COM 227
Spring 2017
Instructor:Frank Powell
Office: 416 Fell Hall Office Phone: 438-7768 E-mail:
Office Hours:Mon Noon – 1 pm & Wed 9 am – 10 am & as arranged.
Required Texts:
Strategic Communication in Business and the Professions.8th ed. (O’Hair, and Friedrich).
Also required: oneJump Drive/thumb drive (USB Flash Drive aka memory stick)
General Policies:
1)Attendance:
Regular attendance is expected. Valuable information presented during class discussion will be considered appropriate material for quizzes and exams. This course will also include several in class activities, announced and unannounced quizzes.
“Excused absences” may be given as per University and Instructor policies.
University Bereavement policy:
Students who experience the death of an immediate family member or relative as defined in the University Student Bereavement Policy will be excused from class for funeral leave, subsequent bereavement, and/or travel considerations.Students are responsible for providing appropriate documentation to the Dean of Students office and for contacting the instructor as soon as possible to make arrangements for completing missed work.More information is available in the Student Bereavement Policy at;
When a student is absent:
All students that miss a class for any reason– Even if it is an “excused” absence - Must meet with me during regularly scheduled office hours to discuss the absence immediately upon returning to classes (within 7 days). E-mail notifications regarding absences will not be accepted.
Class participation points will be determined in part by attendance, contribution and cooperation.
2)Tardiness:
Class will begin as scheduled. Any student arriving late should discuss this with the instructor immediately after class in order to insure participation credit for the period. Tardiness may result in missed opportunities, including participation points as well as quiz points. No make-up work will be accepted.
3)Exams:
The course will include three major exams. Exams will be constructed to evaluate your understanding and ability to apply the communication concepts and theories presented by texts, lectures, and class exercises/discussions.
4)Quizzes and Activities:
Reading assignments will be synthesized and presented in class discussions and activities. All students should complete readings as they are assigned in order to fully process the information as well as to contribute to the class. Unannounced quizzes will focus on the material from assigned readings. Students missing class should make advance arrangements with the instructor, or obtain the information from a fellow student.
5)Assignment due dates:
Late assignments will not be accepted. Exception will be made only when advance arrangements are made or acceptable documentation of extreme circumstance is received and an alternate assignment is completed. This includes speech presentations, so careful planning prior to speech sign-up is highly recommended. If you do not deliver a presentation on your assigned day, you will be assessed a 30% penalty on the presentation. If you do not attend all classmates’ presentations, you will be assessed a 20% penalty on your presentation.
The excuse “the computer lost my project” is unacceptable. Save often and make backup copies of your project files.
6)Professional Courtesy:
Class rules of courteous conduct will be determined and presented in class. Please note that students should feel free to bring to the course instructor’s attention anything that may interfere with the education process.
7)Cheating/Plagiarism:
University policy as detailed in the University Handbook will be followed. Consequences for cheating/plagiarism include failure of the course as well as possible dismissal from Illinois State University.
8)Participation:
This course addresses communication skills and development, which means that participation is essential. Participation will be assured through attendance, discussion contribution (which will require completion of reading assignments), asking questions that further the understanding of all participants, and the demonstration of respect for all contributions of all class participants.
Evaluation:
Quizzes100 Points
Brochure50Points
Planning Document100 Points
Class Participation & Activities –includes synthesis50Points
Exam 1100 Points
Exam 2100 Points
Exam 3200Points
Group Presentation150 Points
Informative Presentation 50 Points
Persuasive Presentation 100 Points
Total 1000 Points
A standard scale will be used to determine final course grades:
90%-100# = A, 80%-89% = B, 70%-79% = C, 60%-69% = D, below 60% = F.
Beliefs:
The ability to communicate effectively in organizations is essential for success. It is the goal of this course to prepare students for the challenges that they will meet throughout their careers. From a first job interview to an executive board meeting, from the college classroom to social organizational membership, critical thinking and argumentation skills will have significant impact on the degree of success. Every effort will be made to assist all students toward improving communication skills and their understanding of organizational communication with the belief that this improvement will make each student more capable of meeting these challenges.
Student Learning and Responsibilities:
Improving communication skills will require a dedicated effort from each student. Classroom exercises will be a regular occurrence in order to facilitate learning through participation (“learn by doing”). This participation includes two mandatory speech presentations and short papers as well as specific skill-building exercises. In addition, students should be prepared to spend time outside of class; reading assigned material and preparing and practicing speech presentations.
Instructor’s Role:
My role as your instructor is to assist you in improving your organizational communication knowledge and skills. In my experience I have found very little as rewarding as witnessing these improvements. I will make myself available as a resource, to assist you throughout the semester.
Course Objectives (Learning Outcomes):
After successfully completing COM 227, students should be able to:
- Apply the rhetorical principles informing effective formal communication.
- Accommodate rhetorical principles to different speech situations, both formal and informal.
- Conduct background research necessary to develop well-informed presentations.
- Evaluate the oral presentations of others according to these rhetorical principles.
- Recognize reasons for communication failure.
- Recognize an organizational framework.
- Demonstrate openness, intellectual tolerance and civility in the exchange of ideas and the resolution of conflict in small group settings.
- Demonstrate self-confidence in organization of thought and self-expression in a variety of speaking situations.
- Generate ideas and gather supporting materials in order to develop specific, well-focused arguments that allow for the use of evidence and reasoning in persuasive speaking.
- Analyze an audience and situation and adapt to their need, using appropriate language to establish authorial credibility and enhance audience understanding.
- Demonstrate an awareness of and sensitivity to non-verbal communication.
- Demonstrate appropriate behavior as listeners in class and in other groups and be able to distinguish between empathetic and critical listening skills.
- Appreciate the value of attending to the manner in which we communicate interpersonally and in small groups.
- Demonstrate an awareness, tolerance and appreciation of the cultural diversity of others as they struggle to refine their communication skills.
- Employ appropriate presentation aids effectively to improve the impact of presentations.
Methods of Instruction:
This course will utilize a variety of learning methods. These include: instructor lectures, skill building exercises, classroom discussions, as well as example observations. Each of these requires the concerted effort of the student to attend and participate. Missed classroom activities will result in a lost opportunity to improve specific skills. These missed opportunities are likely to be reflected in the evaluation process.
Course Policies:
Method of Evaluation (Tests/Exams, Presentations, Grading System):
Course grades will be determined by scores on; quizzes and exams, class participation, and two Formal presentations and a tri-fold brochure. Quiz scores will total 100 points. Two exams will be worth 100 points each. The final exam, which is cumulative, will be worth 150 points. Each speech will be evaluated on a 100- point scale and the grading rubric will be made available prior to the delivery.
Grading Policy:
Grades will be assigned and returned to students in a timely and organized manner. Evaluation of presentations will not be returned until all students have completed the assignment (exceptions will be made in case of excused absences). Criteria for grades will be discussed thoroughly with students and every attempt will be made to assign grades objectively. Students are encouraged to discuss the evaluation process as well as the evaluation criteria with the instructor in order to gain understanding and facilitate improvements.
Participation and Attendance:
Class participation is required. Missed classroom activities will result in missed opportunities to gain understanding and/or improve skills.
ReggieNet:
Lesson plans and completed activities will be posted on ReggieNet for
preview and review. All scores for completed quizzes, exams, and presentations will be posted on ReggieNet. (typically within 7 days of Completion).
Incompletes:
The official college policy, as found in the College catalog, will be followed regarding incompletes.
Make-up Tests and Assignments:
Missed classroom activities will not be repeated. Absences due to unavoidable/extreme circumstances may be negotiated as per the absence policy previously covered.
Required Writing and Reading:
Students will read approximately 25-30 pages per week from our textbook and will be asked to write brief (1-2) page evaluations of peers.
Student Conduct & Ethics:
A “classroom code of ethics” will be developed by the participants of the class. Once this code has been incorporated, it is to be followed throughout the semester. Violations of this code will be met with appropriate consequences.
Academic Integrity and Plagiarism:
Academic integrity is a fundamental principle of collegial life at Illinois State University and is essential to the credibility of the College’s educational programs. Moreover, because grading may be competitive, students who misrepresent their academic work violate the rights of their fellow students. The College, therefore, views any act of academic dishonesty as a serious offense requiring disciplinary measures, including course failure, suspension, and even expulsion from the College. In addition, an act of academic dishonesty may have unforeseen effects far beyond any officially imposed consequences. Violations of academic integrity include, but are not limited to: cheating, aiding or suborning cheating or other acts of academic dishonesty, plagiarism, misrepresentation of data, falsification of academic records or documents and unauthorized access to computerized academic or administrative records or systems. Definitions of these violations may be found in the college catalog.
(Adapted from Tom Clemens, PhD.)
Plagiarism is the presentation of other’s ideas as if they were your own. When you write a paper, create a project, do a presentation, or create anything original, it is assumed that all the work, except for that which is attributed to another author or creator, is your own. Plagiarism is considered a serious academic offense and may take the following forms:
1Copying word-for-word from another source and not giving that source credit.
2Paraphrasing the work of another and not giving the source credit.
3Adopting a particularly apt phrase as your own.
4Paraphrasing someone else’s line of thinking in the development of a topic as if it were your own.
5Receiving excessive help from a friend or elsewhere, or using another project as if it were your own.
Note that word-for-word copying is not the only form of plagiarism.
The penalties for plagiarism may be severe, ranging from failure on the particular piece of work, failure of the course, or expulsion from the school in extreme cases.
[Adapted from the Modern Language Association’s MLA Handbook for Writers of Research papers. New York: MLA, 1995:26]
Special Needs:
Any student in need of a special accommodation should contact Student Access and Accommodation Services - 438-5853 (voice), 438-8620 (TTD).
Syllabi Disclaimer:
The course calendar (following) will be closely followed and will be changed only to meet the specific learning needs of the class.
Class Schedule for Introduction to Organizational Communication
Day / DateMaterialAssigned Reading
WEEK 1
Aug 21IntroductionsCh 1 & 2
Basic Formula Ch 13
Delivery Skills
Model of Strategic Communication
Assign Informative Presentation
Assign Tri-fold Brochure
WEEK 2
Aug 28Last Flower Exercise
Role of Visual CommunicationCh 3 & 4
Ethics
Listening
Presentation Design / Print Media Design
WEEK 3Audio Visual CommunicationCh 5
Sep 6Audience Analysis
WEEK 4Informative Presentations
Sep 11Brochures Due
WEEK5Informative Presentations
Sep 18Exam # 1 (Ch 1 – 5 & 13)
Assign Persuasive Presentation
WEEK 6Presentation Formula – PersuasiveCh 14
Sep 25PersuasionCh 6 & 7
WEEK 7PersuasionCh 8 &9
Oct 2Fallacy Exercise
WEEK 8PersuasionCh 10
Oct 9
WEEK 9Persuasive Presentations
Oct 16
WEEK 10Persuasive Presentations
Oct 23
WEEK 11Exam # 2 (Ch 6 – 10 & 14)
Oct 30Small Group ProcessCh 11
Group ExercisesCh 12
Synthesis paper assigned
WEEK 12Presentation Planning and Assessment
Nov 6Planning Documents
Outcome Statements & Objectives
WEEK 13Outcome Statements & Objectives
Nov 13
WEEK 14No Class - Fall Break
Nov 20
WEEK 15Group Presentations
Nov 27
WEEK 16Group Presentations
Review for Final Exam
Final Exam Weekas scheduled - available on Registrar website