Course

Child Behaviour and Development

Faculty
Humanities & Social Sciences
Department
Psychology
Course code
PSYC 3320
Credits
3.00
Semester length
15
Max class size
35
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Online
Hybrid
Typically offered
To be determined

Overview

Course description
This course provides an introduction to the process of development from conception to puberty. The major focuses are on developmental theory, descriptive changes in physical growth, cognition, language, social and emotional behaviour of children and applications of the research and theory.
Course content
  1. Child Development: Theories and Themes
  2. Research in Child Development
  3. Genetic Basis of Child Development
  4. Prenatal Development and Birth
  5. Physical Development in Infants and Toddlers
  6. Cognition in Infants and Toddlers
  7. Social Behaviour and Personality in Infants and Toddlers
  8. Physical Growth in Preschool Children
  9. Cognitive Development in Preschool Children
  10. Social Behaviour and Personality in Preschool Children
  11. Physical Development in Middle Childhood
  12. Cognitive Development in Middle Childhood
  13. Social Behaviour and Personality in Middle Childhood
Learning activities

The course will employ a number of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives and will include some of the following:

  • lectures
  • seminar presentations
  • audio visual materials including video
  • small group discussions and activities
  • research projects
  • student completion of the virtual child program
Means of assessment

Evaluation will be carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. Evaluations will be based on the course objectives. The specific evaluation criteria will be provided by the instructor at the beginning of the semester.

Students may conduct research with human participants as part of their coursework in this class.  Instructors for the course are responsible for ensuring that student research projects comply with College policies on ethical conduct for research involving human subjects.

An example of a possible evaluation scheme would be:

3 exams -  60%

3 papers - 30%

Oral presentation - 10%

Total - 100%

Learning outcomes

At the conclusion of the course, the successful student will be able to:

  1. Describe the research methods associated with child development.
  2. Explain the significance of heredity and environment on the developing child.
  3. Describe the factors associated with physical development, prenatally through to puberty.
  4. Describe the processes of cognitive development throughout childhood.
  5. Describe the socio-emotional changes experienced by the infant through to puberty.
  6. Explain how child developmental research can be applied to real life situations.
  7. Explain contemporary issues in child development such as, child abuse, attention-deficit disorder, special needs, role of television and video games.
Textbook materials

Textbooks and Materials to be Purchased by Students:

Textbook(s) such as the following, the list to be updated periodically:

Kail, R.V. and Zolner, T. Children and chronological approach (current Canadian ed.). Toronto, ON: Pearson Education Canada.

Requisites

Course Guidelines

Course Guidelines for previous years are viewable by selecting the version desired. If you took this course and do not see a listing for the starting semester / year of the course, consider the previous version as the applicable version.

(Current)

Course Transfers to Other Institutions

Below are current transfer agreements from Douglas College to other institutions for the current course guidelines only. For a full list of transfer details and archived courses, please see the BC Transfer Guide.

Institution Transfer details for PSYC 3320
Capilano University (CAPU) CAPU PSYC 304 (3)
Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) KPU PSYC 2320 (3)
Langara College (LANG) LANG PSYC 2324 (3)
Simon Fraser University (SFU) SFU PSYC 250 (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU PSYC 3150 (3)
Thompson Rivers University (TRU) TRU PSYC 3151 (3)
Trinity Western University (TWU) TWU PSYC 345 (3)
University of British Columbia - Okanagan (UBCO) UBCO PSYO_O 321 (3)
University of British Columbia - Vancouver (UBCV) UBCV PSYC_V 2nd (3)
University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) UFV PSYC 351 (3)
University of Victoria (UVIC) UVIC PSYC 2XX (1.5)
Vancouver Island University (VIU) VIU PSYC 335 (3)

Course Offerings

There are no course offerings this semester.