Technical and Business Writing Syllabus for 2016-2017
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Course Information

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Administrative Drop Policy

Students who do not attend class on or prior to the census date will be administratively dropped. Effective Fall, 2016

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• consult with their academic advisor to determine how withdrawing may affect their enrollment in future semesters
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Course

ENGL-2311-006 Technical and Business Writing

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: ENGL 1301

Course Description

Intensive study of and practice in professional settings. Focus on the types of documents necessary to make decisions and take action on the job, such as proposals, reports, instructions, policies and procedures, e-mail messages, letters and descriptions of products and services. Practice individual and collaborative processes involved in the creation of ethical and efficient documents.

Student Resources Student Resources Website

Department Expectations

English Department Plagiarism Policy (Revised Spring, 2013):

The English Department takes plagiarism seriously.

Plagiarism is defined as the following:  the use of someone else’s exact words that are neither quoted nor cited; paraphrasing someone else’s words without citing them; or using someone else’s research without citing it.

Student plagiarism in the Amarillo College English Department is internally tracked.  To clarify, records will be kept in the Department of those students who have plagiarized.  At the beginning of each new semester, the names of students who plagiarized the previous semester will be sent to all English Department faculty. 

Plagiarism may receive a penalty of a zero.  A subsequent infraction will be deemed a reason for expulsion from the class. At this point, the case will be referred to the Vice President of Student Affairs.

Note: Self-plagiarism will be discussed with the class by each instructor and infractions for such are left up to the individual instructor’s discretion.

 

 

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Hours

(3 sem hrs; 3 lec)

Class Type

Online Course

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

 

Required Textbook

Strategies for Technical Communication in the Workplace, 3^rd edition. By Laura J. Gurak and John M. Lannon.  Pearson Publishing. 2016.

Supplies

Student Performance

Course Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Recognize, analyze, and accommodate diverse audiences.
2. Produce documents appropriate to audience, purpose, and genre.
3. Analyze the ethical responsibilities involved in technical communication.
4. Locate, evaluate, and incorporate pertinent information.
5. Develop verbal, visual, and multimedia materials as necessary, in individual and/or collaborative projects, as appropriate.
6. Edit for appropriate style, including attention to word choice, sentence structure, punctuation, and spelling.
7. Design and test documents for easy reading and navigation.
8. In addition to the learning outcomes, students will discuss topics on producing work in the technical writing and business communication field.

Students Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Log in using the AC Connect Portal

In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .

If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

Behavior

CODE OF STUDENT CONDUCT: All rules and regulations set forth in the “Student Code of Conduct” section in the current edition of the Students’ Rights and Responsibilities publication will be followed in this course (see link above).

Grading Criteria

Grade Determination

Grades will be based on the following system:  
                A             90-100= high achievement
                B             80-89= above average achievement
                C             70-79= satisfactory achievement
                D             60-69= unsatisfactory achievement
                F              0-59= unacceptable

Grade Percentages of Assignments

Grade Breakdown

8 Discussions (1% each)                    8%    

8 Quizzes (1% each)                           8%

Email Assignment                               4%

Memo of Introduction                          10%

Cover Letter and Resume                    10%

Instructions                                          5%

Proposal                                              10%

Progress Report                                  10%

Illustration Assignment                        5%

Peer Edit Formal Report                     5%

Formal Report                                     15%

Final Exam                                          10%

*Note that  of your grade is the writing assignments. Within this category, some assignments will be worth more points than others. For instance, your recommendation report, a lengthy assignment, will be worth 15% while other smaller assignments will be worth less.

Discussions: For full credit in the discussion forums, your initial thread must be a minimum word count of 150 words, and you must respond to at least two classmates with a thorough response of 50 words for each response.

Assignment Criteria

Most writing assignments will have a grading rubric that will set forth the criteria for grading.

Tutoring

TUTORING:  You can use SMARTHINKING (click), online tutoring available through the AC website.  Be advised that the Smartthinking tutoring service has a 2-3 day turnaround, so you need to submit work well before the due date to be sure to receive timely feedback from a tutor.

If you are near the AC campus, you are welcome to visit the Writer's Corner (click) located in Ordway Hall to get help with your assignments.

 

Assignment Submission and Late Work

Assignment Submission:

• Please submit each assignment in its designated place in Blackboard. Please follow instructions for naming each file before submitting it in Blackboard.
• I will not accept assignments submitted through email unless I have specifically told you to email an assignment to me.
• Assignments must be submitted in .doc or pdf format. I will not accept work submitted in a format other than .doc or .pdf.
• Save your work carefully and diligently. If you do not have a thumb drive, you may want to create your documents in Google Docs so you don’t have to worry about saving. If you work in Google Docs, you can save your work in .pdf or .doc before you submit it in Blackboard.

Late work will not be accepted. Because this is a fast-paced 8-week course, you must complete assignments by the due date. Any assignment turned in after the due date at midnight is late. I understand that technical problems occur and life issues sometimes interfere with assignments, but I am counting on your commitment to this class despite life's setbacks. When you can, work on assignments ahead of their due dates. If a situation arises that interferes with your turning in work in a timely manner, please email or call me.

Assignment Due Dates:    Exact due dates for assignments are not specified on this syllabus. Please check your lessons and Blackboard course calendar for exact assignment due dates.

Attendance

Calendar

Additional Information

Final Exam:

Information about final exam will be posted in Blackboard.