Sunday, January 11, 2026

Posts Are Archive Only for the THSP Blog

Hi Everyone,

You probably have noticed that we have not posted anything since 2020. Just to confirm that this blog is in archive mode only. We cannot guarantee links will still work, but there are still some great teaching ideas within the posts. Thank you to everyone who worked with us and read our posts during the 12 years we were posting. The psychology community has been amazing.

Chuck Schallhorn

Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Iowa Teachers of Psychology Conference coming at you - April 17, 2020

Spring Conference Season is rolling around and Iowa has something great cooked up. Registration and more information on this great event is at their website located here:

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Wednesday, May 15, 2019

Ohio Teachers - a great PD for you!

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 THE OHIO STATE OPTC 2019
















The 2nd Ohio Psychology Teaching Conference (https://www.focusonpsych.org/) will be held on July 10, 2019 at the Psychology Building at the Ohio State University.  The conference is targeted to high school, community college and university teachers and professors of introductory psychology.  This conference will allow teachers to enhance their contemporary disciplinary knowledge, see how cutting-edge research is conducted, discuss effective pedagogy, acquire vetted activities to enhance their individual classrooms, and leave with a stronger network of professional educators. This year our keynote speaker will be Dr. Jane Halonen from the University of West Florida.  Halonen is a psychologist who has dedicated her academic career to the scholarship of teaching and learning. Her academic interests include improving student learning, assessing undergraduate programs, helping good departments become great ones, and helping the public understand the discipline of psychology.


Throughout the course of the day, we will also have presentations from Dr. Ruchika Prakash (Ohio State University, neuroplasticity), Dr. Barbara Andersen (Ohio State University, biobehavioral aspects of cancer), Dr. Brad Bushman (Ohio State University, aggression and violence), Dr. Betsy Fox (Wright State University, sensation and perception), Dr. Vince Granito (Lorain Community College, Open Education Resources), and Dr. Melissa Beers (Ohio State University, the APA Intro Psych Initiative).  Attendees will have the opportunity to take a tour through the Center for Cognitive and Behavioral Brain Imaging, as well as experience artifacts and engage in a talk on the history of psychology by the archivists from The University of Akron's The National Museum of Psychology. Participants will  share quality lesson activities and discuss topical issues in the Teaching of Psychology.  For information and registration, go to https://www.focusonpsych.org/.  

--- Written by Stephanie Franks, Posted by Amy Ramponi 









Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Iowa Teachers of Psychology Conference April 5, 2019

The Iowa Teachers of Psychology will be holding their annual teaching conference on April 5, 2019 at Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo. The legendary Sue Frantz will be their keynote speaker.

For more information, go to their website.





Monday, March 11, 2019

Professional Development Options for High School Psychology Teachers Part 2

One of the best experiences for professional development is the APA/Clark Workshop. Ask any of the hundreds of "graduates" from the workshop and they will tell you it was one of the most professionally rewarding experiences they have had.

This year, Amy Ramponi and Brad Wray will be the primary Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools TOPSS presenters. Below is the photo from 2018.

I encourage anyone who is the sole psychology teacher in their school to apply. This is especially true if you are from a traditionally underrepresented community. One of the goals for the APA in general, and TOPSS more specifically is to bring in more people to increase ethnic, socioeconomic, gender, age, geographic, disability/ability, sexual orientation, and belief system diversity.





Professional Development Options for High School Psychology Teachers


The American Psychological Association (APA) and Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools (TOPSS) has some excellent professional development for teachers. Here are but a few:

The stars on the map represents the various regional and state conferences that are held regularly. Grants from the APA are available to apply for to underwrite the costs of the conference and/or speakers. Personally, I have been to both the Northern California, Arizona, Indiana, and Chicagoland conferences in my career. They have all been excellent and I came away with multiple activities and resources from all of them. Best of all, I gained friends and a professional learning network.




Thursday, September 20, 2018










Check out APA's Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI)!  Building on the momentum of recent events, such as the APA's Summit on High School Psychology Education, this group is taking an in-depth look into the Introductory Psychology course at all levels of education. The working groups are divided into 4 main areas:  Student Learning Outcomes and Assessment, Teacher training, Course models and design, and Students success.  Here's the future of Introductory Psychology! 

http://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/undergrad/introductory-psychology-initiative/default.aspx

Kristin Whitlock

Wednesday, September 5, 2018


JOIN US at UTOPSS!

UTAH-Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools Fall Conference

Westminster College, Salt Lake City UTAH
Friday, Sept 21 2018
7:30 am - 3:30 pm


PRESENTATIONS:

Dr. Rob McEntarffer, Lincoln Public Schools
What's Psych got to do with it? Using what we teach

Dr. Suzy Cox, Utah Valley University
The changing landscape of adolescence

Annette Nielsen, Woods Cross High School
Psychological Science: Adding Labs to Psychology

Dr. Jessica Habashi & Angela Anderson, Utah State University
Sensory System Demonstrations for Lab and Lecture

Participant Idea Share: Emily Checketts, Roy High School

Breakout sessions
• Sports Psychology: Jillian Carver, Sky View High School

• Introductory Psychology: Dr. Rob McEntarffer, Lincoln Public Schools

• AP Psychology: Erik Bayles, Pleasant Grove High School ; Tiffany Bliss, Olympus High  School; Julie Gowans, Payson High School

COST: $50 (due by Sept 14; after that date $60); includes continental breakfast, lunch, materials, certificate

REGISTER ONLINE at:  https://www.westminstercollege.edu/about/academic-schools/undergraduate-schools/school-of-arts-and-sciences/psychology-department/utopss-conference

Hope to see you there!
Kristin Whitlock


Sunday, August 12, 2018

Teaching Psychology: Where Can I Find Help?



The great folks at the APA/TOPSS have created a wonderful list of online resources for psychology teachers called, "Teaching Psychology: Where Can I Find Help?" Highlights include information for regular psych, IB Psych, and AP Psychology; professional development; course development; PLNs; much more.

Check out the resources at the link above. Incredibly helpful for any teacher, not just teachers new to the profession or subject area.

posted by Chuck Schallhorn

Friday, August 10, 2018

New APA Resources--The Canvas Course



AMAZING NEW RESOURCE--Thank you to Brad Wray and the Tech Strand at the Psychology Summit!!!!

TOPSS High School Psychology Course Template available in Canvas – From the technology and online learning strand. A giant thanks to Brad Wray in particular for creating and filming the linked video on the site, and for all his work editing and uploading the course. Feel free to watch the video and download the course – feedback is welcome!

“This teaching resource for high school psychology teachers includes many content specific, peer-reviewed resources, videos and formative assessments organized by the National Standards for High School Psychology Curricula. The entire course template is shareable and customizable and can be used in on-line or in-person psychology classes.”


posted by Chuck Schallhorn