Course Coordinator:Sarah Casey (scasey3@usc.edu.au) School:School of Business and Creative Industries
UniSC Sunshine CoastUniSC Moreton Bay |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Online |
Online | You can do this course without coming onto campus. |
Please go to usc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course introduces students to the skills, concepts, and foundational theories of communication in academic and professional settings. It provides them with the opportunity to consider the 'big picture' components intrinsic to successful and ethical professional communication, including understanding communication in relation to aspects of power, agency, culture, and context. Students will learn practical skills foundational to excellent communication including active listening, reading, comprehension, and interpretation, as well as form and style of communication in diverse genres.
Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
Blended learning | |||
Learning materials – Interactive online learning activities. | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Scheduled face to face workshops. | 2hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
Online | |||
Learning materials – Interactive online learning activities. | 1hr | Week 1 | 12 times |
Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Scheduled online workshops (Recorded). | 2hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
What is communication?
Academic writing
Professional communication
Persuasive Communication
Oral Communication
Research and referencing
100 Level (Introductory)
12 units
Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
1 | Apply transportable, practical and technical communication skills and professional practices, in diverse and specific contexts, using independent and collaborative approaches. | Empowered |
2 | Apply writing and cultural skills to the field of communication. | Empowered |
3 | Build interpersonal skills through networks; add to critical discourse in communication. | Engaged |
4 | Recognise and evaluate ethical issues and justify chosen ethical communication practices. | Ethical |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Not applicable
Not applicable
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Standard Grading (GRD)
High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
In week 3, early drafts of your first assessment will reviewed by teaching staff. All oral presentations will have the opportunity to discuss assessment planning with teaching staff and receive feedback consultation.
Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
All | 1 | Written Piece | Individual | 20% | 500-word email responding to stimuli material |
Week 4 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All | 2 | Essay | Individual | 40% | 1200 word argumentative essay |
Week 8 | Online Assignment Submission with plagiarism check |
All | 3 | Oral and Written Piece | Group | 40% | 10 minute group presentation and accompanying 800 word group (30%) and individual reflection (10%) and reference list |
Week 12 | In Class |
All - Assessment Task 1:Written Email | |
Goal: | The goal of this task is to apply your knowledge of different communication stimuli in the context of a professional communication scenario. |
Product: | Written Piece |
Format: | You will develop a brief responsive written task in the form of a professional email to demonstrate active reading of a range of stimuli (provided on Canvas). The email should demonstrate clear application of email mode and accurate grammar and punctuation skills. |
Criteria: |
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All - Assessment Task 2:Essay | |
Goal: | The goal of this essay is to connect learnings in professional communication to social, cultural, political, or industry contexts. |
Product: | Essay |
Format: | This essay provides you with opportunity to research the ways in which expert professional communication (or failure to communicate professionally) impacts on real world events in a range of potential future careers. The task is an individual research essay and is intended as argumentative essay for an academic audience. Your word limit includes list of references, in text references and quotations. |
Criteria: |
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All - Assessment Task 3:Group presentation and individual reflection | |
Goal: | The goal of this task is to provide an opportunity to practice research and presentation skills in a collaborative context. The presentation will explain an aspect of professional communication (options provided on Canvas) to the rest of the class in an audience-focused live or pre-recorded engaging group presentation. |
Product: | Oral and Written Piece |
Format: | Present: Week 12. Your group will employ diverse communication modes using audio visual elements such accompanying video, audio, image as well as words to communicate with a specific, real world audience (options on Canvas). Your group will consist of 3 and 4 people. An accompanying group reflective written piece of 600 words will explain your group's choices, as well as the research behind the presentation and a reference list. A 200 word individual reflection will also be included. Groups are encouraged to be creative and accurate in the use of professional oral, audio visual, pictorial and written communication. There is a peer assessment. There is option to create a video submission, but this is not mandatory, and in most cases, only available to online students. *Please note, in some circumstances such as when students are fully online, the presentation format will be negotiated with the Course Coordinator and tutor in advance. |
Criteria: |
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A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Not applicable
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying: The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4% The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconduct.
Late submission of assessment tasks may be penalised at the following maximum rate: - 5% (of the assessment task's identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - 10% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the third day - 20% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome.
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For help with course-specific advice, for example what information to include in your assessment, you should first contact your tutor, then your course coordinator, if needed.
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