The Report from San Antonio

I was thrilled to be able to participate in this year's AP Annual Conference in San Antonio, Texas from July 16-18. Even though it was crazy hot in southern Texas - 110 degrees - the even was no doubt a success. (The heat should explain my puffy appearance in photos...or at least that's what I'm blaming it on)

As you can see from my previous post, one of my goals for the conference was to meet David Myers. Unfortunately, he ended up not being able to come! I was much disappointed to discover this, but my wounds quickly healed. For one, I was able to attend some fabulous sessions where I picked up some new tricks for demonstrating psych concepts. For two, I was able to sit in on a focus group for Worth Publishers, where the editor for David Myers' new text sought input on the book. And as a result....I got an email from Mr. Myers himself when I returned home! (A thanks for participating in the focus group). Maybe I'll still get to meet the guy in the future.

Another highlight of the weekend was the closing speaker: none other than Gwen Ifill from PBS! I was very impressed with her talk, which centered on her recently published book. And that surprised me, because I expected a lot from the gal (remember, she moderated the Vice Presidential Debates last fall?). She was not only well-spoken and intelligent, but very witty and displayed a great sense of humor.

For me, the conference sparked new ambitions: I'm now going to bite the bullet and submit my application to be an AP Exam Reader, so if all goes well in a few years I'll be lending what experience I have to that exercise. Also, I made some great connections and met a friend with whom I hope to present at next year's Annual Conference in Washington D.C. Both initiatives, of course, depend upon acceptance by the College Board, so wish me luck!

People I Hope to Meet in San Antonio

Later this week I depart for San Antonio, Texas, site of this year's AP Annual Conference. From the schedule, it looks there will be no shortage of awesome psychology-teaching related topics to investigate. But, by far, I am most excited to attend a session on Friday afternoon entitled "Active and Relevant: Bringing AP Psychology to Life".

Why? One of the presenters is none other than David Myers! No offense to the other presenters that afternoon, as I am sure I'll find them interesting and motivating, too, but Myers has a sort of celebrity status in my classroom, as he is the author of our course textbook.

Since, thus far, my encounters with academic celebrities have been limited, I wonder whether it is proper to ask to have one's photograph taken with a textbook author? Or to ask for an autograph? Too nerdy? Too needy? Cute or just tacky? Hmmm...

Your suggestions would be appreciated! You can bet any successes will be documented here.

A Great Summer Read: My Stroke of Insight

I just finished up what turned out to be a great book: My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor.

You might recognize the name...or perhaps you've seen this amazing woman on one of her many television appearances. My students will perhaps recognize her from her spot on a Discovery Channel production I sometimes show in class called, "The Amazing Brain." Jill was a Ph.D. neuroanatomist (a.k.a. brain scientist) when she suffered a stroke at age 37.

The book describes in great detail what her experience of the stroke felt like, her path to recovery, and the new perspective the experience gave her. Personally, I learned quite a bit about the different types of strokes that our brains are susceptible to in the opening chapters. Since it was Taylor's left hemisphere that was most affected by the stroke, the book does an excellent job of highlighting the distinctive tasks of each hemisphere of the brain. Still thinking like a psych teacher, I also found that the account highlighted the brain's role in perceptual processes quite nicely, since Taylor describes perceptual distortions she had to overcome during recovery. All of it is accompanied by cute diagrams of which areas of the brain are being discussed.

I would definitely recommend the book to other psych teachers and students of psychology. It's a quick read, and I found her amazing story to be inspirational as well.

Serendipitous Trip to Bedlam!

Some of you may know that I am taking a group of high school students to Europe this summer to study the history of World War II. Our travels will take us to London, Paris, and Berlin, and I am very excited that we will be departing quite soon! See the trip website at http://www.chi-hi-history-trip.blogspot.com/ for details.

While I was communicating with our tour director who is currently in Ireland, he casually mentioned that one of the museums we will be visiting - the Imperial War Museum, which houses artifacts from WWI and WWII - IS BUILT ON THE GROUNDS OF BETHLEM ROYAL HOSPITAL (a.k.a. "Bedlam")! So, my trip is now (though unintentionally) a psychology history trip as well!

For my students who may be confused as to why I am so excited about this, Bethlem was a notorious mental hospital that, in practice, operated more like a zoo. Most abnormal psychology textbooks make some mention of it (often as an example of why modern reforms in mental health care were so direly needed). In fact, our term "bedlam", which is used to describe chaos or an out-of-control situation is derived from this hospital's name!

The IWM's website describes the history of Bethlem Royal Hospital like this:

The building which accommodates the Imperial War Museum London was formerly the central portion of Bethlem Royal Hospital, or Bedlam, as it was commonly known. Designed by James Lewis, it was completed in 1815. Sidney Smith’s dome was added in 1846 and contained the chapel. The east and west wings were demolished in the early 1930s to make room for the park which now surrounds the Museum.
Bethlem Royal Hospital dates back to 1247, when Simon Fitz-Mary, a wealthy alderman and sheriff of London, founded the Priory of St Mary of Bethlehem on the site which is now part of Liverpool Street Station. In the fourteenth century the priory began to specialise in the care of the insane. In 1547 Henry VIII granted the hospital to the City of London.Bethlem was moved to a new building in Moorfields in 1676. Until 1770 there were no restrictions on visitors, and the lunatics, who were often manacled or chained to the walls, were a public attraction.

The hospital was housed in the present building from 1815 to 1930, when it was transferred to Eden Park near Beckenham, Kent.

Patients included Mary Nicholson who tried to assassinate George III in 1786; Jonathan Martin, committed in 1829 after setting fire to York Minster; the painters Richard Dadd and Louis Wain, famous for his cartoons of cats; Antonia White, author of Frost in May and Beyond the Glass; and the architect A W N Pugin who designed the Houses of Parliament and St George’s Roman Catholic Cathedral opposite the Museum.

As if I needed another reason to be excited about this trip! Can't wait to bring back photos to share!

Can't get enough of Jim Jones and His Creepiness?

Last week in class we watched the WGBH American Experience film "Jonestown," which is the story of the People's Temple and its ultimate tragic end in 1978. The film is LITTERED with examples of basic principles of social psychology, and I think my students did a great job identifying them.

For those of you who can't get enough of the People's Temple, Jim Jones, or survivor stories, there are plenty of resources online for you to consult. A great place to start is the film's companion website. The teacher's resources section has links to several different websites that each examine the incident from a different angle, as well as a list of printed resources for futher study. There's also a photo gallery that includes many of the still images seen in the film.

For the Psych teachers out there following this blog, I'll post the viewing guide I use with my classes tomorrow when I'm back at school. I'd highly recommend the film, whether you use it in class or not. My students can attest to the fact that it is shocking and emotional.

Social Loafing Info

If you're feeling frustrated by a lack of progress on a group project, you're not alone this time of year. Check out this post from PsyBlog about Social Loafing, one of my personal favorite psychological concepts.

More Discussion: the Implicit Association Test

Remember the Implicit Association Test project that you (my students) completed for me? I'm still reviewing your reflections from that activity, and some themes have emerged in the responses.

For one, many of us obtained scores that indicate some (slight, moderate, or strong) automatic preference for one group over another: white over black, young over old, etc. Yet most of us also felt compelled to defend our own images in the face of this information, sometimes by writing off the results of the test. For example: "I don't believe this result is true. I'm not a racist." While the defensiveness is, on some level, a postive sign that we've interalized the idea that racism and prejudicial beliefs are not socially acceptable, I worry that this would cause us to entirely dismiss the possibility that even well-intentioned people can harbor biases (even unconscious ones?). Check out this article by Karen Kersting which appeared in the APA's Monitor on Psychology in March 2005: "Not Biased?"

On the other hand, as we discussed in class, what the results of these hidden biases are in human behavior is not exactly clear. In this 2008 article by Beth Azar which also appeared in the Monitor on Psychology, "IAT: Fad or Fabulous?" , the author points out that the test is hardly a perfect one. Some question the reliability and validity of the test. After all, what does it mean to have a "slight" preference for one race over another? As you astutely pointed out, it probably does not make you a "racist"... but what it does mean in terms of human behavior is not clear.

What do you think? How should the test be used (if at all)? Is it possible to learn anything from its results?