Matthew Jackson Weiss
  Rhetoric and Composition, The Pennsylvania State University

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  Sample Syllabus 202D

D: Business Writing in a Digital Age

Spring 2007                                                                                         Matt Weiss
Section: 033                                                                                        106 Burrowes Building
309 Sparks                                                                                          mjw321@psu.edu
MWF 12:20-1:10                                                                                Office Hours: M 1:30-2:30,
                                                                                                            Th 11-12, After Class, and
                                                                                                            By Appointment.                                                         
Course Description
The purpose of English 202D is to prepare you for the various writing tasks you will be asked to perform in your post-college professional life.  Over the course of this semester you will develop or enhance skills necessary for success in any profession: written and oral communication skills, analytical and critical thinking skills, and the ability to work both independently and in collaboration with others.  We will discuss some of the rhetorical situations you will likely face in professional contexts, and attempt to apply everything we discuss to realistic, relevant circumstances.
 
Required Texts and Materials
            - Kolin, Philip. Successful Writing at Work. (SW)
            - Lanham, Richard. Revising Business Prose. (RB)
            - PDF Articles available online
            - ANGEL’s course message board
            - Photocopies for peer reviews
 
Course Projects
            - Employment 2.0 Project
            - Educational Podcasting Project
            - Re/Vision Project
 
The Employment 2.0 Project tackles the rhetorical situation of a job search. From the initial phase of seeking a job to the employer’s assessment of a candidate’s suitability, this project asks you to engage with the texts involved in any employment situation. The assignment requires you to locate a job for which you are qualified and apply for it. You will also be asked to assess the appropriate fit of another student’s application for his/her chosen job, constructing an assessment memo that provides your reasoning.
 
The Educational Podcasting Project is a collaborative project that asks you to make recommendations about the educational use of podcasting for Penn State courses. Together with two other students, you will research the “best practices” of educational podcasting, as well as related issues raised by educational experts. Your group will also conduct a case study of Penn State’s pilot podcasting program, researching how instructors are currently using podcasts in support of their courses. The final project will be written as a white paper that makes recommendations to ITS for more effective integration of educational podcasting at Penn State. Your group will update relevant research and progress at least once a week on the message board.
 
The Re/Vision Project asks you to research current campus organizations with a web-presence. You will focus on one organization that has a somewhat ineffective rhetorical presence, and you will propose a redesigned web-presence that helps the organization to achieve its online rhetorical aims (including general information, recruitment, or other goals). Finally, you will deliver a five-minute presentation on the improved design you propose. You will update your research and progress at least once a week on the message board.
 
Grades
           Online and in-class participation-----25%      
            Employment 2.0 Project------------25%
            Educational Podcasting Project-----25%
            Re/Vision Project-------------------25%
 
A Note on Grading: Given that each project has multiple parts, I may use a check system (rather than the 4.0 scale) for individual sections of a particular project, depending on the assignment itself.  Thus you may receive either a √- (inadequate/poor), √ (adequate, good), or a √+ (more than adequate, above average) on a particular memo or presentation.  Each of the three projects will be graded as a whole rather than as an average of the parts.  The check marks will give you a sense of your progress, while allowing me to grade the project as a whole rather than simply the sum of its parts.
 
General Requirements
 
Regular attendance is required.  Please come to every class.  The course depends upon your active participation, especially during classes involving group work or workshops.  I allow three (3) unexcused absences.  Excused absences are appropriate, and will count as only half (.5) of an absence (if you have notified me ahead of time), but beyond that let me repeat University policy (Policies and Rules, 42-27):  A student whose absences are excessive “may run the risk of receiving a lower grade or a failing grade,” whether or not some of those absences are “excused.”  Put simply, even if you have good reasons for all of your absences, after you miss a certain number your grade begins to suffer.  If you do miss a class, then it is your responsibility to learn about upcoming assignments, complete your work, and submit any papers that might be due.  If for any reason you are not in class, it is YOUR responsibility to contact a classmate and get notes for the class you missed, and any lapse in your work as a result of your absence will not be excused.
 
Attendance counts as a portion of your participation grade.  It is only a portion, however: this class requires your active participation in class discussions.  I will try my utmost to make our classroom a safe space, a place in which we can take risks, try out ideas, and not be afraid of giving the wrong answer.  In return, I ask that you do your best to speak up when you have something to contribute, allow (and even encourage) the participation of your classmates, and come to class prepared with some ideas of things you want to say.  As long as you are trying to contribute to the progress of the class, and have done the work necessary to have an informed opinion, you will have fulfilled your participation obligation in my eyes.

 
Academic Integrity
 
Penn State defines academic integrity as the pursuit of scholarly activity in an open, honest and responsible manner.  All students should act with personal integrity, respect other students’ dignity, rights and property, and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their efforts (Faculty Senate Policy 49-20).
 
We will be discussing what plagiarism is, and its significance to business writing, at several points throughout the semester.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions about this (admittedly complex) topic, or related issues such as group-work strategies or the ethics of business writing generally.  While we discuss these issues, however, you should strive to be conscious of how they apply to your own writing as well.  Ignorance is, unfortunately, not an excuse.  Therefore, a warning: If you are caught engaging in academic dishonesty, you risk failing the assignment and even the course.  You may also be referred to the College Committee on Academic Integrity, which may recommend academic probation, suspension, or expulsion for academic dishonesty.
 
Reminder
 
The Pennsylvania State University encourages qualified people with disabilities to participate in its programs and activities and is committed to the policy that all people shall have equal access to programs, facilities, and admissions without regard to personal characteristics not related to ability, performance, or qualifications as determined by University policy or by state or federal authorities.  If you anticipate needing any type of accommodation in this course or have questions about physical access, then please tell the instructor as soon as possible.
 
Tentative Schedule
Important Note: Assignments are NOT listed when they are DUE.  They are instead listed according to when they will be assigned in class.  Also: This syllabus is subject to revision as I see fit.
 
Week 1 - Introduction to course
1/17 W: First day of class, logistics
 
1/19 F:  Introduction to Business Writing/Employment 2.0
Assignment: Read “Ethos and Error: How Business People React to Errors”
(Beason)
 
Week 2 - Rhetorical performances and ethos
1/22 M: Discuss ““Ethos and Error: How Business People React to Errors” (Beason)
            Assignment: Read Successful Writing At Work (SW) 61-69
 
1/24 W: Discuss SW 61-69
Assignment: Rhetorical email assignment (post on ANGEL).
 
1/26 F:  Mini-workshop on rhetorical email assignment.
Assignment: Read SW chapters 4-5. Dream job scavenger hunt (post findings on ANGEL).
 
Week 3 – Building a rhetorical persona
1/29 M: Discuss SW chapter 4. Discuss Employment 2.0 project.
Assignment: Research additional career resources (post findings on ANGEL). Resume inventory.
 
1/31 W: Discuss SW chapter 5.
Assignment: Begin drafting resume.
 
2/2 F:  Resume examples: the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Assignment: Finish drafting resume. Begin drafting cover letter.
 
Week 4 - Employment 2.0 project workshops
                       
2/5 M: Workshop resume (bring enough photocopies for all students).
Assignment: Finish drafting cover letter. Read Revising Business Prose (RB) chapter 1.
 
2/7-9 W-F: Workshop cover letter (bring enough photocopies for all students)
Assignment: Read SW chapter 3. Read RB chapter 3. Complete letter and resume.
 
Week 5 - Employment 2.0 project workshops (Reading Rhetorically and assessing others)
 
2/12 M: Discuss SW chapter 3
 
2/14 W: Discuss RB chapter 3. Discuss assessment writing.
Assignment: Exchange employment letter and resume with one other student. Draft assessment memo.
 
2/16 F: Workshop assessment memo (bring enough photocopies for three other students)
Assignment: Complete assessment memo. Read collected materials on     podcasting. Post “talking points” on ANGEL.
 
Week 6 – Conducting investigation and research. Educational podcasting project
2/19 M: Discuss talking points. Discuss podcasting project.
Assignment: Read documentation on PSU podcast pilot program. Post “talking points” on ANGEL.
 
2/21 W: Discuss PSU podcasting pilot program. Discuss strategy with group.
Assignment: Read SW chapter 8.
                       
                        2/23 F: Discuss SW chapter 8
Assignment: Conduct research with group. 
 
Week 7 – Proposing research. Educational podcasting project
 
2/26 M: Rhetorical Analysis of research
Assignment: Begin drafting research findings and proposal with group. Read SW
chapter 9
 
2/28 W: Continue Rhetorical Analysis and Drafting
                       
3/2 F: Discuss SW chapter 9
Assignment: Complete one-page proposal.  
 
Week 8 - Educational podcasting project
3/5 M: Peer review of proposals (bring enough photocopies for all students).
 
3/7 W: Continue peer review. 
Assignment: Read selection from Naked Conversations
(Scoble). Read selections from blog discussions.
 
3/9 F: Discuss Scoble and blog discussions.
Assignment: Draft White Paper.  Read RB chapter 2
 
SPRING BREAK: NO CLASS 3/12—3/16
 
Week 9 - Getting the word out. Workshop.
3/19 M:   Discuss RB chapter 2
 
3/21 W: ***NO CLASS***
 
3/23 F:  ***NO CLASS***
 
Week 10 - Visual rhetoric. Re/Vision project.
 
3/26 M: Workshop white paper (bring enough photocopies for all students).
 
3/28 W: Workshop white paper (bring enough photocopies for all students).
 
3/30 F: Discuss re/vision project. Examples of visual design.  Discuss RB chapter 2.
Assignment: Read visual design guide.
 
Week 11 - Design and Re/Vision project
 
4/2 M:  Discuss Analysis and Visual Design. 
Assignment: Research student organization sites.  Find
and describe prospect for re-design (post to ANGEL).  Also: Read Visual
Rhetoric tutorial.
 
4/4 W: Discuss
Assignment: Read SW chapter 6 and design tutorial.
 
4/6 F: Discuss proposals and design tutorial
Assignment: Work on re-design project. Read SW chapter 10
 
Week 12 - Peer review. Re/Vision project.
4/9 M: Discuss SW chapter 10
Assignment: Read selection from The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint (Tufte). Read “The Gettysburg PowerPoint Presentation” (online).
 
4/11 W: Discuss Cognitive Style of PowerPoint (Tufte)
Assignment: Work on re-design project.
 
4/13 F: Peer review of project (bring copies for three other students).
Assignment: Read “Storytelling in Organizations: The power and traps of using stories to share knowledge in organizations” (Sole and Wilson)
 
Week 13 - Planning presentation. Assessing performances.
 
4/16 M: Discuss “Storytelling in Organization”
Assignment: Read selection, “Listening to Speeches”
 
4/18 W: Discuss “Listening to Speeches.”
 
4/20 F: Peer trial run of presentation.
Assignment: Complete presentations
 
Week 14 - Re/Vision presentations.
 
Week 15 - Re/Vision presentations.
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