COM 104: Oral Communication

Spring, 2010 - Syllabus for Dr. Capps

Objectives: As a General Studies course at MWSU, all sections of Oral Communication strive to fulfill the following general course objectives:

  1. Provide students with an understanding of communication theory to include:
  • Communication Process
  • Role of Language
  • Listening
  • Nonverbal Codes
  1. Provide students with an understanding of intrapersonal communication to include:
  • Reception, Processing and Transmission of Information
  • Attitude Formation
  • Self-Concept and its impact on Communication Behavior
  1. Provide students with an understanding of interpersonal communication to include:
  • Types of Interpersonal Communication
  • Communication Barriers
  • Discussion Process
  1. Provide students with an understanding of public communication to include:
  • Types of speaking situations
  • Speech Preparation
  • Delivery Techniques
  • Audience Analysis
  1. To engage students in experiences which will enable them to develop skills in the above areas
  1. To prepare students to become active, critical citizens in our participatory democracy.

Class Policies:

Attendance Policy for All 100-Level Courses

07/19/2006

In order to improve student learning and retention as well as to achieve compliance with federal financial aid policies, Western has implemented a mandatory attendance policy for students in all 100-level courses beginning Fall Semester 2006 and all 100- and 200-level courses beginning Fall Semester 2007. Instructors are required to monitor and track student attendance. A student will be given an excused absence when acting as an official representative of the university, provided the student gives prior written verification from the faculty/staff supervisor of the event. Any additional excused absences are at the complete discretion of the instructor.

Maximum allowed unexcused absences accrued before the reporting of midterm grades, March 26, 2010, are:

Class meetings/week Maximum unexcused absences

1 / 1
2 / 3
3 / 5
4 / 7
5 / 9

When a student exceeds the maximum number of unexcused absences, instructors must report the student to the Registrar’s Office, who will administratively withdraw the student from the course and notify the Financial Aid Office to reduce financial aid as appropriate. From the midterm to the end of the course, faculty will assign grades according to their grading policies with regard to absences and record an FA when a student fails due to absences.

You will be given an excused absence when acting as an official representative of the university, provided you give prior written verification from the faculty/staff supervisor of the event. The first qualification to be an excused absence is notification of the reason for the absence prior to the class period missed. This notification should be by email or a telephone call to Dr. Capps. You can contact him at any of the phone numbers and email addresses provided online at You may feel free to contact him at his home number (660) 928-3454 after 7:00 a.m. and prior to 9:00 p.m. Failure to provide prior notification of the pending absence will greatly reduce the possibility for considering the absence as excused. If the day missed is a day when speeches are scheduled or assignments are due, the assignment must be turned in prior to the class period. If it is a personal speaking assignment to be missed the reason for the absence must be university related with supporting documentation. Failure to follow these procedures will result in the maximum possible grade of “C” on the assignment if time permits a rescheduling. If insufficient time remains, the assignment will be given a score of “0” and the student will be unable to pass the course. Every effort will be made to schedule the oral presentation so that it does not conflict with an excusable absence.

All other absences will be deemed unexcused. The maximum number of unexcused absences allowed for this class before the midterm report is 1 for the Tuesday night section and 3 for the Tuesday and Thursday afternoon sections. Thus, when you have the maximum unexcused absences +1 additional unexcused absences you will be reported to the Registrar’s Office, who will automatically withdraw you from this class. The Financial Aid Office will reduce financial aid as appropriate.

Because of the emphasis upon presentation, feedback, class discussion, and participation, your attendance is important to all members of this learning community. Absence will result in missed opportunities and impact your grade both directly and indirectly.

  1. Speeches and all other assignments are due on the day assigned. Failure to deliver a speech on the assigned date will result in zero (0) points for that assignment. Late papers will drop one letter grade. If determined by the professor to be too late, the paper may not be accepted at all. Students must complete ALL major assignments (including all speeches) to receive a passing grade in this course.
  2. Study Quizzes: You may be given unannounced quizzes over chapters/units/current events or other materials deemed appropriate by the professor. Missed quizzes may not be made up. The lowest quiz grade will be dropped.
  3. Academic Honesty is a fundamental assumption of this course. Academic Honesty Policy and Due Process

Academic honesty is required in all academic endeavors. Violations of academic honesty

include any instance of plagiarism, cheating, seeking credit for another’s work, falsifying documents or academic records, or any other fraudulent activity. Violations of academic honesty may result in a failing grade on the assignment, failure in the course, or expulsion from the University. When a student’s grade has been affected, violations of academic honesty will be reported to the Provost or designated representative on the Academic Honesty Violation Report forms.

Please see the 2009-10 Student Handbook and Calendar for specific activities identified as violations of this policy and the student due process procedure. This handbook is also available online at

In the event you are provided the opportunity to take an exam home and consult with others, you may feel free to discuss potential correct answers or the possible scope or meaning of the question, however, any short answer or essay response must be in your own words and with your own personal examples or illustrations. Responses that are deemed by the instructor to be “cut and paste” will be viewed as a violation of this policy and the assigned grade for the project will be an “F”. Any second violation will result in course failure and a report will be filed with the Provost or designated representativePlease, do your own work and do not embarrass yourself or your peers.

  1. Disability Policy: Anystudent who has a disability that prevents the fullest expression of their abilities should contact me personally as soon as possible so that we can discuss class requirements.
  2. All assignments are to be typed. Students are urged to keep a copy of all turned in assignments and, yes, spelling and grammar matter. Students demonstrating a significant weakness with the writing process will be encouraged to seek and attend appropriate Academic Support Sessions.
  3. Grading Scale:
  4. A+ = 12
  5. A = 11
  6. A- = 10
  7. B+ = 9
  8. B = 8
  9. B- = 7
  10. C+ = 6
  11. C = 5
  12. C- = 4
  13. D+ = 3
  14. D = 2
  15. D- = 1
  16. F = 0

Assignments:

  1. Attendance/Participation10%
  2. Personal Items Speech10%
  3. Informative Speech w/ Delivery Aid15%
  4. Persuasive Speech w/ Delivery Aid15%
  5. Group Assignment15%
  6. Group Paper 5%
  7. Communication Blog10%
  8. 1st Exam10%
  9. 2nd Exam10%

Instructor reserves right to determine the nature of exams

Personal Items Speech:

You are to describe a situation in which you were force to choose 3 items that you would save if you were to lose all of your other possessions. Present the items and explain why you chose to save the item. You should assume that all of your basic needs will be taken care of following the event and those individuals and pets important to you will be present. You should not select items that might be readily replaced (e.g. cell phones, credit cards, drivers license, etc.). The speech should be a 3 to 4 minute presentation. Speeches under 2 minutes will be reduced by a whole letter grade. You should display the item or a representation of the item.

Informative Speech:

You are to develop and present an informative speech that relies upon at least three outside references and utilizes presentation aids. A typed outline and APA formatted references are to be submitted prior to your oral presentation. The speech should be 5 to 8 minutes long on a subject with a direct connection to you and that can be related to your audience. Speeches less than 4 minutes and over 10 minutes will be reduced by a whole letter grade.

Persuasive Speech:

You are to select a topic that has a personal connection to you and can be related to your audience. You must call upon your audience to take a timely, specific, overt action. The topic and speech will require that you understand your audience; employ a minimum of three outside references; and utilize presentation aids. A typed outline and APA formatted references are to be submitted prior to your oral presentation. The speech should be 5 to 8 minutes long. Speeches less than 4 minutes and over 10 minutes will be reduced by a whole letter grade.

Group Presentation:

Each student will participate in a small group project with other students. The group will select an informative or persuasive topic that relates to group members and can be related to their audience. All group members must be involved in the presentation of the project during the oral presentation. Each student will submit a 3 to 5 page analysis of the group processes they experienced and the dynamics of their individual group from inception of the group until time for the oral presentation. The analysis should be related to class discussions and the appropriate chapters of the text. The group presentation is to be 15 to 20 minutes long. In addition, each student is to submit a one page written evaluation of the members of the group they worked with for this project. Individual grades are to be assigned for each fellow group member.

Communication Weblog:

Each student will maintain a personal weblog in which they report and describe different experiences they have with human communication in their daily life. I will be looking for consistency of entries and the manner in which topic areas discussed in class and in the text are related to those communication experiences. Each student should establish and maintain a blog on the internet. Provide the instructor with the location for the blog or show it is online and active by Thursday the 6th of September, 2007.