PSB 4002: Introductory Bio-Psychology

Florida International University Spring 2019

Professor Eliza Nelson

elnelson@fiu.edu

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Course Description and Purpose

PSB 4002 is a course introducing students to the biological basis of behavior. The course is organized into three units: (1) neural foundations, (2) sensory systems and homeostasis, and (3) complex behavior. Topics include neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, neuropharmacology, sleep, stress, memory, and brain asymmetry.

Course Objectives

Upon completing this course, students will be able to:

1. Describe and explain how the nervous system works
2. Critically discuss the reciprocal relationship between biology and psychology
3. Explain typical and atypical brain-behavior relationships

Course Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for this course.

Proctored Exam Policy

This course requires a proctored final exam. There is an additional cost for this component of the course. Please visit our Student Proctored Exam Instructions webpage and the Honorlock Instructions webpage for important information.

Proctored Exam	Availability Start Date	Availability End Date	Time Allotted
Final Exam (Cumulative)	April 15, 2019	April 19, 2019	150 minutes

Textbook and Course Materials

This is a fully online course in which all of the instructional materials and activities are delivered through Canvas. Please maintain a courteous and professional manner even though you might never meet your professor or your classmates in person. Time spent on this online course is no different from time you would expect to spend in a typical face-to-face course. Beginning Week 2, assignments are due on Wednesdays by 5 pm, and quizzes are due on Fridays by 5 pm. No work is due the week of Spring Break. The deadlines in this course may not be the same as your other online courses. Please pay careful attention to the syllabus. 

Students are expected to:

• Be responsible for their own learning
• Log in to the course at least three times per week
• Follow the course calendar
• Interact online with instructor/s and peers
• Respond to emails within two business days
• Read assigned chapters in the textbook and take notes
• Review instructor-provided course material including lectures and videos
• Submit assignments and quizzes by the due date

The professor will:

• Log in to the course at least three times per week
• Respond to emails within one business day
• Grade assignments within two business days of the due date
• Be available in office hours and by appointment for course questions and concerns

Office Hours Policy

You can make an appointment for a face-to-face meeting or a phone meeting at any time. If you are struggling with the material, please contact Dr. Nelson ASAP (elnelson@fiu.edu). If a significant personal or medical problem arises, do not wait to contact Dr. Nelson to make appropriate arrangements. Do not wait until it’s too late to get help! 

Email Policy

A professional email is very different from a text message you would send to a friend. Please address your email “Dear Professor Nelson”. Include the name of the course, your PID, and the reason for the message in the body of the email. Sign your full name at the bottom. Select an informative subject line that contains the name of the course and summarizes what you are emailing about (do not leave the subject line blank). Many questions can be answered by the syllabus. Dr. Nelson and any teaching assistant staff reserve the right not to respond to unprofessional emails. In this course, the response time for an email is 1 business day.

Course Agreement Bonus

Start the course on a good note by completing the Course Agreement by 5:00 pm on Tuesday January 15th. Completion of this requirement by the due date will earn you 5 points. If you added the course late, please email Dr. Nelson directly (elnelson@fiu.edu) to extend the bonus window. Keep in mind that you must complete Module 0 to unlock the rest of the modules, even if you miss the deadline for the bonus.

Assignments

For detailed instructions, please review the Important Information About Assignments page. Assignments are a mix of exercises. Grading criteria are provided with each assignment.  Assignments use discussion forums. Keep in mind that your discussion forum postings will be seen by other members of the course. Care should be taken when determining what to post.

Quizzes

In order to mitigate any issues with your computer and online assessments, it is very important that you take the Practice Quiz from each computer you will be using to take your graded quizzes. Please review the Important Information About Quizzes page. Quizzes in this course are designed to be a mix of lower order questions testing knowledge and comprehension as well as higher order questions testing application and analysis.

Cumulative Final Exam

There is a cumulative proctored final in this course. You will be recorded, and Dr. Nelson will be able to see/hear your test session upon review. Please read the Important Information About Quizzes page. There are also separate pages with Honorlock Instructions and Honorlock FAQs. It is your responsibility to ensure you are compliant with the proctored exam policies. Do not wait until the last minute to arrange to take your final.

Grading

This course uses the Panther Success Network. Progress Reports are issued to at-risk students after Module 2. Dr. Nelson may also send you a personal email if you are struggling in the course. It is your best interest to respond to these efforts to help you through the course. FIU does not allow an A+. Psychology majors are required to earn a C or higher (i.e., at least 522 points in this course). Standard rounding to the nearest percentage is used to determine final letter grades. Requests for exceptions to the grading policy will not be honored. Extra credit is available in this course. All extra credit is due by 5 pm on April 19th. 

Please note that the Total column in Canvas may not accurately reflect your performance until the course is complete. You can contact Dr. Nelson anytime for your standing. 

 

Course Requirement	Number of Items	Points for Each	Total Points Available	Weight
Assignments	12	25	300	40%
Quizzes	12	25	300	40%
Cumulative Final	1	150	150	20%
Total	25	Varies	750	100%

 

Letter	Range	Letter	Range	Letter	Range
A	95 or above	B	83 - 86	C	70 - 76
A-	90 - 94	B-	80 - 82	D	60 - 69
B+	87 - 89	C+	77 - 79	F	59 or below

What happens if I miss an assessment?