PSYC 321: Wintersession in South Carolina

The Psychology Department will be offering PSYC 321 in January, 2014!

In collaboration with South Carolina public schools in Greenville-Spartanburg, students will observe single-gender classrooms. Students will collect and compile data during Wintersession. This will be followed by a full semester of coursework designed to understand single-gender instruction from the perspective of teachers and students.

                                     Application is required and registration is limited.

PSYC 321: Community Psychology with Wintersession Applied Research

(1.25 Units) Nancy Genero

Overview

Communities across the country are grappling with issues regarding public school choice.  One of the most hotly debated issues has been whether public schools should offer a single-gender option. At Wellesley we assume that single gender education promotes gender equity and academic achievement. However, the national controversy surrounding single-gender classrooms in public schools continues. Through PSYC321 you will observe teachers and students in single-gender classrooms enabling you to take an active role in this important dialogue.

Description

To explore the complexities of single-gender instruction in public schools, Wellesley students will examine issues pertaining to social identity, gender stereotypes, motivation, and academic achievement among culturally diverse children. Following data collection during Wintersession, students will return to campus to complete a full semester of coursework on this topic.

This unique course enables students to hone their oberservation research skills, work with a substantially large dataset, and network with single-gender educators, researchers, and program directors.

This 1.25-units course is open to students who have taken PSYC205 (or comparable intro statistics course) and two additional 200-level units within the Psychology Department or by permission of the instructor.

Financial aid is available.