSITY REGULATIONS TO GIVE YOU A "U" unless you turn in an incomplete form if you have not finished enough work to receive a grade in the course .
 
A CLOSING WORD. Remember that your grade reflects only your performance in this class, not your worth as a person. The grades reflect the overall quality of class members ' work, so that if many do good work, grades will be higher than if many do poor work. Please do help each other; it's not a zero-sum game. (On the other hand, I have zero tolerance for cheating on exams, having someone write a paper for you, or receiving a paper that was obviously written for a different class.) Bon voyage.