Syllabus for MCO-740-OL

MANAGEMENT COMMUNICATIONS


COURSE DESCRIPTION

Management Communications sharpens written, oral, and listening skills to meet the demands of a successful managerial communicator. Emphasis is placed on strategically evaluating and creating articulate communications relative to managerial situations along with effectively and efficiently developing procedures for solving communication problems. Topics include structuring message content and argument; communication style, tone, and strategy; presentation graphics; ethics; and technologically mediated, intercultural, and crisis communications.  

COURSE OBJECTIVES

After completing this course, you will be able to:

CO1        Develop clear, grammatically error-free, and articulate professional communications.

CO2        Explain the nature and importance of an operative communication system within a professional organization.

CO3        Analyze an audience for the selection of the best level and type of communication.

CO4        Contrast and compare options for effectively communicating in a technologically mediated work environment.

CO5        Deliver efficient, unbiased, and lucid oral communications.

CO6        Prepare clear and precise visual aids to enhance a communication.

 

COURSE MATERIALS

You will need the following materials to do the work of the course. The required textbook is available from the University’s textbook supplier, MBS Direct.

Required Textbooks

ISBN-13: 978-1412992046

ISBN-13: 978-0195320695

ISBN-13: 978-1457692376

Technology Requirements

COURSE STRUCTURE

Marketing Management is a three-credit online course, consisting of eight modules. Modules include an overview (“Food for Thought”), topics, learning objectives, study materials, and activities. Module titles are listed below.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

For your formal work in the course, you are required to participate in six graded discussion forums and in two synchronous events as well as to complete three written assignments. You are also required to complete a final project.

Consult the Course Calendar for assignment due dates.

Discussion Forums

This course requires you to participate in six (6) graded discussion forums, including an Introductions forum and a Concluding forum. (Unlike Introductions forums in most other Thomas Edison State University courses, this Introductions forum is graded.) Discussion board assignments allow interaction with the class. Since discussions are interactive, these activities enable intellectual exchange with one’s peers. The ability to collaborate successfully with colleagues is an ongoing requirement of managerial communications.

The Topic List area of the course includes several other  forums as well:

Graded discussion board assignments are assessed and graded on two bases: i.e., the original composition posting and peer interaction. Subject-specific directions are found within the Modules. However there are certain common requirements for every posting:

Consult the Course Calendar concerning due dates. Student contributions, i.e., the original postings, are due on Wednesday of the calendar week. Peer responses are due on Friday of that week. This two-step submission process provides students with time to read all the contributions and then reply accordingly. Once assignments are graded, students may certainly continue to dialogue on the study topic; however, these entries do not affect or change a posted grade.

Discussion board postings are graded based on a rubric, found in the Evaluation Rubrics section of the course site.

Written Assignments

You are required to complete three (3) written assignments. The written assignments require you apply the concepts and theories to answer questions or analyze scenarios that are related to the topics covered in each module. Written assignments are emulations of managerial reports. The goal of these compositions is to prepare students to write efficient and effective managerial prose. Students should reference their copies of The Business Writer's Handbook to assist with business style as well as issues of grammar, syntax, structure and composition.

Citations

Professionals always give credit where credit is due, and this concept extends to ideas as well as precise wording. Within all managerial communications, citations serve this purpose. Thomas Edison State University requires that students format citations in APA style. Examine the following examples of proper APA citation.

 

 

 

Kelly, E., A. Ellis, and S. Rosenthal. "Crisis of Conscience: Pharmacist Refusal to Provide Health Care Services on Moral Grounds." Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal 23.1(2011): 37. ABI/INFORM Global,ProQuest. Web. 27 Jul. 2012.

 

Students can locate information about proper citation formatting online by conducting a Google search. Microsoft Word’s References Manager toolbar takes the labor out of creating a bibliography and in-text citations. Students who are unfamiliar with using Word’s Reference Manager should select one of the many online training tools that can be located on the Internet.

Requirements and Directions

Specific requirements and directions for each written assignment are found within the appropriate module. Students are encouraged to perform a cursory review of all eight modules at the start of the term.

 

Grading Rubric

Written assignment postings are graded based on a rubric, found in the Evaluation Rubrics section of the course site.

Submission

Students are to submit their written assignments by the due date specified in the directions. Assignments should never be emailed to the mentor; they should be submitted only through the Submit Assignments course area.

Synchronous Events

You are required to participate in two synchronous events during the semester. You will use Edison Live! for these requirements. Both synchronous events will focus on elements of your final project. See the Module 3 and Module 8 areas of the course Web site for further details. To access the event, click the Collaboration Space link in the Edison Live! section of the course site a few minutes before the designated time. Use the following link for directions and helpful videos about how to use the Edison Live! tool in Moodle.

Final Project

The final project for Management Communications allows the student to apply the concepts and theory learned during  the course within a comprehensive managerial report. This document must be properly researched and cited and should demonstrate the communication competencies learned within this course, such as clear organization;  presentation of appropriate information into tables, charts, or graphs; and articulate communication.

Students will select a topic early in the course, and, it must be approved by the course mentor via an Edison Live! discussion within Week 3. (Note: Once approved, the topic discussion  serves as fulfillment of the oral presentation requirement.)

In addition to the written report itself, the student is required to produce a PowerPoint Presentation that includes images and graphics. Using Edison Live, students will present an oral summary of their report in Week 8 and engage in real-time discussion, thus simulating communication methods used in today’s workplace.

See the Final Project area of the course site for complete details of this assignment. The PowerPoint Presentation and the final project will be graded based on rubrics, found in the Rubrics section of the course site.

GRADING AND EVALUATION

Your grade in the course will be determined as follows:

All activities will receive a numerical grade of 0–100. You will receive a score of 0 for any work not submitted. Your final grade in the course will be a letter grade. Letter grade equivalents for numerical grades are as follows:

A

=

93–100

B–

=

80–82

A–

=

90–92

C+

=

78–79

B+

=

88–89

C

=

73–77

B

=

83–87

F

=

Below 73

To receive credit for the course, you must earn a letter grade of C or higher on the weighted average of all assigned course work (e.g., assignments, discussion postings, projects, etc.). Graduate students must maintain a B average overall to remain in good academic standing.

STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESS

First Steps to Success

To succeed in this course, take the following first steps:

Study Tips

Consider the following study tips for success:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Thomas Edison State University is committed to maintaining academic quality, excellence, and honesty. The University expects all members of its community to share the commitment to academic integrity, an essential component of a quality academic experience.

Students at Thomas Edison State University are expected to exhibit the highest level of academic citizenship. In particular, students are expected to read and follow all policies, procedures, and program information guidelines contained in publications; pursue their learning goals with honesty and integrity; demonstrate that they are progressing satisfactorily and in a timely fashion by meeting course deadlines and following outlined procedures; observe a code of mutual respect in dealing with mentors, staff, and other students; behave in a manner consistent with the standards and codes of the profession in which they are practicing; keep official records updated regarding changes in name, address, telephone number, or e-mail address; and meet financial obligations in a timely manner. Students not practicing good academic citizenship may be subject to disciplinary action including suspension, dismissal, or financial holds on records.

All members of the University community are responsible for reviewing the Academic Code of Conduct Policy in the University Catalog and online at www.tesu.edu.

Academic Dishonesty

Thomas Edison State University expects all of its students to approach their education with academic integrity—the pursuit of scholarly activity free from fraud and deception. All mentors and administrative staff members at the University insist on strict standards of academic honesty in all courses. Academic dishonesty undermines this objective. Academic dishonesty can take the following forms:

Plagiarism

Thomas Edison State University is committed to helping students understand the seriousness of plagiarism, which is defined as using the work and ideas of others without proper citation. The University takes a strong stance against plagiarism, and students found to be plagiarizing are subject to discipline under the academic code of conduct policy.

If you copy phrases, sentences, paragraphs, or whole documents word-for-word—or if you paraphrase by changing a word here and there—without identifying the author, or without identifying it as a direct quote, then you are plagiarizing. Please keep in mind that this type of identification applies to Internet sources as well as to print-based sources. Copying and pasting from the Internet, without using quotation marks and without acknowledging sources, constitutes plagiarism. (For information about how to cite Internet sources, see Online Student Handbook > Academic Standards > “Citing Sources.”)

Accidentally copying the words and ideas of another writer does not excuse the charge of plagiarism. It is easy to jot down notes and ideas from many sources and then write your own paper without knowing which words are your own and which are someone else’s. It is more difficult to keep track of each and every source. However, the conscientious writer who wishes to avoid plagiarizing never fails to keep careful track of sources.

Always be aware that if you write without acknowledging the sources of your ideas, you run the risk of being charged with plagiarism.

Clearly, plagiarism, no matter the degree of intent to deceive, defeats the purpose of education. If you plagiarize deliberately, you are not educating yourself, and you are wasting your time on courses meant to improve your skills. If you plagiarize through carelessness, you are deceiving yourself.

For examples of unintentional plagiarism, advice on when to quote and when to paraphrase, and information about writing assistance and originality report checking, click the links provided below.

Examples of Unintentional Plagiarism

When to Quote and When to Paraphrase

Writing Assistance at Smarthinking

Originality Report Checking at Turnitin

Disciplinary Process for Plagiarism

Acts of both intentional and unintentional plagiarism violate the Academic Code of Conduct.

If an incident of plagiarism is an isolated minor oversight or an obvious result of ignorance of proper citation requirements, the mentor may handle the matter as a learning exercise. Appropriate consequences may include the completion of tutorials, assignment rewrites, or any other reasonable learning tool in addition to a lower grade for the assignment or course. The mentor will notify the student and appropriate dean of the consequence by e-mail.

If the plagiarism appears intentional and/or is more than an isolated incident, the mentor will refer the matter to the appropriate dean, who will gather information about the violation(s) from the mentor and student, as necessary. The dean will review the matter and notify the student in writing of the specifics of the charge and the sanction to be imposed.

Possible sanctions include:

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