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PSYC3431: FETAL DEVELOPMENT

Please ensure you check the module availability box for each module outline, as not all modules will run in each academic year. Each module description relates to the year indicated in the module availability box, and this may change from year to year, due to, for example: changing staff expertise, disciplinary developments, the requirements of external bodies and partners, and student feedback. Current modules are subject to change in light of the ongoing disruption caused by Covid-19.

Type Open
Level 3
Credits 20
Availability Not available in 2023/24
Module Cap 45
Location Durham
Department Psychology

Prerequisites

  • 60 Credits from Level 2 Psychology modules

Corequisites

  • None

Excluded Combinations of Modules

  • None

Aims

  • To further understanding of the psychological aspects of prenatal development

Content

  • This module examines fetail growth and development from conception to birth taking account of maternal health behaviours.
  • Topics can vary from year to year but are likely to include:
  • Fetal development
  • Fetal vision
  • The Development of hearing and the effects of sound on speech
  • Pain in the fetus
  • Prenatal attachment
  • Laterality in the fetus
  • Epigenetics and fetal development
  • The module will also cover related conceptual and historical issues in psychology.

Learning Outcomes

Subject-specific Knowledge:

  • Detailed knowledge of key areas of psychological research in prenatal development including the methods used in their investigation.

Subject-specific Skills:

  • Ability to review critically and consolidate understanding of a coherent body of psychological knowledge and apply it appropriately.

Key Skills:

  • Good written communication skills.
  • Ability to work independently in scholarship and research within broad guidelines.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

  • Students' acquisition of detailed knowledge will be facilitated by lectures, some small group work, audio-visual materials, discussions and detailed reading lists.
  • These modes of teaching provide students with detailed knowledge of thekey theories and the skills needed to evaluate different theoretical positions in light of current evidence.
  • Preparations for the examination will promote students' abilities to locate, read and evaluate a body of evidence.
  • The use of group discussions / small group work will ensure that students are exposed to a range of different theoretical positions, and encouraged to understand their inter-relations.
  • Lectures, discussions and small group work will also give students the opportunity to interpret and evaluate the significance of empirical work.
  • The examination will assess students' written communication skills.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

ActivityNumberFrequencyDurationTotalMonitored
Lectures222 per week2 hours44 
Preparation and reading156 
Total200 

Summative Assessment

Component: ExaminationComponent Weighting: 70%
ElementLength / DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Examination2 hours100 
Component: EssayComponent Weighting: 30%
ElementLength / DurationElement WeightingResit Opportunity
Essay2000 words100 

Formative Assessment

None

More information

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