E N D
Back-to-School Mrs. Mal- 2014
AP Psychology • AP Psychology is a course for advanced students who are interested in learning about human behavior from a scientific perspective. The class follows a curriculum designed to prepare students for the AP Psychology Exam, which is administered every May. • Like all AP courses, AP Psychology is intended to be a college-level class. As such, I must stress that this is an academically rigorous course and I expect my students to take a great deal of individual responsibility for their work.
My role in the AP classroom… Please understand from the outset one fact of paramount importance: the instructor is not the most important person in the classroom. Students are expected to “charge ahead” on their own, to seek, find, and internalize knowledge – in short, to be the main agent in their educational process. The instructor’s job is to facilitate students’ drive and accomplishment by structuring learning situations and selecting learning tools that will help you students attain their goals: passing the AP test, enriching your life by the acquisition of psychological knowledge, and enjoying the course of study.
How do I define success in AP Psychology… Passing the national exam in May with a 3 or higher. Learning psychology and applying it to your life. Passing AP Psychology at Sun Valley Impressing your freshman college peers in your psych 101 course.
2013 SV Results… 21% 5’s 27% 27% 4’s 50% 89% 19% 3’s 12% 13% 2’s 8% 1’s 3% 20% 14 25 6 4 2
https://apscore.collegeboard.org/creditandplacement/search-credit-policieshttps://apscore.collegeboard.org/creditandplacement/search-credit-policies
Course Text Our class text is Myers’ Psychology for AP 1st edition.
AP Course Sequence The 14 units of study that we are responsible to cover and master for our test in May are located to the right. The %ages are how many questions, out of 100, you will see on the multiple choice section of our test. We will spend the appropriate amount of time on each unit according to the %ages listed. History & Approaches (2-4%) Research Methods (8-10%) Biological Basis of Behavior (8-10%) Sensation & Perception (6-8%) States of Consciousness (2-4%) Learning (7-9%) Cognition (8-10%) Motivation & Emotion (6-8%) Development (7-9%) Personality (5-7%) Intelligence (5-7%) Abnormal Behavior (7-9%) Treatment (5-7%) Social Psychology (8-10%)
Course Materials • Course Materials: • #2 pencils for test day • Blue or black ink only • Cornell Notebook or Cornell Paper for a binder OR “regular” notebook used for Cornell Notes. • Binder OR 4 Folders (1 per quarter) to house all materials for review in April. • Review book (suggested)
Assessment • Grades are accumulated throughout quarter • Unit Tests compromise 70% of the grade • Quizzes are announced and unannounced • Notebook Check 2xs a quarter (announced) • Lab Assignments • FRQs (25 points each – 2-3 a quarter) • Tuesday – most updated snapshot of current grade in class.