Prof. MaryJane Danan

Office phone: 373-3331

Office: Room 207

Office hours: M-F 1:30 -2:30 p.m., or by appointment

e-mail: mdanan@willamette.edu

Course Description:

This course will focus on the development of English language and comprehension skills using the content from Psychology with a focus on child development. The activities we will do in this class are designed to help you improve your general English skills as well as learn the material in the elective course.

Types of activities for this class are:

Speech communication activities: pair and group discussions, and presentations primarily based on readings from the Psychology text. Also, you are encouraged to develop questions to ask the elective professor.

Textbook reading activities:

.discussions and brief oral reports based on the readings to reinforce comprehension

.using study questions as reading guides

.paraphrasing and summarizing

.using a double-entry reading journal

.writing related to the readings and discussions

.vocabulary development (definition of terms and examples which illustrate meaning)

Summary / reaction and Essay writing: writing on topics related to the elective course.

Lecture preview: discussion of major issues and vocabulary related to upcoming lectures.

Lecture review: work on note-taking skills, and comprehension of lecture content.

Speaking journal: this will give you speaking practice, and will help me follow your progress and level of comprehension of the elective course material.

Day Care Center observation: you will have the opportunity to observe young children in a day care setting several times during the semester. You will make observations based on the material you are studying in Psychology class, and you will write down your observations. Later, you will write a short paper about your overall observation experience.

Grading: your participation in class will be evaluated daily, so it is important to use English at all times in class. In addition to class participation, homework and quizzes, attendance and being on time to class, as well as attendance at tutoring sessions will influence your grade. Everything we do in class will help you build your academic language skills, so grades will be an average of all the items mentioned above.