Wikipedia:United States Education Program/Courses/History of Psychology (Perkins)

Course information

 * University: Ball State University
 * Course title: History of Psychology
 * Professor name: David V. Perkins
 * Professor's Wikipedia username: Dperkins16
 * Course start date: January 2014
 * Assignment due date: April 29, 2014

Course description
PSYSC491, History of Psychology, is designed to help students understand the historical foundations of psychology, their influence on contemporary psychological thought, and the growth of psychology as a science. The course covers major concepts of various schools of psychological thought and contemporary theoretical systems as they have evolved historically, including ideas expressed by philosophers, physiologists, and psychologists. It also considers the impact of human and cultural diversity on the science of psychology. Completing this course will promote the development of skills in critical thinking, written and oral communication, and using technology.

Wikipedia assignment
Wikipedia Article (15%): Students work individually to update or create a Wikipedia article concerning either the subject of their case study or the topic of their application paper. The purposes of this assignment are to (1) learn digital-literacy skills along with course-related content, and (2) significantly improve the quality of an article by thoroughly researching the topic and editing the article to be consistent with Wikipedia standards and quality guidelines, including concise writing, high quality sources, and appropriate responses to editorial feedback from the Wikipedia community. This experience is intended to transform you from a passive reader of psychological literature to an active translator of psychological knowledge. That is, ordinary term papers are typically read by only 2 people before they end up in a file cabinet or recycle bin. Wikipedia is the 5th most popular website in the world and has been called the “largest collaborative project known to man” (APS Observer, July/August 2012, p. 39). Revising and publishing a Wikipedia article will thus enable the work students do to have a tangible impact on the world, representing a form of civic engagement as well as scholarship.

Student resources
For on-wiki help, please refer to this student orientation and this brief resource page.

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