Psychology/University
PSYC815: Child Developmental Behavior
Spring 2026 Syllabus
Part 1: Course Information
Instructor Information
Instructor: Shaneil Guidry, PhD
Office: On campus, Psychology Building: Rm. 518
Office Hours: Mon. 8am-10am, Tu. 1:30pm-2:30pm, Th. 4pm-6pm
Office Telephone: 561-555-1234
E-mail: DrGuidry@[Link]
Prerequisite
Psyc 700 Intro to Psychology
Psyc 810 Cognitive Development
Class Information
Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 11am-12pm
Psychology Building: Rm. 133
Course Description
The understanding of the overall stages of child development from
infancy to young adulthood will be covered in this course. The course
presents deeper looking into nature vs nurture from the standpoint of
tradition and modern psychology, as well as observing how both home
and outside influences are pivotal on the structuring of a child’s
foundation.
Course Objective/Learning
Foundation: Psychology Founding Fathers and Theories
Students will obtain an understanding of how children’s brains develop
during each stage of growth (eg. birth, toddler, adolescent)
Students will learn what is critical to the healthy development of each
stage of growth
Modern Psychology and Theories
Course Schedule
Week 1: Chapter 1 - Studying Child Psychology
Week 2: Chapter 2 - Psychological Research. Discussion Board with
Response to Classmates
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
Week 3: Chapter 3 – Developmental Theories. Students to Submission
of Research Topic
Week 4: Read Assigned Article. Complete Article Summary: Human
Development. Quiz on Chapters 1-3
Week 5: Chapter 4 – Parental Development
Week 6: Chapter 5 – Physical Development in Infancy Through
Adolescence
Week 7: Read Assigned Article. Complete Article Summary: Brain
Development in Children. Quiz on Chapters 4-5.
Week 8: Student PowerPoint Presentation on Adolescent Health and
Nutrition
Week 9: Chapter 6 – Cognitive Development in Infancy Through
Adolescence. Discussion Board with Response to Classmate
Week 10: Chapter 7 – Psychosocial Development in Infancy Through
Adolescence
Week 11: Final Exam (All Chapters)
Week 12: Article Summary: Constructivist Theories
Week 13: Read Assigned Cognitive Development Article. Discussion
Board with Response to Classmate
Week 14: Traditional Psychology vs Modern Psychology in Child
Psychology Challenge
Week 15: Submission of Research Paper
Week 16: Open Class Discussion on Course Material
Description of Assignments
Discussion Boards Each student must
with Responses address the
proposed discussion
topic in 500-600
word, providing 1
course assigned text
reference and 1
scholarly journal
article. A minimum
150-word response is
required to two
classmates, including
1 scholarly reference
Article Summary Each student will
read the assigned
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
article for the
assigned week and
provide a 2-3 page
summation of the
articles, as well as
strengths and
weaknesses of the
author(s) conveying
of the information
provided. APA 7
format is required.
Quizzes Please refer to the
course schedule
section of syllabus,
as it specifies the
sections in which the
quizzes will cover.
Final Exam The final exam will
be cumulative (all
chapters will be
covered).
Research Topic Students will be
Submission and required to submit a
References Page research topic
pertaining to child
development in week
2. In addition, the
student will be
required to provide
10 scholarly (within 7
years) references to
support their topic.
Topics must focus on
an area of
child/adolescent
development. Each
topic will be review
and approved by
instructor. APA 7
format is required.
Final Research Paper The final research
paper will focus on
the approved topic
submitted at week 2.
Students are
required to submit a
research paper that
is a minimum of 10
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
pages (not including
title or reference
page). An abstract
section is not
required; however, a
conclusion section is.
APA 7 format is
required.
*Students can locate all assignment topics within the course schedule,
as the topics are listed for easy identification.
Textbook & Course Materials
Required Text
Child Psychology (2022) Nicole Arduini-Van Hoose , . Include detail such
as full name of textbook, author, edition, ISBN, description (if
desired), and where it can be purchased. If a required text is
available online, indicate where it can be accessed.
Recommended Texts & Other Readings
Arduini-Van Hoose, N. (2022). Child Psychology. Retrieved
from [Link] BY-NC-SA 4.0
license.
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association (7th ed.). American Psychological
Association.
Course Structure
The course will be delivered by way of lecture, discussion, as well as
activities. All course activities will be conducted within the assigned
lecture hall. All course assignments will be submitted electronically, and
grades will be posted within the university’s student portal (Canvas)
Grading Policy
Graded Course Activities
Visit Canvas for details about each assignment and the points per
assignment. All quizzes and exams can be located with Canvas.
Students can also find all Modules for each week of the course within
the dashboard within Canvas.
Late Work Policy
There will be a 10% penalty for all late assignments and an additional 5% for each
day the assignment is late.
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
If the student is unable to complete an assignment on time, then he or she must
contact the instructor immediately by email.
Viewing Grades in Canvas
All graded assignments will be posted to Canvas and can be locate
within the dashboard. Students will select the “Grades” link to view
your points.
Letter Grade Assignment
Final grades assigned for this course will be based on the percentage of
total points earned and are assigned as follows:
Assignments and Number of Each Total Points per
Tests Assignment and
Tests
Discussion Boards and 3 50
Responses
Article Summaries 3 100
Quizzes 2 100
Final Exam 1 100
Research Topic and 1 50
Reference Page
Submission
Final Research Paper 1 150
Letter Grade Percentage
A 940-1010
A- 920-939
B+ 900-919
B 860-899
B- 840-859
C+ 820-839
C 780-819
C- 760-779
D+ 740-759
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
Letter Grade Percentage
D 700-739
F 679-Below
Course Policies
Attend Class
Students will be expected to attend all class sessions and complete all assignments
as documented on the course calendar.
Participate
Students will be expected to participate in all course assignments and activities. If
students are unable to participate for any reason, he or she must notify their
instructor immediately.
Complete Assignments
All assignments for this course will be submitted electronically
through CANVAS unless otherwise instructed. Assignments must
be submitted by the given deadline or special permission must be
requested from instructor before the due date.
All discussion assignments must be completed by the assignment due
date and time. Late or missing discussion assignments will affect the
student’s grade.
Honor Code
University will be following the same honor code used by Liberty
University (2025). University comprises a network of students,
alumni, faculty, staff and supporters that together form a
Christian community based upon the truth of the Bible. This truth
defines our foundational principles, from our Doctrinal Statement
to the Code of Honor. Our desire is to create a safe, comfortable
environment within our community of learning, and we extend
our academic and spiritual resources to all of our students with
the goal of fostering academic maturity, spiritual growth and
character development (Liberty University, 2025).
Communities are predicated on shared values and goals. The
Code of Honor, an expression of the values from which our
Doctrinal Statement was born, defines the fundamental
principles by which our community exists. At the core of this
code lie two essential concepts: a belief in the significance of all
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Child Psychology Development Fall 2026 Syllabus
individuals, and a reliance on the existence of objective truth
(Liberty University, 2025).
While we acknowledge that some may disagree with various
elements of the Code of Honor, we maintain the expectation that
our students will commit to respect and uphold the Code while
enrolled at University (Liberty University, 2025).
Adherence to the principles and concepts established within
facilitates the success of our students and strengthens the
University community (Liberty University, 2025).
The Code of Honor can be viewed in its entirety
at [Link]
Important Note: Any form of academic dishonesty, cheating, and plagiarism will not be
tolerated and may be reported to the office of student affairs.
Course policies are subject to change, per the university. It is the student’s responsibility
to review Canvas for corrections or updates to the course syllabus. All changes will be
posted in Canvas.
Disability Assistance
University will be following the same disability assistance used
by Liberty University (2025). Students with a disability and those
with medical conditions associated with pregnancy may contact
University Online Office of Disability Accommodation Support
(UODAS) at UODAS@[Link] for accommodations. Such
accommodations require appropriate documentation of your
condition. For more information about ODAS and the
accommodations process, including how to request an
accommodation, please
visit [Link]
accommodation-support/. Requests for accommodations not
related to disabilities or pregnancy must be directed to the
Registrar’s Office, which generally handles medical needs
support (Liberty University, 2025).
If you have a complaint related to disability discrimination or an
accommodation that was not provided, you may contact ODAS or
the Office of Equity and Compliance by phone at 561-555-5678
or by email at equityandcompliance@[Link]. (Liberty
University, 2025)
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