Communication Studies 102:
Los Angeles Mission College
Spring 2016
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Instructor:
Nune Dervishian
Course:
Office Hours:
MW 12-12:15pm
Course Location:
Voicemail:
818-364-7600 ext.4417
Section:
Email:
Dervisn08@yahoo.com
Course Day/Time:
dervisn@lamission.edu
Important Dates:
Last day to add class in person:
Last day to drop without “W” with refund:
Last day to drop with “W” (letter grade required after this)
Comm. Studies 102
INST. 1012
0219
MW 12:15-1:40
February 19, 2016
February 21, 2016
May 8, 2016
Required Text: “Arguments and Arguing”- Thomas A. Hollihan and Kevin T. Baaske, Waveland
Press, 2016, 3rd Edition.
Course Description and Objectives: This course is an introduction to the advanced phases of
critical thinking, research, and public speaking. The course will also cover comprehension of
structure, evaluation of arguments, researching and presenting evidence, language usage, and
evaluation of fallacious reasoning. The course will focus on persuasive speaking and
argumentation. Adherence to ethics will be stressed in all communication settings. Upon
Completion of this course, students will be able to:
 Develop and enhance public speaking, organizational, research, and writing skills
 Develop and enhance basic rhetorical criticism skills
 Enhance and enrich critical thinking skills
 Reduce tension while public speaking through enhanced self-confidence
Student Learning Outcomes:
At the conclusion of this class, students will be able to:
 Research, write, and deliver a 7 minute persuasive speech, with the use of oral citations
for support and backing
 Distinguish and interpret the rhetorical concepts of logic, fallacies, critical thinking, and
argument.
Classroom Policies:
Attendance: Attendance is a very important part of this class and is required for active
thoughtful class participation. You are expected to attend all class meetings and you are
expected to attend them on time. Each class session will allow students to discuss and
elaborate on material covered in the book in addition to new content. Furthermore, there will be
assignments worth anywhere from 5-10 points during certain class session. The following are
general guidelines regarding attendance and will only change in cases of documented
emergencies.
1. Students who are absent or late will not be able to make up quizzes.
2. Attendance on presentation days is MANDATORY, whether you are presenting or not. If
you miss class during a day you may be called on to present, there will be a whole letter
grade deduction from your speech grade.
3. Missing class after you have completed your presentation while others still need to
present will result in a half grade deduction from your speech grade.
4. According to the 2015-2016 college catalog, “whenever absences in hours exceed the
number of hours the class meets per week, the student may be excluded (dropped)
from the class by the instructor. “ In other words, students can technically be dropped
from the class after only 3 absences.
5. Tardy attendance and leaving the class early will be taken into consideration during final
assessment. Two tardy attendances or leaving early will be considered one absence.
Participation: Participation is a major part of this class and students are encouraged to engage
in meaningful classroom discussion. Students should demonstrate preparation for class
discussions and commitment to full participation in all engagements. Constructive feedback to
other speakers is a responsibility of all class members and entails being honest and helpful in
evaluations, using descriptive rather than prescriptive language, and providing negative
comments with constructive recommendations. The quality and quantity of your participation
may also be used to determine course grades in borderline cases.
Assignment Policy: Assignment due dates will not be negotiated. All assignments are due at
the beginning of the class period on the date indicated. Late assignments WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED. If you will not be in class, it is your responsibility to notify me and to get the
assignments turned in on time. In-class assignments CANNOT be made up in the case of an
absence. All homework assignments must be typed and stapled (only exception is journals).
Reading assignments must be read by the dates indicated on the syllabus. Exceptions can only
be made in the case of documented emergencies.
The Social Contract: Enrolling in this class enters students and instructor in a social contract
and it is the responsibility both to abide by the following:
1. Demonstrate respect for the diverse experiences, cultures and preferences of each
individual. This will help create an environment that is friendly, supportive, safe and nonthreatening.
2. Prepare for class discussions and commitment to the full participation in all
engagements as well as providing sensitive, critical response to the work of others.
3. Due to the nature of this course, a range of sensitive topics and perspectives may be
presented. No limits are placed upon subject matter or extent of questioning however
students are expected to demonstrate taste, tact, and caution with topic and language
choices.
4. DO NOT use electronic devices during this class. Absolutely NO Texting!
5. DO NOT enter or exit the classroom while there is a speech in progress.
Academic Honesty: Academic dishonesty encompasses both cheating and plagiarism.
Cheating includes obtaining or attempting to obtain or aiding another to obtain academic credit
for work by the use of any dishonest, deceptive or fraudulent means. Plagiarism involves
submitting the works of others as your own and includes improper source citation, no source
citation, using materials prepared by another student, and using fictitious sources. You must
clearly distinguish your ideas and words from the work of others. Remember, when in doubt,
cite your source or ask the instructor for assistance. Any student caught cheating or plagiarizing
will receive a failing grade in the course. In addition, a report will be filed with the Dean of
Students for further possible action (including expulsion from the school). Please refer to the
Los Angeles Mission College Schedule of Classes for specific policies regarding academic
honesty.
Students with Special Needs: If you have any health impairments that require medication, or
any other disability that might require special accommodations, please call our campus Special
Services department at 818-364-7734 as soon as possible or notify the instructor.
Assignments:
Speeches: During the semester, students will prepare and present a variety of speeches.
Generally, most of the speeches will require both library research and preparation. You will be
given a detailed prompt for each speech assignment.



Introductory Speech: For this assignment, you are to deliver a speech introducing
yourself. Some of the things you will cover include educational background, career goals
and personal background. (2-3 minutes)
Debate-Type Speech: In this debate type persuasive speech, you will be taking a stance
on a controversial issue and defending your thoughts with sound evidence and credible
sources. (5-6 minutes)
Persuasive Speech: In the persuasive speech, you will be choosing a topic that you feel
is problematic or needs to receive more public attention. You will then explore what the
current problems are and consequently propose a solution/policy that may alleviate
these problems. (7-8 minutes).
Outlines: With each speech, you will be required to turn in a typed full sentence outline. Further
information on specific guidelines for each outline will be provided to students.
Journal Assignments: Throughout the course of the semester, students will complete short inclass or homework assignments worth 5 points each. These assignments must be completed in
a college “blue book” in order to keep everything organized. Students must bring their blue
books to class during every meeting as some of the assignments may be done in class.
Assignments will encourage students to engage in critical thinking and a better understanding of
specific material covered in the course. Students may randomly be called on to share their
responses with the class. The instructor will regularly check that assignments are completed
and will randomly collect blue books.
Quizzes: You will be responsible for reading 11 chapters in the textbook. There will be a 5question quiz on each chapter in order to ensure that students are doing the reading. Quizzes
will consist of multiple choice and true/false questions and will be given the day the reading is
due in the beginning of class.
Exams: There will be two (2) exams covering the lectures, class discussion, textbook readings,
and any additional reading assigned to students. Exams will consist of multiple choice, true/false
and matching questions.
Evaluations: Upon completion of the debate and the persuasive speech, students will be
required to complete a self and peer evaluation of each speech. For the self-evaluations,
students must have a classmate record them while they are presenting in order to get a better
analysis. Evaluations will consist of 5-10 questions and will require short paragraph answers.
Course Requirements
Assignments
Points
Received
Points Possible
Introductory Speech & Outline
Debate Speech
Debate Outline
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Outline
Quizzes
Exam 1
Exam 2
Self and Peer Evaluations
Journal Assignments
*Use this to keep track of your grade
*Subject to change
Tentative Due Date
15
50
30
60
40
55
50
50
20
70
Total: 400
SPRING 2016 SCHEDULE
Week
Date
In-Class Activity/Discussion
Assignments
1
2/8
1
2/10
Course Overview/Syllabus
Informal Introductions/Review Introductory Speech
Introductory Speech
Review Syllabus/Buy Books
Introductory Speech
Chapter 1
2
2/15
NO SCHOOL-COLLEGE CLOSED
2
2/17
Chapter 2
3
2/22
3
2/24
Chapter 1: Argumentation as a Human Symbolic Activity
Quiz 1-Finish Introductory Speech
Chapter 2: The Foundations of Argument
Quiz 2-Watch GOP debate and answer questions
Foundation of Argument-Narrative Paradigm
4
2/29
Chapter 4
4
3/2
Chapter 3: Audiences and Fields of Argument
Quiz 3
Audience Analysis
5
3/7
Chapter 5
5
6
3/9
3/14
6
3/16
Chapter 4: The Language of Argument
Quiz 4
Language
Chapter 5: Argumentation and Critical Thinking
Quiz 5
Argumentation and Critical Thinking
7
7
3/21
3/23
Midterm Exam
Chapter 6: Types of Arguments
Quiz 6
Chapter 6
Chapter 3
Study for Midterm
8
8
3/28
3/30
9
9
10
4/4
4/6
4/11
10
11
4/13
4/18
11
12
4/20
4/25
12
13
4/27
5/2
13
14
14
15
5/4
5/9
5/11
5/16
15
16
16
17
17
18
5/18
5/23
5/25
5/30
6/1
6/6
Argument-Who’s Responsible
Chapter 7: The Grounds for Argument
Quiz 7
SPRING BREAK
SPRING BREAK
Chapter 8: Building Arguments
Quiz 8-Discuss Debate Speech
Library Visit
Chapter 9: Refuting Arguments
Quiz 9
Argument Analysis
Chapter 10: Visual Argument
Quiz 10
Visual Arguments in Media
Final Exam
Discuss Persuasive Speech
Debate
Debate
Debate
Ch. 14: Argumentation and the Law
Quiz 11
Persuasive Rough Draft Outlines
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Speech
MEMORIAL DAY-COLLEGE CLOSED
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Speech-Meeting Time-12:30-2:30pm
*Note-Schedule is subject to change
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Study for Final
Debate Speech and Outline
Debate Speech
Debate Speech
Persuasive Speech/Outline
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Speech
Persuasive Speech
DONE!