PROFESSIONAL WRITING WRT 307 ~ Spring, 2010

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1 PROFESSIONAL WRITING WRT 307 ~ Spring, 2010 Benette Whitmore, Instructor address: [email protected] Campus phone: Office: 105 Moon Library, SUNY ESF Welcome to WRT 307, a course designed to introduce you to communication challenges typically encountered in the workplace, and to offer coaching and practice in written and oral communications that will help you meet those challenges effectively. You will learn to consider audience, purpose, and ethics, as you apply rhetorical problem-solving principles to diverse professional writing tasks and situations. You will learn to understand workplace documents as having political and ethical dimensions, which makes communication practices more challenging, provocative, and meaningful. To achieve these ambitious objectives, we will examine workplace practices through writing cover letters, résumés, memos, instructions, proposals, and reports, among other professional documents. For the Genre Project, each student will research, write about, and present a rhetorical analysis of a genre related to professional business writing. You will read and critique examples of these works, both by fellow students and by professionals. However, in the process of studying the various forms, you will not simply mimic them by using them as formulas for writing. Instead, you will be challenged to analyze and question various documents in terms of the power they have to shape meaning. Although you'll become comfortable working with and creating various forms of technical writing, you'll also learn to critique the limitations, as well as opportunities, inherent in technical documents. As we look at the power of language to shape meaning, we ll also examine and respond to the ethics of communication. When we move into the final project, we ll explore the ethical and political dimensions of teamwork and investigate its (de)value in corporate America. We ll participate in team building exercises, develop active listening skills, and discover ways in which teamwork is enhanced through writing and other forms of communication. You will develop your oral presentation skills as you deliver formal presentations and as you critique presentations given by your classmates. You will learn to incorporate multi-media, such as PowerPoint, into your presentations, while examining the ways in which those technologies influence communication. This class will have a workshop environment, and you will often draw on the practices learned and refined in your previous writing courses, such as freewriting, peer editing, collaborative work, and drafting-- the same practices you will find in the workplace. While the focus of this class will be on non-academic writing, you will find that practices learned in earlier studios will serve you well here. And as in other studios, your participation is crucial to the success of the class.

2 Course Materials ~ Course Reader (Available at Campus Copies in Marshall Square Mall). Units of Study ~ Along with shorter assignments (homework, as well as in-class projects), the course has five major assignments, including prewriting, drafts, peer edits, and so on. An on-going major assignment is the Genre Project, where each student will research, analyze, write about, and present a rhetorical analysis of an example of professional business writing. Other assignments include: Interview with professional from your field (memo and presentation) Job application portfolio (cover letter, résumé, follow-up letter) Researched proposal with annotated bibliography (formal business letter and presentation) Final collaborative project on topic related to workplace communication (major written project and final workshop). You will choose the most appropriate genre (e.g., website, manual, report, or imovie) in which to present this information. The format must integrate text with visuals in a way resulting in an effective document. Grading ~ The grade breakdown is as follows: In-Class Writing/Exercises - 10% Interview with Professional- 15% (Written= 10%; Oral= 5%) The Genre Project- 10% Workplace Investigation - 20% Proposal - 20% (Written = 15%; Oral = 5%) Final Collaborative Project - 25% (Written = 20%; Oral = 5%) Class Participation ~ Since WRT 307 is a course in language learning and language is learned through communities, it is essential for successful completion of the course that you attend and participate in classes. More than simply talking in class, participation includes your: attending class every day arriving on time being prepared handing in completed work on time putting forth effort in peer reviews engaging in class discussions in a meaningful way contributing to the studio atmosphere in a positive, productive way attending individual conferences Attendance ~ Writing studios are courses in language learning, and language is learned in communities; therefore, it is essential that you attend class and participate. Absences and lack of preparation for class will affect your classmates' work as well as your own. The work you do in class, the work you do to prepare for each class, is as important as any polished assignment you turn in for a grade. In addition, our syllabus is only a projection and may be subject to occasional changes and revisions as it seems appropriate, necessary, or just interesting. That is another reason why your attendance is vital.

3 If you must miss a class, you are responsible for work assigned. Please realize, however, that class time cannot be reconstructed or made up, and that your performance, your work, and your final course grade will be affected by absences. If you miss the equivalent of three weeks of classes or more without any official documented excuse you will not possibly experience what s/he needs in order to successfully complete the course and, therefore, will not have fulfilled the requirements necessary to pass the class. I don t anticipate any of you will be in that position, however, so let s all agree to do the work, come to class, learn a lot, and make the course a meaningful experience. The Writing Center ~ Experienced writing consultants at the Writing Center (101 HB Crouse Hall, on the Quad) can teach you how to succeed on individual assignments and ultimately become a better writer. They re prepared to work one-on-one with you at any stage of your process and with any kind of writing you re attempting while attending SU. Whether you need help understanding an assignment, brainstorming ideas, revising subsequent drafts, or developing editing strategies, face-to-face and online appointments are available for 25- or 50-minute sessions throughout the semester and can be reserved up to seven days in advance via their online scheduling program, WCOnline. In addition, drop-in appointments are welcome Monday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and brief concerns or questions can be ed to consultants via the ewc. For more information on hours, location and services, please visit This is a free resource to all students and highly recommended for every assignment you work on in this class. Finally ~ As computers have become ubiquitous in our worlds, we need to keep in mind that while we are physically in class, we need to be intellectually present, as well. That means that the use of cell phones, including text messaging, is simply unacceptable once you step into our classroom. Please turn off your phone and put it safely away before coming to class. Also, remember that is not instant messaging. If you send me an , please expect an answer in two days, not two minutes. PLEASE NOTE: Plagiarism is a serious University offense; make sure you avoid its consequences, which could include expulsion from Syracuse University. Written texts are considered public texts unless you specify otherwise to me. You may choose to remain anonymous or not share your texts in public; just let me know your preference. If you need consideration for special needs of any kind, please see me.

4 WRT 307: Professional Writing Benette Whitmore Semester Project: Phases I, II, II, and IV ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ In Unit Two, you will begin work on your semester project, a four-phase assignment that spans the rest of the term. Phase I is a proposal, Phase II is a team assessment form, Phase III is a progress report, and Phase IV is a final group project involving writing and document design, and a final group workshop presentation. You will complete Phase I individually, and Phases II, III, and IV in teams. During all phases, we will also explore issues of teamwork, team building strategies, team assessment, and professional ethics.!phase I: THE PROPOSAL Your proposal should show how you and a team of your colleagues will research a topic related to the professional workplace, and how you will convey your ideas to the class in an interactive team workshop. Some possible topics include: Motivating Employees Evaluating Job Offers Business Etiquette Personal Finance for Young Professionals Teamwork in Corporate Society Recruiting and Hiring Outstanding Employees Interview Techniques Crisis Management Workplace Wellness Networking Diversity in the Workplace Starting a Small Business Starting a Non-Profit (* You are not limited to this list. *) You will not need to complete your full analysis for the proposal, but you will need to conduct enough preliminary research to make your proposal convincing. It's important your audience considers you to be knowledgeable enough to proceed, as well as capable enough to lead. a. The Written Proposal Drafts of your proposal are due on Tues., March 2. Your final written proposal (a two- to threepage, single-spaced, formal business letter) is due on Thurs., March 4. Address your written proposal to: Ms. Benette Whitmore The Writing Program 236 HBC Syracuse University Syracuse, New York 13244

5 Your written proposal should address these areas: Brief Introduction Background on Topic (Cite at least two sources from your annotated bibliography, as described below.) Go beyond common knowledge. Position yourself as a potential expert on the topic. Relevance of Topic to Audience (WRT 307 students). Remember you are appealing to students from various majors, so be sure to make it interesting/relevant to everyone. Ideas for Final Group Workshop Ideas for Final Written Project (Report? Recommendations? Manual? Website?) Your Qualifications/Leadership Skills Conclusion And an ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY. Each written proposal must include an appendix that lists four sources of information, beginning with a proper MLA citation. Then, for each source, include a brief paragraph (around 150 words), which: a. Describes the kind of source (e.g., popular article, peer-reviewed article, commercial website, conference proceedings, etc.), b. Summarizes the information in the source, and c. Explains how the information will contribute to your project. Proposals will be judged on: * Audience awareness * Organization/Clarity * Persuasiveness * Professionalism * Detail, development, evidence * Creativity b. Oral Presentation of Your Proposal Everyone should be prepared to deliver a five- to seven-minute proposal presentation on Thurs., March 4. You should use 9 to 10 PowerPoint slides. What do you cover in your presentation? You address everything that's in your written proposal. Here's a possible breakdown of the overheads: * Title slide-- your name/topic * Background-- may need three to four slides on this (in other words, three to four minutes worth of material) * Relevance of topic to audience * Final presentation ideas * Final writing project (report? recommendations? manual? website?) ideas * Your qualifications/leadership skills * Wrap-up/conclusion KEEP YOUR OVERHEADS SIMPLE. No complete sentences. Use only phrases to emphasize key points. Use a font that a person in the back row can read-- probably minimum of 24 point, bold. Play around with PowerPoint for some nifty backgrounds, but again, simplicity is the key. (Don t use distracting transitions or animations.)

6 PRACTICE so you don't lose points for going under or over the time limit, and so your presentation is confident and smooth. Remember your attention-getter & conclusion. Final Project Teams After all proposals are presented orally, a vote will take place to determine which four proposals will be developed into final projects. The students who proposed those projects will be team leaders, while those students whose proposals were not selected will be assigned to a team. These final teams will work together for the rest of the semester to complete phases II, III, and IV of the project. PHASE II: TEAM ASSESSMENT FORM Once assembled, each team will design an assessment form to be used as an evaluative tool at the end of the project. The form should have two parts; part one will evaluate the team s performance overall and part two will evaluate each individual s performance. The assessment form is useful because it helps establish goals and expectations at the outset. Drafts of the team assessment form are due on Thurs., March 25. PHASE III: THE PROGRESS REPORT Team progress reports, sent to me via , will be due on a weekly basis. More information on this requirement will follow at a later date. PHASE IV: THE WORKSHOP AND TECHNICAL DOCUMENT Both the 50-minute workshop and the technical document will include, or be based on, an in-depth analysis of the topic, research of current literature, interviews with experts, and/or reflections on personal experience. Use graphics appropriately to illustrate your points. MORE PARTICULARS Team workshops/final presentations will begin Tues., April 20. Each team will present a 50- minute workshop on their topic to the WRT 307 class. For the presentation, you should invite class participation via role-playing, skits, or problem-solving activities. Be creative! Each team will also hand in a written project (e.g., webpage, manual, video production, handbook) that requires the equivalent amount of work required for 20-page, single-spaced report. You should draw from at least 10 sources. Final written projects must incorporate text as well as graphics (remember what you ve learned about visual rhetoric). Drafts are due Tues., April 20. Final projects are due on Tues., April 27. You will receive plenty of guidance on how to construct these projects along the way. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? CONCERNS? Please see me. I m here to help you.

7 THE GENRE PROJECT The genre project gives you an opportunity to analyze a genre's conventions, explore the rhetoric of a sample "real" workplace genre, and teach yourself and the class about both. The purpose of this project is to supply each student in this class with authoritative samples of genres and handouts of genre guidelines that could be used as future references when in the professional workplace. For this project, I will assign you and a classmate to research, write, and present on one of the following genres sometime this semester: * Annual report * Professional website * Feasibility report * Training manual * "Bad news" letters * Grant proposal * Technical definition * Instructions * White paper * Gannt chart Here are the guidelines for the project: 1. Read two sources and note what they say are the widely accepted standards for the format and use of the genre you've chosen. One of these sources should be found by looking up your key terms or his reference to a source online through the scholarly database JSTOR (available through the library database). 2. Obtain an actual sample of your genre, preferably from your professional field. 3. Referring to your research, as well as to your example, write a one to two-page, single-spaced rhetorical analysis of the genre, commenting on such considerations as the following: Audience/Purpose/Context Word choice, sentence style, paragraph style (i.e., level of formality, sentence length, number of sentence in a paragraph) Design and format (i.e., placement of indents, use of margins, use of graphics, as applicable) 7. Prepare a 12- to 15-minute presentation where you describe the conventions of the genre, show your example, and report on your rhetorical analysis of the genre. Reminders and Guidelines for this Project * Assume your audience is unfamiliar with the genre. * You are responsible to be sure the equipment will work appropriately with any presentation visuals you have prepared. * Meet with me at least 10 days before your presentation to discuss your ideas. I can offer guidance in finding resources and examples, and in developing your PowerPoint presentation.