PS507-6-SP-KS:
Making connections: How children develop
2024/25
Psychology
Kaplan Singapore
Spring
Undergraduate: Level 6
Current
Monday 13 January 2025
Friday 21 March 2025
15
14 November 2023
Requisites for this module
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
(none)
BSC C800JS Psychology,
BSC C800NS Psychology
This module builds on the 2nd year module Developmental Psychology in order to provide a greater understanding of the relation between brain development and the development of skills in infants and children, and will provide insights into applied developmental psychology.
The topics range from typical and atypical development to how neuroscience can inform educational practices, and may include: prenatal brain development, the development of the sense of self and self control, infant and children attachment and social skills, neurodevelopmental disorders and applied neuroscience.
The aim of this module is:
- To provide final year undergraduate students with a deep understanding of the connections between brain development and child behaviour and skills, and how neuroscience can inform educational practices
By the end of this module, students will be expected to be able to:
- Understand how the brain develops from prenatal stages and how such development is connected to children’s developing skills and observable behaviour.
- Understand the development of the sense of self, how children learn self control and social skills.
- Understand neuroscientific findings that are providing insight into neurodevelopmental disorders.
- Communicate complex information about the relationship between the brain and development in a way appropriate for non-psychologists.
Learning outcome 1 will be assessed by the essay (first coursework), learning outcomes 2, 3 and 4 will be assessed by the learning material (second coursework).
This module will be delivered via:
- One 2-hour lecture per week.
-
Mark H. Johnson and Michelle De Haan (2015)
Developmental cognitive neuroscience: an introduction. Fourth edition. Malden, MA: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. Available at:
https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=985137.
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Johnson, M.H. and De Haan, M. (2015e)
Developmental cognitive neuroscience: an introduction. Fourth edition. West Sussex, UK: John Wiley and Sons, Inc. Available at:
https://search-ebscohost-com.uniessexlib.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=985137&site=ehost-live&authtype=sso&custid=s9814295.
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Stiles, J. and Jernigan, T.L. (2010) ‘The Basics of Brain Development’,
Neuropsychology Review, 20(4), pp. 327–348. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11065-010-9148-4.
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Mark H. Johnson (2003) ‘Development of human brain functions’,
Biological Psychiatry, 54(12), pp. 1312–1316. Available at:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006322303004268?via%3Dihub.
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Joan Stiles (2017) ‘Principles of brain development’,
WIREs Cognitive Science, 8(1–2). Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1402.
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Eric I. Knudsen (2004) ‘Sensitive Periods in the Development of the Brain and Behavior’,
Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 16(8), pp. 1412–1425. Available at:
https://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/10.1162/0898929042304796.
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Johanna Bick and Charles A. Nelson (2017) ‘Early experience and brain development’,
WIREs Cognitive Science, 8(1–2). Available at:
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wcs.1387.
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Hoekzema, E.
et al. (2017) ‘Pregnancy leads to long-lasting changes in human brain structure’,
Nature Neuroscience, 20(2), pp. 287–296. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.4458.
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Barba-Müller, E.
et al. (2019) ‘Brain plasticity in pregnancy and the postpartum period: links to maternal caregiving and mental health’,
Archives of Women’s Mental Health, 22(2), pp. 289–299. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-018-0889-z.
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Abraham, E.
et al. (2014) ‘Father’s brain is sensitive to childcare experiences’,
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(27), pp. 9792–9797. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1402569111.
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Orchard, E.R.
et al. (2023) ‘Matrescence: lifetime impact of motherhood on cognition and the brain’,
Trends in Cognitive Sciences [Preprint]. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2022.12.002.
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Blakemore, S.-J. (2018) ‘Avoiding Social Risk in Adolescence’,
Current Directions in Psychological Science, 27(2), pp. 116–122. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721417738144.
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Emma J. Kilford, Emily Garrett, and Sarah-Jayne Blakemore (2016) ‘The development of social cognition in adolescence: An integrated perspective’,
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 70, pp. 106–120. Available at:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014976341630183X?via%3Dihub.
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Hervé, P.-Y.
et al. (2013) ‘Revisiting human hemispheric specialization with neuroimaging’,
Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 17(2), pp. 69–80. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2012.12.004.
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Jennifer Herbert and Deborah Stipek (2005) ‘The emergence of gender differences in children’s perceptions of their academic competence’,
Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 26(3), pp. 276–295. Available at:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0193397305000171?via%3Dihub.
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Gillberg, C. (2010) ‘The ESSENCE in child psychiatry: Early Symptomatic Syndromes Eliciting Neurodevelopmental Clinical Examinations’,
Research in Developmental Disabilities, 31(6), pp. 1543–1551. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ridd.2010.06.002.
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D’Souza, H. and Karmiloff-Smith, A. (no date) ‘Neurodevelopmental Disorders’,
Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Cognitive Science, 8(1–2). Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1002/wcs.1398.
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Ralph Adolphs (2009) ‘The Social Brain: Neural Basis of Social Knowledge’,
Annual Review of Psychology, 60(1), pp. 693–716. Available at:
https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev.psych.60.110707.163514.
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Sarah-Jayne Blakemore (2008) ‘Development of the Social Brain during Adolescence’,
Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 61(1), pp. 40–49. Available at:
https://doi.org/10.1080/17470210701508715.
The above list is indicative of the essential reading for the course.
The library makes provision for all reading list items, with digital provision where possible, and these resources are shared between students.
Further reading can be obtained from this module's
reading list.
Assessment items, weightings and deadlines
Coursework / exam |
Description |
Deadline |
Coursework weighting |
Coursework |
Essay |
19/02/2025 |
40% |
Coursework |
Learning Material |
11/04/2025 |
60% |
Exam format definitions
- Remote, open book: Your exam will take place remotely via an online learning platform. You may refer to any physical or electronic materials during the exam.
- In-person, open book: Your exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer to any physical materials such as paper study notes or a textbook during the exam. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, open book (restricted): The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may refer only to specific physical materials such as a named textbook during the exam. Permitted materials will be specified by your department. Electronic devices may not be used in the exam.
- In-person, closed book: The exam will take place on campus under invigilation. You may not refer to any physical materials or electronic devices during the exam. There may be times when a paper dictionary,
for example, may be permitted in an otherwise closed book exam. Any exceptions will be specified by your department.
Your department will provide further guidance before your exams.
Overall assessment
Reassessment
Module supervisor and teaching staff
Dr Silvia Rigato, email: srigato@essex.ac.uk.
Dr Silvia Rigato
Email: srigato@essex.ac.uk
No
No
No
No external examiner information available for this module.
Available via Moodle
No lecture recording information available for this module.
Psychology
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