Psychology 1305: Experimental Child Psychology

Psychology 1305: Experimental Child Psychology

Syllabus

Psychology 1305

Experimental Child Psychology: Language

Spring 2018(CN29796)

T, TH 9:30-10:45 a.m. 317 CL or 305 OEH

Instructor: Dr.Jennifer Ganger

Office Location: 3405 Sennott Square

Office Hours: Wednesdays 10:30-11:45& by appointment (but watch Courseweb for updates)

Email:

Office Phone: 412-624-3064 (voice only)

Physical Mailbox: 3rd Floor Sennott Square (Psychology Main Office)

Course Description

What does mastering a language look like and how do human children do it so quickly while other animals never do? Moreover, how do we know what infants and young children know about language? Students will learn about the process of language development and the methods used to study it as they complete two hands-on research exercises.

Course Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you (the student) will be equipped to assist in a developmental research lab or continue with advanced study in developmental psychology. Specifically, you will be familiar withchild-related issues in research ethics, study design, data analysis, and sharing results, as well as how children learn the words of their language. You will also learn the optimal ways to support children’s word learning and literacy.

Textbooks

Recommended texts: Language Development, 5th Ed. (2014) by Erika Hoff (at bookstore under Psychology 1320) and Developmental ResearchMethods, 4th Ed. (2013) by Scott A. Miller

Course Expectations and Requirements

• Obtain clearances: All students are required to submit proof of application for PA Criminal, Child Abuse, and FBI clearances by Jan 18, 2018. Proof of application for the FBI clearance includes proof of submitting fingerprints. Dates on all clearances must be later than April 20, 2017.
• Use SPSS outside of class to complete assignments.
• Attend class, be attentive, and participate.
• Participate in study preparation, data collection, and data analysis.
• Complete written assignments on time and take all quizzes.
• Complete reading assignments and related written assignments before class.

Late policy

10% will be deducted from the grade for each day past the due date that an assignment is submitted, including Saturdays and Sundays.

Assessments and Grading

Item / Points
Quizzes / 100
Quiz 1 (40 pts)
Quiz 2 (40 pts)
Quiz 3 (20 pts)
Writing Assignments / 300
Individual Differences paper: Introduction and Method (30 pts)
Individual Differences paper: Results and Discussion (30 pts)
Individual Differences paper: Final version (60 pts)
Word Learning paper: Introduction and Method (35 pts)
Word Learning paper: Results and Discussion (35 pts)
Word Learning paper: Final version (70 pts)
Design summary (20 pts)
Consent form (20 pts)
Other assignments / 60
Discussion Questions (7 @ 2 pts each = 14 pts)
Statistics assignments (6 @ 5 pts each = 30 pts)
CITI Certificates (8 pts)
Data Collection (2 @4pts each = 8 pts)
Participation / 40
Attendance and Participation (2 pts per day for 20 meetings)
Total points / 500

Expected grading scale

97-100% A+

93-96% A

90-92% A-

87-89% B+

83-86% B

80-82% B-, etc.

59% and below: F

G Grades

The G grade represents incomplete coursework. A G may be given, upon request, if a student is unable to complete some coursework due to exceptional circumstances and cannot make up that work during the same term. A G grade may be granted if the student has competedthe first paper(all parts and final version), part of the second paper, the first quiz, and is earning a C- or better in the course. The G grade allows up to two additional terms to complete course work.

Academic Integrity

Students in this course will be expected to comply with theUniversity of Pittsburgh's Policy on Academic Integrity.Any student suspected of violating this obligation for any reason during the semester will be required to participate in the procedural process, initiated at the instructor level, as outlined in the University Guidelines on Academic Integrity. This may include, but is not limited to, the confiscation of the examination of any individual suspected of violating University Policy. Furthermore, no student may bring any unauthorized materials to an exam, including dictionaries and programmable calculators.

Disabilities

If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor andDisability Resources and Services(DRS), 140 William Pitt Union, (412) 648-7890,,(412) 228-5347 for P3 ASL users, as early as possible in the term. DRS will verify your disability and determine reasonable accommodations for this course. Students are encouraged to speak to Dr. Ganger about any additional accommodations.

Recording Lectures

Audio and video recording are prohibited without Dr. Ganger’s permission. Once made, recordings are for the personal use of the student and may not be distributed to others in any fashion without permission from Dr. Ganger.

Some references for the schedule on the next page

Hoff, E. & Naigles, L. (2002). How children use input to acquire a lexicon. Child Development, 73, 418-433.

Markman, E.A. & Wachtel, G.A. (1988). Children’s use of mutual exclusivity to constrain the meanings of words. Cognitive Psychology, 20, 121-157.

Merriman, W., & Bowman, L. (1989). Mutual exclusivity in children’s word learning. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 54, i-129.

Part 1: Individual Differences in Vocabulary Growth

Date / Topic / Reading / Due
T Jan 9 / Course Intro
Th Jan 11 / Foundations I / Lang Dev: Chap. 3; / Discussion Questions
T Jan 16 / Foundations II / Lang Dev: Chap 5: 137-143; 148-153; Chap 6: 172-173; 186-187; / Discussion Questions
Th Jan 18 / Statistical Methods I / TF: Chap 3: 56-58 / Stats: Regression1; Clearances
T Jan 23 / Statistical Methods II / Stats: Regression2
Th Jan 25 / Statistical Methods III / TF: Chap 5: 5.1, 5.2, 5.2.1, 5.2.2, 5.2.3, 5.2.5, 5.2.8, 5.4, 5.4.1, 5.4.2, 5.4.3 (SPSS), 5.5, 5.5.1, 5.5.2, 5.6.3 / Stats: Regression3
T Jan 30 / Discuss Hoff & Naigles, 2002 / Hoff & Naigles, 2002 / Discussion Questions
ThFeb 1 / Quiz 1
T Feb 6 / CHILDES; Plan study; Writing / Intro to CHILDES document
Th Feb 8 / Data collection or discussion / Data
T Feb 13 / Data analysis and interpretation / Data (finish);Individual Differences paper: Introduction and Method
Th Feb 15 / Writing Results, Discussion / Stats: Analysis assignment
T Feb 20 / Writing exercise / Ind Diffs paper: Results and Discussion

Part2: Word Learning

Th Feb 22 / Introduction to Experimental Study on Word Learning / LangDev: Chap 5, 155-157; Markman & Wachtel, 1988, to p. 129; Merriman & Bowman, 1989: TBD / Discussion questions
T Feb 27 / Study design; writing exercise? / DRM: Chap 3: 43-47; Chap 5 / Discussion questions
ThMar 1 / Study design

Mar 5–9No classesSpring Break

T Mar 13 / Study design / Design Summary
Th Mar 15 / Finalize design; practice procedure / Ind Diffs paper:Final version
T Mar 20 / Statistics review; Practice procedure / DRM: Chap 9 to p. 165;
TF: Chap 3: 37-46; 54-55 / Discussion questions &Stats:Review
Th Mar 22 / Data entry and analysis plan; Practice procedure
T Mar 27 / Ethics and prep; practice procedure / DRM: Chap 10 / CITI certificates; Discussion questions
Th Mar 29 / Quiz 2 + Quiz 3 (run-through)
T Apr 3 / Data collection?
Th Apr 5 / Data collection? / Word Learning: Introduction and Method
T Apr 10 / Data entry and analysis / Consent form assignment; WL data (entered)
Th Apr 12 / Writing results / Stats: Data analysis
T Apr 17 / Writing exercises / Word Learning: Results and Discussion
Th Apr 19 / Writing exercises
W Apr 25 / 2:00 (deadline) / Finals week. No final exam. / Word Lrng paper: Final version

Lang Dev = Hoff, E. (2014). Language Development, 5th Ed.Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage

DRM = Miller, S.A. (2013). Developmental Research Methods, 4th Ed.Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

TF = Tabachnick, B.G. & Fidell, L.S. (2001). Using Multivariate Statistics, 4thEd. Pearson.

Introduction to CHILDES document can be found on CourseWeb.