Syllabus

COM-1102-02: Introduction to Communication I--Interpersonal

Fall, 2012

Instructor: Dr. Robert J. Trader / Office: 332d Lewis Recitation Hall
Email: / Phone: 410-386-4604
Website:

Office Hours:I am generally available by email between 10:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m. from Monday to Friday and by luck on Saturdays and Sundays. If I haven’t responded to your email within 12 hours, then either resend the email (since technology sometimes fails us) or stop by my office. Be sure to read theEmail Policybelow. Face-to-face meetings outside of office hours can be scheduled based upon student request and instructor availability. Office hours for the Fall 2012 term are: M-W 1:10-2:10and other times by appointment.

Course Sections/Times:

1) COM-1101-01, T/R (2:40 - 04:10) in LRH, Room 325.

Technology Requirements:

  • Netflix.
  • McDaniel email account that you check and use regularly.
  • Google Docs.
  • Adobe Acrobat Reader (freely available from
  • Bringing a computing device to course is recommended.

ABOUT THE COURSE:

COM-1102 provides a broad historical and theoretical introduction to the study of human communication from a social science perspective in the context of face-to-face and small group interaction. The course broadens student understanding of human communication in four topical areas:

  • Intrapersonal Communication
  • Communication Skills/Competence
  • Relational Communication
  • Persuasion

Emphasis is placed on interpersonal communicationtheoriesand the keyconstructsthat have received interpersonal communication research attention.

Course Goals & Objectives

  1. Critical thinking: the student demonstrates ability to think critically through weighing the evidence supporting or refuting a truth claim. Students evaluate the quality of sources of information and reflect upon the current state of their knowledge and the knowledge contained within the Interpersonal Communication research literature.
  2. Oral & written communication: the student presents ideas in a persuasive yet fair way. The presentation is clear, well delivered, and stimulates audience interest in the topic while maintaining a realistic (evidence based) account.
  3. Students gain an understanding of theory and research (particularly in relation to Interpersonal Communication), and this understanding enhances student abilities to think critically and deeply as well as to develop solutions to problems.

COURSE MATERIALS (TEXTBOOKS AND READINGS):

There is no required text for this course.Course readings are digitally available through the course website or through external sources.Students are responsible for obtaining and reading these materials as necessary.Students need a computing device with reliable Internet access.

Students are required to have a Netflix account.

EMAIL POLICY:

Outside of class, email is the preferred form of communication with Dr. Trader for the majority of your questions. To ensure that your emails to Dr. Trader are responded to as quickly as possible, please perform the followingrequired actions:

  • Include thecourse number with section number in the “subject” fieldof the email exactly as follows: COM-1102. Be sure to include the hyphens and to capitalize all the letters in C-O-M. Emails from your course and section are automatically filtered to special folders that quickly receive Dr. Trader’s attention.
  • In the body of the email, state your name and the topicto which your email refers. For example:
  • Name: ImaSmartone
  • Re: Homework 1
  • Remember that email is not checked before 10 a.m. or after 9 p.m. and may not be checked on Saturdays or Sundays (except when assignments are due on a Monday).
  • Keep in mind that no technology is 100% reliable. Alwayskeep copies of the email(s) you have sentto Dr. Trader to verify that an attempt to communicate has indeed been made or an assignment has been sent.
  • Assignments should be named using YOUR last name and the name of the assignment: i.e., traderassignment1.doc.
  • Failure to follow the above rules for email communication is grounds for receiving a failing grade on an assignment.

HONOR CODE:

Students will adhere to the McDaniel College honor code as defined on the honor code web page ( as well as in theStudent Handbook. The following pledge is to bewritten out and signedon all exams, papers, and written assignments:

“I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this piece of work, nor have I knowingly tolerated any violation of the Honor Code.”

Failure to include the above written and signed pledge on exams, papers, or other written assignments will result in an automatic grade of “0” on that assignment.

ATTENDANCE & ASSIGNMENTS:

Students are expected to attend each class. If students do miss a class,they are personally responsiblefor obtaining any handouts, notes, or other materials or information disseminated in that class from a reliable classmate. Students with an unexcused absence (an excused absence is a death in the immediate family, personal illness, or attendance at a college related event or activity; an excused absence must be verifiable and must be accompanied by some form of credible documentation) will not be permitted to make up missed tests or quizzes or to hand in assignments.Late unexcused assignments will not be graded and will automatically receive “0” points.

Attendance Rules:

  • Over 15 minutes late = 1 full absence.
  • 5 full absences = an F in the course.
  • Habitual lateness (late over 5 times) = final grade is lowered by one full letter grade (A+  B+, A  B, A-  B-…)

CELL PHONE POLICY:

Cell phones should not be visible during class, and should be turned off during class. If a cell phone is visible during a test, exam, or other type of graded assignment, the student will automatically receive a“0” scoreon that test, exam, or other type of graded assignment.

CLASSROOM BEHAVIOR:

Dr. Trader believes that learning is often the process of resolving internal conflict stemming from either internal or external pressures. An important part of this learning process is to be able to deal with conflict calmly and objectively. In other words, Dr. Trader does not expect everyone to hold hands and sing kumbaya all of the time. However, even when people do disagree, they still need totreat other people and their ideas with respect. In fact, scholarly work is essentially an argument for or against an idea that uses other people’s ideas and work as evidence or support for the claims being made.

Formal mechanisms have been developed for presenting opposing arguments in academia such as formal debates and formal discussions to neutralize innate potentially violent and/or abusive emotional reactions. “Formal” in this case means that there are rules in place to ensure equitable airtime to all points of view. We will discuss in class how to deal with conflicting viewpoints as this is an important aspect of communication science. And thus, we will utilize various communication methods to voice conflicting viewpoints in class.

SPECIAL NEEDS:

I will be more than happy to accommodate anyone with documented special needs in accordance with Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act. You need to provide me with the appropriate documentation and adequate advance notice. See the Student Academic Support Services (SASS) website for more information:

GENERAL GRADING CRITERIA:

The following general grading criteria adopted by Dr. Trader in this course are the college-wide grading standards advocated by CriticalThinking.org (

The Grade of A

  • High level performance implies excellence in thinking and performance within the domain of a subject and course, along with the development of a range of knowledge acquired through the exercise of thinking skills and abilities.
  • A level work is, on the whole, not only clear, precise, and well-reasoned, but insightful as well. Basic terms and distinctions are learned at a level which implies insight into basic concepts and principles.
  • The A-level student has internalized the basic intellectual standards appropriate to the assessment of his/her own work in a subject and demonstrates insight into self-evaluation.
  • The A-level student often raises important questions and issues, analyzes key questions and problems clearly and precisely, recognizes key questionable assumptions, clarifies key concepts effectively, uses language in keeping with educated usage, frequently identifies relevant competing points of view, and demonstrates a commitment to reason carefully from clearly stated premises in the subject, as well as marked sensitivity to important implications and consequences.
  • A-level work displays excellent reasoning and problem-solving within a field and works consistently at a high level of intellectual excellence.

The Grade of B

  • The grade of B implies sound thinking and performance within the domain of a subject and course, along with the development of a range of knowledge acquired through the exercise of thinking skills and abilities.
  • B level work is, on the whole, clear, precise, and well-reasoned, but does not have depth of insight. Basic terms and distinctions are learned at a level which implies comprehension of basic concepts and principles.
  • The B-level student has internalized some of the basic intellectual standards appropriate to the assessment of his/her own work in a subject and demonstrates competence in self-evaluation.
  • The B-level student often raises questions and issues, analyzes questions and problems clearly and precisely, recognizes some questionable assumptions, clarifies key concepts competently, typically uses language in keeping with educated usage, sometimes identifies relevant competing points of view, and demonstrates the beginnings of a commitment to reason carefully from clearly stated premises in a subject, as well as some sensitivity to important implications and consequences.
  • B-level work displays sound reasoning and problem-solving with in a field and works consistently at a competent level of intellectual performance.

The Grade of C

  • The grade of C implies mixed thinking and performance within the domain of a subject and course, along with some development of a range of knowledge acquired through the exercise of thinking skills and abilities.
  • C level work is inconsistently clear, precise, and well-reasoned; moreover, it does not display depth of insight or even consistent competence. Basic terms and distinctions are learned at a level which implies the beginnings of, but inconsistent comprehension of, basic concepts and principles.
  • The C-level student has internalized a few of the basic intellectual standards appropriate to the assessment of his/her own work in a subject, but demonstrates inconsistency in self-evaluation.
  • The C-level student sometimes raises questions and issues, sometimes analyzes questions and problems clearly and precisely, recognizes some questionable assumptions, clarifies some concepts competently, inconsistently uses language in keeping with educated usage, sometimes identifies relevant competing points of view, but does not demonstrate a clear commitment to reason carefully from clearly stated premises in a subject, nor consistent sensitivity to important implications and consequences.
  • C-level work displays inconsistent reasoning and problem-solving within a field and works, at best, at a competent level of intellectual performance.

The Grade of D

  • The grade of D implies poor thinking and performance within the domain of a subject and course. On the whole, the student tries to get through the course by means of rote recall, attempting to acquire knowledge by memorization rather than through comprehension and understanding. The student is not developing critical thinking skills and understandings as requisite to understanding course content.
  • D-level work represents thinking that is typically unclear, imprecise, and poorly reasoned. The student is achieving competence only on the lowest order of performance. Basic terms and distinctions are often incorrectly used and reflect a superficial or mistaken comprehension of, basic concepts and principles.
  • The D-level student has not internalized the basic intellectual standards appropriate to the assessment of his/her own work in a subject and does poorly in self-evaluation.
  • The D-level student rarely raises questions and issues, superficially analyzes questions and problems, does not recognize his/her assumptions, only partially clarifies concepts , rarely uses language in keeping with educated usage, rarely identifies relevant competing points of view, and shows no understanding of the importance of a commitment to reason carefully from clearly stated premises in a subject.
  • The D-level student is insensitive to important implications and consequences. D-level work displays poor reasoning and problem-solving within a field and works, at best, at a low level of intellectual performance.

The Grade of F

  • The student tries to get through the course by means of rote recall, attempting to acquire knowledge by memorization rather than through comprehension and understanding. The student is not developing critical thinking skills and understandings as requisite to understanding course content.
  • F-level work represents thinking that is regularly unclear, imprecise, and poorly reasoned. The student is not achieving competence in his/her academic work. Basic terms and distinctions are regularly incorrectly used and reflect a mistaken comprehension of, basic concepts and principles.
  • The F-level student has not internalized the basic intellectual standards appropriate to the assessment of his/her own work in a subject and regularly mis-evaluates his/her own work.
  • The F-level student does not raise questions or issues, does not analyze questions and problems, does not recognize his/her assumptions, does not clarify concepts, does not use language in keeping with educated usage, confuses his/her point of view with the TRUTH, and shows no understanding of the importance of a commitment to reason carefully from clearly stated premises in a subject.
  • The F-level student is oblivious to important implications and consequences. F-level work displays incompetent reasoning and problem-solving within a field and consistently poor intellectual performance.

SPECIFIC GRADING CRITERIA:

A+ = 485 ~ 500 points
A = 465 ~ 484 points
A- = 450 ~ 464 points
B+ = 435 ~ 449 points
B = 415 ~ 434 points
B- = 400 ~ 414 points
C+ = 385 ~ 399 points
C = 365 ~ 384 points
C- = 350 ~ 364 points
D+ = 335 ~ 349 points
D = 315 ~ 344 points
D- = 300 ~ 314 points
F < 299 points / Learning Log Entries = 15 x 20 points max each (300 points max total)
Boys Over Flowers Analysis: 100 points max
Final Self Evaluation = 100 points max
Total Possible Points = 500

ASSIGNMENTS:

Learning Log Entries = 15 x 20 points max each (300 points max total). At the end of each of the 6 units for this course, you are required to post learning log entries to a Google document constructed for this purpose. The learning log entries should be succinct, yet detailed enough to demonstrate depth of understand.
The learning log entries are as follows:
Learning Log Entries: Unit 1

  1. Read the following definitions of communication ( Briefly discuss these definitions, and then decide which definition of communication resonates with your own thoughts. Explain why logically, clearly, and persuasively.
  2. Briefly describe what a Communication scientist studies according to Powers (1995). Explain your answer with specific examples. What would you as a Communication scholar be interested in learning if you had the opportunity to become a Communication scholar?

Learning Log Entries: Unit 2

  1. What is a scientific theory and how does it differ from a naïve theory? Why is theory an important tool for scholarship?
  2. Discuss the four Communication research paradigms, and specify which of the four resonates the most with you. What about the paradigm makes the most sense to you?

Learning Log Entries: Unit 3

  1. What is a competent communicator? Consider the Component Model and Constructivism. How much of what these 2 perspectives hold true makes sense to you? If you were hired by a company to train its workers to be more communicatively competent, what would you do?
  2. Are most people strategic in their communicative interactions? Does strategic communication result in more competent communication? How so? In what situations? Is there a time when this wouldn’t be true? Why or why not?

Learning Log Entries: Unit 4

  1. Why should Communication scholars study intrapersonal communication? How does it increase our understanding of communication? Be specific. What aspects of intrapersonal communication should be more developed? Why?
  2. Take one of the 5 theories from this unit and use it as a framework for analyzing one of the stories below. Consider how the story exemplifies concepts/claims from the theory enhancing our understanding of intrapersonal communication, human relationships, and interpersonal communication. Provide specific examples from the story to support your arguments. Use page numbers as follows (p. #) to cite the specific place where the example is located.

  1. How are the five theories in this unit related or unrelated? What metatheoretical assumptions do they share? Where do they converge? Do the theories draw upon similar constructs (ideas and/or labels) or view similar phenomenon (aspects of human behavior or aspects of the phenomenological universe)? Elaborate.

Learning Log Entries: Unit 5

  1. Watch Sophie's Revenge(Fei Chang Wan Mei), 2008 on Netflix. Analyze the movie using one of the 5 theories from this unit as a theoretical framework. Use specific examples from the movie to show how the theory is supported or unsupported by the communicative interactions of the actors.
  2. You are considering a career as a relationship counselor. Based on the theories in this unit, what are 3 main problems you would expect a young couple in a romantic relationship to have? (Make sure to state from which theory each problem derives.) Would these problems only be problems for certain people in certain places or would they be basically universal? Provide examples to illustrate your points.
  3. Which of the 5 theories from this unit did you find best resonates with your own experiences or understanding of relationships? Explain why including discussion of:
  4. the type(s) of relationship(s) to which you are referring,
  5. the specific claims or concepts from the theory that were particularly edifying, and
  6. the situations or conditions under which the claims of the theory seem to hold true. You may also write this entry from the opposite approach (the least truthful theory).

Learning Log Entries: Unit 6

  1. Watch TEDTalks: Head Games (2011) Episode 1: Pamela Meyer: How to Spot a Liar on Netflix. Discuss the video in terms of findings from Interpersonal Deception Theory. Is Pamela Meyer convincing in arguing that liars can be detected?
  2. You’ve been hired by the US government to design a message encouraging teenagers to drive safely. Based on what the Elaboration Likelihood Model tells us about how persuasion works, tell us what messages would likely be effective. Search youTube for safe driving PSA’s and see if any of them are soundly designed based on ELM considerations. Don’t forget to cite the videos you’ve watched.
  3. Can a CMM perspective be used to make a better world or is it totally unrealistic? Will we ever experience a planet not in conflict? Will we be able to peacefully resolve the issues facing us as a species? Is this a noble goal to aspire to or just a pipe dream?

Boys over Flowers Analysis = 100 points max