COGS1010 – Delusions and Disorders of the Mind and Brain

2021 – Session 1, Special circumstances

Notice

As part of Phase 3 of our return to campus plan, most units will now run tutorials, seminars and other small group activities on campus, and most will keep an online version available to those students unable to return or those who choose to continue their studies online.

To check the availability of face-to-face and online activities for your unit, please go to timetable viewer. To check detailed information on unit assessments visit your unit's iLearn space or consult your unit convenor.

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff	Unit convenor and teaching staff Anne Castles anne.castles@mq.edu.au Genevieve McArthur genevieve.mcarthur@mq.edu.au
Credit points	Credit points 10
Prerequisites	Prerequisites
Corequisites	Corequisites
Co-badged status	Co-badged status
Unit description	Unit description This unit is designed to provide you with an understanding of the basic cognitive disorders and higher-level delusions that can arise either developmentally or as a result of brain injury. You will learn about the characteristic features of these disorders and delusions, and about how the patterns of symptoms displayed can be accounted for in terms of models of normal cognitive processing. Where relevant, you will be familiarised with theories about the underlying causes of the conditions, and with experimental investigations of the efficacy of particular treatments. Patterns of similarities and differences of conditions will be critically examined. Conditions covered include: dyslexia, specific language impairment (SLI), aphasia, agnosia, amnesia, autism, synaesthesia, auditory hallucination, delusion and schizophrenia.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://students.mq.edu.au/important-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

ULO1: Describe the characteristic features of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
ULO2: Explain key concepts and theories about the underlying causes of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
ULO3: Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of competing explanations and theories of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
ULO4: Critique popular or prejudicial claims about delusions, disorders, and the mind from an informed and evidence-based perspective.

Assessment Tasks

Name	Weighting	Hurdle	Due
Online quizzes	15%	No	During semester; All quizzes close in Week 12
Tutorial activity task	10%	No	Week 11
Final exam	45%	No	Examination Period
Mid-semester exam	30%	No	Week 7

Online quizzes

Assessment Type ¹: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task ²: 12 hours
Due: During semester; All quizzes close in Week 12
Weighting: 15%

Weekly short online multiple-choice quizzes that cover basic unit content

On successful completion you will be able to:

Describe the characteristic features of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Explain key concepts and theories about the underlying causes of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.

Tutorial activity task

Assessment Type ¹: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task ²: 5 hours
Due: Week 11
Weighting: 10%

Short and structured writing task to be completed and submitted after one of the tutorials. The task is designed to practise academic writing and will be marked on a credit/no-credit basis.

On successful completion you will be able to:

Explain key concepts and theories about the underlying causes of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of competing explanations and theories of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Critique popular or prejudicial claims about delusions, disorders, and the mind from an informed and evidence-based perspective.

Final exam

Assessment Type ¹: Examination
Indicative Time on Task ²: 36 hours
Due: Examination Period
Weighting: 45%

2-hour exam, combination of multiple-choice and short essay questions

On successful completion you will be able to:

Describe the characteristic features of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Explain key concepts and theories about the underlying causes of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Analyse the strengths and weaknesses of competing explanations and theories of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Critique popular or prejudicial claims about delusions, disorders, and the mind from an informed and evidence-based perspective.

Mid-semester exam

Assessment Type ¹: Examination
Indicative Time on Task ²: 25 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 30%

1-hour online multiple-choice exam covering content from the first half of the unit

On successful completion you will be able to:

Describe the characteristic features of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.
Explain key concepts and theories about the underlying causes of a range of delusions and cognitive disorders.

¹ If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
the Learning Skills Unit for academic skills support.

² Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

The lectures will be fully online via iLearn, with interactive activities, and each topic in the course will be delivered by experts in the field of cognitive science. Weekly tutorials will be offered on-campus commencing Week 2, while keeping an online version available for those students who choose to continue their studies online (please check eStudent to see which version you are enrolled in, or if you wish to enrol in a different tutorial). It is essential that students have adequate access to the internet as most of the course material and activities are accessed online in the form of:

Video interviews
Audio and video lectures
Unit readings (note that there is no prescribed textbook for this unit)
Online activities and quizzes
Online database research
Participation in online discussion forums

Access to a reasonably fast internet connection would be ideal, given the large amount of video content. Also, please note that in order to access Resources and Activities in your online unit, you will need a browser such as Firefox or Chrome. iLearn will operate on the following browsers, it is recommended that you upgrade your browser to the most recent version:

Firefox
Chrome
Safari
Internet Explorer 8 or later

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Academic Appeals Policy
Academic Integrity Policy
Academic Progression Policy
Assessment Policy
Fitness to Practice Procedure
Grade Appeal Policy
Complaint Management Procedure for Students and Members of the Public
Special Consideration Policy (Note: The Special Consideration Policy is effective from 4 December 2017 and replaces the Disruption to Studies Policy.)

Students seeking more policy resources can visit the Student Policy Gateway (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/student-policy-gateway). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

If you would like to see all the policies relevant to Learning and Teaching visit Policy Central (https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policy-central).

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Learning Skills

Learning Skills (mq.edu.au/learningskills) provides academic writing resources and study strategies to help you improve your marks and take control of your study.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources.

Student Enquiry Service

For all student enquiries, visit Student Connect at ask.mq.edu.au

If you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Equity Support

Students with a disability are encouraged to contact the Disability Service who can provide appropriate help with any issues that arise during their studies.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/.

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.