2009-10 Courses: Fall

The purpose of this course is to provide an overall view of the emergence of psychology as a field, its historical roots, its evolution within a broader sociocultural context, and philosophical currents running throughout this evolution. Attention will be paid to the interaction of theory development and the social milieu, the cultural biases within theory, and the effect of personal history on theoretical claims. This course is a core course, required for pursuit of graduate studies in psychology.

conflict [<L. com-, together + fligere, to strike] to be antagonistic, incompatible, etc. –n. 1. a fight or war 2. sharp disagreement, as of interests or ideas 3. emotional disturbance.

This course is based on the premise that conflict is both “inevitable and beneficial” in successful organizations. Based on Webster’s definition, for many, this will require a fundamental shift in how we perceive conflict. We will provide a foundation for our work through a brief overview of conflict management theory and practice. We will examine employee relations and build communication and mediation skills within the context of interpersonal conflict, the role of organizational culture in conflict management, and the impact of diversity on conflict. Skill development in conflict management and resolution will be based on a collaborative approach involving teamwork, case analysis, real life scenarios, and role-play. Readings will be drawn from relevant journals and books and will include works on both organizational conflict and diversity.

This course is one in a series of elective courses for the HR Certification Program, but it is also open to enrollment by students who are not part of the certification program.

Required Reading (to be completed before the first class): Stone, D., Patton, B., & Heen, S. (1999). Difficult conversations: How to discuss what matters most. New York: Penguin Group. ISBN: 014028852X

Required Resource: Thomas, K. W., & Kilmann, R. H. (1974). Thomas-Kilmann conflict mode instrument: Profile and interpretive report. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press. (This is not a book but a tool to determine your preferred style of resolving conflict. We will work through this on the first evening. You don’t have to do anything with it prior to class.)

Effective management of human resources (HR) can provide the ultimate competitive edge in a changing global business landscape where an organization’s survival and sustainability is constantly tested by shifting market requirements. This course is a comprehensive study of critical topics in HR which will introduce students to HR challenges and opportunities while covering how HR is used at work to help organizations achieve their mission, vision, and objectives. This course emphasizes strategic HR management, the changing role of HR consultants and management, trends in HR management, recruitment and selection, performance management and retention, and creating and maintaining high performance organizations.

This course is one in a series of required courses for the HR Certification Program, but it is also open to enrollment by students who are not part of the certification program.

This two-quarter course sequence is intended for the student interested in exploring musical experimentation with computer applications. The course will combine specific technical information regarding hardware architecture, software and interface design, and creation of musical pieces with focus on the new options presented by this compositional environment. This is a lab course with limited (18) positions available. Please make sure you complete an application and speak with the faculty regarding your skills.

We will study first the climate, landscapes, plants and animals (mammoths!) of the last two million years, focusing on the northern hemisphere and the Pacific Northwest; second, our own fossil and archaeological records over the last seven million years, from the appearance of the first hominines to the beginnings of agriculture. We will emphasize throughout how we gather and interpret the evidence upon which we base our account.

This is the first quarter of a yearlong course designed for students who have taken college-level Japanese before. Students must be familiar with basic verb forms and elementary kanji letters. Students will build on previous skills and learn new grammar and vocabulary so they can function in a variety of situations. Classroom activities include presentations, learning kanji and small group conversation. Japanese culture and life will be discussed throughout the course.

This is the first quarter of a yearlong course designed for students who have never studied Japanese before. Students will learn how to function in Japanese in everyday situations by learning useful expressions and basic sentence structures. They will also learn hiragana letters. Japanese culture and life will be discussed throughout the course.

Today’s organizations must work harder and smarter with fewer resources. In this course, students will learn how to manage an organization’s most critical asset—its people. We will explore what motivates and retains staff, formal and informal reward and recognition systems, training and professional development, as well as performance management to improve and strengthen staff contributions. We will conclude our work by focusing on goal-setting and team alignment to meet organizational objectives. Credits will be awarded in staff development.

This nine-month pre-medical practicum designed for students who are interested in careers in health and medical care allows students to work closely with health care professionals in a clinical setting. During the academic year, students will receive the credits and training necessary to become licensed in the state of Washington as health care assistants. See www.evergreen.edu/eveningandweekend/medicalassisting for more information.

This course is an introduction to the tools and processes of metal fabrication. Students will practice sheet-metal construction, forming, forging and welding, among other work, while accomplishing a series of projects that encourage student-centered design.

Multitrack Composition is the study of creating music with modern analog and digital technology. Musicians interested in the collaborative nature of working as a producer, engineer, and composer will learn the technical side of the legacy tape based and current disc based systems as they create projects using the 16 track and the new fully digital surround control room in the Library’s remodeled CCAM. Members will engineer, produce, and perform on the works of classmates, and the artistic aspects of signal processing and instrument manipulation will be primary areas of interest. Students will be expected to be interested in exploring musical forms as well as in-depth production technologies.

This is the first course in a year-long sequence that introduces students to the operation and creative use of the music technology labs. Students will learn how to effectively operate analog electronic music equipment including mixers, reel to reel tape machines and analog synthesizers. Reading and listening assignments will provide a historical and theoretical context for the hands-on work. Original music compositions will be the primary goal of the course work.

Are we and our children suffering from nature deficit disorder? This is the argument by Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods. In this course we will examine whether children and adults in our culture are better connected to electronics and media than to a sense of place and knowledge of the environment. Some 20 percent of elementary schools nationwide have eliminated recess altogether, and children spend half the time outdoors today that they did a generation ago. Do we hunt and gather in shopping malls? Can we live sustainably without deeper connections to place and nature? We will examine the role of nature in our own lives and its connection to community quality of life. Students will engage in a term project than connects the academic to the creative, involving nature walks, field journaling, creative writing, photography, and drawing. Students will also write short academic papers related to course texts and themes.

This course will help students to develop clearer and more comprehensive understandings of literary texts, as well as to forge a more rewarding relationship with reading in general. In a supportive group environment, students will explore a range of reading strategies, including textual analysis, background research, response and summary writing, and recitation. Then they will apply these tools to an in-depth study of two major works: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and James Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Students will also pursue additional reading of their choice. Our overall goal is to become more resourceful, effective, and insightful readers.

Orissi, one of the major classical dance styles of India, combines both rythmic movement and expressive mime. This class will be devoted to the principles of Orissi dance: the synthesis of foot, wrist, hand and face movement in a lyrical flow to express the philosophy of yoga. Throughout the quarter we will study tala (rhythm). Students will keep a journal of class notes, discuss the readings and have cross-cultural dialogues.

This course emphasizes beginning-level skill development in camera function, exposure, and black-and-white film development and printing, as well as an introduction to computer imaging. We will focus on photography's role in issues of the arts, cultural representation and mass media. Students will have assignments, critiques, collaborations and viewing of work by other photographers. Each student will complete a final project for the end of the quarter.

This course will introduce students to photographic practice through digital means. Building from students' existing photographic skills and vocabulary, we will explore image-making with both digital and film cameras, and work with computers, scanners and inkjet printers. Students will create work as exhibition-quality prints, and also create a photographic portfolio for the Web.

This course introduces the student to the basics of photojournalism. Students will aspire to create photographs consistent in quality and content with images taken for the media. The course will cover various aspects of photojournalism, including historical, ethical, legal, and artistic issues. The emphasis will be on digital photography—students who choose to shoot film can develop their own film and then scan their negatives into computers for processing with Adobe Photoshop. Students are required to use Photoshop and Soundslides and to open a professional account on the Internet site Flickr for the storage and presentation of their work. There will be a mix of field assignments, writings, a field trip to a photo exhibition, class discussions, and lectures. The final project will be a photo essay, and students will compile a portfolio of their best work with written reflections on technical, journalistic, and artistic growth.

This course is designed to help students in the Prior Learning from Experience (PLE) program progress with their document writing. We will concentrate on writing essays that address the learning language in the knowledge areas identified in the Writing from Life course. Students will also create the structure of their document by writing the introduction, table of contents and synthesis of learning essay.

This course will give students a broad overview of prose writing, and help them to broaden, deepen and improve their own writing practice. We will explore every step of the writing process, learning to brainstorm, structure, draft, critique, rewrite, polish and "share out" in ways large and small. The course will also address key principles of good writing, challenges such as procrastination and writer's block, and ways to develop productive writing routines.

This course will begin to prepare students for calculus and more advanced mathematics. It is a good course for students who have recently had a college-level math class or at least three years of high school math. Students should enter the class with a good knowledge of supporting algebra. The course will include an in-depth study of linear, quadratic, exponential and logarithmic functions. Collaborative learning, data analysis and approaching problems algebraically, numerically, graphically, and verbally will be emphasized.

Traditional printmaking processes and photographic techniques combine in this comprehensive overview of photo-based intaglio, serigraphy and photolithography. Using computer generated digital positives as films, students will prepare and expose light sensitive copper plates, screens and aluminum plates to create distinctive hand printed imagery. Throughout the course, students will also study the history and contemporary applications of the medium. While introductory, this course is highly process-based and technical in nature. Students are expected to have prior digital image editing experience. Experience in printmaking and/or photography would also be beneficial. This course concludes with a print exchange.

This course is intended for students interested in careers involving interpersonal relationships including counseling, teaching, social work, and psychology. Studies in basic developmental theory will supplement class work focused on developing skills in intentional interviewing and how these skills connect to family systems concepts. Students will explore how their own history reflects and shapes their work with others, as a foundation for further learning, academic training, and experience. Students will use audio and video equipment available through media loan to transcribe and analyze in class interviews and role plays as they develop skills in understanding the role of the observer in gathering clinical, personal, and ethnographic information.