FCS 150 (Summer 2003): REVIEW FOR FIRST EXAM

(Chapters 1-9)

Dr. Isabella

Your first exam will cover chapters 1-9 (and the corresponding lectures), which present information on the study of human development, theories, genetics, prenatal development, infant physical, cognitive and social development, along with information on physical, cognitive and social development for the stages of early- and middle-childhood. The following overview is meant to help you organize your study of the textbook. Keep in mind, however, that my lectures should serve as your guide for determining the relative importance of the material. Additionally, please be aware that some of the material I covered in lectures during this section of the course is not covered in the text book. (Please note that while I will identify sections of chapters that will not be covered on the exam, this does not mean that you shouldn't read these sections. All of the material in the textbook is interesting and of possible importance to you. It simply is not feasible for me to expect that you can or should learn all of it, and thus I will identify for you sections of chapters that are beyond the scope of our course.)

Chapter 1: You are responsible for just about all of this chapter, most of which I covered in my lecture. Most important: the nature-nurture controversy; three areas of development; universals, contexts, and individual differences; and studying age-related changes (with attention to the three specific research designs described in this section: cross-sectional, longitudinal, and sequential–see the 'handout' on your syllabus and on my website. You are not responsible for the very first section of the chapter on "Philosophical Roots," "The Real World" story on page 5, or the "Research Report" on page 13. Everything else is fair game.

Chapter 2: You are responsible for the text's presentation of Freud's theory and the differences between Erikson's psychosocial theory and Freud's psychosexual theory. You are not responsible for Erikson's 8 stages of development (as presented in this chapter)–we will cover these later in the semester. You are responsible for "The Humanistic Alternative," which I did not cover, and "Learning Theories," especially classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and observational learning (Bandura's social-cognitive theory). You also are responsible for "Cognitive Theories" and "Current Trends," which includes biological theories, Vygotsky's Soci-Cultural Theory, and Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Theory (all of which I discussed in class). In general, you should not only be familiar with the information about these theories, but also the text's evaluations of them. You are not at this time responsible for Piaget's periods of cognitive development beyond infancy–we will eventually get to these. You are not responsible for the section on "information processing theory"(pp. 39-41).

Chapter 3: This chapter covers genetics and prenatal development Regarding genetics, my class presentation should be your guide through this portion of the chapter. And it's my perception that I covered just about everything in the text (plus some). Where Genetic Abnormalities are concerned, you should be familiar with the variety of such abnormalities, and with the condition of Down Syndrome. Exam questions will not go into details about specific conditions caused by genetic abnormalities (though the processes or mechanisms by which such abnormalities arise are subject to questioning).

Regarding prenatal development, you are responsible for most of what the chapter presents, and I covered virtually all of it. Be sure to read the text's coverage of specific teratogens (diseases, drugs, and other influences). Also, be sure to read the section on "The Mother's Experience" (pp. 606-62) and "Birth Choices" (pp78-79). Any questions from these sections will be very general. You are not responsible for: "No Easy Answer: Pregnancy, Epilepsy, and Anticonvulsant Drugs" on p. 75; "The Real World: Singing to Your Newborn" on p. 81; "Development in the Information Age: The Youngest Celebrities" p. 83.

Chapter 4: This chapter covers quite a bit of ground, including physical, cognitive, and language development during infancy.

Physical: For the section on brain development, use my lecture as a guide. In general, questions about physical development will be at a general level. For example, for "motor skills" (as described on page 95 and summarized in a table on page 96), you should recognize that development of these skills proceeds in both cephalocaudal and proximodistal directions, and don't worry about memorizing sequence or timing for any of these skills. Also, you should understand the difference between locomotor, nonlocomotor, and manipulative skills.

Cognitive: You are responsible for this entire section of the chapter, whether or not I covered it in class.

Language: You are responsible for materials covered in class, at least some of which coincides with the text's coverage.

Chapter 5: You will be tested heavily on my presentation of attachment theory and research. In addition, you are responsible for this entire, very important chapter.

Chapter 6: This chapter covers physical and cognitive development during early childhood. You are responsible for all of the information on physical development with the following two exceptions: You are NOT responsible for the brief section on "The Reticular Formation and the Hippocampus" on page 153, and you are not responsible for the section on "Abuse and Neglect" on pp. 154-156.

Regarding cognitive development, you are NOT responsible for the section entitled "Theories of Mind" on pp. 160-161. You also are NOT responsible for the subsection "Information-
Processing Theories" on pp. 161-163 (but you ARE responsible for Vygotsky's theory on pp. 163-164). I also will NOT hold you responsible for the entire section "Changes in Language" from pp. 164 thru 168. You are responsible for all other sections of the chapter.

Chapter 7: For this chapter, you are NOT responsible for the section entitled "The Gender Concept and Sex Roles," pp. 203-209. Interesting? Yes. Important? Yes. But we just don't have the time to cover it and I don't expect you to teach it to yourselves. You are responsible for everything else, and you should read carefully the sections on "Peer Relationships" (pp. 196-200) and "Personality and Self Concept" (201-203) because I will not cover these in class.

Chapter 8: You are NOT responsible for the section entitled "Advances in Information-
Processing Skills" (pp. 226-228). You are responsible for all other sections of this chapter on physical and cognitive development during middle childhood.

Chapter 9: You are NOT responsible for the section entitled "Dimensions of Moral Development" (pp. 250 thru 253). You are responsible for the remainder of this very important chapter.

The exam will consist of 105 multiple choice questions. If you've been keeping up with the textbook readings and class lectures, you should be well prepared for the test. Good luck.