School Psychology (SPSY)

What is madness? Insanity? Mental illness? Who decides where the line between madness and normalcy is drawn? How have ideas about madness changed over time? Can the same behaviors be considered "insane" in one culture but "normal" in another? What is "stigma" and how does it affect individuals with mental illnesses? This course will explore biological, social, and cultural factors that influence mental illness, perceptions of individuals with mental illness, and treatments of mental illness over time and across cultural groups. NOTE: This course fulfills the Human Behavior (GB) requirement for students under GenEd and Individual & Society (IN) for students under Core. Students cannot receive credit for this course if they have successfully completed SPSY 0928.

What is madness? Insanity? Mental illness? Who decides where the line between madness and normalcy is drawn? How have ideas about madness changed over time? Can the same behaviors be considered "insane" in one culture but "normal" in another? What is "stigma" and how does it affect individuals with mental illnesses? This course will explore biological, social, and cultural factors that influence mental illness, perceptions of individuals with mental illness, and treatments of mental illness over time and across cultural groups. NOTE: This course fulfills the Human Behavior (GB) requirement for students under GenEd and Individual & Society (IN) for students under Core. Students cannot receive credit for this course if they have successfully completed SPSY 0828.

This course serves as an introduction to the discipline of school psychology. As such, a primary focus of this course will be to learn about the field of school psychology, particularly the role and function of a school psychologist. We will explore a scientist-practitioner model of practice that is based on the current best practice model in the field. As such, a focus will be on the application of psychological principles to improve learning for all students. Emphasis will be placed on research-based models of prevention that help to improve outcomes for individual students and classrooms as well as overall schools and school districts. This course will focus on the role and function of school psychologists, paying particular attention to the three main pillars of practice: assessment, intervention, and consultation. Core topics will include systems-based service delivery, assessment, learning theory, effective interventions (academic, behavioral, and social), culturally competent practice, effective instruction, data-based decision making, and collaborative consultation.

The purpose of this course is to provide a theoretical and practical understanding of the impact of psychological trauma at the individual and societal level. Students will become familiar with the impact and nature of a wide variety of traumas on the individual including: childhood abuse, violent crimes in adulthood, domestic violence, accidents, traumatic deaths, natural disasters, and war and genocide. Students will also focus on the impact of trauma on society by studying the economic and social costs of trauma. In addition, students will explore issues related to resiliency and prevention of trauma.

This course covers special topics of interest to students in a broad range of educational contexts. The topics will vary each semester depending on the population being served.