Intro to Psychology
FAS 230, Introduction to Psychology, is a survey class that introduces students to the major branches of psychology.
Ethics
Ethics familiarizes students with major branches of ethical theory and the most prominent contemporary debates in applied ethics.
Human Behavior
FAS 310, Human Behavior in a Cross-Cultural Context, explores differences between major cultures across well-established taxonomies.
Student News
Why I Take Attendance
Although it is generally true that American undergraduates are not required to attend class, it is also true that the academic culture in the United States is very different than it is here. Learn why I strictly enforce the University's attendance policy.
How to Earn An "A" in My Class
Professors do not "give" grades to their students: Grades can only be assigned based on student performance. There is nothing magical or mysterious about earning an "A" in my class. Learn how you can do it.
Presentation Assignment
Within the first week or two of class, you will peruse the chapters in your textbook in order to generate some ideas about a specific research topic that you would like to present. You will complete a "Presentation Proposal Form" and e-mail it to me by the end of the second week of classes. This proposal counts towards five (5) percent of your grade (see note 5 below).
You must develop an appropriate and specific topic, a research question or hypothesis, for a 15-* to 20-minute presentation, one that is personally or professionally relevant to you, that falls under one of the following general headings:
General Headings
| FAS 230: Intro to Psychology | FAS 300: Industrial Psychology | FAS 310: Human Behavior |
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Please Note: These are general headings only. These are not research questions or hypotheses (topics). You cannot pick a general heading as a topic. Your task is to develop a specific research question or hypothesis that is related to one of these general headings based on personal or professional experience. This requires deliberate and careful consideration.
Presentation Requirements and Guidelines
- Presentation must be analytical or exploratory in nature (as opposed to simply descriptive/definitional) and incorporate at least two (2) outside references that need to be cited within the text or body of the presentation itself. Simply adding a long list of external references that have not been specifically cited within the presentation itself is unacceptable.
- This presentation must be original work. Do NOT copy and paste blocks of text from the Internet (with or without citations). Doing so will result in an automatic failing grade of zero (0). You must summarize the literature in your own words and when you want to specifically cite another author, you MUST indicate that you are quoting another source by placing that text in quotation marks. Use the APA Manual of Style.
- Presentation must be a minimum of 15 minutes to a maximum of 20 minutes in duration. Presentations that are not a minimum of 15 minutes in duration will automatically lose 25% (that is, highest possible grade starts at 75/100).
- You MUST complete and e-mail to me a presentation proposal for approval. You have up to two weeks from the start of class (from the first Sunday to the second Saturday). If I do not receive your proposal by the end of the second week, you will receive a grade of "0" (zero), and that counts towards 5 percent of your total course grade.
- You MUST present on the day you have been assigned. There are absolutely no acceptable excuses for not presenting. Telling me that you are not ready or that your USB disk broke or that the format of your presentation cannot be read by the classroom's computer is unacceptable. Regardless of the reason, if you do not present on the day you have been assigned, you will receive an automatic grade of zero (0).
- Do NOT read long blocks of text. Your Powerpoint slides should contain highlights or headings that remind you of what to talk about. There is nothing more boring that having someone read to you from a book or slide.
- You must e-mail a soft copy of the presentation to me after you have finished presenting, on the same day. You will not receive your presentation grade until after I have received the soft copy of your presentation.
Grading Criteria
| Grade | Criteria |
| 90 to 100 | All requirements are met and student demonstrates evidence of considerable creativity and/or original thinking, i.e., some aspect of the topic is presented in such a way as to demonstrate high creativity or original thinking. Presentation obviously required a good deal of thought and demonstrates good scholarly work (creative use and combination of outside sources and original thinking). |
| 80 to 89 | Student meets specific requirements of assignment and presentation is both interesting and creative, i.e., student has spent time crafting and honing materials from various sources into a very interesting and creative presentation. Student has clearly devoted a significant amount of time to thinking about the topic. |
| 70 to 79 | Student meets specific requirements of assignment. Presentation made some interesting points but lacked sufficient depth or literature was not used in an appropriate manner. Students who fail to present for 15 minutes can earn no higher than 75. |
| 60 to 69 | Presentation is unenthused and perfunctory, i.e., mostly or entirely definitional, student simply and routinely defines terms (superficial discussion of definitions or terms). Presentation lacks original thinking or creativity. Student was just doing something to "get it over with," just going through the motions. |
| 50 to 59 | Presentation is entirely perfunctory, lacks at least two outside references used within the presentation, is less than 15 minutes in duration, and/or has some other significant problem. |
| 0 | Student fails to present on assigned date (for whatever reason). Student copies, pastes, and reads text from the Internet (with or without citations). |
Notes
- Presentation structure is based on time, not number of PowerPoint slides. If you can provide a 15 to 20-minute presentation on the basis of one slide or page of text, so be it. There is a minimum time requirement: not a minimum slide or page requirement.
- Presentation dates will be assigned in systematic order based on student identification numbers. If you have a scheduling conflict, you MUST notify me immediately. If you fail to attend class on the day you are scheduled to present or you attend class but are unprepared to present, you receive an automatic grade of “0” unless you have a written excuse from University administration. Excuses from places of employment, hospitals, and other outside sources are unacceptable.
- If a scheduling conflict emerges days or weeks later, you are free to make arrangements to “switch” presentation dates with a classmate. Both parties must present themselves to me in person at the end of class with the date exchange request.
- You will receive your presentation grade with written comments within a day or two of your presentation via e-mail. Do not ask me immediately after the presentation to tell you what your grade is. Assigned grades are final and non-negotiable. Sincerity of motivation, genuineness of effort, original intent, and actual time spent on the assignment cannot be factored into the final grade.
- Students who fail to submit a presentation proposal within two weeks of the start of class will receive a zero "0," which will count towards 5% of your total grade. Students who submit an acceptable proposal will receive a passing grade for the proposal calculated as the average of all other graded assignments.
Presentation Grading Sheet
You may examine the actual grading sheet that I will be using to evaluate your presentations by downloading the Presentation Grading Sheet as an Adobe Acrobat file. Please note the following:
- Copying and pasting blocks of text results in an automatic grade of zero (0). Your presentation must be original work.
- You will receive an automatic grade of minimal pass (50) if you do not:
- Present for at least 15 minutes (You MUST rehearse this presentation with a watch before presenting in class)
- Explain why your topic is meaningful to you personally and professionally in a sincere and genuine manner
- Use at least two (2) external references within the body of your text using the APA Manual of Style
Sample PowerPoint Presentation
I have included two sample presentations with very detailed explanations of what constitutes a high quality presentation (Exploration of Low Divorce Rate Between American Men and Filipino Women) versus one that required very little effort and virtually no thought (Anxiety Disorders). Please study these presentation to increase your chances of providing the best quality presentation that you can.
Tips and Help
For extra tips and help in developing your presentation research question or hypothesis, see our forum announcement Tips for Developing Your Presentation Topic.
Note
*The minimum 15-minute time requirement does not include classroom discussion or questions and answers from other students.