Summer Session A 2003
Website: http://mason.gmu.edu/~cthaiss/302bsu03.htm
Phone: 703-993-1273
E-mail: cthaiss@gmu.edu
Office: Robinson A423
Hours: MT 2-3 PM and by appt.
*memos
*letters
*proposals
*brief research reports
*white papers
*webpage construction (optional--see Technical Support)
As customary in business, the writing in this course will be highly collaborative. Its effectiveness depends on both individual energy and cooperation. In these sections, the collaborative writing will be carried out by such means as
*electronic mail and real-time discussion/response (via GMU Townhall)
*planning, preparation, and presentation of a small-group field research project and of a "white paper" based on that research
*small-group "feedback" on drafted writings
*dialogue with the instructor.
I trust that each person in the course will emerge from it with a better-developed sense of the principles and typical methods of business writing, plus improved ability to carry out typical business-writing tasks.
**Check out the English Department's TEC Program (Technology in the English Concentrations) for tutorials on a wide ramge of web skills, from basic webpage design and searching databases to such advanced skills as image manipulation, sound recording, and video capture.
Grading standards are as follows (grades to be determined at the discretion of the instructor):
A = outstanding work: among the specific virtues, full, active, cooperative, and imaginative participation in all activities, exercises, and projects of the course; prose that consistently demonstrates the principles of effective business writing, as outlined in the core text;
B = very good work: full, active, and cooperative participation in all activities, exercises and projects; prose that almost always demonstrates the principles of effective business writing;
C = satisfactory work: full, cooperative participation in all activities, exercises, and projects; prose that, with revision, almost always demonstrates the principles of effective business writing;
D = almost satisfactory work: almost full, usually cooperative participation in all activities, exercises, and projects: prose that, with revision, usually demonstrates the principles of effective business writing;
F = unsatisfactory work: inconsistent participation in activities, exercises, and projects; or prose that, with revision, still fails to demonstrate consistent application of the principles of effective business writing.
I will give plusses and minuses according to GMU policy.
NOTE: A written project will receive an F if a student does not participate in every phase of the development of the project and meet all deadlines for preliminary materials.
MISSED DEADLINES
Incidental expenses for xeroxed copying of project materials.
The University Library System contains extensive holdings of business-related books and periodicals, plus online access to many business-related services. See Subject Guides in Business and Economics
Although we will be working daily in the computer lab, it will be useful to you, though not essential, to have home access to Townhall, for any necessary communication with other members of your research group after class hours.
I also strongly recommend the additional advice on your writing that you can receive through the University Writing Center.
ASSIGNMENTS: COURSE PROJECTS and PROPORTIONS
OF CREDIT
2. Comparative Document Analysis (10%)--We will work on comparative analysis of two articles on the same issue or event from business-related publications. My aim in this assignment is to increase your attentiveness to both the blatant and the subtle differences between accounts of the "same" event by different publications. Whether as producer or consumer, you need to be aware of these differences in building your own informed perspectives on the issues. Practice in doing this sort of analysis will also make you more articulate in writing "white papers" (position statements or formal recommendations) on any issue.
Only one of these articles may be from a national general interest online news source (such as www.washingtonpost.com). The other must be from a print business publication, such as the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, etc. We will practice in class using databases (e.g., Lexis-Nexis, Dow Jones Interactive) that index print and electronic materials on business-relevant topics. I must approve your sources. We will develop in class questions to ask about the two articles by which to do a well-informed comparison. Among the areas of comparison will be purposes, intended audiences, kinds of evidence, organization, writing style, and graphic presentation.
Your completed analysis will consist of three main sections:
A. Summary of the Issue/Event--In 500 well-chosen words, you will summarize the contents of the issue/event, using the two articles as your sources. Since the articles will more than likely agree on many of the details, summarizing should not be difficult. However, where the two articles differ, you'll need accurately to state these differences.
B. Assessment of the Important Differences between the
Articles--In 500 well-chosen words, you will show how the two pieces
differ in their bias and in the kinds of information they
use to elaborate and explain. Most journalists strive for balance in their
reporting, so that articles often appear unbiased and fair. But all publications
subtly try to sway opinion and action of readers both by
what they include and by what they leave out. Hence, the
need for comparative reading on all public issues!
We'll look at the six areas of comparison
listed above to help us see these differences.
C. Judgment: Which article does the better job of conveying information fully and fairly?--In 300 well-chosen words, argue for your preference based on the evidence. HINT: the longer article need not be the more fair nor the more thorough, though it often is. HINT TWO: be aware of your own political and other biases (you have them) and try to do a fair analysis.
Drafts and revised drafts should be submitted using standard memo format (see WOJ, 21-25) and should be roughly 1300 words. Revised drafts must be accompanied by first drafts (with annotations by peer reviewers), filled-in critique sheets from peer reviewers, a one-page memo that describes and justifies the changes in the revised draft ("change memo"), and an Appendix that includes photocopies of the compared documents.
3. Team Field Research Project (50%)--Throughout the course, we will be developing aspects of a two- to three-person project that will be based on your investigation of the documents and writing practices of a local business organization of your choice (I must approve proposed choices). In class, we will discuss methods, materials, and presentation of the projects. Chapters 3a and 6 of WOJ will be assigned and adapted. Aspects of the project include the project research proposal, a letter of introduction to the firm, a series of progress memos sent electronically, the full report of the research, and a 10-15 minute oral presentation by each group to the class (on the final day of the course).
The research report itself will consist of two main parts: an analysis of five or more typical, significant documents written by the firm (1-2 double-spaced pages per document analyzed), analyzed for those six features learned and applied in the Comparative Document Analysis assignment, and a detailed interview (minimum of 5 double-spaced pages) with an employee or employees of the firm knowledgeable about the range and types of writing done by the firm as part of its work.
A third part of the report will be done online in class: an evaluation of a web page either produced by the firm or closely related to a primary kind of work done by the firm. The method of analysis will be based on my adaptation of a website evaluation assignment originally designed by Professor Virginia Montecino.
Due dates are noted in the schedule below. Remember that credit for the entire project is contingent on full, active, and cooperative participation in all phases. My criteria for evaluating the written projects are based on the principles of effective business writing detailed in the pertinent chapters of WOJ and in our class discussions.
Because there will be comparatively little time to prepare and practice the oral presentations, evaluation will be less formal; nevertheless, I will be devoting class time to explaining principles of effective oral presentation, and these should be followed precisely. I have been generally pleased by the presentations that students have worked up in this course, even under severe time constraints. You CAN do it! The deadlines of this course are excellent practice for the time pressure you'll regularly be under in the workplace.
These projects will receive a group grade; thus, the grade earned by the team will be the grade earned by each individual on the team. Nevertheless, one element of the final report will be the team's self-assessment of each person's contribution, and I will take the liberty of adjusting individual credit, if necessary. Team members who contribute little (this happens rarely, but it does happen) will receive significantly less credit.
4. "White Paper" Based on Team Field Research (10%)
In the course of your team field research on the writing culture of a business organization, each team member will identify a communication issue or problem at the company/agency/business that will form the basis for a "white paper" (i.e., a position statement or formal recommendation). The white paper is an important form of business report that is used in both university courses and the workplace. Each member of the team will write a separate white paper on a separate issue. I must approve topics. Your white paper should be addressed to a relevant manager with the firm (though whether you indeed deliver the white paper is up to you!), rather than to me as an interested outsider. Your white paper will need to
(1) succinctly describe the issue or problem, including any relevant background the reader needs;
(2) state your position on the issue and/or make recommendations toward solving the problem;
(3) support your position and/or recommendations with all relevant data and sources.
Source material may include your own relevant experience and observation or that of others whom you can accurately and specifically cite; print or online articles or product specifications that you must accurately cite and document. Databases may come in handy in this project. A table (e.g., of data, options, or pros and cons) must be included somewhere in the document, as appropriate to your subject.
Your final draft should be between 1200 and 1500 words. Include your first draft, critique sheets, and a change memo in the final packet.
PLAGIARISM
M May 19:: Introductions and Exercises; activate e-mail accounts (see
Technical Support); **read WOJ,
Introduction
T May 20:: Townhall--Getting Started and the "Junk Mail" exercise; The
Process and Principles of Business
Writing; **begin group formation and proposal-writing for team field
research; **read WOJ, Chapters 1, 6b
W May 21:: Composing Effective Business Prose I (memo and letter exercises);
have read WOJ, Chapters 1, 6b;
post proposal for team field research; **read WOJ, Chs. 10-11 (NOTE
features of punctuation, usage, and
grammar that have given you problems in your writing, and be prepared
to ask about them in class.)
R May 22:: Composing Effective Business Prose II (review of WOJ grammar
and usage sections, Chs. 10-11);
post revised research proposal; **read WOJ, Chapter 3a, to begin prep
for research interviews post; **contact
company and arrange study (if your group has not already done so)
F May 23:: Last day to ADD classes.
M May 26:: Memorial Day--No Class
T May 27:: Small-group workshop: compose letter of introduction/commitment
to company. Groups then compose
detailed interview questionnaire to conduct fieldwork.
W May 28:: Teams continue composing interview questionnaires and POST them to Townhall group sites; **collect data
R May 29:: Field Research Progress Memos (post); discussion of Document
Analysis criteria (exercise); **begin
Comparative Document Analysis assignment
NOTE: Friday May 30 is the last day to drop classes without the Dean's permission.
M June 2:: Comparative Document Analysis (exercises and discussion); **draft comparative analyses
T June 3:: Small-group workshop on drafts of comparative analyses; discussion
of research progress; **revise and
edit comparative analyses; **browse website
on White Papers; read WOJ, Ch. 6a
W June 4:: Principles of the "White Paper"--after our discussion of
examples, submit proposal paragraphs and
begin drafting; **continue research and writing of white papers.
R June 5:: Revised drafts of Comparative Analyses (plus addenda) due
in class; continue drafting of white papers;
post Field Research progress memos (interview results); discussion
M June 9:: Workshop: Drafting, Organizing, and Formatting Research Reports;
small-group workshop on drafts
of white papers;**begin drafting reports of field research; revise
and edit white papers
T June 10:: Critique Workshop--Evaluating WEB Pages Pertinent to Team
Field Research; **continue drafting of
Field Research reports
W June 11:: Revised white papers due in class; Workshop on Web Page
Evaluation II--draft and post critiques by
end of class
R June 12:: Cross-group workshop on drafts of field research interview
reports; **revise and edit reports; read
handout/web-based material on oral presentation techniques
M June 16:: Cross-group workshop on drafts of field research document-analysis
reports; workshop on ten-fifteen
minute oral presentations of team field research; **prepare and practice
oral presentations
T June 17:: Revised drafts of both parts of Team Field Research reports,
plus addenda, due in class; ten-fifteen
minute presentations; course review.
There will be no final exam in this course.