Week |
Subject |
Related Preparation |
1) |
Introduction to course. Outline of semester. Short writing assignment describing expectations and past experiences. |
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2) |
“Telling Stories” by Maeve Binchey and excerpt from “Portrait of a Lady” by Henry James. Writing about love and our concepts of what it means and how it is portrayed in the two stories. |
Reading. |
3) |
“Goodbye Marcus, Goodbye Rose” by Jean Rhys. Our experiences in life prepare us for the future. How do our lives change after a hugely impactful experience? |
Writing assignment. |
4) |
“Happy Endings” by Margaret Atwood. Writing about theme, characters, plot and mood. Example of summary and analysis of a short story. |
Reading. |
5) |
“Whose Life Is It Anyway?” by Brian Clark. The nature of life. What is our responsibility to ourselves? To others? |
Essay. |
6) |
“Moral Hazard” by Kate Jennings. The aging process and inconceivable choices. Is it possible or even acceptable to choose death over life? |
Essay. |
7) |
Midterm Essay concerning the nature of love and marriage and death and the choices involved. How do the stories exemplify the themes? |
Reading. |
8) |
Review. |
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9) |
“Crime and Punishment” by Dosteovsky. Using logic to make excuses for a criminal act. |
Essay. |
10) |
“Remains of the Day” by Kazuo Ishiguro. Prejudice and characters who must act against their better nature. |
Reading. |
11) |
“The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas” by Ursula Le Guin. Is it ever acceptable to sacrifice someone for the greater good? |
Reading. |
12) |
“The Joneses”. Capitalism and creating a desire and market. |
Background research. |
13) |
Essay on consumerism and capitalism. What goods do we consider desirable and why? |
Research. |
14) |
“First Confession” by Frank O’Connor. Comedy and plot. How does an author show theme through the use of humor? |
Reading. |
15) |
Final. |
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16) |
Final. |
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Program Outcomes |
Level of Contribution |
1) |
To develop an interest in the human mind and behavior, to be able to evaluate theories using empirical findings, to understand that psychology is an evidence-based science by acquiring critical thinking skills. |
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2) |
To gain a biopsychosocial perspective on human behavior. To understand the biological, psychological, and social variables of behavior. |
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3) |
To learn the basic concepts in psychology and the theoretical and practical approaches used to study them (e.g. basic observation and interview techniques). |
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4) |
To acquire the methods and skills to access and write information using English as the dominant language in the psychological literature, to recognize and apply scientific research and data evaluation techniques (e.g. correlational, experimental, cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, case studies). |
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5) |
To be against discrimination and prejudice; to have ethical concerns while working in research and practice areas. |
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6) |
To recognize the main subfields of psychology (experimental, developmental, clinical, cognitive, social and industrial/organizational psychology) and their related fields of study and specialization. |
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7) |
To acquire the skills necessary for analyzing, interpreting and presenting the findings as well as problem posing, hypothesizing and data collection, which are the basic elements of scientific studies. |
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8) |
To gain the basic knowledge and skills necessary for psychological assessment and evaluation. |
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9) |
To acquire basic knowledge of other disciplines (medicine, genetics, biology, economics, sociology, political science, communication, philosophy, anthropology, literature, law, art, etc.) that will contribute to psychology and to use this knowledge in the understanding and interpretation of psychological processes. |
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10) |
To develop sensitivity towards social problems; to take responsibility in activities that benefit the field of psychology and society. |
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11) |
To have problem solving skills and to be able to develop the necessary analytical approaches for this. |
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12) |
To be able to criticize any subject in business and academic life and to be able to express their thoughts. |
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