SPCH 1311: Introduction to Human Communication Course Syllabus

The North Central Texas College (NCTC) Course Syllabus provides the following as required by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB):

1. a brief description of the course including each major course requirement, assignment, and examination;
2. the learning objectives for the course;
3. a general description of the subject matter of each lecture or discussion; and
4. any required or recommended readings. 

Contact information for the instructor is also provided. The Course Syllabus also provides institutional information to indicate how this course supports NCTC’s purpose and mission. Information specific to a particular section of the course will be included in the Class Syllabus and distributed to enrolled students. 

Course Name & Number: SPCH 1311 (Introduction to Human Communication)

Semester & Year:  Spring 2021

Catalog Description Introduces basic human communication principles and theories embedded in a variety of contexts including interpersonal, small group, and public speaking. [Rev 12-11-18]   

Instructor's Name: Shelley Rover

Email Address: srover@nctc.edu or easiest way is to message me via CANVAS 

Office Hours:  MWF  8:00am -9:30am and 11:00am-1:00pm; TTh 1:00pm -3:00 pm

***always available by appt - please email the instructor.

Textbooks & Materials: Communication in the Real World: An Introduction to Communication Studies. University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing ISBN: 9781946135070

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
CC BY-NC-SA

Available for Free at https://open.umn.edu/opentextbooks/textbooks/274

It is also available in the "Files" section of this course as a full-text .pdf or individual chapters .pdf

What is the audience requirement for this course? Due to the current situation with COVID-19, we are only requiring the speaker to have 1 audience member for their speech if it is an asynchronous online course (no meeting times). The audience member can be anyone who lives at the speaker's residence and must be shown at the beginning of the recorded speech video and the end of the recorded speech video with no editing. Synchronous speech courses (meeting times in WebEx) will have students present their speeches during class times. 

COURSE AND COLLEGE INFORMATION

Learning Outcomes: Students who successfully complete this course will meet the following learning outcomes:

1. Apply the principles of human communication including perception, verbal communication, nonverbal communication, listening, and audience analysis.
2. Demonstrate how to establish and maintain relationships through the use of interpersonal communication.
3. Apply small group communication skills including problem-solving, group roles, leadership styles, and cohesiveness.
4. Develop, research, organize, and deliver formal public speeches.
5. Recognize how to communicate within diverse environments.

Foundational Component Area:  Communication

• Critical Thinking Skills (CT) - to include creative thinking, innovation, inquiry, and analysis, evaluation and synthesis of information
• Communication Skills (COM) - to include effective development, interpretation, and expression of ideas through written, oral, and visual communication
• Teamwork (TW)- to include the ability to consider different points of view and to work effectively with others to support a shared purpose or goal
• Personal Responsibility (PR)- to include the ability to connect choices, actions, and consequences to ethical decision-making    

 Institutional Learning Goals. A quality general education curriculum in all associate degree programs.

• Quality freshman and sophomore level courses in arts and sciences which parallel the lower division offerings of four-year colleges and universities.
• Quality technical programs leading directly to careers in semi-skilled and skilled occupations, and quality technical education programs up to two years in length leading to certificates and associate degrees.
• Quality programs and services in support of adult literacy and basic skills development as a means of workforce enhancement and expanding access to higher education.

Program Purpose Statement. NCTC seeks to implement its goal of providing quality freshman and sophomore level courses in arts and sciences that parallel the lower division offerings of four-year colleges and universities by offering a coherent sequence of courses with appropriate breadth and depth to prepare a student for transfer to a university.

Departmental Purpose Statement. The Department of English, Speech, and Foreign Language provides quality instruction to students pursuing their academic and career goals. 

STUDENT SUPPORT and SERVICES:

Please click on the link to access Student Services.   Student Services Syllabus Addendum

• Please be aware that I take plagiarism very seriously:  You may not have another person write, type, edit, or revise any parts of your assignments.  You may not use someone else’s assignments or buy one from a “professional” source.  You may not use the material on the internet or in print sources without documenting it.  Failure to follow the proper guidelines for documentation constitutes plagiarism. Considering the severity of the issue, if you ever have any questions or concerns regarding plagiarism, please consider this an open invitation to visit with me about the issue. If I discover that a student has committed intentional plagiarism, the assignment that has plagiarized materials will receive a zero, and I will recommend to the English Department Head that the student fails the course.
• Last day to Withdraw: Last day to drop a class with a grade of “W” is April 5, 2021
• Withdrawing from a Course-https://www.nctc.edu/current-students/drop-withdraw-course.html

ADDITIONAL COURSE INFORMATION and OTHER AREAS OF CONSIDERATION

Email Correspondence: I reserve 24 hours to respond to students’ emails. Emails sent to me become my personal property, and I may disclose them to third parties if I determine it’s necessary. Emails constitute correspondence between instructor and student; therefore, remember your audience when sending me emails. 

Gender Identity: This course affirms people of all gender expressions and identities. If you prefer to be called a different name than what is on the class roster, please let me know. Please advise me of this preference early in the semester so that I may make appropriate changes to my records, and so I may call you by your preferred name and pronoun. 

Grading Policy & Procedures. 

Grades in this course are based on the following point scale:

• A  90-100% 
• B  80-89.999%
• C  70-79.999%
• D  60-69.999%
• F  59.999% and below

Major Speech Assignments: All major speech assignments are required. If you fail to turn in the major speech, or the group project, you cannot pass the course. I reserve the right to administratively drop any student who does not submit all major speech assignments.

Late-Work Policy: A major speech is due on the day listed on Canvas.  If you need an extension, contact me in advance of the due date to make this request. I reserve the right not to evaluate any work submitted more than five days late.

Specific 1311 Assignments:

• Class Business/Group Informative Presentation (200 pts. or 20%) - We will have a short (3-5 minutes), collaborative course-concept informative speech presentation. These speeches will be completed in groups of 2-3 students.
• Persuasive Speech (225 pts. or 22.5%) – The student is tasked with persuading their audience to act for or against a chosen ethical issue by using Monroe’s Motivated Sequence organizational pattern. He/she is asked to also deliver the speech fluidly and fluently by paying attention to the necessary and fundamental aspects of verbal and nonverbal communication while using a diversity of visual support materials. There is also a research component that requires verbal and written citation of at least 6 diverse, authoritative sources with an outline and bibliography. Finally, the student will choose a peer’s speech to evaluate and offer constructive feedback and suggestions for improvement.
• Weekly Chapter Quizzes (210 pts. [15 pts. each] or 21% [1.5% each]) – Each week there will be a quiz that assesses the content knowledge of the student over the chapters/lecture materials covered. These quizzes could involve True/False, multiple-choice, short answer, and/or essay questions.
• Intercultural/Interpersonal Relationships Narrative (200 pts. or 20% [10% each]) -  Each student is tasked with constructing a narrative essay that incorporates theories from different areas of the communication spectrum: interpersonal, intercultural, identity, small group, spatial and nonverbal, organizational, and even relational communication. Each theory should be properly ascribed to its theorist(s), briefly paraphrased, and then applied to their own examples of how that theory can be seen within their own life (be it in their jobs, their families, their choice of entertainment, and even their socio-political engagement) through a personal story.
• Unit Reflection Discussions (140 pts. [35 pts. each] or 14% [3.5% each]) - The course will be organized into four unit sections: Unit I: History & Overview of Communication, Unit II: Public Speaking, Unit III: Communication Theory, and Unit IV: Communication Applied (See more detailed schedule copied below). At the end of each unit section, we will have a discussion forum to assess and measure the understanding of each student through the application of concepts and online interaction with the class. 

Extra Credit & "Rounding Up" Policy: From time to time I provide extra credit, announced in class, or through Remind. Extra credit is graded in the last four weeks of the semester and students should not rely on it to significantly impact their grade. However, this instructor does not "round up" your grade at the end of a semester. An 89% is a B. Otherwise, the whole concept of grade distinctions loses its meaning. Students are encouraged to "round up" their own grades by completing extra credit to push them over any "rounding up" margins. 

Late-Work Policy: All minor assignments are due on the day listed on Canvas. However, if you need an extension, please visit with me privately to make those arrangements. Regarding major speeches, are due on the date communicated by the instructor. 

College Attendance Policy:  attendance is required.  Excessive unexcused absences (4 or more) may result in the instructor processing a W or assigning an F for the semester, at the instructor's discretion. Online students need to show activity in the course, not just doing assignments.  At least two activities throughout the week are required. Students are responsible for processing their own withdrawals. Per NCTC policy, ALL INSTRUCTORS are required to take attendance at every class meeting/activity for reporting purposes. [Rev. 5-2014]

For online coursework, the expectation is that students log in regularly and submit assignments in a timely manner.  Logging in daily is preferable but at a minimum every 48 hours.

Major Assignments and Speeches: All major assignments and speeches are required. If you fail to turn in one of the major tasks, you cannot pass the course. I reserve the right to administratively drop any student who does not submit all major assignments and speeches or assign an F for the semester.

Professionalism: Your college courses are also opportunities for you to learn what it means to be a “professional” in your field. Therefore, I expect you to act like a “professional” student in this course. Consider these suggestions:

• • Prepare and participate meaningfully in online discussion boards.
  • Be assertive. (An assertive student exhausts all available resources of information before contacting me. In other words, read the assignment sheet carefully before e-mailing me to ask how many sources are required in your paper, and if you are unsure how to cite a source, look it up in your handbook or a credible, online source—such as The Purdue Owl or the LaunchPad handbook.)
  • Consider the quality (and effort) of required outlines, notes, and weekly assignments.
  • Turn in assignments on time and as assigned.
  • Mind the quality and tone of email correspondence.