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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY
COURSE CODE: "PS 221"
COURSE NAME: "Child Development"
SEMESTER & YEAR:
Fall 2014
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SYLLABUS
INSTRUCTOR:
Elaine Luti
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS:
TTH 10:00 AM 11:15 AM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS:
45
CREDITS:
3
PREREQUISITES:
Prerequisite: PS 101
OFFICE HOURS:
before and after class and by appointment
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COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The aim of this course is to introduce the student to a way of thinking about the complexity and continuity of development as part of a context of relationships surrounding the child from the prenatal stage through adolescence. It will also emphasize the importance of developmental experiences for the future adult. Through additional extra readings the student will become familiar with contemporary research in the field and will learn to read professional development literature in a critical way.
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SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
This course will follow development from birth through adolescence, with emphasis on the developing child in his intersubjective contexts, the interrelationship between different aspects of development (cognitive, physical, interpersonal and emotional and social), and childhood as the foundation of the adult personality. Particular attention will be given to infant research and the implications of the findings of intersubjective infant researchers on later emerging characteristics of the child.
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LEARNING OUTCOMES:
The student will learn to read professional writing in child development, think about the implications of the findings of researchers in the area and understand the child in the contexts of his physical and mental development, his intersubjective relationships and his social and cultural environment. The emphasis is on understanding rather than on information.
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TEXTBOOK:
| Book Title | Author | Publisher | ISBN number | Library Call Number | Comments | Format | Local Bookstore | Online Purchase |
| Child Development with Multimedia Courseware CD and PowerWeb | deHart, Sroufe, Cooper | McGraw Hill | 9780071217033 | | t's fine to get a used edition even if it has a different publication date. Two students can share the same textbook. | | | |
| Becoming Attached | Robert Karen | Caversham | SBN13: 9780195115017 | | Since the books are expensive, it is possible to share a copy with an other student, copy the required chapters in the library or use a used edition. | | | |
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REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
| Book Title | Author | Publisher | ISBN number | Library Call Number | Comments |
| the interpersonal world of the infant | daniel stern | basic books | SBN 10 0465095895 ISBN 13 9780465095896 | | To diminish student expenses, like all the texts, this can be copied in the library, bought used, or one copy can be shared. |
RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
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GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
| Assignment | Guidelines | Weight |
| 2 short essays (1 to 2 pages) to be assigned. | These are specifically important as preparation for the type of work required on the exams. Exam questions will be very similar to homework assignments. They should be rewritten is unsatisfactory. | 10% |
| midterm exam during a 75 minute class period | The exam will consist of essay questions only, which will emphasize understanding over knowledge. Open book | 25% |
| group project based on a reading assigned in class | several articles will be offered to choose from. Students will choose the article and work on it in a group to present their conclusions to the class | 15 % |
| child observation essay (2 - 5 pages) | The student will observe a child or group of children (at a park, outside a school, in a bus or train or plane, at a restaurant) or use an experience of the past with children (for example camp counselor, teaching assistant, babysitter) and will describe some aspect of the intersubjective relationships observed and relate them to the theory as presented in class readings | 15% |
| homework will be assigned in class and on the myjcu website | Students are responsible for finding out what the homework is. If they are absent they still need to ask and to check the myjcu online to see if any homework was assigned. all homework and the midterm should be redone if unsatisfactory | |
| final exam 2 and a half hours | This will be an open book essay question final exam emphasizing understanding and application of the material taught in the course. If the grade of the final is higher than that of the midterm, the final exam grade will replace the midterm grade in calculating the grade given for the entire course | 35% |
-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
ABecause this course is not about knowledge of facts or even knowledge of the course material, but is about understanding, thinking about and applying the material presented in the course, these will be the criteria for an A. With open-book and open-note exams, it hardly makes sense to give much credit to knowledge as such, since it will be readily available to you. But the understanding of the material - an understanding that shows that you’ve thought about it, can come up with examples or show its application and implications for the field and perhaps outside of the specific field - is the mark of an excellent paper or exam.
You will, hopefully, form your own opinions of this material and by no means are you required to agree with the professor. In fact, very often some of the best work students do comes from a critical analysis of the material and positions taken by the professor. However, your critical analysis must necessarily show your understanding of what it is you’re criticizing, as well as clear and reasoned arguments for your opinion. Ideally it should try to anticipate the criticism of the professor’s point of view and answer these potential criticisms. If you agree with the material, then you should be able to show that you’ve thought about it, come up with further examples, considered the implications and thought of possible objections and the answers to them.
A paper or exam that shows the above qualities will be given an A
BTo receive a B you’ll show good knowledge of the course material and arguments presented, will have some examples of the material but while some will be original, they will be primarily the examples given in class, and you’ll show some sense of the implications but these, too, will be primarily limited to the implications mentioned in the course. Your arguments will be well presented and thought out, but these won’t go very far beyond the actual material of the course.
CTo receive a C you’ll show knowledge of the material insofar as it can be found in the readings and lecture notes, but it will often not be complete, and will not show much personal elaboration of the material. Examples and applications of the material will be limited and there will be some concepts that you haven’t clearly understood.
DYou’ll receive a D when there’s some indication that you didn’t fully read or understand the material or follow the class lectures and discussions. There will be gaps in what you’ve been able to find in the readings and class notes. You won’t have understood some concepts.
FTo fail the course with an F it will be apparent that you haven’t read or understood a large part of the material and can’t find it among your notes or readings, that you haven’t done some of the reading or followed in class and have no understanding of the material that is in the paper or essay beyond relaying some facts.
-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
The student is presumed to be a responsible adult who will attend class and get the notes for classes missed. Therefore there will be no official penalties for absences. However it will be extremely difficult to pass the course without attending class and class material will be drawn on for exams.In the case of group projects, the responsibility of the student is to the other group members, and participation in the group will be part of the grade.
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ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic
dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred.
In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment,
may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of
academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student
who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from
the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation
to the President, who will make the final decision.
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STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap.
Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning
of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.
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SCHEDULE
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Note: the units represent the sequence of topics, not the actual class sessions. Like development, we can predict the sequence but not the actual timing! Each topic may take more or less time, depending on how difficult it is or how much discussion it generates. Students are expected to know what topic is being discussed and which topic will follow. In doubt, it is always possible to email me at [email protected]
Readings may be added during the term, and they will be posted online or indications given as to where they can be found (e.g. on reserve in library) There will be many required readings that can only be found on reserve in the library
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Unit
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Reading
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Topics
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1
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Text - Ch 1 ;
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What is development. Quantitative vs. qualitative change. Normative and individual development. Evolution, heredity and environment. Theories: cognitive, social and emotional. Research methods, with particular attention to the work of the Infant Researchers (Beebe, Lachmann, Stern) and the analysis of moment-to-moment interactions of the mother-infant dyad.
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2
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Text Ch 2
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Contexts of development: biological, immediate environment of child, social and economic context, cultural context
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3
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Text Ch 3
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Heredity and prenatal development: genes and heredity, prenatal stages, mother's experience of pregnancy, environmental influences on prenatal dev., genetic defects, Childbirth.
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4
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Text Ch 4: Beebe & Lachmann, Infant Research and Adult Treatment : "Early capacities & pre-symbolic representation"Daniel Stern The Interpersonal World oft he Infant: "The sense of an emergent self"
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Infancy: infant states, reflexes, motor skills, senses and perception, learning. The self and the self object. The experience of the newborn, how we can reconstruct it through observation. Amodal perception, vitality affects, Representations of Interactions that have been Generalized
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5
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Text Ch 5; Stern "Sense of a core self"
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Cognitive development in infancy. Piaget's stages, concept of the object in infancy. Memory. Infant stimulation. The beginnings of an organized sense of self: Invariants
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6
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Text Ch 6; Robert Karen, Becoming Attached: ch 13: Minnesota Studies; ch14: Mother, Father and outside world, ch15 Structures of mind; Beebe & Lachmann ch 5 Patterns of early interactive regulation
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Attachment: infant social and emotional development. First half year – innate social preadaptation, attunement and sensitive care, the smile. Second half year; emotional development, stranger response, attachment, patterns of attachment, temperament. Importance of early care, sensitive periods. Working models of attachment. Regulation: self regulation and interactive regulation.
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7
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Chapter 7;
Daniel Stern ch 8
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Toddlers: language and thought. Components of language. tasks in language learning, social use of language. Environmentalist vs Nativist theories, non-linguistic symbolic representation, pretend play, gestures. Sense of a verbal self: language as a way of "being with"; "we-meanings" in language, Language as a double-edged sword- what we gain and what we lose with language.
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8
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Chapter 8
Liotti: dissociation and attachment
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Toddler social and emotional development. Socialization from outside and inside. Other developments. Parent-toddler relationship. Roots of personality. Separation-individuation. Parental abuse and neglect. attachment patterns - film in class -
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9
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Chapter 9
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Cognitive development in early childhood. Preschool thought. Quantitative tasks, number, other conceptual tools. social cognition: child's theory of mind, egocentrism. Vygotsky and social aspects of cognition
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10
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Chapter 10
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Social and emotional development in early childhood. Developing self: self-understanding, self constancy, self esteem. Sexual identity, social development, peers, social competence. Emotional development. Play. Parent's role- styles of parenting, identification.
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11
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Chapter 11
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Middle childhood- cognitive development. Conservation, classification. Social interaction and cognitive development. Intelligence.
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12
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Chapter 12
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Social and emotional development in middle childhood. The self. emergence of psychological self. The self objects. social self, sexual identity. Peers. emotional development. contexts of development.
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13
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Chapter 13
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Adolescence: physical and cognitive development. Biological changes. Puberty- hormonal activity, secondary sex characteristics, impact of pubertal change on body image and social relationships. Neurological changes. Cognitive changes: formal operations. Social cognition.
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14
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Chapter 14
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Social and emotional development. Identity. Development of self. peer relationships. sexual activity. family relationships.
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15
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Chapter 15: Stern:ch 9 the observed infant; Bowlby, Separation: Anxious attachment and the phobias of childhood; Miller: “The drama of the gifted child”
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Pathological development. Risks, protective factors. Defining and assessing health and pathology. Biological, environmental and developmental perspectives. Types of disorders.
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