Caveat Academy course · Grades 10 to 12

Developmental Psychology

Why a five-year-old swears the tall glass holds more juice, why babies refuse the visual cliff, and why teens drive differently with friends in the car. You work through the classic studies from before birth to old age, classify real behavior with the field's theories and learn to spot a weak study, at your own pace, with a certificate at the end.

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$19one-time · every device you sign in on
Buy · $19

Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Or get it in the High school electives library, $119 for 66 items.

6 modules · 18 lessonsabout 13 hours$19

Six modules, eighteen lessons

Each module ends with a practice set that tracks mastery, an explain-it-back prompt, a short written response and a module exam. The final opens when every module is proficient; passing it earns a certificate with a verification code.

  1. Module 1: Studying development

    Explain the field's three big debates and compare cross-sectional, longitudinal and cross-sequential designs, identifying cohort problems and the limits of correlation.

    • The big questions
    • How developmental research works
    • Theories of development
    about 2.1 h

  2. Module 2: Beginnings: prenatal growth and infancy

    Explain the prenatal periods and why timing matters for teratogens, identify newborn reflexes, and interpret classic infant perception studies such as the visual cliff.

    • Prenatal development
    • The newborn
    • Infant perception and motor skills
    about 2.1 h

  3. Module 3: Thinking and language

    Apply Piaget's stages, Vygotsky's zone of proximal development and the milestones of language and theory of mind to children's behavior.

    • Piaget's stages
    • Vygotsky and social learning
    • Language and theory of mind
    about 2.1 h

  4. Module 4: Attachment, temperament and family

    Classify attachment patterns, temperament types and parenting styles from described behavior, and evaluate what correlational parenting research can and cannot show.

    • Attachment
    • Temperament
    • Parenting and the growing self
    about 2.1 h

  5. Module 5: Adolescence

    Analyze adolescent risk-taking with the dual systems model, classify identity statuses and score moral reasoning with Kohlberg's levels.

    • The changing body and brain
    • Identity
    • Moral reasoning
    about 2.1 h

  6. Module 6: Adulthood, aging and the end of life

    Compare fluid and crystallized intelligence, apply Erikson's adult stages and evaluate claims about midlife, aging and grief against research.

    • Emerging and early adulthood
    • Middle and late adulthood
    • Death, dying and grief
    about 2.1 h

Try it before you start

This is how every lesson works: step through a worked example at your own pace, then answer a check and get the reason right away. Nothing here is saved; the course keeps your progress.

Module 5 · Moral reasoning

Worked example: scoring reasons

  1. "He shouldn't steal because he'll go to jail." Focus on punishment: preconventional, stage 1.

A lesson check from each module

The checks need JavaScript turned on. The course itself works the same way.

What you get

Academics · High School$19 · included with the Academy pass and Whole-school licenses

What you finish with
A finished course in developmental psychology: you can explain the field's big debates, judge a cross-sectional or longitudinal study and spot a cohort problem, reason about prenatal timing and newborn reflexes, apply Piaget, Vygotsky and the milestones of language and theory of mind, classify attachment, temperament and parenting from behavior, analyze teen risk-taking, identity and moral reasoning, and evaluate claims about midlife, aging and grief. Passing the final earns a Caveat certificate of completion.
Who it is for
Students in grades 10 to 12 taking or preparing for a psychology course, including AP Psychology, students thinking about careers in teaching, nursing, social work or child care, and anyone curious about how people grow and change. It is general education, not medical, parenting or mental health advice.
Format
An online self-paced course: 6 modules and 18 lessons with worked examples you reveal step by step, 144 practice and exam items (multiple choice, numeric, fill-in and ordering), an explain-it-back prompt and a rubric-checked short response in every module, module exams with one retake, a 24-question final and a certificate with a verification code. About 13 hours in all; works on a phone or a computer.
Access
$19 one-time, yours on every device you sign in on; the course opens once you are signed in with it. Included with the Caveat Academy pass and Whole-school licenses. Also in the High school electives library ($119) and the Academics Suite pass ($149), and 1 more bundle. Progress is saved in this browser on this device, and the certificate page lets you download your record.
Where it lives
The High School space in Caveat Academics.
Support
Access, a receipt, a refund or a correction to the course: team@caveatacademic.com.

How it works

  1. Open the course and start Module 1. Each lesson takes about 25 to 35 minutes; two or three a week finishes the course in about a semester.
  2. Answer the checks as you read. Every answer shows the reason, and a miss links you back to the lesson that covers it.
  3. Finish each module with its practice set and exam. Proficient on every module opens the final; 70 percent passes it.
  4. Print or download your certificate and record from the certificate page.

Start the course

Sources and accuracy

The lessons are original writing by Caveat Academic Services. Facts were checked against these free, open references, which are also good places to read further.

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, developmental milestones and fetal alcohol spectrum disorders: cdc.gov
  2. American Psychological Association, Dictionary of Psychology, for definitions of terms such as attachment, temperament and crystallized intelligence: dictionary.apa.org
  3. National Institute of Mental Health, the teen brain: nimh.nih.gov
  4. National Institute on Aging, cognitive health and older adults, and mourning the death of a spouse: nia.nih.gov
  5. OpenStax, Psychology 2e, a free open textbook with chapters on lifespan development: openstax.org

Developmental Psychology is a self-paced course from Caveat Academic Services. It is general education, not medical, parenting or mental health advice; age ranges are typical patterns, and healthy people vary. For a crisis in the United States, call or text 988. It does not replace a school course and awards no credit. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.