Syllabus & course policies.

Find out more about Dr. Stefanik’s general course policies and explore resources to help you succeed

A note on inclusivity in my courses:

I want you to succeed.

The North Central College Department of Psychology and Neuroscience embraces the idea that our individual differences can deepen our understanding of one another and the world around us, rather than divide us. 

I am firmly committed to making this classroom an inclusive learning community that supports diverse thoughts, perspectives, experiences, and identities. I encourage people of all ethnicities, genders and gender identities, religions, ages, sexual orientations, disabilities, socioeconomic backgrounds, regions, and nationalities to share your rich array of perspectives and experiences; and work to honor and respect all of your classmates.

If you have a name or set of pronouns that differ from what appears on the NCC records, please let me know. Let us all work together to create a safe and equitable classroom and campus community.

If you do not feel that the environment is inclusive at any time, please either contact Dr. Stefanik or report the incident via the College's bias incident reporting form.

Digital Citizenship

We will be using multiple digital forms for communication and grading.  As your professor, I have a responsibility to understand this technology in order to design digital experiences for you the student, and to utilize these resources to facilitate and inspire learning and creativity.  Similarly, as a student, you are responsible for understanding, troubleshooting, and using this digital technology responsibly. For more information on “digital citizenship”, see the International Society for Technology and Education (ISTE) student standards website.

We will utilize different pieces of technology, depending our needs in a course: Slack, Microsoft Teams, Loom, Canvas, and Perusall (to name a few).  Each is detailed below.

Course technology

  • We will use Slack for unofficial communications and to facilitate class interaction. Feel free to post memes, files, cool articles, or questions that you have for me or your peers here. You can also use this to message your classmates or me, and to set up study sections and share documents. The class Slack workspace invite is found on the course Canvas page.

  • Download and install this program on your computer, tablet, or phone. We will use this for any virtual office hours/classes/streams. Log in with your NCC information and this is free to all students.

  • Loom is a video recording software that I use to sometimes record additional content for courses. If necessary, a link to a folder where any digital lectures will be housed will be provided to you. You can stream videos, download them, pause/speed up/slow down anything you need.

  • Canvas is NCC’s learning management software. Here you will find links to all course-related content, assignments, announcements, and submission portals for your work.

  • We will use Perusall to help you interact with our class readings and questions. Course readings and the syllabus uploaded here. Feel free to make your own comments/highlight text and ask questions for me, your class, or respond to someone else. The course code you need to access will be posted on the course Canvas site, as necessary . This is designed to be interactive and improve your reading skills!

Communication

I will do my best to help you and be accommodating of situations that arise during the semester, but the key to this is lots of bi-directional communication. If you become ill and are going to miss a quiz, practicum, or exam (or for another NCC athletic/academic competition), you must provide documentation and take the exam/quiz prior to the scheduled time.  There will be no make-up exams/quizzes after the scheduled time, unless the situation has been addressed directly with me or documentation for an emergency situation is provided.  If an emergency situation arises, documentation (e.g. doctor’s note, COVID test, obituary) must be provided.  A missed assignment will result in a score of zero.

Any student requiring accommodations or services due to a disability must notify me within the first 2 weeks of class and provide a copy of paperwork from Student Affairs

Lectures

Lectures and reading assignments are necessary to succeed in this course. Please note that lectures will cover some content not contained in the textbook, and not all information in the textbook readings will be covered in the lectures.  Lectures will emphasize and seek to clarify important concepts and readings will include essential material not covered in class. For exams, you are responsible for all information presented in the lectures, in the assigned textbook readings, and in the additional assigned readings &  assignments. Required readings should be read before the class with which they are associated.  These will be posted on Blackboard. Being familiar with the topics can enhance learning, lead to more thoughtful questions, and livelier classroom discussions.

There is an overwhelming amount of evidence to suggest that active note taking is critical to retention and enhances learning of material.  I make a concerted effort to highlight the key concepts that will be covered during the day’s lecture on one slide at the beginning of class and end each lecture with a review of what you should take away. Lecture slides and lecture notes will not be posted online. 

Attendance

Attendance is not required, but STRONGLY encouraged.  Anything discussed in class may be included on the exam, even if it is not found in the textbook or other readings.  If you miss an assignment/lab without documentation or prior arrangements with me, it cannot be made up. Additionally, class notes will not be available from me or online. Thus, it is in your best interest to attend.  If you miss class, I suggest you get the day’s notes from a trustworthy classmate before the next lecture.

Attendance is required for all exams. In general, there are no make-up exams.  However, there are rare exceptions in which the instructor may decide to grant a make-up exam, and official documentation must be provided. Please note: personal travel, vacations, oversleeping, etc. are not valid reasons for requesting a make-up exam.

That being said, if you are feeling unwell or come down with COVID-19, please notify me and do not attend class.  Communication here is key.  If you suspect you are getting ill, please contact Dyson Wellness Center and/or get tested for COVID.  Per College policy, documentation of these visits/steps is necessary for me to be able to make arrangements to accommodate your absence. Without proper documentation, unexcused absences and missed assignments will negatively impact your grade (see above policies). 

My normal policies will apply for all students who are ill and have to miss class, regardless of whether this is due to COVID, quarantine, or some other illness.  You are expected to utilize posted course materials as well as to obtain notes from others students to make up for any periods of missed class. 

Classroom Etiquette

Please silence all electronics prior to the start of class.  No cell phones, rude, or disruptive behavior will be tolerated.  ABSOLUTELY NO TEXTING.

Each instance in which you fail to adhere to appropriate classroom behavior will result in a 5-point deduction from your final grade.  If an electronic device is involved, the device will be confiscated until we have discussed the matter outside of class and an appropriate resolution has been decided.

You may use laptops to take notes, however if you are caught surfing the Internet or working on assignments for another class, it will result in a loss of this privilege.  Also, if you are using a laptop, please try to sit toward the back of the classroom, as to not distract other students.

Canvas and Email

All course materials, assignments, and exam scores will be posted on Canvas.  You will also submit all assignments on this platform.  Please familiarize yourself with this site if you haven’t already.  Also, make sure your North Central email is working and check it.  Occasionally, pertinent info will be sent via email during the term.

You are responsible for checking your grade for each assignment or exam online. If you receive a grade and think there has been a mistake, do not ask about it during class.  Type your questions/concerns, provide a specific reference to pages from the textbook or reading that support your concern, and submit it to me via email after class. You will receive a response, and any grade adjustment necessary, within one week. This is the only way that your concerns will be addressed.  Only written concerns THAT YOU SUPPORT will be evaluated. All question/concerns regarding grades must be received within one week from the date the assignment was returned.

Additionally, all email correspondence must come from your North Central email address. I will do my best to respond in a timely manner during normal working hours (8am-5pm) and will be available to respond after 5pm until 9pm, although prompt responses cannot be guaranteed.  I will not respond to emails between the hours of 9pm-8am.

Office Hours

OFFICE HOURS:

I will be available in my office (WSC 232) or via Microsoft Teams for weekly scheduled office hours, or by appointment. (See course Canvas pages for specific days and times.) I strongly encourage you to arrange a meeting if you are struggling with material or just want to further cement what you have been learning.  I’m always excited to talk science!   

If you would like to make a meeting, you can do so using the scheduling program Microsoft Bookings. This link is also posted on Canvas.  Slots at 15 minutes by default, but if you think you will need more time, book 2 slots in a row.  You will be prompted to write in a reason for the meeting and whether you want to meet in person or virtually.  If the reason is complicated and required preparation on my part (discussion of a research paper assigned in class, for example), please book at least 24 hours in advance to give me time to adequately prepare.

Office hours are an opportunity for you to clarify concepts that are unclear or address questions concerning the assignments. Office hours are not meant to find out what material was presented in class that you might have missed.

Artificial Inteligence

There are circumstances and contexts within this course where you may be asked to use AI (Chat GPT, Ai Writer, DALL-E, etc.) tools to explore how they can be used.  Outside of those circumstances, you are discouraged from using AI tools to generate content (text, video, audio, images, etc.) that will end up in any student work that is part of your evaluation in this course. 

You may use AI to help generate ideas or brainstorm, however be aware that AI tends to make up incorrect facts, fake citations, and other inaccuracies in its outputs.  These problems are compounded in the fact that it will also stifle your own independent thinking and creativity.

You may not submit any work generated by an AI program as your own.  If you include material generated by an AI program:

1) You must indicate what part of the assignment was written by AI in italics 

2) It should be cited like any other reference material in APA format

3) No more than 20% of an assignment should be created with AI if the instructor gives permission for its use.

4) You must provide a ½ page additional document reflecting on the included AI work that addresses why you used AI, what it helped accomplish, and what are its strengths and weaknesses in its use on the given assignment.

Work that does not meet these criteria will be handled in accordance with North Central College academic dishonesty policy noted above.

Academic Dishonesty

Cases of academic dishonesty will be handled in accordance with North Central College policy. If are caught cheating on any assignment you will receive a zero for that assignment and a report will be sent to the Honor Council, which goes on your permanent NCC record.  This includes work that has been generated by AI software (e.g. ChatGPT). If you cheat again, you receive and F for the course and a referral will be made to the Dean of Faculty for further discipline.

COVID-19 Statement

The events of the past few years remind us of the need for cooperation, coordination, and vigilance to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus. A safe and successful classroom experience during this pandemic will depend on each and every one of us taking on this shared responsibility and commitment. With this in mind, I want to assure you that I have taken a measured approach to every assignment/lecture in order to minimize risk and still deliver a high-quality learning experience.  As a College community, we have taken significant steps to prepare, and we will continue to adjust our plans as needed to respond to any new realities. I am committed to offering a rich and inclusive experience for you at this historic time, while taking measures to protect the health and safety of all.

Students in this class will be required adhere to the College’s and CDC’s proactive health and safety measures at all times.  This may include wearing face coverings at all times in classrooms and when social distancing is not possible.  This includes properly wearing the mask over your nose and mount in class and at any time it is required by college guidelines.  If a student does not have a mask for class, they will be asked to obtain a single-use one from the main office in Wentz Science Center.  If they refuse, they will be asked to leave the classroom for the day and return with a mask the following week.  If a student will not wear a mask and refuses to leave the classroom, I will immediately end class for all participants and Public Safety will be called to escort the non-compliant student from the building.  Class will not resume for that day.

If you are able to be vaccinated, I strongly encourage you do so and to be an advocate for vaccination among your friends and family. I am happy to answer you have any questions about the vaccine or the science behind it.

Intellectual Property Statement

All lectures, lecture notes, and this syllabus are property of the instructor, Dr. Michael T. Stefanik. All of the materials in this course are covered by fair use and copyright law and are proprietary (intellectual property). Students are not permitted to sell, post, trade, share, distribute, or send any information contained in this course (including outlines, handouts, syllabi, exams, quizzes, PowerPoint presentations, lectures, audio and video recordings, or images of the same, etc., including your own work for this course) to any parties outside of this course (i.e., CHEGG, Course Hero, Quizlet, Google Docs, etc.) by any means without the expressed written permission from the creator of these works.  Students are prohibited from selling notes or being paid to take notes for any other person or commercial entity without the express written consent of the instructor. 

The materials in this course are also intellectual property and taking any materials from the course and posting them outside of this course in any manner will be construed as theft and distribution of intellectual property. If you engage in any of these actions, or use any of these materials without authorization, the instructor has the right to impose an appropriate academic sanction (e.g., give you a failing grade for the assignment and/or fail you from the course). Additionally, such a violation will be referred to the Dean for further action.