Syllabus

Discourse III: Civic and Community Engagement

Niki Casady

necwcb@mail.umkc.edu

Office location: Scofield Hall Room 104 

Office hours: Thursday 3:00-5:00 and by appointment

Required Texts:

Art of Fact  ISBN: 978-0684846309 

https://www.amazon.com/Art-Fact-Historical-Anthology-Journalism/dp/0684846306/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1484509915&sr=8-1&keywords=art+of+fact

Course Description:

Civic and Community Engagement: Students will put the knowledge and skills learned in Discourse I and II into practical use by engaging in a project that is interdisciplinary and intercultural. Students will use strategies of critical discourse analysis and critical language awareness to target the appropriate audience/recipients for their service project, to develop innovative and rhetorically effective texts, and to reflect on their project’s purpose, methods, and consequences. This course is taught in close connection with the anchor course Civic and Community Engagement.

Student Learning Outcomes:

Discourse 300:

Students will demonstrate an ability to:

• Engage a community problem through multiple forms of discourse.
• Apply discourse analysis and language awareness.
• Use written and oral discourse to develop and present meaningful and  interesting ideas that show the students’ voices, a willingness to take intellectual risks, and an ability to contribute to an academic conversation.
• Communicate skillfully in several genres and in response to the needs of different audiences.
• Create discourse through an advanced process that includes editing, proofreading, and revising multiple drafts.
• Evaluate their own and others' works and plan their own development as producers of discourse. 
• Locate, evaluate, organize and use research material from a broad range of sources and weave such sources into a longer interdisciplinary research project 
• Masterfully cite sources in a consistent professional style (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.) and understand differences between citation styles. 

Core Assessment:

Discourse 300: Though there are different sections and instructors of Discourse 300, certain general expectations apply to every course: Discourse 300 students are required to research, draft, develop and complete a minimum of 24-28 pages of finished writing including at least two research essays, one of which will be related to the material from the associated Anchor III course in Community and Civic Engagement. Students are also required to research, draft, develop and present at least two formal speeches with a combined minimum total of 18-20 minutes. This work will be presented in a final summative portfolio at the end of the term. Constructive feedback and opportunities for comprehensive revision will be provided throughout. All formal work, written and spoken, will be graded using a rubric that applies the SLO's for Communications Skills and Information Literacy.

Grading Breakdown

• 40% Essays and drafts
• 20% Blogging and responses
• 20% Discussion leader and quizzes 
• 20% Homework

	A: 100-94	A- : 93-90
B+: 89-87	B: 86-84	B-: 83- 80
C+: 79-77	C: 76-74	C-: 73-70
D+: 69-67	D: 66-64	D-: 63-60
F: 59 and below

RooWriter

As stated in the UMKC catalog, candidates for all baccalaureate degrees must take the UMKC RooWriter writing assessment before they have completed 90 credit hours. Students may take the RooWriter at any time while enrolled at UMKC as a personal diagnostic, but it will only satisfy the undergraduate graduation requirement after a student has completed Discourse 200 (or equivalent). You can find previous editions of the catalog here. RooWriter also appears as a degree requirement on your major map and on your DARS report.

As you prepare for completing your undergraduate degree and life beyond UMKC, it is important to recall the value of transferrable skills, including written communication. According to the National Survey of Business and Nonprofit Leaders: Key Findings, “When hiring recent college graduates, employers place the greatest priority on a demonstrated proficiency in skills and knowledge that cuts across majors.  Of 17 outcome areas tested, written and oral communication, teamwork skills, ethical decision-making, critical thinking, and the ability to apply knowledge in real-world settings are the most highly valued by employers.  More than 8 in 10 employers give these outcomes a rating between 8 and 10 on a 10 point scale.”  The feedback you receive from the RooWriter Assessment will give you insight into how well you communicate with others, a critical piece of information for succeeding in your college courses and obtaining employment as a college graduate. 

RooWriter offers a current assessment of how prepared you are for the rigorous reading and writing requirements of an Anchor and Discourse 300 course that assumes completion of the Discourse II class in the 30-hour General Education Program. Also, Anchor and Discourse 300 instructors will have access to the RooWriter reports for students enrolled in their course, so they can efficiently provide writing advice and assistance throughout the course.

Educational Philosophy:

Attendance: 

Students are expected to attend and participate in classes. Advance notice of attendance policies of academic units and individual instructors should be given, and such notice should be in writing. 

Students should notify instructors of excused absences in advance, where possible. Students who have an excused absence are expected to make arrangements with instructors for alternative or make-up work. Such arrangements should be made in advance of the absence, where possible. 

****You are allowed 3 unexcused absences.  You can use them how you need to and I do not need to be told why or what.  However, USE THEM WISELY because  after the first three, you are deducted 5% for each absence after that.  If you have 80% in the class and miss five classes, (3 free + 2 not) will result in 10% off your final grade.  Being late to class (more than 5 minutes) will be counted as 1/2 an absence.  

If you miss class more than 12 times, you may be administratively dropped from the class.****

Academic Dishonesty: Plagiarism is the undocumented use of another’s ideas or words. In this course, you will learn how to conduct academic research, how to evaluate sources, and document them appropriately. Failure to adequately cite your research is plagiarism and is a serious offense that could jeopardize your future academic career. http://www.umkc.edu/provost/policies/academic-integrity-dishonesty-and-plagiarism.pdf

****If you are found to be plagiarizing in your final draft, all parts of the essay/blog (drafts, conferences) will also receive a 0****

Late Work:

You are expected to turn in assignments on time.  If you have technical difficulties (like you are unable to upload it to Bb), I expect you to send me proof that you competed the assignment on time (email it to me).  

Cell Phone: 

I understand using phones occasionally to look up something or to send an "I'm Busy" text, but excessive use, I will give you one warning to put it away, one warning to put on the teacher's desk, and finally, I will ask you to leave and you will be counted absent.

Shit Happens:

I understand that sometimes life throws you for a loop and things happen beyond your control.  Keep me informed and we can work together to figure something out.  If I don’t know what is going on, I can’t help.  

UMKC Course Policies & Resources

Important UMKC Resources and Policies are applicable to every course and every student at UMKC. These are located in the Learning Management System for this course. Canvas users may click the Help question mark on the left side of the screen, and then select ‘UMKC Resources and Policy Statements’. Blackboard users may click the ‘UMKC Policies’ tab. As a UMKC student, you are expected to review and abide by these policies. If you have any questions, please contact your instructor for clarification.

This course follows the “Faculty allowing recording” option of the Academic Inquiry, Course Discussion and Privacy policy.