Units

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Sample subject outline - Semester 1 2013

Note: Subject outlines often change before the semester begins. Below is a sample outline.

Rationale

Professional communication specialists require high-level practical and theoretical skills. A key aspect of any professional writing document is its level of reader usability. Therefore, this unit provides high-level skills in professional writing with an aim to ensure that professional writing documents are tailored specifically to meet the needs of the user. The skills required to meet user needs include tone, advanced style and clarity, advanced English grammar, and advanced editing skills.

Aims

Often in professional writing, the needs of the user are not well-considered, which results in inefficient communication because of lost time and opportunities. For written communication to be effective the writer's meaning must be apparent to the reader and any action required by the reader should be evident. This advanced-level unit aims to instruct you in the ways that professional writing communication can be as user-friendly and clear as possible so that communication between writer and reader/ is clear, unambiguous, and meaningful.

Objectives

At the completion of this unit, you will be able to:
1. Devise and write high-quality documents, employing editing skills where appropriate.
2. Explain the role of tone in written/oral communication.
3. Meet the needs of the reader/user.
4. Evaluate the quality of professional writing.

Content

Advanced language skills
Advanced editing skills
Principles for developing appropriate tone in writing
Indexes of writing clarity
Sustained focus on workplace documents

Approaches to Teaching and Learning

The unit will run as a seminar and workshop that focus on problems of written communication and how these problems can be solved. You will be asked to bring writing samples from your workplace (which will be adapted to ensure anonymity and confidentiality) to seminars so that these documents can be re-worked and improved. Seminars will take the form of discussions and writing workshops, accompanied by instruction in language, tone, and editing skills.

Assessment

LATE ASSIGNMENTS
An assignment submitted after the due date without an approved extension will not be marked. If you are unable to complete your assignment on time, you should submit on time whatever work you have done.

Faculty Assessment Information
To access the Creative Industries Faculty Assessment Information see the Blackboard site for this unit.FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
You will receive formative feedback on your progress in this unit during tutorials and discussions throughout the semester.

Assessment name: Presentation
Description: Presentation of workplace documents that have been identified as problematic. The presentation will lead class discussion on the nature of problems identified in the documents and how these problems can be solved.
Relates to objectives: 1, 2, 3 & 4
Weight: 20%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Throughout semester

Assessment name: Problem Solving Task
Description: Editing Test, by reading and correcting passages of writing that contain errors of grammar, problems of clarity, and issues of tone.
Relates to objectives: 1, 2 & 3
Weight: 20%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: Mid Semester

Assessment name: Portfolio
Description: Writing Portfolio - A collection of workplace documents that have been revised and edited for grammar, clarity, and tone where appropriate. The folio will include a commentary that explains the rationale for revising and editing the documents.
Relates to objectives: All
Weight: 60%
Internal or external: Internal
Group or individual: Individual
Due date: End of Semester

Academic Honesty

QUT is committed to maintaining high academic standards to protect the value of its qualifications. To assist you in assuring the academic integrity of your assessment you are encouraged to make use of the support materials and services available to help you consider and check your assessment items. Important information about the university's approach to academic integrity of assessment is on your unit Blackboard site.

A breach of academic integrity is regarded as Student Misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties.

Resource materials

McKenna, B, Thomas, G, Waddell, N, & Barry M. Corporate communication: Effective techniques for business. 2nd edition. Melbourne: Cengage-Social Science Press, 2007.

KWP 405 Blackboard Site

Recommended Readings

AGPS (2002). Style manual for authors, editors and printers (6th ed). Milton: John Wiley.

American Psychological Association (1994). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed). Washington, DC: APA.

Anderson, P. (1998). Technical Writing: A reader-centred approach. (4th ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.

(2003). The Chicago manual of style. (15th ed). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Fowler, H.W. (1965). A dictionary of modern English usage. (2nd ed, Revised by Sir Ernest Gowers). Oxford: Clarendon. (no edition later than this one)

Gibaldi, J. (2003). MLA handbook for writers of research papers. (6th ed). New York: MLA.

Fowler, H. R. & Aaron, J. E. (2006). The Little, Brown handbook, (10h ed). New York: Pearson-Longman.

Lester, Mark, & Beason, Larry. (2005). The McGraw-Hill handbook of English grammar and usage. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Lukeman, N. (2006). The art of punctuation. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Lutz, G, & Stevenson, D. (2005). The Writer's Digest grammar desk reference: The definitive source for clear and correct writing. Cincinnati: Writer's Digest Books.

Strumpf, Michael, & Douglas, Auriel. (2004). The grammar bible: Everything you always wanted to know about grammar but didn't know whom to ask. New York: Owl-Henry Holt.

Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan Publishing.

Truss, L. (2003). Eats, shoots & leaves: The zero tolerance approach to punctuation. London: Profile.

Wallraff, B. (2004). Your own words. New York: Counterpoint.

Walsh, Bill. (2004). The Elephants of Style: A trunkload of tips on the big issues of contemporary American English. New York: McGraw Hill.

Risk assessment statement

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit

Disclaimer - Offer of some units is subject to viability, and information in these Unit Outlines is subject to change prior to commencement of semester.

Last modified: 30-Oct-2012