General Studies (GNST) 407 - Lecture 01
Communication, Culture and Communities
Fall 2008
Wednesdays, 1:00pm - 3:50pm Location is off campus: Kahanoff Centre

Room #202, 1202 Centre Street S.E.

Instructor:	Prof. Janet Hamnett
Office Location:	SS347
Office Phone:	242-1077
E-Mail:	jhamnett@telus.net
Office Hours:	by appointment

Additional Information

The class is being held off campus at the Kahanoff Centre, the home for many of Calgary's non profit organizations. This location will facilitate hands-on connections with the community. Travel time has been factored into scheduled class time. The class will not actually begin until 1:30 and will conclude by about 3:30 to allow for return travel to the U of C main campus. Transportation by public transit or carpooling is recommended. The C-Train stop closest to the classroom location is the Centre Street station. Some off-site paid parking is also available nearby.

Course Description

The course examines concepts of 'community', including the development of communities, the culture of communities, and the role of communication and representation in the maintenance of communities. It will focus in particular on the role of volunteerism in communities. A major component of the course will be a volunteer placement in a Calgary community service organization. Class activity will include critical reflection on this experience.

Objectives of the Course

Through lectures, readings, discussion, guest presentations and a community service learning opportunity working in a group on behalf of a community organization, students will be able to:

- understand what a community is

- understand communities and the ways in which cultures of communities develop and are reproduced through communication.

- understand unique community service organization cultures

- understand the importance of diverse and effective stakeholder communications within and on behalf of community service organizations
- understand what community service learning is and its importance in a community context

- understand the role of the non profit organization in a community

- understand unique issues and challenges associated with non profit organizations

- understand the importance of volunteerism in a community

Textbooks and Readings:

There is no required text.  Readings will researched by the students and discussed in seminar format with the class during the semester.  Details and scheduling will be discussed on the first day of classes.

Assignments and Evaluation

A key part of the course will be a service project for one of several community organizations. Students will be given some choice in what project to work on, but the projects will already be generally arranged. Students can expect to spend about 15-25 hours total on this project in addition to class time and other course related work.

Class Participation: 10%

Group Project:

Project Plan 10% Sept. 24

Team Reading Assignment 20% (date will be discussed in class)

Journal Assignment 15% December 10

Presentation to community partner  20% December 3

Final Project Report 25% December 10

 Details of each assignment will be discussed in class.

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

- All components of the course must be completed in order to pass.

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.

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:(Revised, effective September 2008)

	Grading Scale
A+	96-100
A	90-95.99
A -	85-89.99
B+	80-84.99
B	75-79.99
B-	70-74.99
C+	65-69.99
C	60-64.99
C-	55-59.99
D+	53-54.99
D	50-52.99
F	0-49

 

Where a grade on a particular assignment is expressed as a letter grade, it will normally be converted to a number using the midpoint of the scale.  That is, A- would be converted to 87.5 for calculation purposes.  F will be converted to zero.

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.

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 handed out in class.