EDF 211 Human Growth and Development

                                       Sections 003 and 004 – Tuesday and Thursday

                                                                      Spring 2006

 

Instructor:  Lola Aagaard, PhD.

Home phone:  606-784-4920 (has answering machine)

Office phone:  606-783-2531 (has voice mail)

Office location:  Ginger Hall, 504A (enter through 503, then all the way down the hall, next to last door on the left.  Or, stay in the outer hallway past 503 and knock on the door marked B504 – my name is on it.)

E-mail: l.aagaard@morehead-st.edu

Web page:  http://people.moreheadstate.edu/fs/l.aagaard  (there is a copy of the syllabus here)

 

Candidates may call me at home anytime after 6:30 a.m. and before 9:30 p.m., except for the hours between sundown Friday night and sundown Saturday night.  I will check my e-mail at least twice a day during the week and respond as soon as possible.  If you need to reach me on the weekend, you should call me at home.

 

Office hours:  I will always be in the office during the hours below unless I’m out of town for the day.  I will be in my office at other times, also, so always call there first if it is before 3:30 p.m.  If I don’t answer the phone – leave a message!  I may just be down at the copy machine and will call you right back.  If you would like to meet with me in my office, send me an e-mail or give me a call to make an appointment.

Monday – 9:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.                       

Tuesday – 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m.

Wednesday – 9:00-11:30 a.m., 1:30-2:30 p.m.                      

Thursday – 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. and 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Friday – by appointment

 

Catalog Description of Course:  Survey of developmental patterns from birth to adolescence and their implications for elementary and secondary teachers.  (Laboratory experiences an integral part of course.)

 

Prerequisites:  none.

 

Required Text: Bukatko, D., & Daehler, M.W. (2004). Child development: A thematic approach (5^th edition). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.  The accompanying Study Guide is optional, but strongly suggested, as some test questions always come from there!

 

Required Activity Packet:  The EDF 211 activity packet must be purchased ($6.00, cash or check made out to MSU) from the Counseling, Leadership, Adult and Higher Education office (Ginger Hall 503).

 
 

Course Objectives: 

1) To survey the major issues related to human physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development and relate them to the educational setting.

2) To gain knowledge about the dominant theoretical perspectives and constructs used in organizing and interpreting developmental issues and research data.

3) To understand normal development and the causes and consequences of abnormal development, including similarities and differences among exceptional and culturally diverse populations.

4) To apply course concepts in the interpretation of field observations.

5) To understand how development relates to KERA initiatives.

 

Course Structure:

Class sessions will consist primarily of lectures, discussion, activities, and video presentations.  All candidates are expected to have read the assigned materials prior to class.  There will be a daily quiz at the beginning of class over the material to be discussed that day. 

Candidates will write a half-page single-spaced description for each of four of their previous teachers (the most and least effective from elementary and high school) and a 2-page single-spaced developmental autobiography. All the rest of the assignments will come from the “packet” and consist of analyses of the data collected during field experiences and the relation of those data to theories discussed in class.  All papers and reports are to be word-processed and spell-checked before they are handed in to me.  No handwritten papers will be accepted.  Papers with length requirements should use 12 point font, with 1 inch margins.

Eight hours of field experience are required:  1) a visit to a 4^th/5^th grade class to interview a student; 2) a visit to a K/1^st classroom to interview a student; 3) a visit to the Morehead Youth Development Center for a tour of the facility; 4) an interview of an adolescent.  The first three field experiences will be done as a group, during the normal class time, although you must provide your own transportation to the various sites.  The adolescent interview is done individually on an adolescent of your own choosing, age 16-21.  All field experience must be completed in order to receive a grade in the course.

The grade for any assignment coming in after the due date drops one letter grade for each week or portion of a week it is late, and assignments handed in more than two weeks after the original due date may not be accepted.  A low-scoring (less than 70%) paper will be returned to you for a second chance to bring the grade up to a maximum of a C.

 

Course Requirements:

1) Attend class, having read assigned readings, and take quizzes.

2) Participate in class activities and discussion.

3) Write a description of your most and least effective teachers, K-8 and high school,

            following my guidelines (found  later in the syllabus).

4) Write a developmental autobiography, following my guidelines (found

            later in the syllabus).

5) Participate in eight hours of field experience; complete activity packet reports by dates assigned.  Please keep an electronic or hard copy of all packet reports that you turn in, in case you need information from them to complete further reports (or in case I lose one of your assignments!).

6) Take the four multiple-choice tests as scheduled -- each exam (including the final)

            will be over only the material covered since the last exam.

 

Grades:  Grades will be assigned based on the following breakdowns:

            Quizzes – 10%

Teacher descriptions, Developmental autobiography– 5%

Activity packet reports – 40%

Four tests – 45%

 

A = 90-100%              B=80-89.5%                C=70-79.5%                D=60-69.5%

 

Attendance Issues: 

1. If you have an officially excused absence, please notify me of it in writing (an e-mail is fine).

2. Quizzes CANNOT be made up, even if you have an officially excused absence.  The four lowest quiz grades will be dropped, however.  If you have more than four officially excused absences during the semester, keep the paperwork for them and come see me.

3. Tests can be made up if you miss them, but it is the candidate’s responsibility to notify me (preferably in advance) and make arrangements to take a make-up test.  Make-up tests should be taken within one week following the missed test unless you have a REALLY good excuse.  Call me as soon as you realize you missed the test or you know you cannot come the day of the test.  For the final exam, you must let me know AHEAD of time that you cannot make the scheduled exam time.  If you are absent for the final without contacting me, you cannot make it up.

4. If you miss one of the field experience visits, you must make it up on your own.  Come talk to me about it and we will agree how you should do that. 

 

Accommodation for Disabilities: Please notify me within the first two weeks of class if you have a condition or disability that requires some type of accommodation.

 

Standards Addressed:  The content and activities involved in this course address portions of the following New Teacher Standards:

            NTS I– Designs/Plans Instruction

            NTS II– Creates/Maintains Learning Climate

            NTS III– Implements/Manages Instruction

            NTS IV– Assesses/Communicates Learning Results

            NTS V– Reflects/Evaluates Teaching/Learning

            NTS VII – Collaborates with Colleagues/Parents/Others     

            NTS VIII– Knowledge of Content

            NTS IX– Implementation of Technology

 

NCATE Themes:  The content and activities involved in this course address the NCATE Themes of Conceptual Framework, Diversity, Technology, and Professional Community.

 

Conceptual Framework:  “Educators as Architects:  Designing Environments Where Students Construct Knowledge and Develop Skills” is the conceptual framework upon which the College of Education has built its educator preparation program.  Candidates in this course will be introduced to a variety of human development theories, including the cognitive development theory on which constructivism is based. They will apply many of these theories to data collected from elementary students and observations of alternative types of schools.  Discussion in class and candidate reflection on previous schooling experiences will enhance understanding of the various concepts and theories and the recognition of their use in school curriculum and practices.  Human diversity will be explored as it relates to human development and public school education.

 

 

                                                Guidelines for Required Papers

 

Teacher Description Guidelines

Think of the most effective teacher you had in elementary school (K-8).  Next think of the least effective teacher you had in elementary school.  Now think of the most and least effective teachers you had in high school. What was it about these four teachers that made them effective or not?

 

For each of these four teachers, write about half a page (single-spaced, 12 point font, 1 inch margins) explaining to me what about them or their class made them effective or not.  Feel free to talk about teacher attitudes, behavior, type of instruction, class requirements, special projects – whatever it was that makes you say this teacher was really good or really bad.  Give me an example of what class was like or something particular the teacher said that you remember if it helps explain them to me. (A half page for each means your total paper will be 2 single-spaced pages long.  If you think you’re finished with the paper and it is NOT 2 pages long, tell me another story about some of those teachers – I grade partially on length.)  Do NOT give me the actual name of the teachers or schools, please, to protect the teachers’ privacy and because we might be using some of these as examples in class later!

 

Developmental Autobiography Guidelines

Write 2-5 pages (single-spaced, 12 point font, 1 inch margins) about yourself and what has made you who you are today.  What were the big influences in your life:

Your family – parents, siblings, cousins, grandparents, aunts/uncles? 

Your setting – growing up in the country, town, or city – in E. KY or elsewhere? 

Your schooling – teachers, coaches, friends, enemies? 

Your values – religion, politics, patriotism? 

Your jobs – bosses, responsibilities, location? 

Your extracurricular activities – sports, hobbies, interests? 

Other experiences – pleasant or unpleasant?

 

You don’t have to cover all of these topics, but pick the ones you think had the most to do with why you developed into the person you are and describe how they were an influence on you.  (Again, if you finish the paper and find you do not have at least two full single-spaced pages, tell me something else about yourself.  Papers under two full pages get lower grades.)