COMM 120: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication

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COMM 120: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication Course Overview Course Objectives Required Textbook Climate of Respect Assignments and Exams Evaluation and Grading Academic Policies Lessons

1 COMM 120: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication Course Overview Course Objectives Required Textbook Climate of Respect Assignments and Exams Evaluation and Grading Academic Policies Lessons COURSE OVERVIEW Hello! Welcome to Introduction to Interpersonal and Organizational Communication. The purpose of this class is to introduce you to communication skills that are relevant to creating and sustaining interpersonal relationships. The fundamental assumption of this course is that communication can be conscious, reality based, and highly satisfying, and that interpersonal communication skills can be acquired, changed, developed, and/or improved. Further, it is assumed that certain communication skills are more effective than others in creating and sustaining interpersonal relationships, and that those skills a. vary depending upon the requirements of the context in which you communicate b. contribute to those very contexts. Within this course, the interactive lesson modules are designed to provide material (academic and experiential) that cannot be obtained by reading the textbook. There is little overlap. The textbook and the interactive lessons are complementary to each other, and both are required for successful completion of the course. It is my hope that this class will provide insights and information that will help you more effectively analyze your interpersonal skills and relationships, and improve your communication in those relationships. COURSE OBJECTIVES After completing this course, you will develop an understanding for communication as a dynamic process that occurs in a variety of contexts to inform our understanding of self and other think critically about identity, gender, sex, language, and culture as constructed through experience and

2 think critically about identity, gender, sex, language, and culture as constructed through experience and communication better understand the self as a complex social construction of everyday experience in interactions with others reflect on your communicative behaviors and practices, as well as those of others in everyday practice analyze, apply, and extend conceptual material in class discussion, research, and writing REQUIRED TEXTBOOK Please see the course listing on the Friday Center website for a full list of required textbooks and materials. CLIMATE OF RESPECT As you go through the course, you may encounter ideas, thoughts, and concepts that you may not agree with or that may even offend you. Please understand that this is part of the process as we seek to better understand the relationship between communication, self, and other. In order to benefit from this course, please be prepared to listen carefully, follow arguments and analyses, and think critically without jumping to premature conclusions or dismissing ideas and concepts because they challenge your worldview. You should be prepared to address the course material, raise and answer questions, and engage your classmates and the instructor with regard to the course material in a thoughtful and respectful manner. Please remember that learning is a collaborative process that we all benefit from when we respect each other s opinions and ideas. Additionally, in order to facilitate the open sharing that promotes collaborative learning best suited for this class, we need to make sure that confidentiality is ensured. What takes place in this class, therefore, is private and confidential; the information shared is privileged. This means you are not to discuss with people outside the class any specific comments and behaviors of members of the class. ASSIGNMENTS AND EXAMS The assignments in this class are broken up into four categories: Discussion Forum Participation Quizzes Personal Application Exams Discussion Forum During the semester, you will write three graded discussion forum assignments, as well a handful of short, informal, ungraded posts. Consider each of the three graded discussion posts a formal written assignment. Although each will be posted on our discussion forum instead of an individual word document, you must write each post with an eye for detail in your spelling and grammar, proper references in APA format, and a strong argument structure. Our Style and Writing Guide, which is posted in the Resources folder, provides an abundance of information to help you become a better writer overall, and it lets you know what I expect. This document highlights particular criteria all of your posts should follow. (Where necessary, the individual post descriptions may also provide

3 more specific details and/or criteria to help you more fully address the prompt.) General Criteria for Discussion Posts Quizzes Your post should have a clear introduction and conclusion, neither of which should sound like, This post will discuss, or In conclusion, this post discussed, as both are examples of poor writing. See the Style and Writing Guide in the Resources folder for details. All posts should have a central argument or thesis. Think of your thesis as the summary argument of your post that typically appears as either the sentence before the end of your introduction or as the end of your introduction. For more information see the Style and Writing Guide. At the end of your introduction (or before your thesis statement), your post should have a clear preview sentence that describes the the points you will make. Where necessary, you must clearly define the concept, correctly cite the concept, and offer an explanation of the concept in your own words. While I generally know the concepts, I need to see that you understand them and can properly apply them. Failure to define and explain means you don t understand them. Your post should be clear, logical, and accurate. It should demonstrate that you intellectually and practically understand the concept well enough to apply it. Be sure you are correctly applying the concept s terminology to your analysis. Also, be sure you have a strong argument/rationale for why the concept applies. Remember, the main point of any post is to apply class concepts, not to share your feelings about the experience. You may wish to discuss your feelings, but only as they relate to conceptual application. All citations must be in proper American Psychological Association citation format. Any idea that does not originate from your own head should be cited using APA style citation. For more information about APA, visit the library website. No other citation format will be accepted. You must use correct grammar and ensure your paper is free of proofreading errors. In addition to using our Style and Writing Guide, I encourage you to utilize the Writing Center. For all discussion posts, you must cite the concepts from class, course readings, or interactive lessons that you are using in your paper. You do not need to use external sources outside of our class readings or interactive lectures for discussion posts, and they will not count as your source citations for discussion board posts. I expect your three formal discussion posts to be at least 500 words, but no more than 1000 words. (I m serious. I won t read anything beyond 1000 words.) Any posts with fewer than 500 words will not have adequately addressed the assignment criteria. Lastly, please respect the time it takes to grade each of these, and, again, seriously refrain from writing more than 1000 words, as it will not be to your benefit. Following each lesson, there will be a quiz consisting of no more than 10 multiple choice questions. Each quiz is designed to encourage and evaluate your understanding primarily of the textbook material, but some will cover specific concepts from the interactive lessons. It is your job to keep up with the material from the textbook and our interactive lessons in order to be prepared and do well on each quiz. Each quiz is due by the end of each lesson by 11:55 pm, unless otherwise indicated by the course schedule. Because the schedule tells you when all quizzes are due and because you know all the deadlines at the start of the semester, missed and late quizzes cannot be made up. You are, therefore, strongly advised to complete each quiz well in advance of the deadline specified on the course schedule. Personal Application Paper

4 You will write one original paper this semester, your Personal Application Paper. This original work asks you to reflect on the course material in the present by applying the concepts to your everyday life and assessing how they do or do not work. In particular, your task is to pick a specific aspect of the course content, describe it in terms of communication competency and interpersonal communication effectiveness, then show how you are applying the concept through actual, lived examples you have worked through in the present that demonstrate your continued application of the concept into the future. Your are welcome to use any concept discussed in any of the chapters from Interplay, even if we have not yet discussed them on our course site. Whether you use a concept we ve discussed or one we have yet to explore, you should thoroughly articulate your understanding and application of it in your paper. Also, be aware that you must choose an actual concept from our textbook. (If you are unsure if your chosen concept is applicable, I encourage you to me.) You are expected to write using proper APA citations only. Include any references to the textbook, as well as at least two other academic sources (journal articles, dissertations, theses, and so on) from an EBSCO certified database. Your essay should be no more than five pages in length (not including the reference list), as your instructor will not read anything after the fifth page. You are also encouraged to use the personal pronoun I to explain your analysis. You should be expressive, but logical. You also should not assume that I understand the casual everyday expressions that you use, so you must always be as clear as possible in your writing. To help you write your paper, you are encouraged to send me a one page outline during the final exam review week. Details about what this one page outline should include will be posted in the Announcements in Sakai and ed to you in advance of the final exam review week. See the Application Paper assignment details in the Assignments section of Sakai. Example Application Papers will also be posted later this semester to help you write your best paper. (Also look at the Style and Writing Guide for tips on how to write better.) Paper Format Unless otherwise indicated, all papers must be submitted electronically, typed, double spaced, have one inch margins, and use Times New Roman twelve point font. Papers must include your last name and page numbers in the upper right header, and you must save your paper with your last name in the first part of the document (i.e., Rysavy Application Paper.docx ). All papers should also include a basic title and follow the APA (American Psychological Association) academic citation format (including when citing from the textbook). MLA citation format is not accepted. Please proofread your work before you turn it in spelling and grammar will affect your grade! Exams There is a midterm exam and a final exam in this class. The final will not be fully comprehensive; however, it will include some questions that pertain to chapters from the first half of the semester. The majority of the questions, instead, will come from the lessons during the last half of the semester. The exams test your knowledge of the course material in a variety of formats, potentially including but not limited to: multiple choice, short answer, essay, and true/false. You will take both of these exams online through Sakai in the Tests & Quizzes area during the scheduled exam dates. The exams will be open book and open notes; however, it is important that you study in advance and do not rely primarily on looking up answers as you will run out of time attempting to write for your short answer and essay questions. You will have a thirty six hour time frame during which you can take each exam (see the schedule). Once you begin the exam, though, you must complete it within the allotted time; you will have ninety

5 minutes for your midterm exam and three hours for your final exam. For both exams, be sure you have: 1) scheduled the time for yourself to be uninterrupted, 2) a reliable connection to the internet, and 3) a place where you will not be bothered by others so you can complete each exam to the best of your ability. EVALUATION AND GRADING Grade Assessment The following is a detailed description of each letter grade: Your grades will be based on how well you demonstrate what you have learned in this class as shown by your discussion posts, your Application Paper, and your performance on exams. The following is an explanation of grades you can earn in this class: A B C D F Far exceeds requirements of the assignment/course. You critically, creatively, and fully engage the course material in a way that demonstrates that you understand and can apply the concepts well beyond average analysis. The work is thoughtful, reflective, well composed, clear, and of outstanding quality. There are few to no errors in grammar, paper formatting, and citations. Exceeds the requirements of the assignment/course. In general, you demonstrate a clear understanding of the course concepts, though your analysis is not as creative or comprehensive as it could be. In some instances the work does not follow proper paper or citation guidelines. The work is good to very good. Meets the basic requirements of the assignment/course. You demonstrate a satisfactory understanding of major concepts, but may be unclear at times. The work is competent, but includes errors and/or awkward phrasings. In some instances the work does not completely follow proper paper or citation guidelines. The work is of average quality. Does not meet the basic requirements of the assignment/course or demonstrates only minimum understanding of course material. The work is largely unclear and fails to conceptualize course concepts and theories. Typically, the work also does not follow proper paper and citation guidelines. The work is of poor quality. Fails to meet the basic requirements of the assignment/course. A minimum understanding of the course concepts is not evident. The work is of extremely poor quality. Please keep in mind that a grade of C means you met the minimum expectations for a particular assignment. For the Application Paper, for example, this means that you picked and described an actual interpersonal concept from our textbook, created and described a specific plan of action that relates to at least three communication competency attributes, and that you applied your plan of action in the present, measured the success of the plan, and then described how you improved or are continuing to improve. In other words, simply doing the paper does not equate to an A, nor does it equate to a C if you didn t do the minimum expectations. Finally, there is no extra credit available. If you are struggling with the regular coursework, the last thing you need is extra work to do. Grading Scale I will grade your work using the following scale: A percent C percent A percent C percent

6 B percent D percent B percent D percent B percent D percent C percent F < 60 percent I use the Registrar s definitions for the grading system. Please also note that an incomplete or I will only be granted in extremely rare circumstances and only after a majority of the coursework has been completed. Grade Distribution The points for this course will be distributed in the following manner: Assignment Discussion Forum Points 100 (3 at 33.3 points each) Personal Application Paper 100 Quizzes 50 (10 at 5 points each) Midterm Exam 100 Final Exam 150 Total 500 Late Work It is important that you complete your work in a timely manner. All of the deadlines are listed on the course schedule on our course site. If you cannot complete an assignment (e.g., a discussion forum post, a paper, a quiz, an exam) by the date indicated, please contact me in advance so that we can discuss possible options. Late work will not be accepted. Because online instruction affords you the opportunity to do course work at times that work best in your schedule, there should be no reason your work is late. Moreover, because the course schedule enables you to know the due dates of all assignments from the onset of the course, you have ample time to prepare for and complete each task. Posting on the discussion board or turning in assignments after they are due, therefore, is not only a problem because you are not participating in our online community, but also it shows poor preparation on your part. Please be aware that quizzes and exams must be completed during the time indicated in the course schedule. ACADEMIC POLICIES By enrolling as a student in this course, you agree to abide by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

7 By enrolling as a student in this course, you agree to abide by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill policies related to the acceptable use of online resources. Please consult the Acceptable Use Policy on topics such as copyright, net etiquette, and privacy protection. As part of this course, you may be asked to participate in online discussions or other online activities that may include personal information about you or other students in the course. Please be respectful of the rights and protection of other participants under the UNC Chapel Hill Information Security Policies when participating in online classes. When using online resources offered by organizations not affiliated with UNC Chapel Hill, such as Google or YouTube, please note that the terms and conditions of these companies and not the University s Terms and Conditions apply. These third parties may offer different degrees of privacy protection and access rights to online content. You should be well aware of this when posting content to sites not managed by UNC Chapel Hill. When links to sites outside of the unc.edu domain are inserted in class discussions, please be mindful that clicking on sites not affiliated with UNC Chapel Hill may pose a risk for your computer due to the possible presence of malware on such sites. Accessibility Needs I will work with the Department of Accessibility Resources & Service to make appropriate accommodations for student with accessibility needs. I will not, however, accept notes from doctors or psychologists for personal conditions, as this is a violation of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPPA). Students with accessibility needs should instead contact the Department of Accessibility Resources & Services who can best protect the privacy of each student and assess proper accommodations for course work. FERPA and Privacy Release The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, or FERPA, protects student information from public disclosure. This includes disclosure of any students academic performance, grades, and personal communications with the instructor with anyone outside of the University, including parents. I will therefore not communicate with your parents unless a Privacy Release has been granted by you, is on file with the University, and is shared with me in advance of any communications. Honor Code The Honor Code is in effect in this class and all others at the University. This means that you are not to plagiarize, cheat, or receive additional assistance on any assignments that you turn in for this course or any others at this university. It also means that you must sign all exams, written work, and other projects with a statement that indicates that you have complied with the requirements of the Honor Code for the work you are submitting, including work submitted online. As a reminder, plagiarism is borrowing another s words, thoughts, and/or ideas without their permission and without giving them proper credit (i.e., without referencing them in a proper citation). Therefore, you must familiarize yourself with the APA citation format and use it properly or risk losing points and potentially failing an assignment. Think of it this way: whenever you borrow someone s words or ideas, you owe them a citation. Do not import words from a resource and claim them as your own. If you do not cite properly, I will notice. Simply put, you are too smart to plagiarize, cheat, or use another person for your own benefit on assignments. However, if you are thinking about any of these actions, please familiarize yourself with the proper University policies (see instrument.unc.edu). If you do any of these actions, your indiscretion will be processed with the Honor Court to the fullest extent possible (see honor.unc.edu). (If you are concerned about plagiarism, you

8 Honor Court to the fullest extent possible (see honor.unc.edu). (If you are concerned about plagiarism, you may wish to take the tutorial on plagiarism developed by librarians at UNC, Duke, NCSU and NCCU.) Additionally, please be aware that downloading, printing out, taking photos with your phone, or copying and disseminating the quizzes or exams from our course site is prohibited and is also considered a violation of the Honor Code. LESSONS Lesson 1 Lesson 2 Lesson 3 Lesson 4 Lesson 5 Lesson 6 Lesson 7 Lesson 8 Lesson 9 Lesson 10 Introduction to Relational Communication Language and the Construction of Reality Communication and Culture The Self and Identity Management Perception Nonverbal Communication Listening Relationships Conflict and Conflict Management Personal and Professional Communication in Everyday Life

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