ENC 3250, Professional Writing / USF Sarasota-Manatee

ENC 3250
PROFESSIONAL WRITING

Spring 2010 / Online-Only Course

University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee

Semester begins Monday, Jan. 11, 2010 / Ends Friday, Apr. 30, 2010

Instructor: T. E. Roberts
email: robertst(at)sar.usf.edu

Instructor’s Background: click here

Updated 4 Feb 2010

Please report malfunctioning links to the instructor.
Report malfunctioning instructor to the dean.

Course Syllabus and Instructions

Spring 2010 Syllabus (3 Feb 2010)

Student Background Information Form (send this to instructor via email)

Revision Instructions

Course Textbook

Business Writing: What Works, What Won’t, Revised Edition, by Wilma Davidson. St. Martin’s Griffin, Resource Book. 2001. ISBN 0312109482, $16.95 list. (available from amazon.com and campus bookstore)

Schedule of Assignments - Spring 2010

Assignment 1 (memo, 500 words): Mon, Jan 25, 6 pm

Assignment 2 (reprimand, 500 words): Mon, Feb 15, 6 pm

Assignment 3 (resume & cover ltr, 500 words): Sat, Mar 6, 6 pm

Assignment 4 Outline (topic and sources): Mon, Mar 22, 6 pm

Assignment 4 (research report, business plan, or proposal / 2,000 to 2,500 words): Mon, Apr 26, 6 pm

(Grading is usually completed within one week of the submission date. See syllabus for information on detailed markup as an option.)

Course Content and Lectures

INSTRUCTIONS: Lectures consist of a spoken audio recording in MP4 format and a set of PowerPoint slides. It is important to download both files and listen to the spoken audio as you see the slides on your computer (the audio includes cues for advancing from one slide to another).

To hear MP4 files on a Windows computer, download free Quicktime player here. Alternatively, you may use the free VLC Media Player, to be found here: http://www.videolan.org/vlc/. Then, each week, right-click on the PowerPoint link, choose SAVE TARGET AS, and download to your computer desktop. Do the same with the MP4 link. Open the PPT file first and then the MP4 file. As you listen to the MP4 audio, you will hear cues to advance to succeeding slides. If you lack PowerPoint on your computer, you may download a free PPT viewer here. You should save all lecture files in the same folder in which you keep your written assignments and emails related to the course. Also, back-up this folder regularly onto external media such as a CD-ROM, USB flash drive, or online archive. This folder will contain the core of what you are paying for and learning in this course -- treat it accordingly.

DO NOT TRY TO HEAR THE MP4 FILE AS A STREAMING AUDIO OVER THE INTERNET -- IT MAY BE INTERRUPTED.

IMPORTANT: Listen to and take notes on lectures as they are posted -- they provide essential information needed to perform assignments successfully. You must read the PowerPoint slides and hear the audio recording simultaneously. If you are unable to hear a lecture, contact the instructor immediately. Beginning with the Week 2 lecture, send me an email (by the deadline stated in the syllabus) noting the code words mentioned in the audio recording. Failure to do so will result in penalty to your final semester grade.

IF YOU THINK A LECTURE IS “TOO LONG” ... Remember that, if meeting on campus, this course would normally require several hours of in-person attendance plus roundtrip travel every week for 16 weeks in a semester or nine weeks in the summer session. At around 30 to 60 minutes per week, and requiring no more travel than minuscule movement of your computer mouse or fingers on the keyboard, the lecture content in this online medium is ridiculously light. If you find a lecture unsatisfying or confusing for any reason, contact me about it. Don’t wait to complain at the end of the semester. By then, it’s too late. TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR OWN EDUCATION.

Except for the introductory meeting at the beginning of the semester, lectures will usually be posted on Wednesdays. Please do not ask for a lecture to be posted in advance -- they are custom-prepared every semester. Links for PPT and audio lectures will be added below when the files are posted beginning early in January 2010 (lectures available for downloading will be noted in orange-colored text).

Week 1 (Jan 7) - Course Introduction - PPT

Week 1 audio lecture - MP4 (8.4 mb, 01:10:44)

Week 2 (Jan 20) - Assignment 1 - PPT

Week 2 audio lecture - MP4 (5.3 mb, 00:45:02)

Week 3 (Jan 28) - Employee Reprimand - PPT

Week 3 audio lecture - MP4 (3.9 mb, 00:33:04)

Week 4 (Feb 4) - Communicating in the Workplace - PPT

Week 4 audio lecture - MP4 (5.1 MB, 00:42:44)

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

Week 11

Week 12

Week 13

Week 14

Week 15

Students With Disabilities

ADA Statement: Students with disabilities are responsible for registering with the Office of Student Disabilities Services in order to receive special accommodations and services. Please notify the instructor during the first week of classes if a reasonable accommodation for a disability is needed for this course. A letter from the USF Disabilities Office must accompany this request.

Policy on Religious Observances

Students who anticipate the necessity of being absent from class due to the observation of a major religious observance must provide notice of the date(s) to the instructor, in writing, by the second class meeting (May 23, 2009). (In an online course which holds few if any class meetings, this policy may -- at the instructor’s discretion -- apply to deadlines for assigned work which fall on a religious holiday. Please consult with the instructor regarding individual circumstances.)

Emergency Operations at USF

In the event of an emergency, it may be necessary for USF to suspend normal operations. During this time, USF may opt to continue delivery of instruction through methods that include but are not limited to: Blackboard, Elluminate, Skype, and email messaging and/or an alternate schedule. It’s the responsibility of the student to monitor the Blackboard site for each class for course-specific communication, and the main USF, College, and department websites, emails, and MoBull messages for important general information.