Generic Syllabus
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versionPrerequisites: English 101 or equivalent (with a grade of C or better)
Course Description: Common Body of Knowledge Content Coverage: This course provides a basic understanding of business communication. This three-unit course is designed to 1) familiarize students with the techniques, strategies, and forms of writing used in the professional world; 2) teach students to use precise and persuasive language to achieve their business goals; and 3) prepare students for communication in the workplace and in their other business classes.Documents need to conform to high standards of academic excellence and professionalism in the workplace. They will be judged according to whether they are university-caliber and workplace-acceptable.
The instructor may suggest a self-study program to students having difficulties with grammar and mechanics. In some cases, the instructor may advise that students hire a tutor.
What your grades mean in the world of work:
A (100-90) Your boss loves your work and your career advancement is absolutely ensured.
B (89-80) Your boss is pleased with you and your career advancement is most likely.
C (79-70) Everything is OK, but don’t overestimate your value to the company.
D (69-60) Your boss is watching to see if you improve; don’t hang photos in your cubicle.
F (below 60) Clean out your desk.
| Readings and Materials: - Bovée, Thill, Schatzman. Business Communication Today. 7th edition. Prentice Hall, 2003. - Recommended: recently published portable dictionary and thesaurus; electronic versions welcome; MS Word and WordPerfect come with built-in dictionaries and thesauruses. Our own course Web site(s): http://blackboard.fullerton.edu/ Visiting this Web site, participating in electronic class activities and monitoring your e-mail regularly are mandatory in this class (at least every other day). College of Business and Economics Home Page: http://business.fullerton.edu/ Marketing Department Home Page: http://business.fullerton.edu/marketing/ Learn about CBE programs, faculty, advising, scholarships and employment opportunities. We will surf the Web to familiarize ourselves with business resources. Electronic literature searches for individual or group projects; expect to work with Internet browsers such as Netscape, Explorer and online databases (mainly Lexis/Nexis, Dow-Jones News Retrieval etc.). Productivity tools such as the Microsoft Office 2000 package, supported by the CBE computer labs: Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. No hand-written work will be accepted.
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Policies:
· Late withdrawals with the grade of “W” are only possible for very serious
reasons and with proper documentation: stomach aches, headaches, stress,
need to help your family etc., and poor performance do not qualify.
· All assignments must be completed and turned in on time to receive any
grade above F in the course. Keep in mind that missing even one assignment
will lower your course grade substantially. Absences are no excuse for
missed or late work. All assignments and readings are due at the beginning
of the class on the date assigned. No late work will be accepted whatsoever.
Your boss won’t either.
· Always plan ahead, call ahead, and communicate: If you are sick, call
during office hours at or leave a clear voicemail message. In business, as
in this course, effective time management is expected. Hand in papers ahead
of time if you need to go on a business trip. If you must miss one of the
class sessions, it is your responsibility to get notes from a colleague and
to master on your own the material we have covered. And, please, don’t ask,
“Have I missed anything?”
· Likewise, absenteeism and tardiness (along with ringing cell phones, gum
chewing, wearing hats, and bringing food to class) are unprofessional.
Should you arrive after the attendance sheet has been passed around (or
after roll has been taken), you will be marked absent. Absences carry the
following sanctions: For a missed class session deduction of 15 points from
your record, 5 points for tardies.
· Professional behavior: A goal for our meetings is to have a positive,
attentive, courteous environment that is conducive to learning. Being alert,
participating in discussion and activities, staying for the full class time,
and generally contributing to the learning experience of one's classmates
are desirable behaviors.
· Save all your papers (practice assignments, too) until the end of the
semester. Always back up your computer files and print hard copies of all
your work. Practice “safe computing” and budget your time wisely. Computer
or printer trouble is no excuse for late or missing assignments.
Assignments:
Letters and Memos (good news, bad news, and persuasive messages); approx.
5-6 total (in class)
Career Package (résumé and cover letter)
Information competency: Library/electronic database research + Short memo
report or Power-Point presentation (company news items) with APA list of
References; teams (2-3) or individuals
Portfolio of your best work
Participation (in class and as reflected in quality of homework/exercises
and Web site use)
Miscellaneous points (Quizzes, Executive Summaries, "bonus pts." for
selected campus events)
Final Exam (case, in class) may include a multiple-choice segment and/or
revision section
GRADING STANDARD: A (100-90), B (89-80), C (79-70), D (69-60), F (below
60)—see C.L.A.S.S. criteria
In-class and practice assignments may be evaluated ü+ (above average),
ü(satisfactory), ü- (shoddy), or 0.
You must pass the final examination in order to pass this course.
Course Format and Teaching Methods: This class is mainly a discussion forum
and workshop. Your participation in class discussions and in group
activities such as peer-edited revision workshops is extremely important
(10% of your course grade). Silence is not golden in this case. Borderline
grades will be raised or lowered depending on the amount of your active
participation and demonstrated involvement in the class. You may be asked to
present assigned readings and your work to the entire class, individually or
as a group. This requirement not only ensures completion of reading
assignments but it also gives you an opportunity to hone your oral
presentation skills—indispensable in a business environment.
Academic Dishonesty: Plagiarism is the failure to cite the source of your
information or language; in other words, it means presenting someone else’s
work as if it were your own. Students caught cheating on an exam,
plagiarizing an assignment, or submitting falsified work will be punished to
the maximum allowable penalty imposed by the University. Please refer to the
current university catalog concerning CSUF’s policy on cheating or
plagiarism. Potential consequences are: the grade of F for the submitted
work, possibly for the entire course, and likely additional university-level
disciplinary action. If you wish to quote someone, follow the guidelines in
the textbook, on our Web site and online at the library: http://www.library.fullerton.edu/cybercites.htm
Grades: If you want to know your grade before it is available, please give
your instructor a stamped, self-addressed grade card.
Ask questions and communicate! Take an active approach to learning. I wish
you a successful term.
Important Additional Information and Policies
(a.k.a. Read the "Small Print")
Packaging: All work should look professional when it is submitted. Each
document you prepare should be error-free, pleasing to the eye, clear,
courteous, and business-like. Packaging is of utmost importance. Don’t
undermine your effort by poor appearance, sloppiness and lack of
proof-reading. For important assignments consider investing in laser
printing (Titan Tender). Please never submit any assignment out of the
ordinary to me without attaching a clear memo of transmittal (a note of
explanation), so that I know what it is that you are handing in and why.
Paper: Use only size 8 1/2 x 11, white, non-spiral paper (please don’t ever
hand in anything torn-out from a pad with “hair” in the left margin);
computer paper is acceptable, but trim edges neatly.
Penmanship: (in a few in-class assignments, in emergencies) should be neat
and legible. I can’t evaluate what I can’t read. Hand-done work should be in
blue or black ink. Absolutely no pencil! Out-of-class assignments must be
computer-printed (laser or inkjet preferred). Typewriters are acceptable
only in emergencies.
Form: Default form is an initialed memo addressed to your instructor. Always
put your section number in parentheses after your name. All typed documents
should be single-spaced and in proper paragraph form, jagged right hand
margin (don’t justify margin). Properly assemble and staple multi-page
documents together before class.
Consult our textbook, Appendix I, for additional formal recommendations.
English Composition versus Business Writing: Keep in mind that business
writing is new to most of you—and it’s an entirely different type of writing
than you’ve done in the past. Learning is cumulative; do not expect high
grades on all assignments right from the beginning. Don’t even be too
alarmed if you find you’re only starting to “get it” more than half-way
through the semester. Expect some set-backs, as well as feelings of
floundering and frustration. If you work very hard, and if you entered this
class with adequate English writing skills—you can experience success! Be an
active participant, take good notes and review them often.
While prior business knowledge is not required for this course, the
instructor expects students will show an interest in reading and learning on
their own about the world of business and business communication, which is
their area of interest. BUAD 201 is not an English class, not an ESL class,
nor is it a remediation class. Writing in correct academic English is a
requirement. At this point in your university career, your writing style
should be almost as sophisticated and well-developed—and your command of
grammar and “mechanics” at about the same level—as the assignment samples in
your textbook. However, you will not receive passing grades for “copying”
examples from the text, the case, or from other resource materials. Business
communication is about style and an appropriate attitude toward audiences,
not about “boilerplate” approaches or formulaic writing.
What to expect:
1. You will acquire and enhance computer skills, in and outside of class.
2. You will hone your comprehension and critical reading
skills—indispensable for case analysis and effective strategic thinking.
3. You will learn to use language for creating appropriate strategies and to
produce business documents of which your boss will approve (and which should
ultimately advance your career). Your papers will be graded with the eyes of
a boss, partly because we believe that it is your professor's responsibility
to guarantee to your future employers that you can do the thinking,
analyzing, and writing jobs they’ll require of you.
4. Certain elements of grammar and style will be reviewed, but if you have
chronic problems, you’re expected to take the initiative and conquer them on
your own.
In-class versus out-of-class skills: If there is any discrepancy between
in-class and out-of-class work, your grade will be determined by your
in-class work only, discounting out-of-class points. The fact that this
might become necessary is not an accusation and in no way implies that the
teacher believes the student is “cheating.” However, it is almost impossible
to convince us that students who consistently do non-pass work can hand in
A+ out-of-class work because the assignment was “done at home” and they had
enough time to “do a good job.” Remember, in business you will be expected
to produce professional-quality work on short notice and within tight
deadlines.
Effort and Learning: If an assignment is full of errors and/or has little
eye-appeal, it cannot be given a passing grade—no matter how hard anyone
“tries.” Your boss will not reward you for an unprofessional-looking and
inadequate document, regardless of his/her knowing you put great effort into
the project. You will earn your grade by producing work of which your boss
can approve. Your effort will be rewarded, however, by working with you
during office hours, and giving you as much guidance as possible during the
semester.
