(Tuesday/Thursday, 11:00-12:15, HUMN 150)

Overview & Objectives

"There is nothing so practical as a good theory," wrote Kurt Lewin, one of the founders of modern communication studies. In this course we take a close, critical look at current theories of human communication, assessing their potential to address significant problems in society and our everyday lives. In Unit I we explore foundational issues including the ideas of metadiscourse and problem framing, alternatives to the traditional linear model of communication, the difference between "scientific" and "practical" approaches to theory, and seven traditions of communication theory that provide different ways of framing communication problems. Units II and III explore six of the seven theory traditions in greater depth by reading key theoretical texts in each tradition and considering how they can be applied to practical problems of shared meaning, change in relational systems, genuine dialogue, democratic communication, and mass media effects.

The overall objective of this course is to develop your awareness, understanding, and appreciation of human communication theory as a field of study; your ability to understand, compare, and critically assess theories; and your ability to use theories creatively as resources for thinking and talking about practical communication problems in alternative, potentially more productive ways. Readings, lectures, discussions (both in class and online), three examinations, and an application paper assignment have been designed to assist you in achieving these goals and to assess your progress in the course.

Grading will be on a point system with the final grade determined by the percentage of total points earned (93%=A, 90%=A-, 87%=B+, etc.). 500 total points will be allocated as follows:

Active participation is the key to learning. Attending lectures and reading are helpful but not enough for most students. To foster an active learning environment in this class, we encourage three additional forms of participation:

Although we will not assign a fixed number of participation points, we will keep track of students who participate regularly in one or more of these ways and will assign a reasonable amount of extra credit in cases where it will help the final grade.

There will be two mid-term exams and a final. Exams will include objective questions and some short answer questions. The final exam will cover selected material from earlier units. We have scheduled regular class days for review and will provide a study guide before each exam. A missed exam will result in a failing grade. Make-up exams will not ordinarily be scheduled.

Application Paper

Due: Friday, April 13, 5:00 p.m. The purpose of the application paper is to apply a communication theory to analyze a practical problem or situation. In about 2500 words (8-10 double-spaced pages), an application paper does three things: (1) explains one of the theories covered in this course, defining and illustrating the main points; (2) applies the theory to a real communication problem or situation, showing how the theory can be used to understand what's going on and/or decide what to do about it; and (3) critiques the theory in light of your attempt to apply it (optionally, this may include original suggestions for revising or extending the theory).

By theories covered in this course we mean specific theories such as Carey's ritual view, Barthes' theory of semiotics, or Horkheimer and Adorno's theory of the culture industry. We do not mean broader traditions of communication theory such as the semiotic or critical traditions. If you are not sure a particular theory is appropriate for the assignment, please ask.

Although this is not primarily a library research paper, you should use at least two high-quality published sources (usually the required reading plus a second source to provide additional information and a different perspective on the theory). By high-quality sources we mean academic books and articles in refereed journals (either print or online). You may use non-refereed websites, etc. as additional sources beyond the two required. Refereed articles  can be found by searching academic databases such as ComAbstracts. Also feel free to ask us for suggestions. All sources used in writing the paper should be cited within the text of the paper and in a reference list on the last page in APA style. (See the APA style guide linked to the Course Resources page on CULearn.)

Your paper should be well written and clearly organized (introduction, body, conclusion), and should have a clear central thesis (main point). It should be professionally presented and completely free of typographical, spelling, usage, and grammatical errors. The title of your paper, your name, the date, and number and name of this course should appear at the top of the first page. Pages should be numbered.

Save your paper as an MS Word file and upload it to CULearn (see the Application Paper link on the course home page) by the deadline. Late papers may be accepted with a grade penalty at the discretion of the instructors. You are responsible for keeping backup copies of your work. Lateness due to hard disk crashes, lost data sticks, etc. will not be excused.

Sample application papers from previous semesters are available on the meta-discourses website. The students who wrote those papers kindly permitted us to publish them for your use. They are not "perfect" papers, but they are all good papers that illustrate different topics and approaches to the assignment. (Note: Some sample papers on the website are about theories not covered this semester or do not satisfy all of this semester's requirements for the assignment. Your paper must be on a theory covered this semester and must meet all of this semester's requirements.) If you write a really good application paper this semester, we may invite you to publish it on the website for use by future students. Of course, it goes without saying that any paper you turn in must represent your own work. For your protection, we keep files of papers from past semesters and make every effort to detect instances of plagiarism. For information on CU's Honor Code, see below under Policies.

Policies

Equipment Check-Out

The Communication Department has equipment that is available for students in Communication courses to check out. Equipment includes laptop computers, digital video cameras, web cameras, wireless Internet cards, transcribers, tape recorders, and more. Please see http://comm.colorado.edu/tac/mycomm.php for more information.

Honor Code

Academic writing frequently quotes, paraphrases, or otherwise uses materials taken from various research sources. Writers are ethically required to disclose all assistance received and all sources of information used by following accepted practices of citation, quotation, acknowledgement, etc.  Failure to do so constitutes plagiarism, a form of academic dishonesty. Other forms of academic dishonesty include cheating, submitting the same work for more than one course without permission, etc. CU-Boulder has established an Honor Code to promote and enforce standards of academic honesty. Please see http://www.colorado.edu/academics/honorcode/ for more information.

Classroom Behavior

Disruptive classroom behavior will not be tolerated. See http://www.colorado.edu/policies/classbehavior.html for information about CU-Boulder's classroom behavior policy.

Discrimination and Sexual Harassment

Any student who believes s/he has been the subject of discrimination or harassment based upon race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status  should contact the Office of Discrimination and  Harassment (ODH) at 303-492-2127 or the Office of Judicial Affairs at 303-492-5550. See http://www.colorado.edu/odh/ for further information. 

Students with Disabilities

If you have a specific physical, psychiatric, or learning disability and require accommodations, please let me know early in the semester so that your learning needs may be appropriately met. You will need to provide documentation of your disability through the Disability Services Office in Willard 322 (phone 303-492-8671; http://www.Colorado.EDU/disabilityservices).

Religious Observance

If you anticipate conflicts between religious observance dates and any requirements or activities of this course, please let me know well in advance so we can arrange appropriate  accommodations. 

Class Schedule