WRT 227 Business Communication

Spring 2003

Professor: Libby Miles, Ph.D.

Writing Consultants: Grahame Ermer and Steve Stifano

TR 12:30-1:45, Independance Hall, Room 309 (computer lab)

Libby's Office: 13A Independance Hall
Libby's Office Hour: T 2-3:30
Libby's Office Phone: 401.874.7417
Libby's Email: lmiles@uri.edu

Grahame and Steve's office: 10 Independance Hall
Office Hours: TBA
Grahame's Email: Grambo313@aol.com
Steve's Email: writersblocks@att.net

Fundamentally, a rhetorical view focuses on purpose, audience, and situation. If as a writer you take a rhetorical view, you begin with the question "Why am I writing?" (or, just as likely, "Why are we writing?") and follow that closely with the question "To whom am I writing?"
-- From Professional Writing Online
By Jim Porter, Pat Sullivan, and Johndan Johnson-Eilola

Welcome to WRT 227! It is good to have you here; I'm looking forward to getting to know each of you. Please hold on to this syllabus, and use it throughout the semester. All, or at least most, of the information you need for navigating this class are included in these pages. Keep it handy, refer to it often, and take the time now at the beginning of the semester to put important due-dates in your personal calendar [note: if you don't have a personal calendar, whether print or electronic, now is probably the time to get one].

There are three of us available for help this semester: myself (you can call me Libby, but if that makes you uncomfortable, Dr. Miles is fine Miss Miles and Mrs. Miles aren't great, but I'll at least recognize that you are talking to me), and the two Writing Consultants, Grahame Ermer and Steve Stifano. They should be invaluable resources for you this semester. More on them later.

Class Goals, Responsibilities, and Policies

This course is a 200-level introduction to Business Communication. According to the URI course catalog, WRT 227 includes the following:

Basic business communications forms, so we'll be doing letters, memos, usability tests, reports, instructions, resumes, email, policy statements, letter templates, and portfolios
Group reports and presentations, so we'll be doing several this semester
Effective use of electronic mail systems, so we'll be using computers in many ways each class session
Design of graphic aids for successful visual communication, so each project will have a visual design component.

As you can see, we are in a computer classroom. The major textbook, Professional Writing Online, is found only on the Web, although you will be purchasing a brief PWO guide. Each class session, you can expect that we will spend some time interacting with each other and with our course materials online, we will have some time away from the computers talking face to face, some time working with visuals on the screen at the front of the room, and some time doing individual work on the computers.

Growing as a professional writer requires, among other things, varied feedback from readers. What makes professional writing different from other kinds of writing is the constant presence of an audience. In this class, you will practice writing for several kinds of audiences, and you will receive feedback from me as well as from Grahame and Steve. Furthermore, effective professional writing requires the ability to recognize, analyze, and act on important information within the context of the writing situation. This semester, we will practice examining and working within three types of contexts:

the immediate context between writers and their readers
the organizational context between the writers and other potential readers in the company or situation
the social and ethical context between the writers and larger issues in society, including the larger community and any impact on world citizens

About the Writing Consultants: We are lucky to have both Grahame Ermer and Steve Stifano as resources for our class this semester. They will work with each of you throughout the semester, providing guidance and feedback on your writing. They will not grade your assignments, but will offer feedback and suggestions for revision. Grahame has taken this course with me, and Steve has taken a different course with me. Both did well, and seem to have a good understanding of "what I'm looking for." You are required to use them throughout the semester, and I have all confidence that their guidance will enrich your work, and your experience in this class.

Required Materials: please purchase by our next class!

Professional Writing Online, Porter, Sullivan, and Johnson-Eilola (Allyn & Bacon, 2001)
A grammar and usage handbook of your choosing (the URI College Writing Program recommends The Longman Handbook, but you may use another if you prefer)
IBM-compatible disk for in-class work
Materials for creating employment portfolio at the end of the semester
An email account if not through URI, then somewhere

Attendance Policy: The small-class environment of WRT classes makes dedicated attendance and full participation the responsibility of each and every class member. Students who miss classes are responsible for 1) explaining the absence and/or verifying its necessity; 2) getting the assignments from a classmate or the instructor; and 3) if the instructor agrees, making up the missed work. If students notify the instructor in advance, absences for religious holidays, athletic participation, or other university-sanctioned events are excused. Other absences (for illness, accident, or personal tragedy) may be instructor-approved; however, it is the student's responsibility to contact the instructor via email or a phone message to explain the absence within 12 hours of the missed class, or to provide documentation at the following class meeting. Absences that are not university-sanctioned or instructor-approved will mean a loss of points or a deduction to the final grade. While allowance can be made for an emergency, generally students who miss a total of three weeks of classes will fail the course: 6 absences for TR sections.

Academic Integrity: I expect all students to comply with guidelines in the URI student handbook. More specifically, there is a clear line between working and collaborating with others and cheating; the first is expected and encouraged, but the second is harmful and wrong. Some people think that getting any kind of help is a form of cheating it is not. In fact, each assignment in this class has been designed to get you working with one another, learning from one another, helping one another. That sort of collaboration is an important part of learning how to read a rhetorical situation in the workplace, or anywhere else. Feedback from others is good; on the other hand, having others do your work for you is not good. If you feel the need to cheat, to plagiarize, to pass somebody else's work in with your name on it, please ask for help so that one of us Grahame, Steve, or me can help you learn how to do it yourself. If you don't know how to document where you got your information, we can teach you. If you don't know how to do the research you need to do, we can teach you. That's why you are in college, and teaching you how to do it is part of our job. If we can't help, please consider going to the Writing Center or the Learning Assistance Network for more hands-on guidance.

Grading Policies and Specifics: Quite simply, this class doesn't work if you all don't come to class, and if you don't come prepared to work to the best of your ability. Beyond the specific attendance policy above, you will be graded on your active participation in the class (online, face-to-face in the class, with your team, and with the Consultants). To repeat, this is a hands-on class, and it won't work for you if you don't show up ready to work. For that reason, each project grade will be broken down to reflect your work throughout the entire writing project. Accordingly, each writing project grade will include:

Participation and citizenship, including attendance, online discussion, peer feedback, and teamwork (25% of each project) Gen Ed integrated skills speaking effectively, writing effectively, using instructional technology.

Writing processes, including timeliness, invention, research, analysis, PAMs, and revision (25% of each project) Gen Ed integrated skills using qualitative data, writing effectively, using instructional technology.

Writing products, including content, presentation, style, and correctness (50% of each project) Gen Ed integrated skills writing effectively, using instructional technology.

Overview of Class Projects:

Allied Mutual Insurance Case (10% of final grade)
Software Learning Initiative (10% of final grade)
United Drill (15% of final grade)
Lester Crane (15% of final grade)
NCAA Bat Standards Case (15% of final grade)
Kiosk Project (15% of final grade)
Employment Portfolio (20% of final grade)

Progress Report: To give you a better sense of what I consider to be most valuable in this class, this is the format I will use to determine your grade. Also, it is the format in which I will give you your mid-semester progress report. Please notice that your participation and process account for half of your grade this is a General Education class designed to help you learn how to learn, not in how to throw a product together at 2:00 the night before it is due.

	Participation	+ Process	+ Product	= Grade
Allied Mutual Case	/ 2.5	/ 2.5	/ 5	/ 10
Software Initiative	/ 2.5	/ 2.5	/ 5	/ 10
United Drill Case	/ 3.75	/ 3.75	/ 7.5	/ 15
Lester Crane Case	/ 3.75	/ 3.75	/ 7.5	/ 15
NCAA Bats Standards	/ 3.75	/ 3.75	/ 7.5	/ 15
Kiosk Project	/ 3.75	/ 3.75	/ 7.5	/ 15
Employment Package	/ 5	/ 5	/ 10	/ 20

I will distribute Progress Reports on or just after March 18th. If, at any time during the semester, you want to know how you are doing, come by my office and we can talk about it.

The Writing Center - 313 Independence Hall (phone: 4-4690). If at any time you want help with your writing from somebody other than Grahame, Steve, or me, please feel free to visit the Writing Center. There, you (and your group, if you like) will work for 30 minutes with an experienced writing tutor. If you aren't sure what to work on, the tutor will help you decide which issues are most crucial for the assignment at hand. Each meeting you can expect to work on only one or two issues, and you can always return for more. Tutors might work with you on paragraphing, clarity, sharpening thesis statements, documenting sources, using appropriate evidence, or understanding and practicing specific grammatical concepts. Writing Center tutors will not edit or proofread for you; rather, they will teach you proofreading strategies you can use yourself. Appointments are encouraged, but you may drop in and see if a tutor is available.

WRT 227-04 Schedule

(Subject to change if necessary)

PWO = Professional Writing Online (keep your password handy!)
Access at www.ablongman.com/pwo
PWO Key:

PRO = Projects
DOC = Documents
PRI = Principles
RES = Resources

Date	What to Expect In-Class	Homework (Due Next Class)
T 1/21	- Introduction to the class, computers, and collaboration. - Introduction to the Consultants: Grahame and Steve. - Take User Survey - Introduction to Professional Writing Online. - Begin Software Learning Initiative.	Purchase course materials in store or online. Read the next case including links listed below: PRO - Allied Mutual Insurance Case. Lapsed Policy Letter link Letter template Understanding readers Analyzing Workplace Writing Situations PRO - Software Learning Initiative
R 1/23	Follow up on SLI Begin Allied Mutual Case. Sign up for consultant sessions for Allied Mutual Case [work w/ consultant on Allied Mutual before 2/4]	Compose first draft of revision letter. PRI - Building Arguments PRI - Shaping Texts PRO - Software Learning Initiative Tutorial Scripts Quick Reference Sheets (Bring one you find to class) Usability Testing
T 1/28	Allied Mutual, Con't. Discuss drafts of letters. Discuss quick reference samples brought to class.	Revise deliverables and bring to next class. PRI - Style - Types of Revising and Editing PRI - Overview - Ethics and Professional Communication PRI - Understanding Readers - Introduction PRI - Usability - Charting User Interactions w/a Document SLI Group #1 Prepare training session
R 1/30	Allied Mutual Con't SLI Training #1: Word Processing	PRO - United Drill Case PRI - Overview - Collaboration and Team Writing PRI - Social and Cultural Issues - Ethical Guidelines for team work SLI Group #1 Revise training session materials SLI Group #2 Prepare training session
T 2/4	Begin United Drill. SLI Training #2: Web Browsers	PRI - Overview - Understanding Purpose PRI - Social and Cultural Issues - Relations between Ethics and Law PRI - Social and Cultural Issues - Representing others SLI Group #2 Revise Training Session Materials
R 2/6	United Drill, Con't [work w/ consultant on United Drill before 2/20]
T 2/11	United Drill Con't
R 2/13	United Drill, Con't Guest visitor from EEOC Office	PRO - Lester Crane Case SLI Group #3 prepare training session
T 2/18	*No class - Acts like a Monday*
R 2/20	Begin Lester Crane Case SLI Training #3: Power Point Presentations	PRO - read all documents relevant to the Case PRI - Social and Cultural Issues, "Ethics and Professional Communication" PRI - Social and Cultural Issues, "International Communication" SLI Grop #3 revise training session materials
T 2/25	Lester Crane, Con't [work w/ consultant on Lester Crane before 3/6]	PRI - 'Understanding Readers, "Understanding an Audience"
R 2/27	Lester Crane, Con't	PRI - Building Arguments, "Types of Arguments" PRI - Building Arguments, "Opening Statements"
T 3/4	Lester Crane, Con't	PRO - all remaining Lester Crane links
R 3/6	Guest from the Middle East	PRO - NCAA Bat Standards Case
	** Spring Break **	Enjoy your break!
T 3/18	Begin NCAA Bats Standards Case Mid-semester progress reports handed out.	PRO - all documents relating to the NCAA Bats case
R 3/20	Mandatory meeting with Writing Consultants No formal class
T 3/25	NCAA Bats, con't. SLI Training #4: Spreadsheets	PRI - Shaping Text PRO - all resource materials relating to NCAA Bats case SLI Group #4 revise training session materials
R 3/27	NCAA Bats, con't
T 4/1	NCAA Bats, con't	PRO - Touchview Kiosk
R 4/3	Begin Touchview Kiosk Project [work w/consultant on Kiosk before 4/16]	PRO - all external resource links PRI - Designing and writing instructions SLI Group #5 prepare training session
T 4/8	Touchview Kiosk, con't. SLI Training #5: Web Authoring	PRI - Usability Testing - read ALL! PRI - Oral Presentations SLI Group #5 revise training session materials
R 4/10	Touchview Kiosk, con't.	Everyone prepares for class presentations of Kiosk plans
T 4/15	Kiosk Presentations (1/2 class)
R 4/17	Kiosk Presentations (1/2 class)	PRO - Employment Project
T 4/22	Begin Employment Unit. Guest visitor/s from Career Services [work w/consultant on Employment package before 5/6]	PRI - Technology and Work DOC - The Rhetoric of Employment Documents RES - Resources for Job Seekers
R 4/24	Employment Unit, con't	PRO - all cover letter links PRO - all resume links
T 4/29	Employment Unit, con't	Polish all job materials
R 5/1	Employment Unit, con't	Revise portfolio selections.
T 5/6	Last Day of Class. Last Portfolio workshop. Evaluations.	Your Employment Package and Portfolio will be due on the day of the final - Saturday, May 10th at 11:00 a.m. (Sorry about the Saturday, folks; I don't get to choose it!) Have a great summer!

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