COMM 337: Advanced Journalism
Benedictine University at Springfield
Fall Semester 2008
www.sci.edu/classes/ellertsen/comm337syllabus.html
"There are no dull subjects. There are only dull writers." -- H.L. Mencken
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Communications 337 meets from noon to 12:50 p.m. MWF in Dawson 220 (third-floor computer lab) on the SCI/Benedictine campus in Springfield. Instructor is Pete Ellertsen, 8 Beata Hall (old Ursuline convent), telephone 525-1420x519, email: pellertsen@sci.edu. Office hours TBA. Home: 545 Feldkamp, Springfield, IL 62704. tel. 793-2587.
I. Course Description.
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II. Textbooks. You have three: (1) Donald M. Murray, "Writing to Deadline"; (2) "The Writer's Digest Handbook of Magazine Article Writing"; and (3) "The Associated Press Stylebook and Libel Manual." Also required are the readings on the World Wide Web linked below in the Tentative Calendar. You also will use "The Writers Market" in Becker Library.
III. Mission statement of Benedictine University. Benedictine dedicates itself to the education for the undergraduate and graduated students from diverse ethnic, racial and religious backgrounds. As academic community committed to liberal arts and professional education distinguished and guided by its Roman Catholic tradition and Benedictine heritage - the University prepares its students for a lifetime as active, informed and responsible citizens and leaders in the world Community.
IV. Goals, objectives and outcomes.
A. Goals Students will understand the techniques, attitudes, values and craft agenda of professional writers, and practice their mastery of the craft by preparing a publishable article and by publishing their analysis of current published writing in a Web log of their own creation.
B. Student Learning Objectives. Upon completion of the course,
students will be able:
V. Teaching Methods. Small group and whole classroom discussion (including participation in discussion on the Message Board linked to my faculty webpage and my teaching blog), pre-writing, drafting and editing exercises.
VI. Course Requirements.
A. Attendance Policy. Attendance is mandatory. To avoid class disruption, students in COM 317 must be on time. If a student misses class, is the student's responsibility to get class notes, assignments, etc., from classmates. Missed in-class work, by its very nature, cannot be made up. Absences will hurt your grade.
B. Reading Assignments. Please see the Tentative Calendar below.
C. Written Assignments.
(1) Students will write a 1,500- to 2,000-word article on a current political,
social, cultural or artistic issue, research potential markets for it and write
a one-page query letter tailored to a specific market. (2) Students will create
a web Log (blog) and write analyses professional writing of 1,000 words each of: (a) a newspaper feature story,
(b) a
magazine feature, (c) a piece of public affairs reporting and (d) an opinion or
op-ed piece on the blog. (3) Both the midterm and final exam will be take-home essay
examination. (4) Students also will be assigned to cover public gatherings on
campus (which tend to happen during the noon hour) without notice. These
assignments, by their nature, usually cannot be made up; missing classes will
hurt your grade. VII. Means of Evaluation. Your final grade will be based
on assignments weighted as follows: (A) class participation and
journals, including the four analyses of professional writing, worth
50 percent of the total grade; (B) reporting assignments, including coverage of
noontime events as well as the 1,500-word article and query letter, in total worth 25 percent of the total;
and (C) quizzes and tests including the midterm and the final
exam, worth 25 percent. Academic Integrity Statement.
Any incident of plagiarism and/or academic dishonesty may result in serious consequences. Penalties for academic dishonesty vary depending on the severity or extent of the problem but are always serious.
The following are consequences you may face for academic dishonesty:
• a failing grade or “zero” for the assignment;
• dismissal from and a failing grade for the course; or
• dismissal from the Institution.
Please refer to the Springfield College Benedictine University Catalog or the Student Handbook for a complete discussion of the Academic Integrity policy.
Professionals in the communications industry are held to even higher standards of ethics. Plagiarism can result in immediate termination from a job; if published works are plagiarized, the offense often involves copyright infringement, which is a violation of federal law. A standard legal reference defines plagiarism as “[t]he deliberate and knowing presentation of another person's original ideas or creative expressions as one's own” and explains: “Generally, plagiarism is immoral but not illegal. If the expression's creator gives unrestricted permission for its use and the user claims the expression as original, the user commits plagiarism but does not violate copyright laws. If the original expression is copied without permission, the plagiarist may violate copyright laws, even if credit goes to the creator. …" 8 Black's Law Dictionary 1187 (2004).The instructor's grading scale is as follows: A = 100-90. B = 89-80. C = 79-70. D = 69-60. E = 59-0. Please note, the letter grade of “E” has been changed to a letter grade of “F.”
Grade Appeal Process.According to the Springfield College Catalog, grade appeals must be initiated 90 days prior to the end of one semester after the course in question has been completed. The process for appealing a grade is outlined below.
First, contact the Instructor.
1.A student must appeal to his/her instructor in writing (e-mail is acceptable) and provide specific reasons why his/her grade should be changed.
2.The instructor must respond to the student in writing (e-mail is acceptable) and provide a copy to the division chair.
Second, contact the Division Chair.
3.If the student wishes, he/she may then appeal to the division chair in writing (e-mail is acceptable) and provide specific reasons why his/her grade should be changed without the instructor’s permission. The student should understand that overwhelming evidence must be presented to the division chair to prove that the current grade is incorrect.
4. The division chair must respond to the student in writing (e-mail is acceptable) and provide a copy to the academic dean.
Lastly, contact the Academic Dean.
5. If the student wishes, he/she may appeal to the academic dean in writing (e- mail is acceptable) and provide specific reasons why his/her grade should be changed without the instructor’s or the division chair’s permission. The student should understand that overwhelming evidence must be presented to the academic dean to prove the grade is incorrect.
6. The academic dean must respond to the student in writing (e-mail is acceptable). The academic dean’s decision is final.
Add/Drop Dates. Last day to add courses is Aug. 22. Last day to drop a course without a "W" is Aug. 22. Last day to drop courses is Oct. 24.
Incomplete Request. To qualify for an “I” grade, a minimum of 75% of the course work must be completed with a passing grade, and a student must submit a completed Request for an Incomplete form to the Registrar’s Office. The form must be completed by both student and instructor, but it is the student’s responsibility (not the instructor’s) to initiate this process and obtain the necessary signatures.
Student Withdrawal Procedure. It is the student’s responsibility to officially withdraw from a course by completing the appropriate form, with appropriate signatures, and returning the completed form to the Advising Office. Please refer to the Student Handbook for important financial information related to withdrawals.
VIII. Course Outline and Calendar. Please see Tentative Calendar below. The schedule of assignments is tentative, and departures from it will be announced at the class meeting prior to the change -- or via the Message Board. Students who miss class are responsible for keeping up with rescheduled assignments.
IX. Americans with Disabilities Act. benedictine University at Springfield College in Illinois provides individuals with disabilities reasonable accommodations to participate in educational programs, actives and services. Students with disabilities requiring accommodations to participate in class activities or meet course requirements should contact the Director of the Resource Center as early as possible.
X. Assessment. Goals, objectives, and learning outcomes that will be assessed in the class are stated in this syllabus. Instructor will use pre-tests and post-tests, background knowledge probes, directed paraphrasing, reflective essays or other Classroom Assessment Techniques as deemed necessary in order to provide continuous improvement of instruction. Students are required to take part in all assessment measures.
Read Murray, Chapters 1-2, on craft and process; "Writer's Digest Handbook," foreword, intro and Chapter 1 on free-lancing and finding ideas; Chapter 2 on querying; and Chapter 4 on finding markets (which are an integral part of finding ideas if you want someone to buy your story). Choose a name and open your Web log. Post your reaction to the reading assignment in Murray, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Re-read "Handbook" Chapter 5 and 6 on research and interviewing. Read Murray, Chapters 3-4, on "reporting for surprise" and finding the flow (Murray calls it "tension," among other things) of a story. As you read Murray, try to figure out what he means by "surprise." It's almost impossible to explain, but it's important. It may be the single most important thing that makes your work stand out in the crowd. Post your reaction to the reading assignment in Murray, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.mackerelwrapper.blogspot.com.
Read Murray, Chapters 5-6, on pre-writing (much of which you do in your head) and writing a story. Post your reaction to the reading assignment in Murray, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Read "Handbook" Chapters 8-9 on writing and revision; Murray, Chapters 7-8, on writing, editing and revising so readers will want to read what you wrote. (Hint: How do you do that? Surprise them.) Post your reaction to the reading assignment in Murray, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Read "Handbook" Chapter 10 on working with editors; and Murray, Chapter 9, on how to think like a professional -- i.e. like an apprentice! Post your reaction to the reading assignment in Murray, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Post your 1,000-word analysis of an opinion article or op-ed piece to your blog, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Post your 1,000-word analysis of a newspaper feature story to your blog, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Post your 1,000-word analysis of a magazine article to your blog, plus questions I will post to my teaching b/log at http://www.teachinglogspot.blogspot.com.
Work on feature story. Readings from Writer's Digest and internet TBA.
Work on feature story. Readings from Writer's Digest and internet TBA.
Work on feature story. Readings from Writer's Digest and internet TBA.
Work on feature story. Readings from Writer's Digest and internet TBA.
Review and assessment.
Final exam schedule TBA.