Syllabus
Business and Professional Communication

Business and Professional Communication

SPCH-1321

Credit Summer 2021
06/01/2021 - 08/08/2021

Course Information

Section 004
Distance Learning
ONL DIL
Kelly Stockstad

Office Hours

  • T
    1:00 PM - 6:00 PM
    By Appointment Only
  • Sa
    1:00 PM - 6:00 PM
    Virtual Office Hours

FULL SYLLABUS AVAILABLE ONLINE

Click this link to view the full syllabus for this 10-week section of SPCH 1321. 

Course policies and procedures are included in the full syllabus. This posting on Lighthouse is not intended to represent the full content of the course. 

Course Requirements

Assignment Name/ Weight

Assignment Description

Assignment Components

Three (3) Exams

15% of your course grade (5% per exam)

You will demonstrate knowledge of textbook material by completing a 70-question multiple choice and true/false exam. You will complete one exam per unit of study.

 

1. Exam 1: Joining a Workplace

2. Exam 2: Working with Others 3. Exam 3: Presenting Professionally

Two (2) Big Interview Certificates

   5% of your course grade

(2.5% per certificate)

You will select two (2) Learn tracks to complete in Big Interview. You may select any option offered.

1. Complete selected Learn tracks in Big Interview.

2. Download certificate from Big Interview.

3. Submit certificate to Blackboard assignment

 

Career Research Interview

25% of your course grade

 

KEY ASSIGNMENT:

You must complete this assignment to complete the Team Briefing and Professional Presentation

You will plan and conduct an interview to research possible career options and identify consistent challenges in the career.

*You will use the information from this project for the Team Briefing and Professional Presentation.

1. Conduct interview

2. Make notes about what you learned

3. Schedule one-on-one virtual meeting with professor

4. Attend meeting to discuss what you learned in your career research interview

Team Briefing

15% of your course grade

 

During this meeting, you will demonstrate specific presentation, decision-making, and team communication skills. You and your team will brainstorm ideas to help one another complete the presentation successfully.

*You will use feedback from your team to help you complete the Professional Presentation

1. Prepare briefing about your progress toward your presentation

2. Attend virtual meeting, where you will:

a. Deliver prepared briefing

b. Answer at least two questions from peers

c. Participate in brainstorming

3. Complete reflection about feedback you received

Professional Presentation

15% of your course grade

 

You will plan and present a professional presentation that includes a visual aid. This presentation explains the career challenge and possible ways to manage this challenge.

1. Plan the content of your presentation

2. Create visual aid to display during your presentation

3. Attend recorded virtual meeting with team

4. Complete reflection about your presentation

5. Provide peer feedback to ALL other team members on group discussion board

Chapter Quizzes

10% of your course grade (1% per quiz)

  • Highest grade of all attempts is recorded
  • 2 lowest scores automatically dropped from Blackboard calculations

You will demonstrate knowledge of individual textbook chapters by completing chapter quizzes in Blackboard. Quizzes are mastery learning: each quiz may be repeated as many times as you would like to earn your target score.

Unit 1 – 4 Chapter Quizzes

1. Ch. 1 Quiz, 2. Ch. 2 Quiz,

3. Ch. 6 Quiz, 4. Ch. 3 Quiz

Unit 2 – 4 Chapter Quizzes

5. Ch. 4 Quiz, 6. Ch. 5 Quiz,

7. Ch. 7 Quiz, 8. Ch. 8 Quiz

Unit 3 – 4 Chapter Quizzes

9. Ch. 9 Quiz, 10. Ch. 10 Quiz,

11. Ch. 11 Quiz, 12. Ch. 12 Quiz

EQ Blog Postings

15% of your course grade (5% per blog posting)

Unit 1. You will write a minimum of 500 words to apply concepts about the course theme of Emotional Intelligence (EQ) to your work experience.

Units 2 & 3. You will find a source that class members could use to assess or improve a component of EQ. You will write at least 300 words to summarize, document, and recommend the source.

1. Joining a Workplace EQ Blog Posting

2. Working with Others EQ Blog Posting

3. Presenting Professionally EQ Blog Posting

 

 

Readings

Communicating at Work, 12th edition by Ronald B. Adler, Michelle Maresh-Fuehrer, Jeanne Elmhorst, and Kristen Lucas (ISBN: 9780077649289)

FIRST DAY ACCESS: This section includes a fee to cover the costs of required digital materials and/or an electronic textbook, provided at a discounted rate from the ACC Bookstore.

IMPORTANT! The digital materials fee will be added to your tuition and fees when you register. You may choose to opt out of this fee and receive a refund if you wish to purchase the course materials separately. Opt-out requests must be received prior to a specified date for a full refund. 

 

Course Subjects

All deadlines are Central Time. All readings are from our course textbook, Communicating at Work, 12th edition, unless otherwise noted. You can access your textbook by going to the Textbook Access tab on Blackboard.

Deadlines for optional extra credit opportunities will be announced on the announcements page of Blackboard.

Unit 1: Joining a Workplace (Go to Bb: Course Work / Unit 1: Joining a Workplace)

Day

Date

Course Topic & Readings

Due by 11:59 PM

Thursday

6/3

Course Orientation

Course Orientation SUGGESTED DEADLINE – You must complete the course orientation before you will be able to access ANY graded work.

Sunday

6/6

Ch. 1 - About Communication

Career Research Interview Project

“What Makes a Leader?” by Daniel Goleman

Ch. 01 Quiz

 

Sunday

6/13

Ch. 2 – Communication, Culture, and Work

Ch. 6 – Principles of Interviewing

Unit 1 EQ Blog Posting

Ch. 02 Quiz

Ch. 06 Quiz

Sunday

6/20

Ch. 3 – Listening

Ch. 03 Quiz

Joining a Workplace EQ Blog Posting

One (1) completed Big Interview Certificate

Sunday

6/27

See Unit 2 calendar

Exam 1: Joining a Workplace


Unit 2: Working with Others (Go to Bb: Course Work / Unit 2: Working with Others)

Day

Date

Course Topic & Readings

Due by 11:59 PM

Sunday

6/27

Ch. 4 – Verbal and Nonverbal Messages

Units 2 & 3 EQ Blog Posting

Ch. 04 Quiz

 

Sunday

7/4

Ch. 5 – Interpersonal Strategies and Skills

Team Briefing Assignment

 

Ch. 05 Quiz

Sign up for Team Briefing Meeting

NOTE: Independence Day is celebrated on July 4, 2021. ACC is closed on this day. Deadlines remain on Sunday this week to keep the dates consistent throughout the course. If you have plans for celebrating Independence Day, your plans should include completing these tasks early.

Sunday

7/11

Ch. 7 – Leading and Working in Teams Professional Presentation Assignment

Ch. 8 – Effective Meetings

Appendix III – Problem Solving Communication

CAREER RESEARCH INTERVIEW COMPLETION: Meet with professor at least 24 hours before your Team Briefing Meeting

Ch. 07 Quiz

Ch. 08 Quiz (includes Appendix III)

 

Sunday

7/18

See Unit 3 Calendar

VIRTUAL MEETING WEEK:

Attend the Team Briefing Meeting

Exam 2: Working with Others

Working with Others EQ Blog Posting

One (1) completed Big Interview Certificate

Unit 3: Presenting Professionally (Bb: Course Work / Unit 3: Presenting Professionally)

Day

Date

Course Topic & Readings

Due by 11:59 PM

Sunday

7/18

Ch. 9 – Developing and Organizing the Presentation

Ch. 09 Quiz

 

Sunday

7/25

Ch. 10 – Verbal and Visual Support in Presentations

Ch. 11 – Delivering the Presentation

Ch. 10 Quiz

Ch. 11 Quiz

Presenting Professionally EQ Blog Posting

Team Briefing Reflection

Sunday

8/1

Ch. 12 – Types of Business Presentations

VIRTUAL MEETING WEEK:

Attend the Professional Presentation Meeting

Professional Presentation Reflection

Ch. 12 Quiz

Sunday

8/8

Course completion

Exam 3: Presenting Professionally

Peer feedback for ALL team members’ Professional Presentations posted on group’s discussion board

 

Student Learning Outcomes/Learning Objectives

Course Objectives: What will you learn after completing this course?

When you complete this course successfully, you should be able to:

  1. Demonstrate written and oral competences related to job searches, interviewing, and performance appraisals.
  2. Identify and/or demonstrate oral competencies related to professional interaction, ethics, and conflict management.
  3. Recognize and evaluate the dynamics of leadership and membership in workplace groups and teams.
  4. Utilize various communication technologies competently in professional settings.
  5. Identify and design strategies to facilitate effective meetings.
  6. Identify the cultural dimensions influencing communication competence within a diverse workplace.
  7. Recall strategies to improve interpersonal relationships in the workplace.
  8. Create and deliver a professional business presentation including a question/answer session.
  9. Demonstrate communication competence and critical thinking through an understanding of the foundational communication models.

General Education Outcomes: What competencies will you develop in this course?

When you complete this course successfully, you should demonstrate competence in:

  • Civic and Cultural Awareness: Analyzing and critiquing competing perspectives in a democratic society; comparing, contrasting, and interpreting differences and commonalities among peoples, ideas, aesthetic traditions, and cultural practices.
  • Critical Thinking: Gathering, analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating and applying information.
  • Personal Responsibility: Identifying and applying ethical principles and practices; demonstrating effective learning, creative thinking, and personal responsibility.
  • Interpersonal Skills: Interacting collaboratively to achieve common goals.
  • Written, Oral, and Visual Communication: Communicating effectively, adapting to purpose, structure, audience, and medium.

Program-Level Student Learning Outcomes: What skills do Communication Studies majors develop during the completion of this degree?

When you complete an associate’s degree at Austin Community College, you should demonstrate competence in:

  1. Listening Skills: Students will identify listening behaviors and practice active listening skills.
  2. Interpersonal Communication: Students will appropriately apply communication theories to interpersonal relationship development, maintenance, enhancement, and termination.
  3. *Group Dynamics: Students will effectively use verbal and non-verbal communication to manage relationships and achieve goals within a variety of group settings.
  4. *Professional Communication: Students will employ written and oral competencies related to achieving goals within a variety of professional interactions and business settings.
  5. *Public Speaking: Students will research, develop, organize, and deliver an effective public presentation using multimedia when appropriate.

*Our course focuses on outcomes 3, 4, and 5.