HP2200 Biological Psychology

Lessons:
3-hr lecture per week

Assessment:
Mid-terms 30%
In-class essay 15%
Finals 55%

Exam Format:
Mid-terms - MCQs
In-class essay - choose 1 topic
Finals - Short-answer questions

Description:

This module is about the biological aspects of psychology. A very content-heavy module! Slightly beneficial for people with biology background.

Lectures are recorded. Content taught in the lecture slides are very good for knowing what will be covered in exams. It is advised to use the lecture slides as framework to know what to study. Content in the lecture slides are actually adequate for the final exams, but reading the textbook will allow easier understanding of the content.

Readings consist of textbooks and lecture slides. Some content in the lecture slides are not found in textbook, and same applies vice versa, so do read both! In addition, since it is content-heavy, do keep up with the lecture pace.

Mid-terms are just MCQs and it is manageable if you have studied your lecture slides well. However, some options are rather similar so be careful to read properly.

For the in-class essay, it will take place a few weeks after recess week. It is based on a situation and you will have a list of questions to choose from. Each question corresponds to one chapter, so you only need to work on one chapter for the test. However, it is advised to study at least 2 or 3 chapters in case the questions are hard. Use this essay test as an opportunity to strengthen your memory for those chapters so you do not have to study as hard for them for finals.

For the finals, they consist of just short-answer questions. Each question (containing many sub-parts) corresponds to one chapter, except one or two questions that may combine 2 closely-related chapters together. We had to choose 10 questions out of 11. But the exam covers main concepts and not really the in-depth details, so it makes readings less tedious.

No projects for this module!

HP8006 Psychology of Crisis Stress Management

Lessons:
3-hr lecture per week

Assessment:
Mid-terms 40%
Finals 60%

Exam Format:
Mid-terms - MCQs
Finals - MCQs, T/F questions, Short-answer questions, Essays

Description:

This module is about crisis management, mainly what will happen during a crisis, the behaviours of affected personnels, PTSD, the types and forms of interventions to be taken, communication systems during crisis, etc. 

Lectures are not recorded, so I will advise you to attend. And the lecturer tells you stories about his experiences, which makes the lessons much more entertaining and interesting.

Readings will consist only of lecture notes, which may have quite a lot of content to memorise. Consistency is important. Also, it is important to make sense of the lecture notes in advance because you may confuse them with subsequent lecture notes.

Mid-terms are just MCQs and it is very manageable. You will be able to score if you study well and have a proper common sense. 

For the finals, MCQs and T/F questions are similar to those in the mid-terms in terms of difficulty level, so they are manageable. For the short-answer questions, they are purely regurgitation from the lecture notes. It is VERY IMPORTANT to attend the last lecture, which is the summary of the course and he will emphasise on the parts that you need to know for the exams. Focusing on the content mentioned in that lecture will be safe for the short-answer questions. But you do need the other information for the LONG essay, which is worth 40 marks, and it is application-based. 2-choose-1 essay and mostly like case studies where you are given a situation and asked to write an essay. Format may vary though. 

BS8003 Science and Fiction - Biology in Popular Media

Lessons:
3-hr lecture per week
(2 to 3 E-learning weeks)

Assessment:
Finals 100%

Exam Format:
Finals - 50 MCQs

Description:

This module is about analysing the biological content in sci-fi films. In my opinion, it is a very interesting module, especially if you are a hardcore sci-fi lover and wants to get insights about the scientific validity in films. This module helps to strengthen biological knowledge through content featured in films, and also the inaccuracies presented that you may not have even considered when you watch the films. It will be beneficial if you have biology background, but not necessary provided enough effort was put in. 

Lectures consist of film screening and a lecture. Some films are shown in whole, whereas some are shown in excerpts. Examples of films are Jurassic Park, Outbreak, etc. Format of E-learning is the same.

Readings will consist only of lecture notes, so it isn't a heavy module. But do not read your lecture notes at the last minute because it takes time to understand some of the concepts, and you may forget what the movie is about. Even though you can search for the movie online, you may end up spending more time watching the whole movie, which is not helpful if you are facing lack of time. The professor is very approachable so do ask for help if you find it hard to understand. 

There is no mid-terms, all of the grade is based on your finals, which are completely MCQs. On the good side, not much memorising needed. Understanding is more important, and there are Past-Year Papers that you can refer to to know more about how you will be tested. On the down side, the bell-curve will be steep, so you need to be careful of carelessness.

For the finals, the MCQs will consist of both single answers and multiple answers questions