Course Logistics and Overview of Child Psychopathology (SJSU Fall Semester)

Course Overview and Instructor Information

• Meetings take place virtually and synchronously each week on Tuesday and Thursday from $3:00\,PM$ to $4:15\,PM$.
• Professor: Dr. Leslie Whitehead.
• Context: Child Psychopathology is a major requirement for the degree. Students typically choose between this course and the adult psychopathology class.
• Background: The fall semester start date has historically trended earlier, moving from late August (previously August $31$) to earlier in the month.

Essential Course Materials and Diagnostic Tools

• Primary Textbook: The textbook is the $5^{th}$ edition and has been heavily updated. While a hard copy exists, it is quite heavy; students are encouraged to use the ebook version. The ebook offers options for either $6$ months of access or lifetime ownership at a higher price point.
• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM): This manual is the primary focus for learning the specific criteria for various disorders. It is used predominantly in the United States and covers diagnostic symptoms and prevalence statistics (how often these conditions occur in the culture) but does not include treatment methods.
  • History: The DSM-$5$ was released in $2013$. The current version is the DSM-$5$ Text Revision (DSM-$5\text{-}TR$), which was released a couple of years ago and has been in widespread use for the last two years.
  • Phasing-in: Government agencies and insurance companies require a transitional period when moving into new coding system updates provided by text revisions.
  • Access: Students can access the full DSM-$5\text{-}TR$ through the library website for free by logging in with San Jose State credentials. While it is required reading for graduate-level clinical psychology, for this undergraduate course, the material has been broken down into smaller, meaningful pieces within the class slides.
• Technology: Students require a computer or electronic device to submit assignments. The Canvas student app is also available and has been significantly updated for improved functionality.

Canvas Learning Portal and Digital Navigation

• Home Page Portal: Canvas serves as the "one-stop shop" for the class. It is used for:
  • Submitting all assignments.
  • Receiving announcements and weekly reminders.
  • Collaborating with classmates.
• Interface Navigation:
  • Blue Main Menu (Left Side): Contains the calendar, inbox (for messaging faculty), history tracking, help link for technical issues, and a direct link to the library.
  • Dashboard: Displays all enrolled courses and identifies specific links for each class.
  • Account Menu: Located at the top, housing contact information and gender pronouns.
  • Internal Course Menu: Features an announcements page and the syllabus page. Announcements should be reviewed regularly, especially close to exam times, and notifications should be enabled.

Library Databases and Instructional Media

• Logging in: Access to certain library materials requires being a currently enrolled student. The site uses "OneSearch" and authenticates via MySJSU credentials. Successful login is indicated when the site displays "Access provided courtesy of San Jose State" and the user's name appears at the top.
• Alexander Street (Academic Video Online): A portal containing peer-reviewed, captioned videos. It includes curated documentaries, educational videos, and training snippets, such as a video on anxiety among adolescents.
• Canopy: A database featuring more recent films and documentaries. Unlike a standard streaming service, the library is billed for every view, so faculty must schedule specific films required for the curriculum rather than offering an "all-you-can-watch" model.

Assignments and Academic Evaluation

• Orientation Module:
  • Getting to Know You Assignment: A basic questionnaire about the student to help the professor become acquainted with the class. This is graded as complete or incomplete.
  • Welcome Forum (Childhood Object Slideshow): A show-and-tell activity where students introduce themselves via video or text. Students share a childhood object of significance (or a picture of one) and discuss its importance along with their future plans. Photos should be resized so they do not appear too large in the thread.
  • Syllabus Quiz: Students can take this quiz up to $3$ times; Canvas will retain the highest score.
• Regular Coursework:
  • Exams: There are scheduled exams covering multiple chapters each. While the syllabus initially listed $3$ exams, the course structure typically involves $4$ exams spaced out approximately every $4$ chapters. Exams are timed for $1$ hour and are open-book and open-notes.
  • Periodic Assignments: Various assignments will be available within Canvas modules for students to choose from to earn points.

Course Objectives and Learning Philosophy

• Course Scope: The focus is on children, infants, and adolescents, specifically the mental health and behavioral problems they face. This includes working with families, school environments, and public policy advocacy.
• Topics of Discussion:
  • Maltreatment, poverty, and community violence.
  • Eating disorders, aggression, running away, hyperactivity, anxiety, and depression.
  • Autism spectrum and other neurodevelopmental disorders.
• Integrative Approach: The course avoids looking at behaviors through a single lens (e.g., just genetics or just environment). Instead, it uses an integrated approach to conceptualize problems.
• Contextual Factors: Analysis of how gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, neighborhood, and disability status intersect to impact developmental outcomes.
• Developmental Psychopathology: This is the umbrella term for the emotional and behavioral problems studied in the class. The goal is to learn how to clinically evaluate children and formulate treatment plans using sociocultural context.
• Advocacy: A core goal is for students to become better advocates for the youth. The professor notes that many harms experienced by children could be prevented with better community resources, housing, healthcare, and academic experiences.

University Policies and Student Resources

• Course HQ: A dedicated website for policies and procedures across all of the professor's classes.
• Attendance and Success: Policies regarding religious holidays, disability accommodations, and academic integrity (including AI usage) are housed in a centralized university policy space linked in Canvas.
• Support Services: Resources available to students include writing support, tech support, peer connections, Title IX services, and health and well-being advocacy groups.

Semester Schedule and Class Expectations

• Prerequisites: Students must have completed Psych $1$ (which may be listed as Psych $1000$ at other institutions) before taking this course.
• Office Hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays from $10:00\,AM$ to $12:00\,PM$. Appointments are booked via a Google Calendar link.
• Workload: The course is content-heavy and "content-rich," covering roughly one chapter per week over the $16$-week semester.
• Instructional Style: To handle the large volume of information, the class may perform a "deep dive" on one or two specific disorders within a chapter that contains many (e.g., $8$ disorders), while expecting students to read about the others independently.
• Interactivity: Visual cues from students on camera are encouraged to help the professor gauge understanding and engagement.

Questions and Discussion

• Question (Rosa): Regarding the first quiz, our professor mentioned there are three opportunities. Is it the same for the tests?
• Answer: No. The syllabus quiz allows for three attempts and keeps the highest score. However, the major exams are different. They are limited to a single attempt, are timed for one hour, and are open-book/open-notes. Practice quizzes and study guides are available in the modules to assist with exam preparation.