PSY1012 : Introduction to Psychology for Joint Honours
- Offered for Year: 2021/22
- Module Leader(s): Dr Billie Moffat-Knox
- Lecturer: Dr Sophia Daoudi
- Owning School: Psychology
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
| Semester 1 Credit Value: | 10 |
| ECTS Credits: | 5.0 |
Aims
The aims of the module are.
• To introduce research, study, and IT skills that are essential for a degree in psychology.
• To teach, through practical experience, research design and statistical techniques for psychology
• To describe different approaches that have been taken historically to answering key questions in psychology
• To support the transition into the academic environment through study groups facilitated by final year student mentors.
Outline Of Syllabus
Lectures, practicals and workshops will cover several topics, including:
• IT and library skills
• Literature searching, referencing and plagiarism
• Essay writing for psychology
• The history of psychology
• An introduction to research methods and ethical principles
• Quantitative and qualitative analysis
• Writing lab reports
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 20:00 | 20:00 | Preparation and completion of essay |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 20:00 | 20:00 | Preparation and completion of experimental report |
| Guided Independent Study | Directed research and reading | 1 | 20:00 | 20:00 | Reading of essential and recommended sources |
| Guided Independent Study | Skills practice | 18 | 1:00 | 18:00 | Independent work to practice and improve skills relevant to the learning outcomes |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Workshops | 11 | 2:00 | 22:00 | PIP interactive lecture/workshops with guided discussions/activities to support skill development |
| Total | 100:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
The weekly 2 hour interactive workshop/lectures are the primary teaching mode, where we introduce key skills in psychological enquiry, the history of psychology and the basics of experimental methods and statistics. The workshops will also be used to plan and conduct a research project for the report assessment. The workshops encourage peer interaction, support and discussion. Peer mentors will attend these sessions and help to support the students’ transition into the academic environment, whilst encouraging group work related to other aims of the module such as essay writing. Guided independent study allows students to carry out reading on the topics covered in lectures and practicals, and then prepare and complete the two module assignments.
If the public health situation requires a pivot to remote learning, then teaching will be delivered remotely.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Other Assessment
| Description | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 1 | M | 50 | Essay on the History of Psychology (1000 words) |
| Practical/lab report | 1 | M | 50 | Mini practical report on the study conducted during academic skills activities (1000 words) |
Formative Assessments
| Description | Semester | When Set | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay | 1 | M | Essay plan to be submitted for formative feedback (1000 words) |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The essay is designed to assess (and provide feedback on) students’ knowledge of the history of psychology, and the skills of sourcing relevant literature, writing essays, and referencing in APA style. The practical report is designed to assess students’ knowledge and application of basic statistical concepts in psychology, and the skills of analysing data in order to present descriptive statistics, and writing experimental reports using APA style.
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- PSY1012's Timetable