Graduate Curriculum Committee Course Proposal Form
for Courses Numbered 5000 and Higher
Note: Before completing this form, please carefully read the accompanying instructions.
Submission guidelines are posted to the GCC Web site: http://www.ecu.edu/cs-acad/gcc/index.cfm
1. Course prefix and number:
ENGL 8300
2. Date:
10/16/2012
3. Requested action:
X
New Course
Revision of Active Course
Revision & Unbanking of a Banked Course
Renumbering of an Existing Course from
from
to
#
X
Required
#
Elective
4. Method(s) of delivery (check all boxes that apply for both current/proposed and expected
future delivery methods within the next three years):
Current or
Proposed Delivery
Method(s):
X
Expected
Future Delivery
Method(s):
On-campus (face to face)
X
Distance Course (face to face off campus)
Online (delivery of 50% or more of the instruction is offered online)
5. Justification. Identify the committee or group (e.g., Graduate faculty of the Department of
English) that conducted the assessment of curriculum and student learning. Explain why the
unit wishes to offer or revise the course. Include specific results from the unit assessment that
led to the development or modification of the course. If applicable, cite any accrediting
agency/ies and reference the specific standard/s.
After a comprehensive review of the curriculum and required courses in the PhD
program, along with assessment data related to the placement of graduates and the
program's applicant pool, the graduate faculty involved in the PhD program determined
the need to revise several of the program's required courses and create several new
courses that would make us competitive and in alignment with other PhD programs
similar to our own.
This new course is part of curriculum revisions that specifically provide students with
depth and research practice related to professionalization. This course will immerse
students into doctoral study and the research environment with a focus on identifying
relevant issues in the program’s related fields, developing national and international
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
research agendas, and understanding processes of professionalization. Students would
take this course in the first year of their program.
The Doctoral Program Steering Committee, the Graduate Committee, and the Graduate
Faculty approved this course on November 25, 2012 and December 3, 2012.
6. Course description exactly as it should appear in the next catalog:
8300. Seminar in Professional Development (3) P: Admission to the PhD program or
consent of program director. Study and discussion of issues relevant to national and
international research and professionalization in rhetoric, writing, and professional
communication.
7. If this is a course revision, briefly describe the requested change:
8. Course credit:
Lecture Hours
3
3
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
Lab
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Studio
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Practicum
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Internship
Weekly
OR
Per Term
Credit Hours
s.h.
Other (e.g., independent study) Please explain.
s.h.
3
Total Credit Hours
9. Anticipated annual student enrollment:
8-10
10. Changes in degree hours of your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
N/A
N/A
11. Affected degrees or academic programs, other than your programs:
Degree(s)/Program(s)
Changes in Degree Hours
N/A
N/A
12. Overlapping or duplication with affected units or programs:
X Not applicable
Documentation of notification to the affected academic degree programs is
attached.
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
s.h.
s.h.
13. Council for Teacher Education (CTE) approval (for courses affecting teacher education):
X Not applicable
Applicable and CTE has given their approval.
14. University Service-Learning Committee (USLC) approval:
X Not applicable
Applicable and USLC has given their approval.
15. Statements of support:
a. Staff
X Current staff is adequate
Additional staff is needed (describe needs in the box below):
b. Facilities
X Current facilities are adequate
Additional facilities are needed (describe needs in the box below):
c. Library
X
Initial library resources are adequate
Initial resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief explanation and an
estimate for the cost of acquisition of required initial resources):
d. Unit computer resources
X
Unit computer resources are adequate
Additional unit computer resources are needed (in the box below, give a brief
explanation and an estimate for the cost of acquisition):
e. ITCS resources
X
ITCS resources are not needed
The following ITCS resources are needed (put a check beside each need):
Mainframe computer system
Statistical services
Network connections
Computer lab for students
Software
Approval from the Director of ITCS attached
16. Course information (see: Graduate Curriculum and Program Development Manual for
instructions):
a. Textbook(s) and/or readings: author(s), name, publication date, publisher, and
city/state/country. Include ISBN (when applicable).
Clark, Irene L. 2006. Writing the Successful Thesis and Dissertation: Entering the
Conversation. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice Hall. ISBN-13: 9780131735330
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
Recent and relevant literature selected by instructor and students from professional
journals including but not limited to:
Business Communication Quarterly
College Composition and Communication
College English
Computers and Composition
Critical Discourse Studies
Discourse & Society
English for Specific Purposes
IEEE transactions on Professional Communication (IEEE-PCS)
Information Design
Journal of Advanced Composition (JAC)
Journal of Business and Technical Communication (JBTC)
Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (JTWC)
Rhetoric Review
Rhetoric Society Quarterly (RSQ)
Technical Communication (TC publication of the STC)
Technical Communication Quarterly (TCQ publication of ATTW)
Writing Program Administration
Written Communication
WAC Clearing House
b. Course objectives for the course (student – centered, behavioral focus)
If this is a 5000-level course that is populated by undergraduate and graduate students,
there must be differentiation in the learning objectives expected.
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to:
1. Identify significant issues in related fields (technical and professional
communication and pedagogy, rhetoric and composition and pedagogy, textual
production and cultures).
2. Identify and assess professional organizations and publication venues (journals,
edited collections, conferences) in related fields.
3. Identify and develop effective research questions.
4. Organize a template and/or digital tools for a systematic review of literature
focused on their research interest area.
5. Demonstrate the ability to locate relevant literature.
6. Locate appropriate resources for research funding.
7. Design strategies necessary to develop a research agenda in their fields.
8. Develop a template and maintenance plan for CV or professional resume.
9. Prepare draft conference proposals for appropriate conferences.
10. Develop a plan of study for the remainder of their degree program.
11. Articulate expectations for PhD-level academic work.
c. Course topic outline
The list of topics should reflect the stated objectives.
Unit 1: Beginning work as a PhD student: Expectations for Doctoral students and goals
of the program.
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012
Unit 2: Developing a plan of study.
Unit 3: Review of issues in the fields related to the degree program (technical and
professional communication and pedagogy, rhetoric and composition and pedagogy,
textual production and cultures).
Unit 4: Advanced techniques for locating, identifying, and reviewing research
literature.
Unit 5: Analyzing research literature and professional genres. Reviewing research
models.
Unit 6: Models and strategies for linking research and teaching, workplace research,
and research in the public sphere.
Unit 7: The roles of teaching, research, outreach, engagement, and service.
Unit 8: Anatomy of a call for papers.
Unit 9: Responding to calls for presentation proposals for conferences.
Unit 10: Goals and Plans, MLA Job Information List
d. List of course assignments, weighting of each assignment, and grading/evaluation system
for determining a grade
Assignments
Participation, Discussion, contributions to reading selections
20%
Draft Statement of Research Interest (incl. annotated bib)
20%
Draft Conference Proposal (incl. annotated bib)
20%
Reading Response Journal
20%
Professional Development Packet
20%
(includes current resume, draft CV, IRB
module certificate of completion, teaching philosophy draft)
Grading Scale
A = 90 – 100
B = 80 – 89
C = 70 – 79
F = 69 or lower
Approved by GCC April 2012; posted summer of 2012