All writings will, of course, be word-processed and use correct grammar, spelling, etc., with references and resources properly credited. Length is to be adequate to address the assignment.  In other words, you determine the length based on your assessment of how best to complete the task, which will be addressed in greater detail in the assignment sheets you will receive for each of the above.

Performance/participation assignments will include the following:

Weekly Activity:

Week	Content	Assignments DUE
Sept. 5	Introduction to audio communication The role of audio communication in the media; its history and its relationship to modern culture	Sign up for appointment for week of Sept 9-13
Sept.12	Individual appointments for vocal assessment and audio style development (NO FULL CLASS)	3-minute presentation DUE; Any missed appointment may not be made up unless there is a legitimate emergency. Call or email to notify me that you will not be making the appointment.
Sept. 19	Radio figures & programs: an historical overview of personalities, techniques and content
Sept. 26	Monologists: style and comparative analysis
Oct. 3	Narrators: style and comparative analysis
Oct. 10	Creating and editing audio work
Oct. 17	Voice-over artists, broadcasters: style and comparative analysis	Review/critique of NPR tape DUE
Oct. 24	Other media: books on tape etc.
Oct. 31	Student mini-presentations	Mid-term audio tapes due
Nov. 7	Preliminary work on final project
Nov. 14	Preliminary work on final project	Outline of preliminary content of final project due
Nov. 21	In-lab editing of final project*	Complete written content/script of final project due
Nov. 28	Thanksgiving - No Class
Dec. 5	In-lab editing of final project*
Dec. 12	Final Exam: Presentation of final audio project See www.uri.edu/es/calexams/examSchedule.html to figure out your final exam commitments now.	7-10pm  Final exam This is an official exam time so make note of it in your calendar as a confirmed date.

General Notes: This syllabus is an outline of proposed events.  It is subject to change.  I will never change it to make anything due earlier for you.  I may change the order of things to allow for a special opportunity or to allow additional exploration on a particular topic.  I will supply additional supplementary readings along the way. (*)The in-lab editing is dependent upon confirmation of availability; these dates may change.  Some tutorial assistance will be available at other than regular class times. There will also be an in-lab class which will shift the above schedule.

Communication: I expect everyone to use e-mail in order that we can communicate efficiently with each other.  This class has a listserv; the address is com360@pete.uri.edu. Listserv's are computer mailing lists in which any email sent is reflected to all members of the list. If you wish to send email for all of the class tosee, then send it to this address, otherwise send private email to class members or me. sWe will use this tool to increase class discussion by posting additional ideas, observations, questions and insights.  If you need to see me, stop by during office hours, call or e-mail and I'll get you in as quickly as possible. 

Attendance: Attendance is expected. You are upperclass students and I assume you want the stimulation of class discussion with a professor and your peers.  If you will not attend on a given day, please call or e-mail.  Absences will hurt your grade because class participation is an important aspect of my evaluation of your work.

Reading/Listening List:

National Public Radio, The Best of NPR : Eyewitness to History. Time Warner Audio Books; (September, 1998); ISBN: 1570425841.

Additional Recommended Reading:

Alten, Stanley R., Audio in Media. Wadsworth Publishing; (1999); ISBN: 0534548032. (We will read some excerpts from this book handed out as appropriate.)

Williams, Gilbert A., Legendary Pioneers of Black Radio. Praeger Publishers; (May 1998); ISBN: 0275958884

Other readings and/or audiotapes as applicable and assigned including excerpts from audiobooks, radio recordings, articles, magazine and newspaper reviews.

Evaluation and Grading:

25%	In-class discussion/participation/e-mail work
25%	Report on NPR tape
25%	Mid-term audio tape
25%	Final Presentation

Evaluation will be based on grades of the written projects outlined above, committed rehearsal and performance of the final project, as well as regular class attendance and participation.

Honor Code: I expect each of you to contribute his/her own work; however, I also encourage you to work together to solve problems, achieve solid analysis, critique performances, and even to prepare and explore the theses of your final performances.  I also expect that you will all be direct about crediting yourself and/or others about completed work.  There is nothing wrong with assisting each other.  The only caveat is to acknowledge that assistance.  With regard to group work, you will be required to sign a contract agreeing to be responsible for disclosing the amount of your work and to be forthright about how much you did or did not contribute.  This saves each of you from ever having to be in the awkward position of reporting or covering for another student.  I also know each of you want to be honorable in your individual or group projects.  On the other hand, if a student violates rules pertaining to plagiarism or cheating, I will report that student to the appropriate university authorities.  I will do this because it is no favor to cover for a person who acts dishonestly.  We call this enabling.  It is also unfair to the students in the class who come by their grade honestly.  Remember: Unaccredited use of the Internet is also plagiarism.

Philosophy of Teaching: I am interested in an engaging, active partnership of learning in which I rediscover and discover aspects of audio media communication and presentation along with you.  I am also interested in using audio recordings/presentations as a springboard for the exploration of a wide range of topics from historical events to contemporary issues. The issue of audio communication must explore those aspects of presentation and production that enhance an audio experience in the absence of nonverbal and visual communication.  The manner and mode in which one heightens and enlivens the auditory production is rife with room to explore imaginative approaches and solutions. The subjective nature of any audio production will lead us to examine our own tastes and preferences.  The potential for exploring and discovering new paths into the human imagination is exciting. However, just as no one is responsible for our individual happiness but us, no one is responsible for our intellectual excitement.  I can bring mine to the classroom but you also need to be prepared to risk exposing and exploring yours.  Learning should be fun and painful—thinking 'til it hurts—and addictive.  I look forward to the time we will have together examining and creating the ultimate auditory experiences.

Classroom Ettiquette: Although I am perfectly happy to enjoy the benefits of an informal classroom in which people feel free to speak without the raising of hands and can sit in a less formal arrangement than row-by-row, this informal setting requires a particular adherence to good manners. Quite simply, I expect you all to be respectful of me and of each other. This includes extraneous private commentary between and among students, the use of any telecommunications devices that connect you to the outside world, and the continued courtesy of respectful attention without interruption when others are speaking. We all learned this behavior either at home or in Kindergarten or both. You are the Sesame Street generation - actually the second Sesame Street generation; you grew up with TV shows that taught the value of please and thank you. consider this experience to be one in whch your communication style will be judged and a major part of that judgement is your ability to be courteous on both an interpersonal and group level. I embrace humor; I do not embrace disruption. I am utterly intolerant of any student being harshly judgemental or making fun of a fellow student. I expect you are all courteous people at heart and will have absolutely no difficulty in meeting and exceeding these expectations.

Outside Event: Every effort will be made to attend a taping of a radio show and talking with the producers and talent.  The date will be confirmed and announced soon.  This will involve group travel to the recording site.

Special Needs: If you have any special circumstances arising from a disability, please let me know how I can assist you.  As stated in the University Manual: "The student with a disability shall be responsible for self-identification to the Disability Services for Students in the Office of Student Life, providing appropriate documentation of disability, requesting accommodation in a timely manner, and follow-through regarding accommodations requested."  In other words, it is your responsibility to make arrangements for any special needs and my responsibility to accommodate them with the assistance of the office of Disability Services for Students.