First Four-Week Summer Session 1999 (Section 002)

JT 301
Business Communication

General Information | Course Requirements and Grading
Calendar | Assignments | Online Resources

General Information

Instructor: Kirk Hallahan, Ph.D. Office: C-218 Clark. Telephone: 970/491-3963. FAX: 970/491-2908. e-mail: hallahan@lamar.colostate.edu. Hours: Immediately after class, or by appointment.

Objectives: This course focuses on effective written communication within organizations. The course will:

• Examine communication processes in professional organizations
• Introduce a variety of ways to solve communication challenges
• Help students improve writing skills.

Textbook: Philip. C. Kolin, Successful Writing at Work, 5/e. Houghton Mifflin, 1998.

Course Packet: Required course packet is available for purchase at Copy Rite, Lower Level, Lory Student Center. Students should purchase the packet on Monday, May 17 and bring it to class on Tuesday, May 18.

Daily Routine: We will meet for the full two hours every day and will take a 10-minute break around 9:40 a.m. Class sessions will include a combination of quizzes on assigned readings, reviews of assignments, lectures and in-class exercises. Be prepared to be an active participant in class. On certain days, students or student groups will review and/or critique assignments of others. Please bring the textbook and course packet to class every day.

Course Requirements

Grading: Students will complete seven out-of-class writing assignments, a mid-term exam, and a final exam. In addition, students can expect to complete several out-of-class assignments in which they are asked to locate materials or other information. Completion of these assignments, along with attendance and assignments to be completed in class, will count toward the student's course participation. Plus/minus grading applies; possible course grades are: A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D or F.

Grades will be assigned based on the following weights:

• Homework assignments (7) -- 70 points (10 each)
• Mid-term -- 10 points
• Final -- 10 points
• Participation and Attendance -- 10 points

Calendar

Day	Topic	Reading Due (Chapter)	Assignment Due (Details Below)
Week One	Correspondence
M May 17	Introduction	.
T May 18	Routine Memos	Read 1 Skim2
W May 19	Routine Letters	4, 5
R May 20	Nonroutine Letters	6	#1--Memos/Letter Package
F May 21	More on Letters Collaborative Writing	3
Week Two	Employment Communications
M May 24	Resumes	7
T May 25	Job Search Letters	.	#2--Non-routine Letters
W May 26	Employment Communications/ Improving Communications	12
F May 28	Proposals	15	#3 Cover Letter/Resume
R May 27	Mid-term Exam/Proposals	.
Week Three	Specialized Management Writing
M May 31	Memorial Day--No Class	.
T June 1	Reports	16, 17
W June 2	Summaries and Abstracts	11	#4--Proposal
R June 3	Visual Communication	13
F June 4	Instructions	14	#5--Report
Week Four	Promotional Communications
M June 8	Sales Letters	6: pp.181-196
T June 9	News Releases	8: pp.284-293	#6--Instructions
W June 10	Advertising, Brochures, Newsletters	8: pp.296-314
R June 11	Interactive Media	9: pp.347-358	#7--Fact Sheet, Sales Letter and News Release
F June 12	Final Exam	.

.

Workload: Students should plan to spend a minimum of two hours on course work each day. This includes reading assigned chapters as well as writing assignments. Students should plan to write the equivalent of a short assignment every day, although these will be turned in "packages" to facilitate grading (and eliminate the drudgery of a written assignment due every day).

Online Resources

• Common Errors in English -- Searchable guide to problems of spelling, grammar, usage, etc. by a Washington State University professor.
• Dictionaries and Theasauruses -- Online access to various reference books (through University of Texas)
• The Elements of Style -- Online version of the popular recommended guide.
• CSU's Online Writing Center -- CSU's own online resource for help within writing and editing.
• Purdue's Online Writing Center -- Another useful access point to references on writing and editing.

Grades: Final grades for the course will be posted on the instructor's office door on or around Thursday, June 17. Grades are not submitted to the Registrar (and thus will not reflected on official transcripts) until the conclusion of the Summer Session in mid -August. Students who wish to receive a grade report by mail can provide the instructor with a stamped, self-addressed envelope on the last class day.

Assignments

Papers will be graded based upon a) how well the paper meets the criteria for the assignment, b) presentation form and appearance, c) organization and structure, d) writing style and quality of writing and e) mechanics. Please note: Mechanics count! Students can lose points on assignments for errors in punctuation, spelling, grammar and proper English usage. Misspelled names and other factual errors can be penalized more heavily.

Nobody wants to hire a dishonest employee. Do you own work. University regulations pertaining to plagiarism and intellectual dishonesty will be strictly enforced. See the CSU Code of Student Conduct. Papers are due at the beginning of class. Late assignments will be docked one point (10%) if turned in later in the day and two points (20%) on the next class day, but won't be accepted thereafter.

The following are details of the assignments listed above. Page numbers refer to equivalent assignments in the Kolin text.

1. Memo and Letters Package (p. 133 #1d and p. 220, #1 and #2). Three items:
   • Write a memo to your employer saying that you will be out of town two days next week and three days the following week because you are attending a meeting of a professional society in your field. Provide additional details about the trip and conferen ce as needed.
   • Write a letter in which you order merchandise from a vendor's or wholesaler's catalog. Specify the quanity, size, stock number and cost. Also include delivery instructions, the date by which you must receive the merchandise, and the way in which you will pay for it.
   • Write a letter of inquiry to a utility compnay, a safety or health care agency, or a company in your town, asking for a brochure describing its services. Be specific about your reasons for requesting this information.
2. Non-Routine Letters Package -- (p. 221-223, #9a, #10c and #13a)
   • Send a follow-up letter to a customer who informs you that he or she will no longer do business with your firm because your prices are too high.
   • Write a "bad news" letter to an appropriate reader saying that your company has decided to discontinue Saturday deliveries (or Saturday store openings) because of rising labor and fuel costs.
   • Write a complaint letter about an error in your firm's utility, telephone or credit card bill.
3. Cover Letter and Resume (p. 281, #11 and #12 or #13)
   • Employment Cover Letter: From the Sunday edition of your local newspaper, or from another source, find notices for two or three jobs you believe you are qualified. Then, write a letter of application for one of them. Attach the ads to your assignment!
   • Resume: Write a resume that you can use to accompany your cover letter. Your can organize it chronologically or functionally (i.e. by skill).
4. Proposal -- (p. 573, #3.)
   • Write a short internal proposal recommending to your management a change in procedure, equipment, training, safety, personnel or policy. Make sure you provide your audience with specific evidence about the existence of the problem and your solution of it. Possible topics are listed on in the text.
5. Report -- (p. 613-615) Write two brief progress reports from among the following three topics:
   • Assume you work for a household appliance store. Prepare a sales report based on the information contained in the table on p. 613. Include a recommendation section for your manager.
   • Write a progress report on the wins, losses and ties of your favorite sports team for the last season. Address the report to the director of publicity for the team and stress how the director might use these facts for future publicity. As part of your report, indicate what might be an effective lead (main idea) for a press release about your team's efforts.
   • Write an incident report about a problem you encountered in your work or at home in the past year. Document the problem and provide a solution. Use the memo format in Figure 16.12, page 609.
6. Instructions (p. 542, #6)
   • Write a set of full instructions for a complex procedure related to your job or other activity in which you are involved. Identify your audience. Include an appropriate introduction, a list of equipment and materials, numbered steps with necessary warning, caution and note statements, and an effective conclusion. Also include whatever visuals (rough sketches are fine) you think will help our audience. Examples of possible topics are listed in the text.
7. Fact Sheet, Sales Letter and News Release (p. 221, #5) Select a single product or service that you are familiar with. Then:
   • Compile a fact sheet listing all pertinent information, including the product's benefits and features, and then use information in the fact sheet to
   • Write a sales letter to an appropriate audience on why they should buy your product or use your service. Include an offer or incentive for them to act now, and give them a reply mechanism.
   • Write a news release directed to your local newspaper (or a trade publication, if more appropriate) that announces the introduction of your product or service, or another major newsworthy development that would be of interest to your customers.