Child Development Courses

Students will design and develop an original research project, choosing a topic of interest to study and investigate. This project will culminate in a masters thesis. Students will develop and submit both a thesis proposal and relevant IRB materials (which might include an IRB proposal) for approval.

This interdisciplinary course will address mental health in diverse cultural contexts, drawing upon a range of case studies to illuminate the causes, symptoms, diagnosis, course, and treatment of mental illness across the globe. The course will open by exploring questions of the classification of mental illness to address whether Western psychiatric categories apply across different local contexts. We will explore the globalization of American understandings of the psyche, the exportation of Western mental disorders, and the impact of psychiatric imperialism in places like Sri Lanka, Zanzibar, Oaxaca, and Japan. Through readings of peer-reviewed articles and current research in cultural psychology, clinical psychology, psychological anthropology, psychiatric anthropology, and medical anthropology, we will explore conditions such as depression and anxiety, schizophrenia, autism, susto, and mal de ojo to understand the entanglements of psychological experience, culture, morality, sociality, and care. We will explore how diagnostic processes and psychiatric care are, at times, differentially applied in the United States according to a client’s race, ethnicity, class, or gender. Finally, we will also explore the complexities of recovery or healing, addressing puzzles such as why certain mental disorders are considered to be lifelong, chronic, and severe in some parts of the world but are interpreted as temporary, fleeting, and manageable elsewhere—and how such expectations influence people’s ability to experience wellness or (re)integration into family, work, and society. Several key authors will join us as invited guest speakers to talk about their current work. Students will conduct conference projects related to the central topics of our course. 

In conjunction with Fieldwork I (PSYC 7830), students in the Child Development program will meet together once a month to discuss their fieldwork experience and how it relates to their coursework and future goals. Note that fieldwork placements will be assigned by the Director of the Early Childhood Center based on students' final schedule.

This course will explore how people develop, influence, and shape their social settings—families, communities, and educational institutions—in childhood and in adolescence. We will focus on theories of individual and family development, the local and global dynamics of learning, and cognition and social relations across culture and society. Physical health, adverse childhood experiences, trauma, and learning are intertwined in the context of the child’s social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development and affect children’s learning and development. We will also examine the development of multiple identities (racial/ethnic, gender, social class) in young children. This interdisciplinary focus draws from current theory, research, and practice in areas as diverse as psychology, sociology, anthropology, and gender studies, among other disciplines. This class is appropriate for those interested in child development, early-childhood and elementary education, special education and/or adolescent development, and secondary education.

How do varying childhood experiences impact children’s mental health and wellbeing? What happens when the course of development is affected by trauma or depression? This seminar will focus on challenges that arise in child and adolescent development, drawing upon approaches in clinical psychology, developmental psychology, and cultural psychology/clinical ethnography. We will analyze how particular psychological experiences and behaviors have been typically understood as abnormal or pathological and how they are intertwined with the experience of child development. We will also explore how these challenges are diagnosed, as well as critical commentaries on clinical diagnosis and treatment, in order to analyze the merits and drawbacks of the common approaches to these issues. Students will learn about the clinical categories of conditions such as ADHD, autism, depression, and anxiety, as compiled in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5-TR), as well as how those disorders are assessed and treated in clinical and educational settings. We will look at case examples to illuminate the causes, symptoms, diagnosis, course, and treatment of such psychological conditions in childhood and adolescence. Through readings and course discussion, students will be invited to question the universal applicability of Western clinical approaches that rest on particular assumptions about normality, behavior, social relations, human rights, and health. We will also explore how diagnostic processes and psychological and psychiatric care are, at times, differentially applied in the United States according to the client’s race/ethnicity, class, and gender and how clinicians might effectively address such disparities in diagnosis and care. Students will complete conference projects related to the central themes of our course and may opt to work at the Early Childhood Center or a local community program that serves children or adolescents.

We humans tend to find other people the most interesting “objects” in our lives—and for good reason. As infants, we are completely dependent upon other people for our very survival; and throughout our lives, other people serve as the social bedrock of our existence. We are a social species, one that derives “fitness” through our abilities to read the social terrain and to figure out social meaning in our interactions with others. There are a range of timely questions to address: How do we do this, and how does it develop throughout childhood? Are we “hardwired” in some ways to feel what other people are feeling? What about the special case of childhood autism? How do our emotions interact with our cognitions about the social world to affect our views of self and other and our future social lives? What would cause us to have a relatively good or poor “emotional IQ,” and what are the consequences? What are the roles of family and childhood friends in this process? These are some of the issues the course will
address. The opportunity will be available for hands-on fieldwork with children so as to observe children puzzling over people in real life.

Psychological trauma has been described as unspeakable, so cognitively disorganizing and intense that it is difficult to put into words the experience and the emotions that it evokes. Yet, the language that survivors use to describe their traumas provides insight into the psychology impact of trauma and the process of recovery. This course will begin with an overview of theories of trauma, resilience, and post-traumatic growth, as well as an introduction to  the study of trauma narratives and how language reflects emotional and cognitive functioning. We will then explore different aspects of the cognitive, emotional, and biological impact of undergoing a trauma and how these changes are reflected in the language that trauma survivors use as they speak and write about their experiences. We will consider works by experts on trauma and language, including Judith Herman, Bessel van der Kolk, and James Pennebaker, as well as current research in the field of trauma and trauma narratives. Through
these readings, we will address topics such as what makes an experience traumatic, how representations of trauma in popular culture color our perceptions of trauma and recovery, the role of resilience and growth following a trauma, and what we can learn from attending to the content and structure of language. This course will be of interest to students who are curious about how the words we use reflect our cognitive and emotional functioning, especially for students interested in pursuing topics such as these at an advanced or graduate level.

This course will explore several therapeutic approaches for young children and their families, with a particular emphasis on the theory and technique of play therapy. While this course will focus most on Child-Centered Play Therapy (CCPT), we will also look at the methodology of other types of approaches, such as filial therapy, cognitive behavioral play therapy, and DIR/Floortime therapy. In addition, course material will highlight cultural considerations, therapeutic work with parents and caregivers, challenges in treatment, self-reflection, selfregulation, sensory processing, interoception, and analysis of clinical case studies. Readings, class discussions, group play-based activities, and video illustrations will provide students with both a theoretical and introductory clinical basis for play-based therapeutic work with young children in early intervention approaches.

The primary objective of this course is to provide a supportive structure for students as they prepare to develop their thesis work. This will include a weekly seminar meeting focused on qualitative and quantitative research methods, research ethics, and contemporary research questions and approaches; collaborative group workshops; and individual and group conference meetings with faculty supervisors on either a regular or an as-needed basis. The seminar component will include readings on, and discussions of, research methods and ethics that are specific to the research students may be interested in engaging in for their thesis work, as well as the discussion of contemporary research articles that are relevant to potential research projects. Some weekly seminars will be led by invited faculty in child development, education, psychology, and related disciplines.

The primary objective of this course will be to provide a supportive structure for students as they complete their thesis work and prepare for life after SLC. This will include a bi-weekly seminar meeting focused on collaborative workshopping of ongoing thesis work. We will also invite in SLC alumni, faculty, and staff to discuss various aspects of professional development as everyone finds helpful.

The primary objectives of this course are for students' to:

1) Develop, implement, evaluate and report on their final thesis project, drawing on their colleagues and their thesis advisors as key resources.

2) Effectively support their colleagues as they develop, implement, evaluate and report on their final thesis projects.

3) Develop and enhance their expertise as a child development professional.

Play provides us with an amazing and informative lens for observing the development and complex inner lives of young children. Yet, play is being threatened by increasing amounts of time spent on technology and a growing societal focus on scheduled activities and academic goals. This course will offer an introduction to the many fascinating aspects of play, including the importance of unstructured free play, how play shapes the brain, sensory processing and self-regulation in play, outdoor play, cultural contexts of play, and humor development in play. Through readings, video illustrations, and discussion of student fieldwork at the Early Childhood Center, we will explore the many ways in which play contributes to the complex social, cognitive, emotional, and imaginative lives of children. This course will provide a foundation for Early Therapeutic Approaches for Young Children and Families (PSYC 7220). Fieldwork at the Early Childhood Center is required for this course.

Observation and documentation of children and their work are essential in understanding children and development. Students are expected to bring their work in classrooms to bear on course readings, class discussions, and written work. The intent is for students in the program to have the opportunity to gain experience working directly with children, both one on one and as a group, while gaining insight into the lives of children and families. In the first year, students work with children in the Early Childhood Center (ECC) for both semesters.

    Students will meet together monthly to discuss their fieldwork experience and how it relates to their coursework and future goals. Placements will be assigned by the director of the Early Childhood Center based on student schedules and ECC classroom needs and availability.

The primary objective of this course will be to provide a supportive structure for students as they complete their thesis work and prepare for life after graduate school. This will include a biweekly seminar meeting focused on collaborative workshopping of ongoing thesis work. We will also invite in Sarah Lawrence College alumni/ae, faculty, and staff to discuss various aspects of professional development as everyone finds helpful.

The primary objectives of this course are for students' to:

1) Develop, implement, evaluate, and report on their final thesis project, drawing on their colleagues and their thesis advisors as key resources;

2) Effectively support their colleagues as they develop, implement, evaluate and report on their final thesis projects;

3) Develop and enhance their expertise as a child development professional.

In the Art of Teaching and Child Development programs, we place the observation and documentation of children and their learning at the center of our work with them. The emphasis is on seeing every child as capable, unique, and knowable and on children as active makers of their own meaning and knowledge. Observing is focused on what the child can do and is interested in and on how each child thinks and learns. We assume that practitioners create their own knowledge through longitudinal observation and documentation of each child as a thinker and learner. This knowledge is the foundation for our responsive practice with them in the full range of settings as well as for curriculum development and instructional planning that accommodate individual interests and approaches to learning. The ideas and processes developed at Prospect Archive and Center for Education and Research, by Patricia Carini and others, will be the foundation of the work throughout the course. The Prospect Descriptive Processes and, in particular, the Descriptive Review of the Child will give students a formal and systematic framework for drawing together their observations of children over time. In addition, the review processes developed at Prospect Center will be discussed as avenues for collaborative inquiry and meaning-making among practitioners and families. Students will participate in a Descriptive Review and will review longitudinal collections of children’s work. They will also learn about descriptive inquiry processes for reviewing curricula and teaching practice. Students will share observations of children in both early childhood and childhood education settings and develop a language of description. We will discuss the importance of creating spaces for children where each child is visible through strength. Students will develop a child study that includes: a description of the child using the headings of the Descriptive Review, a collection of the child’s work, and reflections on the implications that the longitudinal documentation of the child holds for teaching and working with the child.

What is development, and how does it occur across different children, contexts, and time periods? Does development proceed in the same manner for all children, or are there variations as a result of biological, environmental, and/or cultural differences? Are there some aspects of development that are universal, such as walking, and others that vary across children, such as talking? How might we test these questions, when the contexts in which we live influence the questions we ask about development, and the ways in which we interpret our observations?

    The primary objective of this course will be to learn to use developmental theory to understand the mechanisms by which developmental change occurs. We will additionally focus on the usefulness of observation and research in testing theory, as well as the usefulness of theory in structuring our observations and other forms of research with children. To do so, we will discuss several key classic and contemporary theories of development that have influenced, and/or are especially relevant to, early childhood and childhood education practice. Theories discussed will include psychoanalytic and psychosocial approaches; evolutionary and ethological approaches; cognitive-developmental approaches; information processing, dynamic systems, and developmental cognitive neuroscience approaches; social, cultural, and historical approaches; and cultural-ecological, bioecological, developmental systems and other holistic approaches. As we study each theory, we will focus on the kinds of questions each theory asks and the “image of the child” each puts forth. Recent challenges within the field have highlighted specific conceptual problems, which we will address. Are patterns of development universal or culture-specific? Can childhood experiences be thought of as proceeding in a series of stages?

    How do we construct methods for studying children that will recognize and validate the significance of differing social and cultural experiences? How can we forge a multicultural view of development such that development is understood in terms of how it is experienced within a given cultural context? As we discuss these questions, we will continually focus on the integration of theory and practice through reflections on field experiences in early childhood and/or elementary classrooms. Required papers will reflect this integration.