BCSC 111: Syllabus

Spring 2025

Time & Location

Mon/Wed | 3:25 PM - 4:40 PM
Room: Hoyt 104

Instructor

Dr. Martin Yang
Office: Meliora Hall 322
Office Hours (in person and on Zoom): Mon/Wed 10:30 – 11:30am (starting 1/27)

TAs (in alphabetical order):
Paul Cavanah
Rhea Guo
Soma Mizobuchi
Kathryn Wolfe

Course Description

The goal of this course is to introduce you the field of cognitive science, with a strong focus on cognitive psychology. Topics to be covered in this course include a brief history of cognitive science, memory, attention, cognitive development, cognitive neuroscience, language, individual differences, and cultural factors.

This course follows the College credit hour policy for four-credit courses. This course meets twice weekly for 3 academic hours per week. The course also includes independent out-of-class assignments (complete the required readings) for at least 1 academic hour per week.

Course Requirements

Participation (9%): Active participation in discussions is expected, some of which may require you to turn in a short summary or post something on Blackboard. The basic info survey is worth 1%. Each graded discussion is worth 2% of the course grade. There will be 4 graded discussions throughout the semester (these will be only graded as Complete/Incomplete - no partial credits, and late submissions will be graded as “Incomplete/0”.)

If you have any questions about the course materials or lecture, please do feel free to ask for clarification in class, ask us after class, email us, or come to our office hours. We are all friendly and eager to help!
Quizzes (22%; 5.5% each): Four closed-book quizzes, which include multiple-choice and true/false questions, will be administered on Blackboard in class (in person). Please bring your laptop or tablet (no smartphones!) to take the quizzes only in our regular lecture hall. (Blackboard will record your IP address!)
Homework Assignments (18%; 6% each): Due dates can be found in the course schedule below. Late submission will NOT be accepted unless you have medical or family emergencies (see course policies #2 and 3 below).
Midterm (25.5%) and final (25.5%): A paper closed-book midterm and final exam will be administered in class in person. The question format is the same as quizzes. The dates can be found in the class schedule below. The final exam is NOT cumulative. Study guides will be provided and posted on Blackboard.

Class Policies

Academic misconduct
All assignments, tests, and activities associated with this course must be performed in accordance with the University of Rochester's Academic Honesty Policy and the Student Code of Conduct.
Plagiarism, cheating, and any form of academic misconduct will be reported following the guidelines set by the University.
1. Proper use of the digital platforms (e.g., Blackboard, Poll Everywhere, and Zoom): please be respectful when you post your comments/questions online or respond to the polls and activities.
2. The use of AI tools is not allowed for all the assignments in this class. Multiple AI content detectors will be used when grading your assignments. Unauthorized use of AI in assignments will be reported to the Academic Honesty Board.
Special accommodation: If you need special accommodation (e.g., medical or family emergencies, observance of religious holidays/events, etc.), please let us know as early as possible. We will do our best to accommodate! If you can’t take a test or submit an assignment on time for health reasons, documentations are required for make-up requests or late submissions (see below for COVID/flu-like symptoms). Otherwise, late submissions won’t be accepted.
COVID-related policy: If you have flu/COVID symptoms or have been in close contact with someone who got COVID, please let me know first by sending me an email at your earliest convenience. We can discuss how you can make up the missed work. If unfortunately you test positive for COVID, please carefully follow the instructions and procedures online.
Mobile devices
Please silence your mobile devices. No cellphone/smartphone or any other entertainment devices are allowed while class is in session. Laptop/tablet use in class is allowed for note-taking and reading course materials only.
Please keep track of your own grades throughout the semester and let us know if you have any questions.
Grading
The final grades (rounded up to the nearest integer) will be based upon the following scale: (Note that the total points shown on Blackboard are not accurate, as that’s not weighted by each grading category.)
- A 93 -100
- A- 90 - 92
- B+ 87 - 89
- B 83 – 86
- B- 80 - 82
- C+ 77 – 79
- C 73 – 76
- C- 70 – 72
- D+ 67 – 69
- D 63 – 66
- D-60 – 62
- E below 60

Undergraduate Programs