IIMC Distance Education

Technical Writng and Communication in Public Service

Syllabus/Course Schedule

Instructor: Jane A. Long, M.S., A.B.D.
E-mail: Jane@iimc.com
Phone: (219) 662-8749
Cell Phone: (219) 306-6048

Course Length: Four weeks

Course Credit: 6 hours

Course Purpose

This course will develop writing skills applied to public organizations and municipalities. Participants will write news releases, position papers and technical memos. The course provides participants with communication skills to convey results and ideas in writing and other forms of presentations.

Course Objectives

To provide the student with insights into their interpersonal communication styles.
To provide students with an understanding of organizational communications and all aspects of an organization that affect communication.
To provide students with experience in writing technical memos, news releases and position papers for public organizations.
To have an opportunity to interact with peers on-line about organizational communication topics, concepts, and experiences.

Textbook:

Davis, Kenneth. The McGraw-Hill 36-Hours Course: Business Writing and Communication.2005. Mc-Graw-Hill: New York, NY. ISBN: 978-0-07-144127-8

Course Requirements

Work through the eight learning modules and complete the assignments that are attached to each module.
Write a short (50-75-word) response to the discussion postings on the IIMC Discussion Board as instructed in each module to each of the Modules. This “reaction” is your basic appreciation and understanding of the Module’s purpose and meaning, not simply a restatement of the articles.
Participate in a dyad or triad discussion of the readings by addressing your reaction message to others in the course but also comment on the messages of others as well when they are sent to you.

Course Assessment

Case Study: Choosing the right type of correspondence for business situations. Students will inter-act with a case study that requires the creation and proper formatting of four pieces of technical/business correspondence.

Readings

In addition to the text book, readings from journals and magazines and will also be included with some learning modules.

Course Schedule

The models and figures are presented first so you can understand and absorb them. This information will be valuable when you get to the magazine and journal articles and react to them.

Week	Module	Assignment
1	1& 2	How Organizational Structure affects Communication Organizational Cultures and Sub-Cultures
2	3 & 4	Informal vs. Formal Organizational Communication Managing Your Writing AND Your Relationship with the Reader
3	5 & 6	Making Holes not Drills and Getting Your Stuff Together Get Your Ducks in a Row and Do It Wrong the First Time
4	7 & 8	Take a Break and Change Hats, Signal Your Turns and Say What You Mean. Pay by the Word, Translate into English and Finish the Job FINAL PAPER/CASE STUDY DUE

Grade Breakdown:

The final grade will be calculated as follows:

Written assignments 30%
Discussion board participation 25%
Webinar participation 10%
Final paper/case study 35%

Assignment Deadlines This is truly a FOUR WEEK course that covers a large amount of material. Each assignment will have a specific due date and if the assignment is not received by that date, the student will receive a grade of zero for that assignment. In order to successfully pass this course, you MUST complete all eight learning modules and receive at least a 75% on the final paper. Otherwise, you will not receive any credit or points for this course.

Communication Several methods of communication will be utilized in this course to create a “learning community” in this classroom. These will include:

Discussion postings: Two discussion topics per week will be chosen based on the material being presented in the course and posted by the instructor. All students are required to do the following with ALL discussion postings:

Respond to the leader’s posting
Respond to the responses of at least one fellow classmates postings

E-Mail: The instructor checks e-mail EVERY DAY as this is my preferred method of communication. In other words, I make myself available for questions, concerns or assistance at any time. It is my goal to answer e-mails within 48 hours so you can successfully continue with your work in this course.

Phone: On occasion, some situations require troubleshooting assistance that is difficult to provide via e-mail. Therefore, students are encouraged to contact me via phone whenever the need arises.

One important point to remember about communication , it is a two-way street! PLEASE, keep me informed of your progress in this class and let me know how I may provide assistance. The only way I can help is if you communicate with me.

Expectations of the Online Learner To ensure a productive learning environment for all students, I ask that you respect the following rules:

READ, READ, READ---everything about this course and the expectations of you, the online learner.
Read the chapters in your book and complete all required assignments by the due dates.
COMMUNICATE!
Respect your instructor and fellow classmates by following the rules of Netiquette.
Uphold the academic integrity policy.

Academic Integrity

The academic evaluation a student receives for a course becomes a permanent college record and it is critical that such records be accurate and consistent. The integrity students learn and exhibit at the college will be a model for the professional integrity they practice when they complete the college work. Accordingly, IIMC has classified academic dishonesty into the following categories:

• Cheating
• Plagiarism
• Unauthorized Collaboration
• Facilitating Academic Dishonesty
• Interference Or Sabotage
• Fabrication
• Retaliation

Any student found violating any of the above academic dishonesty classifications, will be immediately removed from their course without a refund and not permitted to complete coursework for that class.