• Mr Swanberg Welcome back for the 2019/2020 school year. This is going to be a great year in Psychology and U.S. History. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to email me at john_swanberg@chino.k12.ca.us. I will attempt to get back to you during that day or the next at the latest. 

    My expectations for success are simple: be here on time; pay attention and do your work; don't bother other students. School wide rules will be followed such as, no hats or hoods; telephones, headphones, musical devices etc. must be put away while inside the classroom. The only time your phone is out is if you need to do some research. Since all work can be done in class, no late work will be accepted. If there are unusual situations, you need to talk to me and get my permission to turn work in after it is due.
    There is a calender on my webpage that has the curriculum for the entire year on it. You will see what topics are being taught on a particular day, whether the text book is needed in the classroom and when the tests are. On occasion, due to outside influences there may have to be amodification of the calender. If there is, I will change it as soon as I have been made aware of it. You will find resources on the webpage as well. Specifically, downloadable outlines of my lectures. While it is not necessary to print out a copy and bring it on the lecture days, it will be much easier for your student to follow the lectures if they have them. There isn't any penalty grade wise if the lectures are not printed out, and are written out instead.  
     
    The state of California has redone the Psychology framework:
    Psychology 
     
    "What principles govern and affect an individual’s perception, ability to learn, motivation, intelligence, and personality?"
     
    This course introduces students to the scientific study of human behavior including human thought, emotion, and actions. Psychology is an empirical science that studies biological and social bases of behavior. A framing question for the course is: “What principles govern and affect an individual’s perception, ability to learn, motivation, intelligence, and personality?” A wide range of topics or issues such as perception, memory, emotional influences, personality, social interaction, development, and abnormal behavior will be covered. Course objectives include:
     
    1. Identifying and describing key psychologists’ contributions to the field
    2. Explaining how psychological research is conducted
    3. Evaluating test standardization, reliability, and validity
    4. Explaining the cognitive, physiological, and moral developments of the human life span
    5. Describing the parts and functions of the brain
    6. Explaining the principles and techniques of classical and operant conditioning
    7. Identifying and explaining cognitive psychology theories
    8. Explaining views of intelligence
    9. Evaluating the major personality theories
    10. Examining psychological disorders along with their causes, varieties, and various forms of psychotherapy treatments
    11. Examining universal emotions and culturally determined ways of expressing them, including how they relate to psychological stress and accompanying physiological responses  

    The study of psychology contributes to an improved ability to think critically, to identify and solve problems associated with human behavior, and to work effectively in groups. Students could benefit from an internship/volunteer opportunity with local nonprofits serving teens and/or counseling centers. A culminating course project could include development of a handbook for teens outlining effective interpersonal relationship tools, what these look like, how to work to achieve them, and pitfalls to avoid. The American Psychological Association website hosts a K–12 Education page with curriculum materials, sample syllabi including recommended texts, and national standards for high school psychology."

    U.S. History
    History is important in that while it doesn't repeat, it does, like Mark Twain said, rhyme. To understand where we are and how we got here, we must understand the antescedents and the causes of what we have today. As an introduction, we will look at how we came to be in America. We will look at how the United States went from a western outpost to a world power through the lens of the 20th century. We will end with the triumph of the United States and the fall of the Communist Bloc in 1989. The old Social Studies standards will be found in the textbook, the new standards are available online.
     
    All of my grades are on Aeries. The grading policy is simple. Class work is 40%. Tests are 40%. The final exam is 20%. There is a test for each chapter. The questions in the chapter tests are combined to create the unit tests. 60 questions are taken from the unit tests to create the semester final exam. If prior to the Psychology semester final exam, you have 80% or more, you will not take the final exam. If you have 79% or less prior to the semester final exam, you will be taking the final exam. U.S History will have a Department Mid-Term and Final Semester Exam
         
    Again welcome to my class for the new school year.            John Swanberg