COURSE OUTLINE
UNIT ONE: ORIENTATION/COMMUNICATION THEORY
I. Explanation of course: structure, requirements, policies, philosophy (Handout/Syllabus)
II. Importance of communication studies
A. Career needs
B. Academic needs
C. Personal growth
III. Communication defined/described (Handout)
A. “Official definition”
B. Communication Model
C. Functions of Communication
A. Listening defined
B. Importance of listening education
C. Model of listening – three stages
D. Types of listening
E. Barriers to effective listening
F. Strategies to improve listening
G. Effective note taking (Handout)
UNIT TWO: PUBLIC SPEAKING
I. Invention/Investigation (Handout)
A. Determining main purpose of speech
B. Three main considerations: self, situation, and audience
C. Research (including the Information Seeking Interview -- Handout)
D. Source citation and plagiarism (Link)
E. MLA Style (Handout: MLA Style for Complete Citations);
II. Organization
A. Relationship to speaker’s effectiveness
B. Basic Speech/Composition Model (Handout)
III. Effective use of language.
A. Clarity (Handout: George Orwell's Advice on Language)
B. Conciseness
C. Correctness
D. Color
E. Consideration (for audience, occasion)
III. Communication anxiety and its management (Handout)
A. Definition of communication anxiety
B. Prevalence
C. Our basic philosophy for dealing with it
D. Five point plan
E. Other strategies
A. Defined
B. Basic principles
C. Basic strategies
D. Handling information and delivery
E. Delivery channels
UNIT THREE: INFORMATIVE COMMUNICATION UNIT (Handout)
I. Basic model and theoretical background (Informative Communication Checklist Handout)
A. Attention
B. Clarity
C. Retention
II. Presentation aids
A. Dale’s Cone of Experience (Handout)
B. Making and Using Presentation Aids (Handout)
UNIT FOUR: PERSUASIVE COMMUNICATION
I. Persuasion and argumentation defined
A. Issues in defining/studying persuasion
B. Argumentation as logic-based standards/self-defense
II. Audience variables
A. Audience motivations as basis for appeals (Handout)
B. Cognitive consistency theory and defensiveness
III. Message variables
A. Message organization (Handout)
B. Other message content (Handout)
IV. Source variables (credibility)
A. Importance of credibility
B. Factors in managing credibility (Handout)
V. Critical listening
A. Analysis (choice and emphasis of issues)
B. Evidence/standards for evaluation of evidence (Handout)
C. Reasoning and the detection of logical fallacies (Handout)