Course Syllabus

Fall 2025 | PSY-2155-VT01 - Trauma: Origins & Impacts

In Person Class

Standard courses meet in person at CCV centers, typically once each week for the duration of the semester.

Faculty

Erika Hashberger
View Faculty Credentials
View Faculty Statement
Hiring Coordinator for this course: Philip Crossman

General Education Requirements

Social Science

Note

Many degree programs have specific general education recommendations. In order to avoid taking unnecessary classes, please consult with additional resources like your program evaluation, your academic program catalog year page, and your academic advisor.

Courses may only be used to meet one General Education Requirement.

Course Description

This course introduces students to a variety of viewpoints on human trauma from contemporary social science disciplines. Students will explore the nature and impact of trauma across the lifespan and will discuss current theories, research, and interventions. The course will examine societal impacts and responses to trauma from global, cultural, and historical perspectives. Recommended prior learning: Introduction to Psychology, Human Growth & Development, or Child Development.

Essential Objectives

1. Describe the causes and characteristics of various types of human trauma and traumatic stress.
2. Examine current scientific theories and research regarding the impacts of individual and societal trauma and recommended interventions.
3. Explore the biological, cognitive, emotional, and interpersonal impacts of trauma on individuals over the lifespan.
4. Examine the societal costs and impacts of trauma from global, cultural, economic, political, and historical perspectives.
5. Describe common behavioral manifestations of trauma in children, adolescents, adults and in traumatized communities.
6. Describe examples of trauma-informed practice and factors that promote resiliency in the helping professions (Criminal Justice, Human Services, Education, Healthcare, Substance Abuse work, etc.).

Required Technology

More information on general computer and internet recommendations is available on the CCV computer recommendations Support page.

Please see CCV's Digital Equity Statement (pg. 45) to learn more about CCV's commitment to supporting all students access the technology they need to successfully finish their courses.

Required Textbooks and Resources

*** This is a low cost ($50 or less) textbook or resource class. ***

This course uses one or more textbooks/books/simulations, along with free Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials.

Fall 2025 textbook/book details will be available on 2025-05-19. On that date a link will be available below that will take you to eCampus, CCV's bookstore. The information provided there will be specific to this class. Please see this page for more information regarding the purchase of textbooks/books.

PSY-2155-VT01 Link to Textbooks for this course in eCampus.

For Open Educational Resources (OER) and/or library materials details, see the Canvas Site for this class.

The last day to use a Financial Aid Advance to purchase textbooks/books is the 3rd Tuesday of the semester. See your financial aid counselor at your academic center if you have any questions.

Methods

This course will use a flipped classroom model, in which students are asked to complete readings in order to prepare for Socratic-style classs sessions, where less emphasis is placed on a traditional lecture-and-powerpoint format, in favor of incorporating critical discussion and engagement.

• Reading & writing
  • Response notes: Students will complete assigned readings outside of class and prepare a brief, informal written response for the following class. These are intended to be an exercise in developing critical thinking skills, not polished academic work
  • Final paper: Students will choose a topic of interest to them, develop a thesis statement, and write an argument using reputable sources to support their claim.
• Exams
  • Three non-cumulative exams will take place throughout the semester. These exams will be presented as a set of essay questions, distributed to students at least one week prior to the exam as a study guide. Students will have time to review materials and ask questions prior to the in-class exam day, which will consist of several (but not all) of the questions. These exams are intended to give students a chance to demonstrate their understanding of a topic, rather than focus on memorization - in other words, they will be graded based on the mastery demonstrated in their response, rather than a right/wrong binary.
• Film and video: Students will watch several movies throughout the semester that portray trauma within the narrativeThey will be selected consciously for content,and an alternate option will be available if needed. See weekly schedule fortitles and dates.
  • Thesewill be a foundational element of students' term papers, as well as in-class discussions, and an optional topic for their response notes.
• In-class discussion & participation
  • Discussion is strongly encouraged, but it is recognized that students will have varying degrees of comfort with speaking in theclassroom setting. Students can demonstrate their engagement and participation in a variety of ways, and speaking in class is one - but not the only - option.
• Artistic outlet & personal needs
  • In recognition of the fact that traumatic experiences are unfortunately common and students may find class content unusually personal or emotionally complex,students are welcome to bring contained,unobtrusive art materials, (knitting/crochet, sketch/drawing/coloring, etc), fidgets and sensory items, and other self-regulation tools.

Evaluation Criteria

Response Notes (80 points)

Students will be asked to bring response notes - essentially, informal prose organizing their thoughts on one or more of the week's readings - to class. Response notes are intended to give students an opportunity to engage directly with the week's readings, relate it to their wider academic and career interests, and prepare material ahead of time that can contribute to in-class discussion. Students are not expected to turn in response notes on days that exams are held. Response notes can be bullet points, essay-style, questions, critiques, or professional applications of the material (how can you draw connections to your program of study or interests outside of this class?).

Each response note is worth 10 points, and should be 250-500 words. Students are asked to turn in 8 response notes over the course of the semester. With two exam days and the first week of class, this leaves 9 weeks of classes, meaning that students are given the option to skip a written response with no penalty for one class/week over the course of the semester. Students are not required to notify the professor that they are using their response-free week. Late responses will be eligible for credit; please see late work policy for details.

Term Paper (150 points)

Students will choose a film and identify a trauma-related topic or theory that appears within the film. A list of suggestions/topic ideas will be provided, but students can also write about a topic of their own choosing. The paper will be a cumulative piece of work over the course of the semester, working through key elements of composing academic writing in class, from developing a thesis argument and paper outline, to identifying and supporting academic sources and counter-arguments, to peer-reviewed editing and revision.

This semester-long approach is intended to provide a low-pressure opportunity for students to focus on developing academic writing skills, including their ability to identify, enunciate, and adjudicate their ideas in a written format. Through this project, students will also gain experience in the peer review process, and in developing written counter-arguments to refute information they disagree with.

Students will be asked to submit their chosen film and theory via e-mail or Canvas on X (5 points).

Thesis statemets, academic sources, and outlines will be due on TBD (20 points)

Paper drafts will be due on TBD, and used in class for peer review/editing (50 points)

Final papers will be due on TBD at 11:59 pm. Word count is used only as an approximation, not as a grading criteria; suggested paper length is ~2,000 words, or 5 pages. Students are asked to include works cited, consisting of 3-5 sources. (75 points)

Exams (100 points each)

Students will have two exams over the course of the semester. The first exam will be on 9/X/25, and will cover [TBD]. The second exam will be on 11/X/25, and will cover [TBD]. Exams will be due at 11:59pm, via Canvas or e-mail.

Exams will be presented in an essay question format, with a 6-8 question study guide distributed ahead of time. A review session will be held during class prior to the exam, and the exam will then choose 4-6 of the questions at random. Partial credit is awarded - questions are not graded as right or wrong, but rather by the completeness, clarity, and accuracy of answers.

Students are encouraged to approach exams with the goal of being able to explain their academic work in a way that could be understood by a friend, family member, or future student, patient, client, etc. who does not have preexisting knowledge of the topic. Rather than emphasizing memorization and recitation, exams are designed to be an exercise in application and functional recall of the concepts covered in this course, similarly to how the knowledge may be used in a professional setting.

Test corrections

Students are given the opportunity to review, correct, and return answers to items on an exam they did not receive full credit for. Completing test corrections will earn back partial credit, up to 80%. Test corrections will be due one week (7 days) after the exam.

Attendance & Participation

Students are encouraged to attend class, and to communicate with the instructor about scheduling conflicts in advance whenever possible. It is understood that unforeseen and extenuating circumstances arise; please do your best to communicate so that I can be more aware of what I can do to best support your learning.

Participation in class discussion is valuable as an academic exercise and a professional skill. That being said, it is understood that every student will have different comfort levels with speaking in class, and this is evaluated as a skill students are building individually and as a group over the course of the semester. Participation is measured in terms of students' thoughtfulness, engagement, and growth over the course of the semester, attentiveness to their own and their peers' ideas, and ways students incorporate class discussions into their work.

Grading Criteria

CCV Letter Grades as outlined in the Evaluation System Policy are assigned according to the following chart:

	High	Low
A+	100	98
A	Less than 98	93
A-	Less than 93	90
B+	Less than 90	88
B	Less than 88	83
B-	Less than 83	80
C+	Less than 80	78
C	Less than 78	73
C-	Less than 73	70
D+	Less than 70	68
D	Less than 68	63
D-	Less than 63	60
F	Less than 60
P	100	60
NP	Less than 60	0

Weekly Schedule

Attendance Policy

Regular attendance and participation in classes are essential for success in and are completion requirements for courses at CCV. A student's failure to meet attendance requirements as specified in course descriptions will normally result in a non-satisfactory grade.

• In general, missing more than 20% of a course due to absences, lateness or early departures may jeopardize a student's ability to earn a satisfactory final grade.
• Attending an on-ground or synchronous course means a student appeared in the live classroom for at least a meaningful portion of a given class meeting. Attending an online course means a student posted a discussion forum response, completed a quiz or attempted some other academically required activity. Simply viewing a course item or module does not count as attendance.
• Meeting the minimum attendance requirement for a course does not mean a student has satisfied the academic requirements for participation, which require students to go above and beyond simply attending a portion of the class. Faculty members will individually determine what constitutes participation in each course they teach and explain in their course descriptions how participation factors into a student's final grade.

Participation Expectations

Full participation looks different for everyone, but centers on being respectful, present, and communicative. The following habits and skills are examples of different forms participation can take, but is not an exhaustive list. You'll have the opportunity to self-assess and receive instructor feedback on each of these areas at the mid-point and the end of the semester.

• Attend class regularly
• Complete readings and assignments before the start of class
• Listen to others attentively and with an open mind
• Demonstrate respect and compassion for ourselves, each other, and the campus space
• Contribute to class discussions and activities, take notes,
• Ask questions, be curious, and engage with the resources available to you (peers, professor, college accessibility & support, library, etc)
• Challenge yourself to do your best work
• Think about how you learn best, and ask the professor for what you want/need in order to succeed in this course.

Missing & Late Work Policy

• It is understood that technological, weather, medical, and other personal emergencies are an inherent part of life, and at times, there may becircumstances outside of students' control that can get in the way of completing an assignment.
• Late assignments can be submitted for partial credit up to 4 weeks after the due date (at -10% per week). For significant extenuating circumstances, further extension may be granted, but students may have difficulty catching up if they fall behind by more than 4 weeks.
• Students are asked to notify the professor (via e-mail, Canvas, or in person) that they will not be/were not able to complete the assignment on time, and if the circumstances allow, provide an estimate of when they will be able to complete it.
  • This is not to set a new "hard" deadline for the assignment, but to ensure that students are 1) aware the assignment is outstanding and 2) in communication with the professor so they can be supported throughout the semester.

Accessibility Services for Students with Disabilities:

1. Provide disability documentation to the Accessibility Coordinator at your academic center. https://ccv.edu/discover-resources/students-with-disabilities/
2. Request an appointment to meet with accessibility coordinator to discuss your request and create an accommodation plan.
3. Once created, students will share the accommodation plan with faculty. Please note, faculty cannot make disability accommodations outside of this process.

Academic Integrity

Apply Now for this semester.