Grading:
Grading will be based on final exams (40%), quizzes (25%), attendance and participation (20%), case presentation (15%), and an extra credit assignment (5%).
Exams (40%)
Students will sit for only one final cumulative exam at the end of the semester – see course schedule. Exams will be conducted in-person during the class period and will begin promptly at 7:00pm. Exams will consist of multiple-choice questions and short-response questions. Exam questions will be based on class lectures, assigned text and any supplemental resources that are utilized (e.g., additional readings, videos). Following the posting of exam grades, students may reach out to the course instructor to review test results. However, these discussions will be conducted by appointment only. Students will not be able to discuss exam questions via email. Students have seven days following grade posting to schedule an exam review meeting with the course instructor.
Make up exams: Make-up exams will not be offered unless the student is able to provide a documented, and legitimate excuse or due to extenuating circumstances. In this case, the student must contact the instructor at least 72 hours before the scheduled exam to (a) inform the instructor and (b) reschedule the exam date. In the case of unexpected absence (such as sickness), students must contact the course instructor to provide a documented or legitimate excuse. The course instructor will verify that the absence is considered excused. The course instructor will decide whether or not make-up exams are permitted. Make up exams must be completed within seven days of the original exam date (unless student has extenuating circumstances). Make up exams may differ in content and/or format from the exam that was given to the rest of the class. The student is required to complete the exam on the scheduled make-up date unless they provide a legitimate, documented excuse.
Attendance and Participation (20%)
Throughout the course, students are encouraged to actively participate in class discussions in a thoughtful manner, giving room to other students to also participate. Periodically, students will be given short assignments based on related class materials. You may be asked to write and submit activities on Brightspace or to respond to a few questions about a video or a reading. Participation assignments will open on Brightspace at the end of class and will be due by the beginning of the following class.
Quizzes (25%)
There will be three (3) quizzes throughout the semester. Quizzes will contain short-answer questions, multiple choice questions, and case scenarios. At the end of the semester, your lowest quiz grade will be dropped. All quizzes will be in-person during lectures hours.
Case Presentation (15%)
For this activity students will be required to work in groups and select a preferred topic of interest related to topics covered in class. Format of group presentation may follow one of the following:
- critically select a peer-reviewed meta-analysis or systematic review on your topic of interest and discuss their findings, limitations of the study, and recommendation for future research.
- present a state of the field for a topic of interest related to the class. Students must identify a research question, appraise the literature to determine the trajectory of practice and care, history of treatment modalities and efficacy, and recommendations for future studies.
- select a recently peer-reviewed article on a topic of interest and discuss their rational, aims, methodology, results, discussion, limitations, and directions for future studies.
- chose a preferred topic of interest and make a class presentation on specific research questions and aims.
Students will be randomly assigned to groups by the instructor; however, it is the responsibility of the group to decide on their preferred task for the class presentation. Each student will be graded individually based on their level of contribution to the overall assignment and their demonstrated competency during class presentation.
NB: All topics and tasks for the class presentation must be approved by the instructor. Students are encouraged to set-up a meeting with the instructor at their earliest convenience for approval of their preferred topics.
Extra Credit (5%)
There will be 2 main opportunities for extra credit.
- Course surveys
- There will be a course survey posted on Brightspace during the semester.
- Reflection paper
- Students would have the opportunity throughout the semester to choose ONE of the listed readings to critically examine and write a reflection paper. Reflection paper should cover the main arguments in the paper, strengths, weaknesses, potential biases, how and why the authors arrived at their conclusion, and how arguments from the journal connect with your learning experiences so far (if any). Your paper should be 1 page long (1.5-spaced, 12-point font, Times New Roman, 1-inch margins).
This course will abide by Hunter College’s grading scale. Course grades will not be rounded up. You will receive the exact grade based upon the below final grade calculation. Please contact me about grades only if you believe there has been a clerical error.
| Letter Grade | Percentage | Letter Grade | Percentage |
| A+ | 97.5-100.0 | B- | 80.0-82.4 |
| A | 92.5-97.4 | C+ | 77.5-79.9 |
| A- | 90.0-92.4 | C | 70.0-77.4 |
| B+ | 87.5-89.9 | D | 60.0-69.9 |
| B | 82.5-87.4 | F | 0.0-59.9 |
