Psyc 103: Sensation & Perception

Summer, 2006

Tuesdays & Thursdays, 9 - 12:30 pm; AMD 151

Professor: Dr. Wickelgren
E-mail: wickelgren@csus.edu
Office: AMD 363D
Phone: 278-6871 (e-mail is the best way to contact me)
Office Hours: by appointment

Recommended Text: Wolfe, Kluender, Levi, Bartoshuk, Herz, Klatzky, & Lederman (2006). Sensation and Perception. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, Inc.

Class Web Page:
http://www.csus.edu/indiv/w/wickelgren/psyc103/psyc103.html

The class web page contains:

• lecture outlines: Copies of the lecture outlines will be available on the class web page. You should print these out before coming to class when possible. I will try to get these up as much before class as possible, but sometimes due to time constraints you may have to take notes on normal paper and then relate it back to the printouts sometime after class. Note that these are not the complete lectures in their entirety; you will need to take notes on them during class. I say many things that are not necessarily written on those sheets, so relying on someone else's notes without coming to class will put you at a disadvantage. If you do have to miss class, you should find a friend in the class to copy the notes from, and then ask me questions about the material. I will not have lecture notes available to copy during my office hours.

• any announcements I have for the class
• exam study guide for the final
• in-class lab and/or homework assignments
• grades

Grading:

Exams: There will be 4 short tests (worth 50 points each) that will occur at the beginning of class on the first 4 Tuesdays (except for Test 4 which will be on Thursday due to Independence Day -- see class schedule below). They will consist of true/false, multiple choice, and one or two essay questions. Exams are scheduled to last no more than 25 minutes. Each test will only cover material from the Tuesday and Thursday of the previous week. Tests are expected to be taken at the beginning of the class period on the day listed. If you miss a test by arriving late to class you will have the opportunity of taking it at the end of the class, but your grade will automatically be dropped 5 points (highest possible score is an 90%). If you miss a test due to an emergency, notify me immediately. If you have documentation of the emergency you will be allowed to take the exam late, but your grade will still be dropped by 5 points.

Final Exam: On the last day of class, there will be a 150 point comprehensive final exam over material from the entire course. No new information will be presented on the final day. The final exam will consist of true/false, multiple choice, and short answer questions. 50 points of the test will be on inforfmation from the last 2 days and the other 100 points will cover material from the entire course.

Assignments: Throughout the course there will occasionally be in-class and out-of-class assignments. These will be usually be assigned in class and will be posted on the class web page. Many will require attendance in class to complete them. Assignments must be turned in during class at the beginning of class, and no late work will be accepted for any reason. Homework may be turned in early if you know you'll miss a class. Unless otherwise specified, all homeworks must be typed when turned in. If they are not typed, it will automatically be reduced by 10%.

Extra Credit: There is no extra credit available in this course, with no exceptions, so make sure you plan ahead and keep track of your progress. If you find that you are not doing as well as you would like, make sure you come and talk with me so that we can discuss techniques to help get you back on track.

Final Grades: Each test is worth 50 points. The final exam is worth 150 points. In class assignments are worth a total of 50 points. The total number of points possible in the class is therefore 400.

You final grade will be determined by the percentage of points you receive out of the 400. Conventional rounding procedures will be used to determine your final percentage (i.e. .5 is rounded up, while a .4 is rounded down). If the class average is exceptionally low, then the distribution of grades will be shifted up until a C average is achieved. I will notify you if this procedure is used.

*An A+ is recorded as an A on your transcript since the university doesn't have the distinction between an A and A+.

Schedule:

Class Policies:

Lectures: Copies of the lecture outlines will be available on the class web page. I will try to get these up before class, but sometimes due to time constraints you may have to take notes on normal paper and then relate it back to the printouts sometime after class. Note that these are not the complete lectures in their entirety; you will need to take notes on them during class. I say many things that are not necessarily written on those sheets, so relying on someone else's notes without coming to class would put you at a disadvantage.

Plagiarism and Academic Misconduct- Cheating or plagiarism will not be tolerated in this course. Plagiarism involves using another person's ideas or written text without crediting or citing the source properly. Presenting another person's work as your own without citation or reference is considered plagiarism. Plagiarism on the assignments and/or cheating on exams will result in an automatic zero on the assignment and an F in the class, and you will be reported to the Office of Student Affairs.

Extra Credit: There is no extra credit available in this course, with no exceptions, so make sure you plan ahead and keep track of your progress.

Incompletes: Incompletes will only be given if you meet the requirements of the policy as stated in the course catalog.

Disclaimer: Information in this syllabus is subject to change at any time. Any changes will be announced in class and posted on the announcements portion of the class web page. Although such announcements will be made in advance, it is your responsibility, not the professor's, to attend to these announcements. If you do not attend class and/or don't view the web page frequently, you assume the responsibility for missing changes in the course such as due dates.

Etiquette: I have always been impressed by the high degree of mutual respect shown by students in my classes. Nevertheless, here are a few obvious standards of classroom etiquette. Do not talk with another student while the professor or other students are addressing the class. Do not come in late and do not leave early (or discuss it with me first if you must). Do not walk in front of the class once lectures have started. Cellular phones and beepers should be turned off during class, unless your phone is for urgent/emergency calls only. No walkmans or discmans are permitted during exams or lectures. Please do not read newspapers or other materials unrelated to class during lecture, as it is distracting to other students (and to the professor).