Integrating a Psycholgy Curriculum Through the Incremental Building of Computer Skills

心理学（73）本项目重新设计了专业的核心心理学课程，作为一个集成的硬件-软件基础设施，旨在随着学生进入高年级课程，逐步培养技术上复杂的实验技能。学生的技能通过二年级和三年级的核心实验课程以及课程中附属课程的练习来获得。在他们的大四，学生们将这些获得的技能应用到他们为期一年的毕业论文项目中。在操作上，该项目逐步建立E-Prime和BioPac技术的使用技能。培训开始于学生学习将E-Prime编程练习整合到测序的实验课程中，从“研究方法和分析”开始，这是本项目中所有课程的先决条件。更高级的E-Prime技能是在评估和社会心理学二、三年级的核心实验室中获得的，学生也可以在那里学习如何设计利用BioPac生理记录技术的项目。在认知、变态心理学和行为神经科学课程的练习中提供了这些技术的额外经验。因此，当学生开始他们的顶点研究项目时，他们已经在至少两门核心实验课程中接受了技术培训，并且很可能在其他几门课程中接受了额外的培训。由于该项目提供了更多的技能驱动而不是内容驱动的课程，学生的智力收获可能会转移到各种STEM职业中，并培养批判性思维和综合技能。该项目将通过项目所涉及的所有课程使用的前/后评估工具进行评估，该项目对基于PCAT仪器（心理学领域集中成就测试）的正在进行的部门评估的影响，以及外部评估人员对我们的顶点论文项目的质量和技术复杂性进行的前/后评估。除了出版物和会议发言外，项目成果和文件也在部门网站（www.psych.westminster.edu）上散发。它提供了材料和学生项目的详细描述，包括编程协议和在线手册。

Psychology (73)This project is redesigning the core psychology curricula for majors as an integrated hardware - software infrastructure designed to progressively build technologically sophisticated experimentation skills as students advance to upper division courses. Student skills are acquired through core laboratory courses positioned in the sophomore and junior years and also through exercises developed in collateral courses within the curriculum. In their senior year, students apply these acquired skills in their yearlong capstone thesis projects. Operationally, the project incrementally builds skills in use of E-Prime and BioPac technology. The training commences as students learn to integrate E-Prime programming exercises into sequenced laboratory courses, beginning with "Research Methods and Analysis" - a prerequisite for all courses included in this project. More advanced E-Prime skills are acquired in the sophomore-junior level core laboratories of Assessment and Social Psychology where students also learn how to design projects that make use of BioPac physiological recording technology. Additional experiences with these technologies are provided in exercises developed for courses in Cognition, Abnormal Psychology, and Behavioral Neuroscience. Thus, when students begin their capstone research projects, they have had technological training in at least two core laboratory courses and are likely to have had additional training in several other courses. Because the project provides a more skill driven rather than content driven curriculum, the intellectual gains of students are likely to be transferable to a variety of STEM careers and also engender critical thinking and synthesis skills.The project is being evaluated through a pre/post assessment tool used in all courses involved in the project, the impact of the program on an on-going departmental assessment based on the PCAT Instrument (Psychology Area Concentration Achievement Test), and a before/after assessment of the quality and technological sophistication of our capstone thesis projects performed by outside evaluators. In addition to publications and conference presentations, the project outcomes and documentation are being disseminated on the departmental website (www.psych.westminster.edu). It provides detailed descriptions of the materials and student projects developed, including programming protocols and on-line manuals.