New ToPIX Content: 7/25/13

This update includes additions to the Games in the Classroom, Neuroscience Video, and Social in the Classroom pages.


Since last #ToPIXThursdays, Xin Zhao posted links to a variety of PowerPoint game templates. Intro Psych instructors and game show fans alike should check these out on the Games in the Classroom page.

Another TED Talk (“Exploring the Mind of a Killer”) was added to the Neuroscience Video page courtesy of Catherine Rawn via Twitter. This subject matter is another way to increase student interest in neuroscience.

A link to a short column and video was posted to the Social in the Classroom page. Thanks to Ali O’Malley via Twitter for finding this! A class could be instructed to play “Guess Who?” with the prompts on the video. The second half of the video includes a summary of study results and reference to a recently published article.

Thanks Xin, Catherine, and Ali for your contributions to ToPIX!

If you have any ideas or resources to share with colleagues before the Fall, please send them to TOPIX@TeachPsych.org.

New ToPIX Content: 7/11/13

This update includes additions to “In the Classroom” pages (Stats, History, and Sensation), “In the News” pages (IO, and Stats), and the Statistics Video page.


New ToPIX Content

This past month, Assistant ToPIX Editor, Jessica Hartnett, posted a treasure trove of Stats resources. Check out the Stats in the Classroom page for a comic strip and blog posts related to topics such as APA formatting for graphs, simple graphs to describe everyday phenomena, and visual comparisons of distributions. In addition, Jessica noted an example of how Bloomberg upset their clients as a way to demonstrate the power of data to Stats students. See this update, and other resources on the Stats in the News page.  Another recent event that upset people-- New England Patriots and NFL fans in particular -- is the Aaron Hernandez scandal. Jessica found a story from the Wall Street Journal on assessment of NFL rookies’ cognitive abilities and personality tendencies. See this on the IO in the News page. A big thanks goes to Jessica for these finds!

Assistant ToPIX Editor, Aaron Richmond, posted a link to Doug Woody’s chapter “Engaging Students in History and Systems of Psychology Courses” on the History in the Classroom page. Woody outlines the use of faculty debates and student role-playing in his chapter. Also, Aaron posted Cindy’s Gibson’s “Sensation and Perception: Activities to Promote Learning and Clarify Student Perceptions” on the Sensation in the Classroom page. Gibson provides helpful suggestions for teaching topics such as eye structure, auditory concepts, and smell identification. Thanks for these, Aaron!

Read Doug Woody and Cindy Gibson’s chapters as well as the many other FREE STP E-Books at http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/index.php#.Ud93UWQ0hls.

Lastly, students interested in the CSI shows and forensic psychology should find this example of the Chi-Square Test of Independence (fingerprint type and sex) clear and enjoyable.  Watch a short clip on the Statistics Video page. A tip of the hat goes to Michael Britt via Twitter for this!

Thanks again to Jessica, Aaron, and Michael for their contributions! And stay tuned throughout the summer for more ToPIX Thursdays. As you are preparing for the Fall, please consider sending along any resources you have found particularly helpful to TOPIX@TeachPsych.org.