Unit/Organizing Principle: Time Frame: 2 block schedule periods Unit 1 Psychology’s History and Approaches
Essential Questions: How did psychology develop from its prescientific roots in early understandings of mind and body to the beginnings of modern science? When and how did modern psychological science begin? How did psychology continue to develop from the 1920s through today? What is psychology’s historic big issue? What are psychology’s levels of analysis and related perspectives? What are psychology’s main subfields? How can psychological principles help you as a student?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Perspectives in *Prescientific Psychology -Reading Quizzes Psychological Science *Psychological Science is Born -TDA Notes 1.1-1.4 *Early Schools -Quickwrites 2.1-2.3 *Psychological Science Develops -Writing Assignments Standard Area: Vocational *Big Issues -Questions Applications *The Biopsychosocial Approach and the 7 Perspectives -Research Article Review 1.1 & 1.2 *Psychology’s Subfields -Participation in Class Activities -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free Response Question)
Unit/Organizing Principle: Time Frame: 4 block periods Unit 7A Cognition: Memory
Essential Questions: How do psychologists describe the human memory system? What information do we encode automatically? What information do we encode effortfully, and how does the distribution of practice influence retention? What effortful processing methods aid in forming memories? What is sensory memory? What are the duration and capacity of short-term and long-term memory? How does the brain store our memories? How do we get information out of memory? How do external contexts and internal emotions influence memory retrieval? Why do we forget? How do misinformation, imagination, and source amnesia influence our memory construction? How real-seeming are false memories? What is the controversy related to claims of repressed and recovered memories? How can an understanding of memory contribute to more effective study techniques?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Memory *Computer Information-Processing System Model -Reading Quizzes 1.1-1.3 --Encoding, Storage, Retrieval -TDA Notes 2.1-2.4 *Atkinson-Shiffrin Three-Stage Processing Model -Quickwrites 3.1-3.5 *Contemporary Modified Version of the Three-Stage Model -Writing Assignments *How We Encode -Questions *Effortful Processing Methods -Research Article Review *Sensory Memory—Iconic and Echoic Memory -Participation in Class Activities *Duration and Capacity of Short-Term Memory -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free *Brain’s Role in Storing Memories Response Question) *Retrieval *Forgetting *Memory Construction *Repressed and Recovered Memories *Improving Memory
Unit/Organizing Principle: Unit 2 Time Frame: 4-6 block schedule periods Research Methods: Thinking Critically With Psychological Science Essential Questions: Why are the answers that flow from the scientific approach more reliable than those based on intuition and common sense? What are three main components of the scientific attitude? How do theories advance psychological science? How do psychologists observe and describe behavior? What are positive and negative correlations, and why do they enable prediction but not cause-effect explanation? What are illusory correlations? How do experiments, powered by random assignment, clarify cause and effect? How can we describe data with measures of central tendency and variation? What principles can guide our making generalizations from samples and deciding whether differences are significant? Can laboratory experiments illuminate everyday life? Does behavior depend on one’s culture and gender? Why do psychologists study animals, and is it ethical to experiment on animals? Is it ethical to experiment on people? Is psychology free of value judgments?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Research *The Need for Psychological Science -Reading Quizzes Methods, Measurement, and *The Scientific Attitude -TDA Notes Statistics *Critical Thinking -Quickwrites 1.1-1.4 *Scientific Method -Writing Assignments 2.1 & 2.2 *Description -Questions 3.1-3.6 *Correlation -Research Article Review *Experimentation -Participation in Class Activities *Describing Data -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free *Making Inferences Response Question) *Ethical Guidelines for Experiments
Unit/Organizing Principle: Unit 3A Time Frame: 1-2 block schedule periods Biological Bases of Behavior: Neural Processing and the Endocrine System
Essential Questions: What are neurons, and how do they transmit information? How do nerve cells communicate with other nerve cells? How do neurotransmitters influence behavior, and how do drugs and other chemicals affect neurotransmission? What are the functions of the nervous system’s main divisions? How does the endocrine system—the body’s slower information system—transmit its messages?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Biological Bases *Neurons -Reading Quizzes of Behavior *Neuron Communication -TDA Notes 1.1-1.3 *Neurotransmitters and their Functions -Quickwrites 2.1 & 2.2 *The Peripheral Nervous System -Writing Assignments *The Central Nervous System -Questions *The Endocrine System -Research Article Review -Participation in Class Activities -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free Response Question)
Unit/Organizing Principle: Unit 3B Time Frame: 2-3 block schedule periods Biological Bases of Behavior: The Brain
Essential Questions: How do neuroscientists study the brain’s connections to behavior and mind? What are the functions of important lower-level brain structure? What functions are served by the various cerebral regions? What brain areas are involved in language processing? To what extent can a damaged brain reorganize itself? What do split brains reveal about the functions of our two brain hemispheres? How does handedness relate to brain organization? What is the “dual processing” being revealed by today’s cognitive neuroscience?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Biological Bases *Tools of Discovery -Reading Quizzes of Behavior *Brain Structures and Functions -TDA Notes 1.4 & 1.5 *Language and the Brain -Quickwrites 4.1-4.3 *Brain Plasticity and Neurogenesis -Writing Assignments *Split-Brain Research -Questions *Handedness and Brain Organization -Research Article Review *Consciousness -Participation in Class Activities -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free Response Question)
Unit/Organizing Principle: Unit 3C Time Frame: 2-3 block schedule periods Biological Bases of Behavior: Genetics, Evolutionary Psychology, and Behavior
Essential Questions: What are genes, and how do behavior geneticists explain our individual differences? What is heritability, and how does it relate to individuals and groups? What is the promise of molecular genetics research? How do evolutionary psychologists use natural selection to explain behavior tendencies? How might an evolutionary psychologist explain gender differences in sexuality and mating preferences? What are the key criticisms of evolutionary psychology?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Biological Bases *Genes -Reading Quizzes of Behavior *Twin and Adoption Studies -TDA Notes 3.1-3.3 *Heritability -Quickwrites *Gene-Environment Interaction -Writing Assignments *Molecular Genetics—Future Horizons -Questions *Evolutionary Psychology -Research Article Review -Participation in Class Activities -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free Response Question)
Unit/Organizing Principle: Time Frame: 4 block schedule periods Unit 4 Sensation and Perception
Essential Questions: What are sensation and perception? What do we mean by bottom-up processing and top-down processing? How are we affected by selective attention? What are the absolute and difference thresholds, and do stimuli below the absolute threshold have any influence? What is the function of sensory adaptation? What is the energy that we see as visible light? How does the eye transform light energy into neural messages? How does the brain process visual information? What theories help us understand color vision? What are the characteristics of air pressure waves as we hear sound? How does the ear transform sound energy into neural messages? What theories help us understand pitch perception? How do we locate sounds? What are the common causes of hearing loss, and why does controversy surround cochlear implants? How do we sense touch and sense our body’s position and movement? How do we experience pain? How do we experience taste? How do we experience smell? How did the Gestalt psychologists understand perceptual organization? How do figure-ground and grouping principles contribute to our perceptions? How do we see the world in three dimensions? How do we perceive motion? How do perceptual constancies help us organize our sensations into meaningful perceptions? What does research on sensory restriction and restored vision reveal about the effects of experience? How adaptable is our ability to perceive? How do our expectations, contexts, and emotions influence our perceptions? What are the claims of ESP, and what have most research psychologists concluded after putting these claims to the test?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Sensation and *Basic Principles -Reading Quizzes Perception -Selective Attention, Thresholds, Sensory Adaptation -TDA Notes 1.1 & 1.2 *Vision -Quickwrites 2.1-2.4 -Light Energy, the Eye, Visual Information Processing, -Writing Assignments 3.1-3.6 Color Vision -Questions *Hearing -Research Article Review -Sound Waves, the Ear, Hearing Loss and Deaf Culture -Participation in Class Activities *Other Senses -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free -Touch, Pain, Taste, Smell Response Question) *Perceptual Organization -Form Perception, Depth Perception, Motion Perception, Perceptual Constancy *Perceptual Interpretation -Sensory Deprivation and Restored Vision, Perceptual Adaptation, Perceptual Set *Extrasensory Perception
Unit/Organizing Principle: Time Frame: 2 block schedule periods Unit 5 States of Consciousness
Essential Questions: How do our biological rhythms influence our daily functioning? What is the biological rhythm of our sleep? How does sleep loss affect us? What is sleep’s function? What are the major sleep disorders? What do we dream? What is the function of dreams? What is hypnosis, and what powers does a hypnotist have over a hypnotized subject? Is hypnosis an extension of normal consciousness or an altered state? What are tolerance, dependence, and addiction, and what are some common misconceptions about addiction? What are depressants, and what are their effects? What are stimulants, and what are their effects? What are hallucinogens, and what are their effects? Why do some people become regular users of consciousness-altering drugs?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Consciousness *Sleep -Reading Quizzes 1.1 & 1.2 -Circadian Rhythm, Sleep Stages, Alpha Waves, Delta -TDA Notes 2.1-2.5 Waves, NREM Sleep, REM Sleep -Quickwrites 3.1-3.4 *The Effects of Sleep Loss -Writing Assignments 4.1-4.3 *Sleep’s Function—Various Theories --Questions *Sleep Disorders -Research Article Review -Insomnia, Narcolepsy, Sleep Apnea, Night Terrors, -Participation in Class Activities Sleepwalking, Sleeptalking -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free *Function of Dreams—Five Major Views Response Question) *Hypnosis -Facts & Falsehoods, the Hypnotic state, Posthypnotic Suggestion, Dissociation *Psychoactive Drugs—Tolerance, Withdrawal Physical Dependence, Psychological Dependence, Addiction -Depressants and their Effects -Stimulants and their Effects -Hallucinogens and their Effects
Unit/Organizing Principle: Time Frame: 3 block schedule periods Unit 6 Learning
Essential Questions: What are some basic forms of learning? What is classical conditioning, and how did Pavlov’s work influence behaviorism? How does a neutral stimulus become a conditioned stimulus? In classical conditioning, what are the processes of acquisition, extinction, spontaneous recovery, generalization, and discrimination? Do cognitive processes and biological constraints affect classical conditioning? Why is Pavlov’s work important? What have been some applications of classical conditioning? What is operant conditioning, and how does it differ from classical conditioning? What are the basic types of reinforcers? How do different reinforcement schedules affect behavior? How does punishment affect behavior? Do cognitive processes and biological constraints affect operant conditioning? How might operant conditioning principles be applied at school, in sports, at work, at home, and for self-improvement? What is observational learning, and how is it enabled by mirror neurons? What is the impact of prosocial modeling and of antisocial modeling?
Performance Standard: Content/Process: Activities/Assessments:
Standard Area: Learning *Associative Learning -Reading Quizzes 1.1-1.3 *Pavlov—His Experiments and Legacy -TDA Notes 2.1-2.4 *Classical Conditioning -Quickwrites 3.1 & 3.2 -Unconditioned Stimulus (US), Unconditioned Response -Writing Assignments (UR), Conditioned Stimulus (CS), Conditioned Response -Questions (CR), Acquisition, Extinction, Spontaneous Recovery, -Research Article Review Generalization, Discrimination -Participation in Class Activities *Applications of Classical Conditioning -Exam (Multiple Choice and Free *Operant Conditioning Response Question) -Skinner’s Experiments -Positive Reinforcement, Negative Reinforcement, Primary Reinforcer, Conditioned Reinforcer, Fixed-ratio Schedule, Variable-ratio Schedule, Fixed-interval Schedule, Variable- interval Schedule, Punishment *Differences Between Classical Conditioning and Operant Conditioning *Observational Learning -Mirror Neurons -Bandura’s Experiments -Applications