PRED 103: Theories of Child Development

Fall 2019

Class Hours: Mondays 11:00-1:00 and Tuesdays 11:00

Instructor: Burcu Ünlütabak
Office: ETB Blok, room 305
Email: burcu.unlutabak@boun.edu.tr
Office Hours: Tuesday 2-3:00 & by appointment

Course Overview: The goal of this course is to provide you with an overview of the
scientific study of child development. We will examine the physical, cognitive, social,
and emotional development of infants, and children, and the various factors and
contexts (e.g., genes, parenting, peers, school, and culture) that influence developmental
processes. We will discuss central themes, such as the influence of nature and nurture
on development, the development of individual differences, and the role of the child in
his or her own development. We will also examine how researchers approach these
themes (theoretically and empirically) and what their research findings tell us about
child development. Finally, we will consider the implications of developmental research
for parenting, education, and social policy-making. The goal is that you will leave this
class with an understanding of the processes underlying development and an
appreciation of the importance of these processes in everyday life.

Textbook: Siegler, R. S., DeLoache, J. S., Eisenberg, N., & Saffran, J. (2017). How children
develop (5th Ed). New York: Worth.

Journal Articles: There will be 4 academic journal articles that you will be required to read
and discuss in class. All articles will be posted on moodle.boun.edu.tr. Articles may change.
If this is the case, you will be notified.

Roseboom, T. J., Painter, R. C., van Abeelen, A. F., Veenendaal, M. V., & de Rooij, S. R. (2011).
Hungry in the womb: what are the consequences? Lessons from the Dutch
famine. Maturitas, 70(2), 141-145.

Principe, G. F., Kanaya, T., Ceci, S. J., & Singh, M. (2006). Believing is seeing how rumors can
engender false memories in preschoolers. Psychological Science, 17(3), 243-248.

Hart, B., & Risley, T. R. (1992). American parenting of language-learning children: Persisting
differences in family-child interactions observed in natural home
environments. Developmental Psychology, 28(6), 1096.

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Grading Guideline:

Assignments Value toward final grade

Participation 25% of final grade
Exam 1 20% of final grade
Exam 2 20% of final grade
Exam 3 20% of final grade
Disseminating Research Findings Paper 15% of final grade

Participation: In order to ensure that your final grade is not entirely exam-based, in-class
participation will represent a quarter of your final grade. Your participation grade will be
based primarily on your contribution to in-class discussions (see below) as well as your
completion of in class activities that will not be announced ahead of time. I will also remove
points from this part of your grade if you are obviously not making an effort to be focused
and respectful at any point throughout the semester (e.g., using your cell phone, using your
laptop inappropriately, etc.).

1. Class activities. We will occasionally complete in class activities that you will hand
in to receive participation credit. These will not be announced ahead of time. You
can miss one activity without receiving a deduction in class participation credit for
the course.

2. Class discussion. A few times during the course we will discuss a relevant topic in
class. There will be an assignment posted to Course Site prior to the discussion date
(either a short article, Ted talk, or combination of the two) that will be related to
recently lectured course material. I expect you to complete the assignment prior to
class and come prepared to discuss with your questions or comments. I recommend
that you jot down your notes or ideas while completing the assignment so you are
not trying to come up with ideas on the spot in class. You must be present for these
discussions as well as contribute to the discussions in order to receive full
participation credit. Class discussion time is meant to be both informative and fun! It
is an opportunity for you to really digest an interesting psychological
idea/phenomenon/topic.

Exams: Your final grade in this class will be heavily based on exam performance. There are
3 non-cumulative exams, each worth 20% of your final grade. Exam dates and material
covered on each exam are listed in the schedule below. All of these exams will be held in
class. Each exam will consist of both multiple choice and short answer questions.

Disseminating Research Findings Paper: This project is designed to develop your

skills in reading and analyzing child development research papers and to explore the
process through which research findings are translated into the public realm. In this
assignment, you will compare a popular account of a psychological investigation with
the original scientific report. More detailed instructions on this project will be provided
separately.

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Grading Scale: Final grades will be based on the following percentage system. Standard
rounding practices will apply (e.g., 82.5 and higher is rounded up to 83).

100-92: AA 91-87: BA 86-83: BB 82-78: CB 77-73: CC 72-68: DC 67-60: DD

Course Policies:
Personal Conduct: I respect each of you as individuals and intellectuals. It is my
expectation that you will show the same respect to your classmates, TA, and professor.
Please be courteous by avoiding irrelevant and distracting activities (e.g., sleeping, chatting,
facebook, texting) during class. Cell phones should be silenced for the duration of class. The
use of laptops is discouraged as laptops often prove distracting (both to you and the people
around you). Disruptive in-class behavior may result in a loss of participation points.

Missed Exams: Exams must be taken on the day they are scheduled. Make-up exams are
only given for legitimate excuses (e.g., serious illness, death in the immediate family,
extreme hardship). If you must miss an exam, you must contact the instructor at least 24
hours before the exam and receive approval to take the make-up exam. In addition,
when you return to class, you must furnish the instructor with written documentation
describing the reason for your absence. The documentation must be signed by an authority
in a position to verify your excuse. You will only be given a make-up after the instructor has
been given appropriate documentation. If for any reason you are not able to contact the
instructor and must miss the exam, you must contact the Dean of Students Office and have
them contact the instructor. If the Dean of Students Office and the instructor deem the
excuse appropriate, a make-up will be scheduled. In all other cases, you will receive a zero
on the exam. Make-up exams must be taken within one week of the missed exam unless
special arrangements are made.

Academic Integrity and Responsible Behavior: There are many forms of irresponsible
behavior that can ruin opportunities for you and for others in this course. This includes
cheating, copying the work of others, using unauthorized materials (e.g., cell phones, lecture
notes) during exams, plagiarism, creating disruptions, and unfairly exploiting the efforts of
others. I expect that all students will uphold the standards of academic integrity of the
university. Any student found to engage in actions that violate the academic integrity
policy will receive any or all of the following penalties: failing the assignment or
examination in which the violation occurred; failing the course; and referral to the
disciplinary committee.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities: If you have a disability for which you are
or may be requesting accommodations, please contact your instructor as early as possible in
the semester to discuss possible accommodations or arrangements that need to be made.

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 TENTATIVE COURSE OUTLINE
Topic dates are approximate; exam dates are as listed. Adjustments to the schedule will be
made as necessary.

Date Topic Readings

Week 1 (Sept 23-24) Introduction & Welcome! Ch. 1 (pp. 1-22)
Week 2 (Sept 30-Oct 1) Defining and Studying Child Development Ch. 1 (pp. 22-37)
Week 3 (Oct 7-8) Genetic and Environmental Foundations Ch. 3 (pp. 85-106)
Ch. 9 (pp. 366-369)
Week 4 (Oct 14-15) Prenatal Development, Birth, & the Newborn Ch. 2 (pp. 39-83)
Roseboom et al., 2011
Week 5 (Oct 21-22) Physical Growth and Brain Development Ch. 3 (pp. 106-127)
Week 6 (Oct 28-29) Exam 1 Review on 28th & Republic Day
Week 7 (Nov 4-5) Exam 1 on Nov 4th & Discussion on Nov 5th
Week 8 (Nov 11-12) Coming to Perceive the World Ch. 5 (pp. 171-188)
Week 9 (Nov 18-19) Learning and Motor Development Ch. 5 (pp. 188-205)
Ch. 9 (pp. 348-355)
Week 10 (Nov 25-26) Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development Ch. 4 (pp. 129-143)
Week 11 (Dec 2-3) Modern Theories of Cognitive Development Ch. 4 (pp. 143-170)
Principe et al., 2006
Week 12 (Dec 9-10) Exam 2 on Dec 9th & Discussion on Dec 10th
Week 13 (Dec 16-17) Conceptual & Language Development Ch. 5 (pp. 205-211)
Ch. 6 (pp. 216-255)
Hart & Risley,1992
Ch. 7 (pp. 262-293)
Final Exam Date (TBA) Exam 3 & Disseminating Research Findings
Paper Due