The Quality

Fall 2020 Syllabus

TCOM 5304: Foundations of Professional and Technical Communication

CRN 24039, Online (synchronous)

Instructor: Mike Duncan, Ph.D.

Office: S1069

Phone: 713-226-5576

Email: duncanm@uhd.edu

Office Hours: By appointment in Zoom.

Required Texts:

Johnson-Eilola and Selber (eds.) Central Works in Technical Communication. Oxford University Press, 2004. ISBN 13: 9780195157055.

· In addition to the Central Works collection, I will provide supplement additional texts that are available online through the UHD library.

Note that a student of this institution is not under any obligation to purchase a textbook from a university affiliated bookstore. The same textbook may also be purchased from an independent retailer, including an online retailer.

Required Technology:

To maximize your success in online courses at UHD, you should have access to a desktop or laptop computer running an up-to-date Windows or macOS operating system, using the latest Firefox or Chrome browsers. A built-in or add-on webcam is also often required in certain courses where multimedia tools (Zoom, VoiceThread, etc.) and/or exam proctoring tools (Lockdown Browser, Monitor, etc.) are used. Chromebooks and some other tablets are not compatible with test proctoring tools such as ProctorU or Lockdown Browser. While the Blackboard App (e.g., on your phone) can be helpful for some course features, UHD recommends that you do not use it for working on or submitting graded activities.

To avoid being disconnected at critical moments, we encourage you to access courses, in particular exams, on a computer that is hardwired to the Internet router (via Ethernet using a Cat 5 or Cat 6 cable) as opposed to depending on Wi-Fi whenever possible If you are experiencing challenges with technology, please communicate with your instructor in a timely manner and seek help from our UHD IT Support to identify possible solutions.

Course Format:

Online, synchronous

Course Prerequisites:

None. This is a required course in the MSTC degree.

Catalog Description:

Orients students to faculty research and the issues, goals, and methodologies of professional and technical communication. The course examines: definitions and histories of the field; relevant theories, practices, and genres; data gathering and research; technology-related issues; ethical and intercultural implications; and professionalization. 

Course Description:

My goal for this course is to provide you with a thorough overview and understanding of the major themes and interests of the field of technical communication.

The format of the course is a graduate seminar, held online in a synchronous format. This means for fifteen weeks, we’re going to read a large amount of seminal research in the field, discuss it with each other once a week in Zoom for several hours, and write about what we’ve read and discussed.

You could do this all yourself, of course, but it helps to have a professor and other graduate students guide you through the process of grappling with the complex issues that the texts raise, as well as call attention to texts that you might not have found on your own.

The official course objectives are below. They use a rather large amount of words to say that at the end of the course, you should have a pretty good grasp of what the field of technical communication is all about, and know where to start looking when pursuing your own research.

Course Objectives:

Academic and theoretical objectives

· Establish a foundation of knowledge of historical and interdisciplinary aspects of technical communication as a field of study and practice;  

· Apply the historical and interdisciplinary knowledge base by identifying key terms in technical communication and evaluating their multivalence in rhetorical context;  

· Analyze the relationship between theory and practice in technical communication by identifying the premises underlying the decisions that technical communicators make; 

Writing and analytical skills in practice

· Conduct research on a focused technical communication problem using a variety of research methods, effective approaches, technologies, and resources appropriate to (solving) that problem;

· Work collaboratively using face-to-face and/or electronic strategies to identify important issues in course readings and effective revision strategies in written assignments;

· Identify and analyze the multicultural implications of technical communication in diverse contexts.

University Policies and Procedures

University Requirements: Disruptions, COVID Reporting, and Safety

To address issues related to disruption of university functions, COVID reporting, and safety protocols, as well as mandatory engagement with classes by the 10th class day, UHD has prepared a general set of requirements that can be found here . These requirements are part of the expectations for this course. Any updates to the website will be communicated to students via their Gatormail accounts.

UHD Student Support Services

UHD has developed many resources to support your learning. We have developed a website that will offer a “one stop shop” for access to many of the resources you might need this semester to support your educational goals. Please access this website to get started: https://tinyurl.com/SSR2020 . If you do not find the resource you need on this website, please contact your instructor, who will make every effort to connect you with the help you need. 

Accessibility and Statement of Reasonable Accommodations

The University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) is committed to creating a learning environment that meets the needs of its diverse student population.  Accordingly, UHD strives to provide reasonable academic accommodations to students who request and are eligible, as specified by Section 504 and ADA guidelines. Students with disabilities may work with the Office of Disability Services to discuss a range of options to removing barriers in this course, including official accommodations.   If you have a disability, or think you may have a disability, please contact the Office of Disability Services, to begin this conversation or request an official accommodation. Office of Disability Services, One Main St., Suite GSB 314, Houston, TX 77002. (Office Phone) 713-221-5078 (Website) www.uhd.edu/disability/ (Email) disabilityservices@uhd.edu .

Academic Integrity ( PS 03.A.19 and UHD Student Handbook)

The UHD Academic Honesty Policy states, "Students must be honest in all academic activities and must not tolerate dishonesty." Students are responsible for doing their own work and avoiding all forms of academic dishonesty. The most common academic honesty violations are cheating and plagiarism. Cheating includes, but is not limited to: submitting material that is not one's own, submitting substantially similar material in more than one course, even if it is one’s own work, without the instructor’s permission, using information or devices that are not allowed by the faculty member, obtaining and/or using unauthorized material, Fabricating information, Violating procedures prescribed to protect the integrity of a test, or other evaluation exercise, Collaborating with others on assignments without the faculty member's consent, Cooperating with or helping another student to cheat, Having another person take an examination in the student's place, Altering exam answers and requesting that the exam be re-graded, Communicating with any person during an exam, other than the faculty member or exam proctor. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to directly quoting the words of others without using quotation marks or indented format to identify them, using sources of information (published or unpublished) without identifying them, and/or paraphrasing materials or ideas of others without identifying the sources.

Course Policies and Procedures

Use of Blackboard and Gatormail

Your success in this course is dependent on regular engagement in the course via Blackboard. Therefore, you must check the class BB site for announcements and materials several times per week. I will post reminders regularly through announcements and videos.

Click here for BB resources . If you lose access to the BB site or have other technology issues, please contact IT at bb@uhd.edu to try to resolve them.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

As this is a university level course, the material is intended to encourage critical thinking and discussion as we examine new ideas and concepts from varying frameworks. To do this effectively I, as the instructor, will do my best to foster an environment in which each class member is able to hear and respect each other. In turn, it is vital that each class member show respect for all worldviews and diverse experiences expressed in class.

It is my intent that students from all diverse backgrounds and perspectives be well served by this course, that students’ learning needs be addressed both in and out of class, and that the diversity that students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength and benefit. It is my intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of diversity in gender, sexuality, disability, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, and culture.

Please let me know ways to improve the effectiveness of the delivery or content of this course for you personally or for other students or student groups.

Penalties for academic honesty violations in this course

By university policy PS 03.A.19.2.5, “the penalty for an academic honesty violation on a significant course requirement such as a term paper/project or final examination shall be an ‘F’ for the course.”

Your submitted written work must be yours, with accurate citations for the work of others where appropriate. If you turn in undocumented work or the work of others–an act often referred to with the word ‘plagiarism’–for any assignment, you will fail the course at my discretion, and you may face further action from the university. If you feel the urge to use someone else’s work without attribution, that is the time to come and talk to me about how to help you succeed in the course, not to go ahead and do it. If you have the slightest doubt about proper citation and the use of copyrighted material, please ask me.

Assignment submission and format

All assignments should be submitted in the appropriate assignment dropbox in Blackboard. Do not email assignments to me unless you have significant problems with Blackboard.

Acceptance of late work

Late assignments (defined as assignments not turned in by the required time on the day they are due) are penalized one letter grade per day until they are turned in. As such, after four days, the highest grade you can receive is an F, at my discretion. I may grant exceptions for serious and documented medical issues, or conflicting university responsibilities.

Contacting me

While I am fond of informality myself, it is best that you default to formality when communicating in writing with instructors and professors. To keep you in that habit, I ask that when you email me, you compose your email as a short, correctly spelled letter, with a salutation, a body, and a closing.

I understand that some students are not fond of speaking in class or asking questions. I’m a quiet student myself, though I usually muster a question per class. If you’d rather to talk to me privately about the material in the class, or for any reason, feel free to make an appointment by email (duncanm@uhd.edu) to talk to me privately.

Additional course policies

This is a serious institution of learning where adults act like adults. Respect the class, your professor, and your fellow students by behaving professionally and courteously.

If you are having trouble keeping up with the class or the material, please let me know. Helping you is, quite literally, my job.

Grading

Assignments Grade Percentage

Reading Responses 20%

Discussion Board Responses 10%

Class Participation 10%

Presentation on One Article 10%

Proposal and Draft for Seminar Paper 10%

Seminar Paper 40%

Total: 100%

A = 90-100, B = 80-89, C = 70-79, D = 60-69, F = 0-59

Note that the final grades in a graduate program have different relative meanings than at the undergraduate level, given the higher standards. A-level work is the expectation of all students. B-level work means you need to show improvement quickly. C-level work is a sign that you are not doing well enough to eventually earn the degree, and this is reflected in the requirement that two final Cs in courses are grounds for dismissal from the program.

Types of Assignments

All assignments are turned in via Blackboard in .doc or .docx format. CAUTION: Failing to read this section is not a valid excuse for not doing these activities.

Reading Responses – 20% of total grade

Every week you will submit to BB, under the appropriate date assignment slot, a two-page paper (double-spaced) or one page (single-spaced) on the readings for that week, answering either the prompt on the discussion board or addressing a specific interest you’ve taken.

I want you to take a critical eye to the readings. Do not simply accept whatever they may claim. If you find yourself disagreeing, that’s good – talk about this in your response. Also, while you should read all the readings, you do not have to respond to all of them at once.

In addition to submitting your responses as assignments, you will also post them on the discussion board for the related week, which leads to the second related part of your grade.

Discussion Board Responses – 10% of total grade

After sharing your reading response to the discussion board, you will also respond at least twice to the postings of other students in the next four days. So, if everyone posts their formal reading response on Monday (as required), you will have until that Friday to respond twice to the posts of others.

These posts should be at least 150 words – shorter responses will not count toward the quota. Just doing the minimum will not earn you more than a B.

Class Discussion – 10% of total grade

Regular attendance and participation in our weekly Zoom meetings is reflected here.

Presentation on One Current Article – 10% of total grade

Once during the semester, you’ll lecture the class for 20 minutes on the contents of a journal article from the last five years that is related to the readings for a given week. I’ll model the first of these. There will be a signup process in Week Two’s class where you can select which week you’ll present.

Proposal and Draft for Seminar Paper – 10% of total grade (5% proposal, 5% draft)

This is a one-page proposal for a subject for the seminar paper.

Seminar Paper – 40% of total grade

This is a thesis-driven seminar paper of 15 double-spaced pages, with at least 10 secondary sources, that should explore some facet of technical communication that you find compelling.

Class Schedule for Fall 2020 TCOM 5304 (current as of September 7, 2020)

Week 1

Monday, August 24

· Introduction to course

· Getting acquainted

· Reading the syllabus

· Zoom protocol

· The collection and the year 2004

Week 2

Monday, August 31

· Connors, “The Rise of Technical Writing Instruction in America,” 3-19

· Rutter, “History, Rhetoric, and Humanism…” 20-34

· Durack, “Gender, Technology, and the History of Technical

· Communication,” 35-46

· Reading Response #1 Due

· Sign up for a Presentation Day later in the semester.

· Presentation #1 – I’ll do this one as a model for everyone else’s later in the course. You’ll read the article I’m discussing also (a copy is in the Content tab):

· Boettger and Friess. 2020. “Content and Authorship Patterns in Technical Communication Journals (1996–2017): A Quantitative Content Analysis,” Technical Communication 67.3.

Week 3

Monday, September 7

· Labor Day – NO CLASS

Week 4

Monday, September 14

· Miller, “A Humanistic Rationale for Technical Writing,” 47-54

· Driskill, “Understanding the Writing Context in Organizations, “ 55-69

· Rude, “The Report for Decision Making: Genre and Inquiry,” 70-90

· Reading Response #2 Due

· Presentation #2 - Audrey

Week 5

Monday, September 21

· Johnson, “Audience Involved: Toward a Participatory Model of Writing, “ 91-106

· Dobrin, “What’s Technical about Technical Writing?” 107-123

· Thralls and Blyler, “The Social Perspective and Professional Communication: Diversity and Directions in Research,” 124-145

· Reading Response #3 Due

· Presentation #3 - Toniamber

Week 6

Monday, September 28

· Lay, “Feminist Theory and the Redefinition of Technical Communication,” 146-159

· Slack, Miller, and Doak, “The Technical Communicator as Author: Meaning, Power, Authority, “160-174

· Johnson-Eilola, “Relocating the Value of Work: Technical Communication in a Post-Industrial Age,” 175-194

· Reading Response #4 Due

· Presentation #4 - Charles

Week 7

Monday, October 5

· Katz, “The Ethic of Expediency: Classical Rhetoric, Technology, and the Holocaust,” 195-210

· Sullivan, “Political-Ethical Implications of Defining Technical Communication as a Practice,” 211-219

· Herndl, “Teaching Discourse and Reproducing Culture: A Critique of Research and Pedagogy in Professional and Non-Academic Writing,” 220-231

· Reading Response #5 Due

· Presentation #5 - Jacob

Week 8

Monday, October 12

· Barton and Barton, “Ideology and the Map: Toward a Postmodern Visual Design Practice,” 232-254

· Harrison, “Frameworks for the Study of Writing in Organizational Contexts,” 255-267

· Blyler, “Taking a Political Turn: The Critical Perspective and Research in Professional Communication,” 268-280

· Reading Response #6 Due

· Presentation #6 - Cisco

Week 9

Monday, October 19

· Charney, “Empiricism Is Not A Four-Letter Word,” 281-299

· Sullivan and Porter, “On Theory, Practice, and Method: Toward a Heuristic Research Methodology for Professional Writing,” 300-316

· Selzer, “The Composing Processes of an Engineer,” 317-324

· Reading Response #7 Due

· Presentation #7 - Sara

Week 10

Monday, October 26

· Doheny-Farina, “Writing In An Emerging Organization: An Ethnographic Study,” 325-340

· Winsor, “Engineering Writing/Writing Engineering,” 341-350

· Allen, Atkinson, Morgan, Moore, and Snow. “What Experienced Collaborators Say About Collaborative Writing,” 351-364

· Reading Response #8 Due

· Presentation #8 - Tiffany

Week 11

Monday, November 2

· Paradis, “Text and Action: The Operator’s Manual in Context and in Court,” 365-380.

· Mirel, “Writing and Database Technology: Extending the Definition of Writing in the Workplace,” 381-396

· Reading Response #9 Due

· Seminar Paper Proposal #1 Due

· Presentation #9 - Dasha

Week 12

Monday, November 9

· Howard, “Who ‘Owns’ Electronic Texts?” 397-408

· Bernhardt, “The Shape of Text to Come: The Texture of Print on Screens,” 409-427

· Reading Response #10 Due

· Presentation #10 - Pheba

Week 13

Monday, November 16

· Selfe and Selfe, “The Politics of the Interface: Power and Its Exercise in Electronic Contact Zones,” 428-448

· Selber, “Beyond Skill Building: Challenges Facing Technical Communication Teachers in the Computer Age,” 449-465

· Reading Response #11 Due

· Presentation #11 - Arie

Week 14

Monday, November 23

· Bosley, “Cross-Cultural Collaboration: Whose Culture Is It, Anyway?” 466-474

· Brasseur, “Contesting the Objectivist Paradigm: Gender Issues in the Technical and Professional Communication Curriculum,” 475-489.

· Reading Response #12 Due

· Seminar Paper Draft Due

· Presentation #12 - Jacqueline

Week 15

Monday, November 30

OPEN

Week 16

Monday, December 7

· Last day of Class

· Informal Presentations on Seminar Paper Topics

Final Exam

To Be Announced

Due: Seminar Paper