ENGL 420Y Business Writing Online
CRN: 43516
Contents
Course Infomation
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Required Textbook
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Course Oveview
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Don Unger
fall 2014
Course Projects
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Office: HEAV 210
ungerd@purdue.edu
Participation
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Grades
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Face-to-face Office Hours:
Tues 8-9:00 am & Wed. 10:30-11:30 am
Blackboard Learn Office Hours:
Sundays 6-7:00 pm
Other Requirements 5
Calendar
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Course Information
Required Textbook
Kolin, Philip C. Successful Writng at Work, 4th edition.
Course Overview
In English 420, students learn the rhetorical principles and composing
practices necessary for executing ethical, collaborative projects in professional
contexts using contemporary technologies, including design software and
social-media applications. Current research in rhetoric and professional
writing influence this curriculum, and composing practices used by businesses,
community organizations, and academic disciplines inform the assignments.
All sections of English 420 are offered in networked computer classrooms or
exclusively online to ensure that students taking the course are prepared for
the writing environments of the 21st-century workplace.
Course Projects
Project 1: Designing Professional Identities
For this project you develop professional portfolios. These portfolios include
cover letters and resumes, as well as background materials that will help you
demonstrate your qualifications to a particular employer. While you may have
discussed and developed similar materials in other classes, this project
addresses how to approach the job market systematically and rhetorically.
Furthermore, we will move beyond the documents that comprise a professional
portfolio and include discussions of and practice with interviews.
If you have any
questions or concerns
about the syllabus,
please contact me
immediately:
ungerd@purdue.edu
I’ve broken the project down into 5 steps. In step 1, you learn about and use
various web-based resources for job seekers and select one job or internship
to pursue in this project. At the end of step 1, you will create an employer
backgrounder aimed at guiding the construction of your documents. For steps
2-4, you prepare a self-assessment memo, the all-important cover letter, and
a resume specifically designed for the job or internship you selected. For step
5, you conduct mock interviews via Skype or Google Hangouts. In the
process of completing each step, you will work closely with your peers and me
to shape your writing so that it represents your experience effectively.
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Project 2: Changes in Business Practices & Communication
Project 2 introduces you to business communication practices in
various workplaces and addresses ongoing debates about the role that
technology plays in shaping professional contexts. Course eadings draw
from two main sources, our textbook and a sample of readings taken
from popular books and magazines, academic journals, and websites.
These supplemental readings will be posted to the course site.
For Project 2, each of you will conduct field, library, and web research
in order to create a white paper. The white paper is a common report
genre in the professional world. White papers are used in business,
industrial, and governmental contexts to sum up the gist of what’s
known about a subject. Hence, the white paper is commonly referred to
as a backgrounder. Your white paper will examine how technological
innovations impact professional communication practices in your field
of study. Your research will begin with a face-to-face or online interview
with a professional in your field regarding recent technological changes
that shape his or her day-to-day work. You might also choose a topic
based on personal experiences and observations made during an
internship. Have you observed how the implementation of a new
technology changes communication practices at your job or in an
internship?
Project 3: Marketing & Advertising Project
For Project 3, you will work in production teams to develop a
marketing plan for a fictional business. (Details regarding this business
will be provided at the outset of the project.) Your marketing plan will
include an overall advertising strategy, as well as examples of various
forms advertising that reflect your strategy (e.g., a print ad, examples
of online advertising, etc.). At the end of the project, your marketing
plans are judged by a panel of professors and instructors from the
Professional Writing program. This panel represents the client. The
production team with the most comprehensive and well-developed plan
wins the contract from the client, and that team will receive an “A” for
the project. Readings for this project help you develop effective
advertising, but they also explore the ways that technological
innovations have changed advertising strategies and methods.
Participation
This portion of your grade will be based on:
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weekly quizzes.
weekly reading responses and comments.
the degree to which your comments offer insightful feedback.
the degree to which your comments engage with the course content.
completing quizzes and comments on time.
Quizzes
Each week I will post a short quiz pertaining to the readings. Coupled
with your reading responses and comments described below, these
quizzes ask you to demonstrate that you’ve done the readings and
considered how the information presented relates to the the course
theme and/or our ongoing projects.
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Reading Responses
Although we will have multiple readings each week, you are
responsible for writing one 150-word discussion post to the course
Blackboard Learn site. Each week I will post a response prompt to help
generate discussion. Still, there are a few common tactics for
composing these reading responses: (1) your post might synthesize
the readings by comparing and contrasting their contents, (2) your
post might address relevant personal experiences that extend or
complicate concepts raised by the readings, and (3) your post might
offer an example that illustrates a concept from the reading and
discusses an example. Remember, you must post a reading response
each week over the course of the semester (weeks 1-15).
Replies to Your Peers
In addition to your weekly post, you are required to write a total of
three comments to colleagues’ posts each week. Obviously,
additional discussion is encouraged and has an impact on your overall
participation grade. (However, make sure that your posts are
meaningful and that they extend discussion. Posts that simply
reiterate a comment from another student do not count.) All comments
and replies should follow effective rhetorical strategies for networking
with others on the web:
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Keep discussion alive and relevant. Did something mentioned by the
author complicate or contradict your ideas about the reading? How so?
Did the author’s post remind you of a personal experience on the job
or in an internship? Describe that experience.
No trolling or flaming.
Refrain from the “I agree” posts. They will not count toward your
participation grade.
Think of your comments and replies as part of a lively class discussion
in which everyone participates.
Remember to keep up with your posts and comments throughout the
course. You do not want to fall behind. However, you may work ahead.
A Note about the Online Version of the Course: Each student should be
responsible and flexible in completing each week’s work since you have
some, but not complete, freedom to work at your own pace. (You may
work ahead; do not get behind.)
The course Blackboard Learn site is broken down into four modules
centered around the course introduction (Week 1) and the three major
projects. Here are some guidelines to help you understand how selfpacing works in the online version of this course:
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You may work ahead on quizzes and reading responses within the
current project.
In group work, each student must maintain contact with other group
members. Check your email daily, and use your course group space
effectively.
Quizzes, reading responses, and comments must be submitted weekly.
The requirement is that you submit one reading response per week and
that you write only three (3) follow-up responses per week to forum
posts submitted by your peers. Everything must be posted by 5 pm on
Sunday the week that it’s due.
In Project 3, memos must be submitted weekly. We will discuss these
memos at the beginning of the project.
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Grades
Project 1: Professional Portfolio
Project 2: White Paper
Project 3: Marketing Project
Participation
Total
100
100
100
100
400
points
points
points
points
points
The three major projects in the course will be comprised of
several components, each of which will be worth a portion of your
final grade.
All major assignments will be graded on the standard plus-minus
letter-grade scale:
A=94-100, A-=93-90, B+=89-87, B=86-84, B-=83-80, C+=79-77,
C=76-74, C-=73-70, D+=69-67, D=66-64, D-=63-60, F=59 or
below.
Students must participate in all of the three major projects and
complete a majority of the required posting assignments in order to
pass this class. Students with questions about final grades should
review university policies regarding grade appeals, which are
outlined by university regulations:
http://www.purdue.edu/univregs/pages/stu_conduct/stu_regulations.html
Other Requirements
Technology Requirements
In order to participate fully in the course, you should already be
able to use the applications listed below.
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Mac OS X or Windows Operating Systems
Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel) or Apple counterparts
(Pages, Keynote, Numbers)
Web Browser (e.g., Firefox, Safari, or Internet Explorer 8)
Email Program (e.g., Purdue Webmail, Gmail, etc.)
Adobe Acrobat Reader or Preview (for PDF documents)
Skype or Google Hangouts
Technology Responsibilities
Familiarity with certain technologies is crucial for success in the
course. If you need any assistance now or at any point during the
semester, please do not hesitate to ask.
During the semester, you’ll need regular access to the Internet and
email. Because the course Blackboard Learn site is the main locus
of the class community, you are responsible for reading and
keeping current with all content posted there, including what your
fellow students and I have submitted. You’ll be responsible for
configuring your system to access course materials, to read course
email and participate in online discussions, and to submit your
work.
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Over the course of the semester, you will be asked to demonstrate that
you can meet these responsibilities:
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Becoming proficient sending and receiving email attachments,
resolving file compatibility issues, and following professional email
decorum.
Becoming proficient participating in the class Blackboard Learn space.
Becoming more proficient with unfamiliar composing technologies and
applications, including various web-based, desktop publishing, and
graphic design applications.
Maintaining back-up copies of all assignments via your home directory,
portable storage devices (e.g., USB drives), or various cloud storage
spaces (e.g., DropBox).
IMPORTANT: If at any time you have problems accessing the Internet
from home, you’ll need to find a public lab or connection point.
Problems with computers will not be an excuse for falling behind or
failing to complete required assignments. If your Internet service goes
down, find another connection point. If your computer breaks, use
another one. In other words, find a way to complete the assignments
on time. Because computer problems are a fact of life, always work to
complete your assignments early and make frequent backups to
multiple storage devices.
Collaborative Work
Teamwork is a required component of the course. You and your
production team members are responsible for updating one another
and me about assignment development and progress. In addition, you
also are responsible for negotiating all aspects of your work together,
including planning, drafting, revising, file managing, and delegating
assignments. When a collaborative project is assigned, you will receive
explicit guidelines for successful collaboration, and you will complete
Team Evaluation Forms to address one another’s progress.
Attendance
Since this is an online course, your attendance at a physical location is
not required. However, you will need to demonstrate active
involvement in the course activities by keeping up with reading
responses and other coursework. You will also need to respond to
course email promptly to ensure that good communication flows in all
directions. More than three continuous days absent from course
activities (not counting weekends) is grounds for failure of the class.
Also, if you disappear for a day or two here, another day or two there,
and some more later, then your final grade may be lowered, and you
will likely see your class participation suffer and your collaboration fail.
In addition, if you are frequently “absent” from the online
discussions, your final grade will be lowered.
IMPORTANT: Lack of access to a computer with a working Internet
connection is not an acceptable excuse for not participating in class
activities and completing major projects. If your computer and/or
Internet connection doesn’t work, find a different computer to use. If
your plans for this semester involve being away from a computer with
an Internet connection for more than a few days, I would strongly
recommend dropping the course.
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Academic Integrity
Purdue students and their instructors are expected to adhere to
guidelines set forth by the Dean of Students in “Academic Integrity:
A Guide for Students,” which students are encouraged to read here:
http://www.purdue.edu/odos/osrr/academicintegritybrochure.php
The preamble of this guide states the following: “Purdue University
values intellectual integrity and the highest standards of academic
conduct. To be prepared to meet societal needs as leaders and role
models, students must be educated in an ethical learning environment that promotes a high standard of honor in scholastic work.
Academic dishonesty undermines institutional integrity and threatens the academic fabric of Purdue University. Dishonesty is not an
acceptable avenue to success. It diminishes the quality of a Purdue
education, which is valued because of Purdue’s high academic standards.”
Academic dishonesty is defined as follows: “Purdue prohibits “dishonesty in connection with any University activity. Cheating, plagiarism, or knowingly furnishing false information to the University are
examples of dishonesty.” [University Regulations, Part V, Section III,
B, 2, a] Furthermore, the University Senate has stipulated that “the
commitment of acts of cheating, lying, and deceit in any of their diverse forms (such as the use of substitutes for taking examinations,
the use of illegal cribs, plagiarism, and copying during examinations) is dishonest and must not be tolerated. Moreover, knowingly
to aid and abet, directly or indirectly, other parties in committing
dishonest acts is in itself dishonest.” [University Senate Document
72-18, December 15, 1972]
If you have any questions about this policy, please ask.
IMPORTANT: I will assign a grade of F (zero) to written work that
violates this policy, and reserve the right to fail policy violators for
the course. I also reserve the right to initiate proceedings with the
Dean of Students, for particularly egregious cases of academic dishonesty. If you have any questions about this policy, please ask!
In Case of a Campus Emergency
In the event of a major campus emergency, course requirements,
deadlines and grading percentages are subject to changes that
may be necessitated by a revised semester calendar or other circumstances. You can acquire updated information from the course
website, by emailing me, or by contacting me through the English
Department at 765-494-3740.
Late Work
I will stick closely to the course calendar. It is important that you
keep up. When possible, you may certainly complete assignments
early, but you must complete them on time. Much of what you do
for this class quickly leads to another assignment. And, often, your
postings and comments are part of a larger discussion that will not
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wait for you. It will also be difficult for you to do your part in group
projects if you miss assigned deadlines. Thus, the majority of missed
class assignments cannot be made up. If a serious and unavoidable
problem arises, however, you should contact me by email prior to the
deadline to determine whether or not an extension for the work will or
will not be granted. Late work will rarely, if ever, be accepted without
prior approval.
Calendar
Intro
Project 1
Project 2
Project 3
Week 1: 8.25-31
Week 2: 9.1-7
Week 3: 9.8-14
Week 4: 9.15-21
Week 5: 9.22-28
Week 6: 9.29-10.5
Week 7: 10.6-12
Week 8: 10.13-19
Week 9: 10.20-26
Week 10: 10.27-11.2
Week 11: 11.3-9
Week 12: 11.10-16
Week 13: 11.17-23
Week 14: 11.24-30
Week 15: 12.1-7
Week 16: 12.8-14
Finals Week: 12.15-20
Week of Labor Day
Project 1 due by 5 pm on Sunday, Oct. 5
Week of October Break
Project 2 due by 5 pm on Sunday, Nov. 9
Week of Thanksgiving Break
Project 3 Due by 5 pm on Sunday, Dec. 21
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