Communications Studies (COMS) 463 - Lecture 01
Advanced Professional & Technical Communication
Winter 2007
MWF 13:00-13:50  

Instructor:	Dr. Tania S. Smith
Office Location:	SS254
Office Phone:	220-7774
E-Mail:	smit@ucalgary.ca
Web Page:	www.ucalgary.ca/~smit
Office Hours:	MW 14:00 or by appointment

Additional Information

Recommended: home Internet access, and skills with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, email, and internet searches.

This course will also host a volunteer undergraduate Peer Mentor experienced in professional communication, Ms. Heather Ross. She will spend a few hours a week supporting group projects and group dynamics during Friday classes, via email, and by appointment. For example, she can offer her unofficial personal advice on your communications strategies and documents, and group support if you are having difficulty delegating tasks among group members, conducting group meetings, or managing project timelines. She is not a TA and will not grade you. Please see the Peer Mentor Q&A document at http://www.ucalgary.ca/~smit/GNST501Q&A.htm to understand the general benefits and limitations of your peer mentor.

Course Description

An inquiry-based course in which students apply rhetorical theory and communication research in professional and/or technical contexts. Topics include persuasion and argumentation, editing, and the use of technology. The main term project involves producing documents for clients or organizations outside of the classroom. Prerequisites: Communications Studies 361 or 363.

Objectives of the Course

* to understand relevant rhetorical theory, professional communication theory, and community service learning theory, and apply these theories to your communication experience

* to better understand professional contexts for communication

* to further improve one's skills in writing, editing, oral presentation, teamwork, and research

Textbooks and Readings:

Required: NEW Coms 463 Course Pack of photocopies (To be sold at the Student's Union “Bound & Copied” Used Bookstore and Copy Center, located in the basement of MacEwan Hall. ASK for it at the cashier. ) Some additional articles will be available through a link in Blackboard.

Required: The Longman Pocket Writer's Companion, 2nd edition, by Chris Anson and others, 2006.

Assignments and Evaluation

It is the student's responsibility to keep a copy of each submitted assignment.

Note: Please return assignments directly to the instructor if possible. If it is not possible to do so, a daytime drop box is available in SS110; a date stamp is provided for your use. A night drop box is also available for after-hours submission. Assignments will be removed the following morning, stamped with the previous day's date, and placed in the instructor's mailbox.

15 % JANUARY 24 -- Term Project Proposal and Team Contract

20 % MARCH 7 -- Logs 1-5

Required MARCH 30 -- Term Project Draft (at least 2/3 length of final with no appendices or bibliography. Late or insufficient drafts will result in penalties applied to the term project grade.)

5% APRIL 4 -- Peer Review of Draft

35 % APRIL 11 -- Final Term Project

10 % APRIL 13 -- Logs 6-7 & Team Evaluation

5 % Group Project Team Contribution (Each student is scored based on peer feedback in others' weekly logs & the final evaluation, your community partner comments, and instructor & peer mentor observations)

10 % Class Participation (Discussion in class and online, and consultations with the Instructor.)

GRADES: Assignment scores will be given on the 4 point scale and/or its equivalent letter grade (i.e. B+ = 3.3). The score of A+ will be awarded to students whose course work average is A if they also have an excellent class participation and group contribution record.

COLLABORATION: Students will read and review drafts of each other's writing and will review each other's contribution to their group projects. If you encounter problems in group work, communicate promptly with peers, the peer mentor and/or the instructor to work on an acceptable solution.

Registrar-scheduled Final Examination: No

Please note: If your class is held in the evening, the Registrar's Office will make every attempt to schedule the final exam during the evening; however, there is NO guarantee that the exam will NOT be scheduled during the day.

Policy for Late Assignments

Assignments submitted after the deadline may be penalized with the loss of a grade (e.g.: A- to B+) for each day late.

Writing Skills Statement

Faculty policy directs that all written assignments (including, although to a lesser extent, written exam responses) will be assessed at least partly on writing skills. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Writing skills include not only surface correctness (grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc) but also general clarity and organization. Research papers must be properly documented.

If you wish help with your writing at any stage, including drafts, you are invited to contact the Writing Centre, SS110, 220-7255.

Grading System

The following grading system is used in the Faculty of Communication and Culture:

A+/A (4.0); A- (3.7); B+ (3.3); B (3.0); B- (2.7); C+ (2.3);
C (2.0); C- (1.7); D+ (1.3); D (1.0); F (0)

 

Plagiarism

Using any source whatsoever without clearly documenting it is a serious academic offense. For details see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info. Consequences include failure on the assignment, failure in the course and possibly suspension or expulsion from the university.

You must document not only direct quotations but also paraphrases and ideas where they appear in your text. A reference list at the end is insufficient by itself. Readers must be able to tell exactly where your words and ideas end and other people’s words and ideas begin. This includes assignments submitted in non-traditional formats such as Web pages or visual media, and material taken from such sources.

Please consult your instructor or the Writing Centre (SS110) if you have any questions regarding how to document sources.

Additional Information

RESEARCH ETHICS: Students will learn about, and be expected to follow, university research ethics requirements as they conduct field research with human subjects, such as interviewing and usability testing. Students must sign a form stating they will follow ethics procedures, and provide the instructor with a research appendix to any assignments that are based on field research. Research ethics appendices would include records such as signed consent forms, field notes and raw data. Failure to follow ethics procedures properly may result in grade penalties.

INSTRUCTOR'S RESEARCH: To improve the quality of teaching in this subject area, your instructor occasionally analyzes data about student learning that is gathered naturally in the course of teaching, and may present these findings at conferences or in academic publications. Unless you give signed consent, data specific to your course work and participation will not be included in such research. During course evaluation time, or after the course is over, the instructor may hand out consent forms or email you a request to use your work outside of the course. You are free to decline participation or withdraw participation at any time. Any signed consent forms will not be seen by the instructor until after the final grades have been submitted.

Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who may require academic accommodation, it is your responsibility to register with the Disability Resource Centre (220-8237) and discuss your needs with your instructor no later than fourteen (14) days after the start of the course.

Students' Union

For details about the current Students' Union contacts for the Faculty of Communication and Culture see www.comcul.ucalgary.ca/info

"SAFEWALK" Program -- 220-5333

Campus Security will escort individuals day or night -- call 220-5333 for assistance. Use any campus phone, emergency phone or the yellow phone located at most parking lot booths.

Schedule of Lectures and Readings

To be posted online on the course website http://www.ucalgary.ca/~smit/Coms463/Schedule.htm , and subject to revision (revisions will be announced in class, via Blackboard email, and will be flagged on the schedule).