This course provides instruction and practical experience in the basics of public speaking. This course has a performance component: students are expected to create and deliver informative, persuasive and other types of speeches.
COMM 1110 Principles of Interpersonal Communication
Credits: 3
Goal Areas: 01,7A
Course Outline 1110 (PDF)
This introductory course looks at communication in one-to-one relationships in friendships, families, the workplace, and elsewhere. Students will be challenged to discover and assess their own communication strengths and weaknesses as they define and discuss what it means to be a competent interpersonal communicator. Course content includes both theory and practice (skill development).
This course examines communication in small groups. Students will participate in and analyze how small groups function, how leadership roles evolve, how decisions are made and how conflicts can be resolved. Students will work in small groups, complete group projects, and analyze group interaction.
The influence of culture is an especially important and sensitive issue facing us today. A person's culture strongly influences his/her identity, beliefs, expectations, and communication style. This course explores communication across culture as defined by nationality, gender, and ethnicity while concentrating on effective use of communication in all of these areas.
This course applies introductory argumentation theory so that students can advocate for themselves with spoken arguments in a variety of situations. Students develop initial strategies through research and written analysis, which are later used to deliver oral arguments and responses to other students in real time. Common course topics include evaluating the effectiveness of evidence, identifying with audiences and their values, gaining experience in a more formal debate setting, and evaluating and crafting arguments ethically and responsibly. Assignments prepare students for oral advocacy in a range of contexts, from interpersonal and small group settings to larger discussions of public and social policy in American culture.
This course will provide flexibility in offering an in-depth review of topics of immediate importance and topical interest. These topics will go beyond the introductory courses in examining specific aspects of the subject matter.
The communication capstone course is intended for students who want to engage in a professional application of communication skills gained from their prior coursework. This could range from social media internships, public speaking events, communication campaign work, or other projects within the scope of communication studies.Students must take one COMM course and have instructor permission.