Announcements !
Dr. Snell's PY101
Psychological Perspectives on Human Behavior

My name is Dr. William (Bill) E. Snell, Jr. (homepage = http://www4.semo.edu/snell/) and I will be your instructor for this course. PY101 (Psychological Perspectives on Human Behavior) is an introductory course to psychology. In this course, we will learn about the various subfields of psychology (e.g., abnormal behavior, therapy, social psychology) and we will learn about the principles/theories that psychologists use to understand human behavior, thought, and feelings.

This PY101 forum will provide information where you and other students can learn more about our class forum. This PY101 class will have several activities that involve viewing videos and providing written responses, using the PY101 Forum. In addition, there will be other NON-VIDEO assignments where you will also use this PY101 Forum. For each assignment, the grading criteria will be provided, so that you can know how Dr. Snell will grade your responses. Also, remember that each assignment has a deadline (late homework will not be accepted, except under extraordinary circumstances--e.g., a documented family death). Finally, you will be using this PY101 Forum to respond to the written comments of other students. That is, in part of the PY101 Forum you will be asked to critique the work of other students, to evaluate the quality of their completed assignment and to provide feedback/commentary about the content of their writing.

Additionally, we will use the PY101 Forum for several other activities: you and the members of your group (GROUP A, B, C, D, AND E) will use the PY101 Forum to communicate with each other as you and your group members plan and develop a PowerPoint presentation (see your particular group Forum for more information about this activity).

Two other goals of this PY101 Forum are to provide you and your fellow PY101 students with the opportunity (1) to seek help whenever you or others have problems with anything in this course and (2) to ask questions about any textbook material (e.g., to help clarify any material in the textbook).

One last goal of this PY101 Forum was designed to help all of the students in PY101 learn more about one another. More specifically, one of the discussion forums is labeled, "WHO ARE YOU?" So that you and the other students may become more familiar with each other, would each of you go to this PY101 discussion area, and then describe some information about yourself (no other other than Dr. Snell and the other PY101 students will ever have access to this information).

IMPORTANT: When using this PY101 Forum, be sure to adhere to the following rules: (1.) When providing responses to the PY101 Forum, NEVER insult others. (2.) Never use curse words; educated people are more articulate about their personal views and feelings. (3.) You may disagree with the views of others (in an appropriate manner), but never personally attach them or call them names. NOTICE: those who violate these rules will be excluded from the PY101 Forum (with attending loss of grade points).

Good luck with the course. If you ever have questions about anything, do not hesitate to contact Dr. Snell:
OFFICE: Scully Building 427F
PHONE: (573) 651-2447
Email: wesnell@semo.edu
 

        Remember to double-check the spellings in your assignments.  Even if the "spell-checker" for the web site does not work, you will still be held accountable for spelling mistakes (double-check your spelling with a "printed" dictionary). 
        In the past, a few students in PY101 have experienced problems with the spell-checker in the course web site.  Be sure to post your assignments first, and then later return to them to edit them.  Then, you might try using the spell-checked (i.e., post your assignments first, and then go back later to run the spell-checker).  OR, simply use a printed dictionary.
 

          After you have posted a written assignment to the PY101 web site, be sure to verify that it is actually posted ! ! !  To do this, click the "refresh" button on your browser, and then return to the PY101 web site.  Next, click on the assignment to determine if your particular assignment is posted there (if not, re-do it before the assignment deadline).
 

      All students in all sections of PY101 are required to participate in two separate research investigations (i.e., 2 "different numbered" investigations).   As an alternative, students in PY101 may select to write a paper for each of the research requirements.  These papers will have the same deadline as the research participation--Friday of Week#12 at 5:00PM (delivered in person to Dr. Snell).

      If you elect to write a paper to fulfill a research participation requirement, here are the requirements:

(1)  Select a topic from the chapter on psychological disorders;
(2)  Locate a psychology journal article on the particular psychological disorder that you choose (DO NOT USE NEWSPAPERS OR MAGAZINES);
(3)  Copy EVERY page of the article, including all of the reference pages;
(4)  Write a one page summary of the article (in your own words), and provide a critique of it, as well as your own reactions to the paper;
(5)  The paper must be single-spaced with a 12-point font;
(6)  Use a one-inch margin on all 4 sides of the paper;
(7)  Type your name, date, and course information (PY101.xx) on the top of the page (all on one single line);
(8)  On the second line from the top of the page, provide a TITLE for your paper;
(9)  Staple your paper to the copy of the article, and submit all of this to Dr. Snell.
(10)  The paper will be graded in the same manner that the written assignments are graded.  SO, be sure to use complete sentences, avoid the use of misspelled words, avoid the use of contractions (e.g., aren't), and BE SURE TO USE NO DIRECT QUOTES.  Dr. Snell will check the content of the article to make sure that you did NOT directly quote the author(s).

      If you have any questions about the research paper, be sure to contact Dr. Snell (651-2447; wesnell@semo.edu; Scully Building 427F).  Good luck.