Adult Development and Aging PSYCO 329
Spring 2020 A1
Instructor: Tiana Rust, PhD, MSc
Phone: 780-885-1978 (You are welcome to call or to text. Please include your name and the course number in your text)
E-mail: [email protected] Please include “329” in the subject line.
Office Hours: Please email, text, call to arrange a mutually convenient time to meet by phone, facetime, zoom, google meet etc.
Course Days & Time: T R 9:15 am– 12:25 pm, the course materials will be on eClass. Lecture videos for the class will be made available by 9:15 am on Tuesdays and Thursdays according to the class schedule (or sometimes sooner for if you would like to work ahead).
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Course Description:
Overview of physical, psychological, and sociocultural realities of aging. Topics may include sensory and perceptual changes in aging, pathology, cognition, personality, late life relationships, and work.
Although some major health problems and challenges of aging will be covered, individual differences and usual trajectories of aging will be emphasized. [Faculty of Arts]
Course Prerequisites: PSYCO 223. It is the responsibility of the student to ensure they have the appropriate prerequisite for the course.
Course Objectives and Expected Learning Outcomes: On the completion of this course you should:
• Know some of the key theories in the adult development and aging area
• Know some of the key "changes" in the physical, psychological, and social domains of aging
• Understand the multiple influences on aging trajectories
• Distinguish myths versus realities of aging
• Demonstrate evidence-based reasoning and argumentation
• Have practiced interviewing a person (data gathering)
• Have practiced presentation skills
Course Format: The objectives of this course will be learned from a combination of online lectures, news reports/YouTube videos/magazine articles to show the course concepts in the real world, assigned textbook readings, audiovisual materials, small assignments,
essay/presentation/infographic assignment on how to maximize aging well, and life history assignment.
Required Textbook: Harper, L. & Dobbs, B. (2017). Adult development and aging: The Canadian experience. Toronto, ON: Nelson. You will require a microphone, possibly a camera (depending on the format of presentation that you choose to do), and a computer with internet access (see the
“Participating in Online Courses” link below for specifications).
Participating in Online Courses: Read this to familiarize yourself with IST recommendations for participating in online courses
Important Dates: See the current Calendar for the Academic Schedule, Dates, and Deadlines, which include the Registration Add/Drop deadline and Withdrawal date.
Tentative Lecture Schedule & Assigned Readings:
Topic & Assigned Chapter to Read Date Exam/Assignment/Task Introduction: Syllabus review, Introductory lecture
Chapter 1: Issues to Consider in the Study of Adult Development
Tuesday, May 5
Do the anonymous feedback task
“first three words” and do the Facts on Aging Quiz before watching the introductory lecture
Chapter 2: Research Designs and Ethical Issues Chapter 3: Physical Changes Associated with Aging
Thursday, May 7
Letter to Older Self Due 9 am (2%)
Quiz 1: Intro, Ch1, Ch2, Ch3
Chapter 4-a: Cognitive Aging Theories Chapter 4-b: Cognitive Changes, Post Formal Thought and Wisdom
Tuesday, May 12
Quiz 1 (9%)
Essay Topic Due 6 pm indicate on eClass
Chapter 5: Longevity, Health and Functioning Chapter 6: Mental Health and Mental Health Disorders
Thursday, May 14
Beliefs About Older Adults Assignment Due (2%) 9 am
Quiz 2: Ch 4, Ch 5, Ch 6
Chapter 7: Neurocognitive Disorders Chapter 8: Canada’s Ethnic Diversity APA style and Essay tutorial
Tuesday May 19
Quiz 2 (9%)
Spring Term Refund Deadline
Chapter 9: Aging and Personality Development Chapter 10: Relationships
Thursday, May 21
Quiz 3: Ch 7, Ch 8, Ch 9, Ch10, APA style Chapter 11: Work, Retirement and Leisure
Tuesday, May 26
Quiz 3 (9%)
Chapter 12: Dying: Another Stage of Life Chapter 13: Living Arrangements of Older
Thursday, May 28
Essay Due (20%) at 9 am
Quiz 4: Ch 11, Ch 12, Ch 13, Course Conclusion Tuesday, June 2
Quiz 4 (9%)
Withdrawal deadline June 3 Presentations (Requirements for participation in
discussion forums will be available on eClass)
Thursday, June 4
Post on eClass by 9 am:
Presentation Due (5%) Infographic Due (10%) Presentations (Requirements for participation in
discussion forums will be available on eClass)
Note that there is NO final exam for this course
Tuesday, June 9
Life History Project Due 9 am (25%)
Components of Course Grade:
Grades will be based on four noncumulative quizzes (worth 9% each), small assignments (4%), an essay on a selected topic (20%), your presentation based on your essay topic (5%), an infographic based on your essay topic (10%) and a life history project (25%). Descriptions of these forms of evaluation are below. Note, to qualify for the presentation and infographic component, participation during the presentations portion of the class must be demonstrated.
Quizzes: Quizzes are worth 9% each (36% of your total grade). Quizzes are open book (dates indicated above) and will test knowledge of material from the textbook and audio-visual materials, assigned readings, and lectures posted in eClass. The format of the exams will be a combination of multiple choice and short answer. The length of each quiz and the time frame to complete it in will be announced on eClass.
Small Assignments: Small assignments are worth 4% total. Instructions are posted on eClass.
Essay: The essay is worth 20% of your total grade. What advice, based on research evidence, could you provide to seniors to maximize aging well? Choose a topic from the physical/sensory,
psychological, or sociocultural domains of aging covered in the course. Indicate the topic of your essay by 6 pm on Tuesday May 12, 2020. You will do this in eClass under the feedback icon that says “Please indicate your essay topic here”. Research the topic and write a paper in which you provide convincing evidence in support of a recommendation you would make or suggest (e.g., impact of exercise like Tai Chi on some aspect of physical aging). The maximum essay length is six (6) double-spaced pages with 12 pt font and 1 inch margins (not including title page, abstract, and references, these are in addition to the 6 pages) and must contain description and discussion of at least three (3) empirical studies related to the topic. To stay within the page limit you will need to narrow the focus of your topic, choose your references wisely, and review the evidence for your arguments concisely. Use the standard referencing system employed in psychology (consult the most recent APA style manual http://www.apastyle.org/). You should provide an abstract of the whole paper at the beginning, separate from the main text and consisting of no more than 120 words. The argument put forth should be clear and the evidence selected should align with the argument, a minimum of 3 studies should be reviewed/summarized clearly so that the reader knows who the participants were, what was done in each study, what was found, how it relates to your thesis statement/argument. The entire paper should contain a title page, an abstract, the text, and a reference list. You will be graded on writing style (organization and clarity), the thoroughness with which the literature is reviewed, accuracy of referencing, APA style, and the cohesiveness of your argument in support of the recommendation. Rough work should be available if requested by the instructor. The grading rubric is posted on eClass. You must upload a PDF of your paper on eClass by 9 am Thursday May 28, 2020. Please use the format
“LastnameFirstInitialPaper.PDF” to save your paper so that we can organize the papers more easily. Fifteen percent (15%) will be deducted for each day (or portion thereof) the essay is late.
Life History Project: The Life History Project is worth 25% of your total grade. The purpose of this assignment is to put a human face to the issues discussed in your textbook. You will be required to interview any older adult (over 65 years of age) using a series of questions that you generate as a starting point. This can be done over the telephone, on skype, FaceTime, Zoom, in person, etc. You will then compile the answers into a paper (10 double-spaced pages maximum) plus a title page, that integrates the information provided by the interviewee with concepts from the course in what is called a "life history." Your life history project must be uploaded to eClass by 9 am on Tuesday June 9, 2020. Please save as a PDF. You must also hand in a scan of the signed
Consent Form and interview notes or sound file. Fifteen percent (15%) will be deducted for each day (or portion thereof) the assignment and/ or consent form and/or interview notes/recordings are late. The complete assignment description is on eClass. Please read the description carefully. If you do not know someone 65 years of age or older ask me in the first week of class and I will find you someone to interview.
Presentation: The presentation is worth 5% of your total grade. Your goal is to provide your expertise about your essay topic and prepare a 5-minute video directed at older adults on how to maximize aging well. Your goal is to convince them that they should do whatever the research in your essay suggests for aging well and how to do it. The topic of the presentation will be the same as that of your paper, but the scope and direction of the presentation will be more applied,
educational and engaging to a broad audience. You may want to include your infographic in your presentation, but you do not have to. You will upload your video to YouTube, you can set the visibility of your video as “unlisted” so that people cannot search for your video and is only visible to those that you give the link to. Please leave it up on YouTube for one week after the class ends.
You will post the link in eClass in a discussion forum so that your classmates can watch it and comment on it. By uploading to YouTube your classmates will not have to download large files to their computers to watch your presentation. If you are not comfortable with this, you can post the google drive link to your presentation for everyone to download to their computers and watch. The grading sheet is posted on eClass. Note, to qualify for the presentation component, participation in the discussion forum during the presentations portion of the class must be demonstrated (you need to watch and comment on each presentation in the discussion forum that the video link is posted in to demonstrate your participation).
Infographic: The infographic is based on your essay topic. The infographic should be created with the goal of educating a general audience of older adults about health promotion and healthy
development within your topic (i.e., how they can maximise aging well based on your research). To do this, you will focus on the take-home messages or recommendations that you provided in the paper. The topic of the infographic will be the same as that of your paper, but the scope and direction of the presentation will be more applied, educational and engaging to a broad audience.
The infographic should:
1. Be in landscape orientation.
2. Be easily readable on a small laptop screen (need to be able to read it if printed on a regular sheet of 8.5x11 piece of paper).
3. Be in pdf format so that everyone can open it and the formatting won’t be off.
4. Include a title and your name.
5. Cover a brief introduction to the topic (for context).
6. Describe three recommendations or ‘take home messages’ that could promote healthy aging within that topic
7. Be easy to interpret (& not be too text-heavy)
8. Clearly include source information (references, links to any resources provided, etc.) 9. Be accessible to a broad audience, especially older adults.
10. Be engaging, yet educational, professional and scientifically accurate.
The grading rubric and further assignment description is on eClass. Note, to qualify for the Infographic component, participation in the discussion forum during the presentations portion of the class must be demonstrated.
Grade Components, Weighting and Due Dates
Component Weighting Date
Quiz 1 9% May 12, 2020
Quiz 2 9% May 19, 2020
Quiz 3 9% May 26, 2020
Quiz 4 9% June 2, 2020
Assignments 4% May 7 & May 14, 2020
Essay 20% May 28 2020
Infographic 10% June 4, 2020
Presentation 5% June 4, 2020
Life History project (interview) 25% June 9, 2020
In this course: 15% of the grade is based on the presentation and infographic. To qualify for the presentation/infographic component, participation in the discussion forum of each presentation during the presentations portion of the class must be demonstrated.
Representative Evaluative Material:
What are the four characteristics of Baltes’ life-span perspective?
Development is said to be ________when there is more than one path to successful aging.
Multidirectionality refers to
a. development and aging involving both decline and growth.
b. the ability to change and improve abilities over time and with development.
c. the fact that each of us is affected by a variety of factors both positive and negative.
d. our differing cultural backgrounds.
Define and provide an example of a normative age-graded event and a non-normative event.
Events are said to be _____if they are important to the individual but do not happen to most people.
The death of a spouse at age 25 is an example of a a. normative age-graded event.
b. normative history-graded event.
c. normative individual-graded event.
d. non-normative event.
Identify the major theories about the cause(s) of Alzheimer’s disease.
_______is the most common form of progressive dementia.
Behavioral symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease tend to be worse a. in the morning.
b. in the early afternoon.
c. around lunchtime.
d. in the evening.
Grade Evaluation:
Distribution of Grades Letter
grade A+ A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D F
% Range ≥95 90- 94
85- 89
80- 84
75- 79
71- 74
67- 70
63- 66
60- 62
55-
59 50-54 <50 Grade
points 4.0 4.0 3.7 3.3 3.0 2.7 2.3 2.0 1.7 1.3 1.0 0 Descriptor Excellent Good Satisfactory Poor Minimal
Pass Fail This table contains an approximate guideline for the course, however the instructor reserves the
right to adjust this table to correspond to University-suggested ranges and assign appropriate grades based on relative performance or on an individual basis in light of special circumstances and/or the person’s total performance in the course
Grades are unofficial until approved by the Department and/or Faculty offering the course.
Missed Term Exams and Assignments:
For an excused absence where the cause is religious belief, a student must contact the instructor within two weeks of the start of class to request accommodation for the term. Instructors may request adequate documentation to substantiate the student request.
A student who cannot complete a term assignment or quiz due to incapacitating illness, severe domestic affliction or other compelling reasons can apply for extension of time to complete the assignment. The instructor must be contacted within 48 hours of the assignment due date. There is no guarantee that an extension will be granted. A student who cannot write a quiz due to
incapacitating illness, severe domestic affliction or other compelling reasons can apply to have the weight of the missed quiz made up by the average of the other exams. If you miss two quizzes, you must write a cumulative make-up exam on all the material covered in the missed exams. The instructor must be contacted within 48 hours of the missed quiz. Adequate documentation to substantiate the reason for the absence or need for extension will be requested.
Deferral of term work is a privilege and not a right and is under the discretion of the instructor;
there is no guarantee that a deferral will be granted. Misrepresentation of Facts to gain a deferral is a serious breach of the Code of Student Behaviour.
Attendance: Regular attendance is essential for optimal performance in any course. To qualify for the presentation/infographic component, participation during the presentations portion of the class must be demonstrated. You will not be eligible for the 15% Infographic and Presentation
component of the class if you do not participate in the discussion forum of each student presentation.
Policy for Late Assignments: Fifteen percent (15%) will be deducted for each day (or portion thereof) the assignment is late.
STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES:
Academic Integrity: The University of Alberta is committed to the highest standards of academic integrity and honesty. Students are expected to be familiar with these standards regarding academic honesty and to uphold the policies of the University in this respect. Students are particularly urged to familiarize themselves with the provisions of the Code of Student Behaviour and avoid any behaviour which could potentially result in suspicions of cheating, plagiarism, misrepresentation of facts and/or participation in an offence. Academic dishonesty is a serious offence and can result in suspension or expulsion from the University.
All students should consult the Academic Integrity website for clarification on the various offences.
If you have any questions, ask your instructor.
All forms of dishonesty are unacceptable at the University. Any offence will be reported to the Associate Dean of the Faculty, who will determine the disciplinary action to be taken. See the Academic Discipline Process. Sanctions range from a grade of zero for an exam or paper in question, with no opportunity to replace the grade or redistribute the weights, to a disciplinary failing grade with a period of suspension or expulsion from the University of Alberta.
Exams: Quizzes are online and open book/notes. You may not seek the assistance of other
students, google or people to complete the quizzes. See Calendar information on Conduct of Exams for more information.
Recording and/or Distribution of Course Materials: Audio or video recording, digital or
otherwise, of lectures, labs, seminars or any other teaching environment by students is allowed only with the prior written consent of the instructor or as a part of an approved accommodation plan.
Student or instructor content, digital or otherwise, created and/or used within the context of the course is to be used solely for personal study, and is not to be used or distributed for any other purpose without prior written consent from the content author(s).
STUDENT RESOURCES:
The best all-purpose website for student services is: http://www.ualberta.ca/current- students/index.html
Accessibility Resources (AR) (1 – 80 SUB): The University of Alberta is committed to creating work and learning communities that inspire and enable all people to reach their full potential. AR promotes an accessible, inclusive, and universally designed environment. For general information to register for services visit the Accessibility Resources webpage. Eligible students have both rights and responsibilities with regard to accessibility-related accommodations. Consequently, scheduling exam accommodations in accordance with AR deadlines and procedures is essential. Please note adherence to procedures and deadlines is required for U of A to provide accommodations.
Academic Success Centre (1-80 SUB): The Academic Success Centre provides professional academic support to help students strengthen their academic skills and achieve their academic goals. Individual advising, appointments, and group workshops are available year round in the areas of Accessibility, Communication, Learning, and Writing Resources. Modest fees apply for some services.
The Centre for Writers (1-42 Assiniboia Hall): The Centre for Writers offers free one-on-one writing support to students, faculty, and staff. Students can request consultation for a writing project at any stage of development. Instructors can request class visits and presentations.
Health and Wellness Support: There are many health and community services available to current students. For more information visit the Health and Wellness Support webpage.
Office of the Student Ombuds: The Office of the Student Ombuds offers confidential interviews, advice and support to students facing academic, discipline, interpersonal and financial difficulties.
LEARNING AND WORKING ENVIRONMENT
The Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, and Faculty of Science are committed to ensuring that all students, faculty, and staff are able to work and study in an environment that is safe and free from discrimination and harassment. It does not tolerate behaviour that undermines
that environment. This includes virtual environments and platforms.
The University of Alberta acknowledges that we are located on Treaty 6 territory, and respects the histories, languages, and cultures of the First Nations, Métis, Inuit, and all First Peoples of Canada, whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant community.
Policy about course outlines can be found in the Evaluation Procedures and Grading System section of the University Calendar.
Disclaimer: Any typographical errors in this syllabus are subject to change and will be announced in class and/or posted on the eClass.
Copyright: Dr. Tiana Rust, Department of Psychology, Faculty of Arts, University of Alberta (2020).
