• Miller, Katherine. (1995). Organizational Communication: Approaches and Processes (2nd edition).
• Corman, Steven, et al. (1995). Foundations of Organizational Communicaiton: A Reader (2nd edition).
• Course Packet (available at Kopy Korner, corner of Progress St. & Main St., Blacksburg)

• To develop an introductory understanding of the field of organizational communication by reading about and discussing a range of perspectives, theories, and issues.
• To develop and enhance analytical and critical thinking skills by reading and responding to various arguments made by organizational communication theorists and researchers, both through class discussion and written assignments.
• To help create and maintain the classroom learning environment (as an evolving organization) through active listening and thoughtful participation.
• To apply various theories of organizational communication to real-life experiences and contexts.

 1. All written assignments must be typed on standard paper, stapled (no folders), and turned in on time. For each 24 hours an assignment is late, you will lose one letter grade.

2. Always make a backup of everything you turn in. You will receive zero (0) points for missing papers, regardless of circumstances.

3. You should submit work that is organized, clear, and free from grammatical or style errors. This requires revision and proofreading. Each spelling error and typo will cost 1% of your grade for that assignment. If you need help with your writing, talk to me or go to the university writing center for free tutoring sessions!

 1. In this class, you are expected to take responsibility for your learning. This includes completing reading assignments by the day they appear on the syllabus, attending class, participating in class discussions, and turning in assignments on time. This also includes ASKING QUESTIONS WHEN YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND THE MATERIAL AND SLOWING ME DOWN WHEN NECESSARY!!!

2. During class, we will respect and honor all positions or viewpoints, as long as these positions are supported with evidence and reasoning.

3. Make-up quizzes and exams do not exist. If you are absent, you receive a zero for that quiz or exam.

4. Make-up forums do not exist. If you need to change your assigned date, you must arrange for another colleague to take your place. When you find a replacement, both parties must notify me.

 The honor code will be strictly enforced in this course. All assignments submitted must be completed by the student, and are considered graded work. All aspects of your coursework are covered by the honor system, and academic dishonesty will not be tolerated.

 Carefully document your sources. Thoroughly review the following information about plagiarism to familiarize yourself with possible problems. If you are unsure what constitutes plagiarism, you are responsible for talking to the instructor for clarification. PLEASE DO NOT GUESS . . . ASK!

 Plagiarism is a serious university offense. Plagiarism may take many forms, each of which is unacceptable, according to the standards of academic honesty as governed by the Virginia Tech Honor System.

 Any written and oral work you present as your own for this class should be completely your own; content, organization, language choices, visuals, and ideas, UNLESS you CITE THE SOURCES from which you have borrowed ideas, phrases, visual, etc.

 For written and oral assignments, plagiarism includes, but is not limited to:

• intentionally or unintentionally using someone else's words, phrases, or ideas as if they were your own,
• quoting material from a source without enclosing it in quotation marks and/or providing the exact source,
• paraphrasing material from a source without giving credit and providing a citation for the source,
• quoting material from a source in an oral presentation without giving credit to the source,
• paraphrasing material from a source in an oral presentation without giving credit to the source.

Plagiarism in any form will result in a zero for that assignment and may be taken to the honor court. Any other violations of the honor code will be taken to the honor court.

Team Discussion

Once during the semester, you and your teammates will teach the class and facilitate class discussion (45 of the 75 minute period). During the first two weeks of class, your team will select the date of your presentation/teaching/discussion.

Choice of format is open. You may be as creative as you wish, as long as the material is covered adequately and your group stays within the time limits.

Your goal is not to simply summarize the reading. Additionally, you should discuss the implications of the reading, given the concepts we have been discussing in class. You should strive to enhance our understanding of organizational communication concepts and issues, using the reading as a tool for discussion. In short, do not simply discuss the reading....use the reading to launch your discussion of relevant, related concepts and ideas.

Term Research Paper: Ethnography of an Organization

Each student will complete an analysis of an organization using the theories and practices of ethnographic researchers. Basically, this type of research views organizations as cultures and focuses on the sense-making practices of organizational members. The researcher is typically a participant-observer who spends a

lot of time with the organization, observing artifacts, rites and rituals, and everyday activities. The researcher also interviews organizational members to try to understand how the members create and sustain the organizational culture through their communication practices. The researcher is also seeking to understand how the members themselves make sense of the organization as a whole or some aspect of organizational practices.

Elements of your research project will be written at different junctures of the semester, to facilitate early topic choice and research. Final paper is due during the last week of classes. Paper length is 13-15 pages, not including complete bibliography and title page. At least ten sources are required, all of which help to explain or justify theory and method.

I urge you to begin work on this project early in the semester. Feel free to talk to me about any and all stages of your work. I will be happy to meet with you to discuss theoretical issues, method questions, specific strategies for collecting information, analysis and interpretation of data, and so forth. Also, you may wish to submit drafts of your research paper for feedback and suggestions.

• Early in the semester you will be asked to select a specific organization that will be the basis of your research paper. Begin thinking now about an organization you wish to study. Also look ahead in the textbooks and packet readings to think about how you will analyze the organization using ethnographic methods.
• You will be asked to submit a one page description of the organization and later, an annotated bibliography of your research to date on ethnographic methods and previous studies of organizations (at least ten sources)
• You will be asked to submit a five page in-depth description of the organization, based on your initial observations and study.
• You will be asked to submit a three page discussion and justification of your method of information gathering (data collection) and interpretation (data analysis), using the sources previously annotated.
• You will be given the opportunity to have a partner review the final draft of your research paper.
• Finally, you will submit your final version of the research paper.

Journals

Each week, you will turn in a one-page reflection journal, the topic of which is your choice, as long as it relates to the course in some way. The journal is designed to help you keep track of your own thoughts about the concepts and readings in the course, misgivings about your progress, and accomplishments throughout the course.

Morgan, Gareth (1997). Images of Organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage (pp. 3-6).

Burrell, G. & Morgan, G. (1979). Sociological Paradigms and Organisational Analysis. London: Heinemann (pp. 1-37).

Garson, Barbara (1988).  McDonalds--We do it all for you.  In B. Garson, The electronic sweatshop:  How computer are transforming the office of the future into the factory of the past.  New York:  Simon and Schuster. 

Schwartzman, H. (1995). Ethnography in Organizations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage. (pp. 1-17).

Philipsen, Gerry (1992). Speaking Culturally: Explorations in Social Communication. Albany: State University of New York (pp. 3-16).

Schwartzman, H. (1995). Ethnography in Organizations. Newbury Park, CA: Sage. (pp. 27-46).

Smith, Ruth, & Eisenberg, Eric (1987).  Conflict at Disneyland:  A root-metaphor analysis.  Communication Monographs, 54, 367-380. 

Eisenberg, E. & Goodall, H. (1997). Critical Approaches to Organizations and Communication. In Organizational Communication: Balancing Creativity and Constraint (pp. 149-168). New York: St. Martin's Press.

Markham, Annette (1996).  Designing discourse:  A critical analysis of strategic ambiguity and workplace control.  Management Communication Quarterly, 9(4), 389-421. 

Thomas, Jim (1993). Doing Critical Ethnography. Newbury Park, CA: Sage. (pp. 1-32).

Morgan, Gareth (1997). Imaginization: New mindsets for seeing, organizing, and managing. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage (pp. 1-19).

Terkel, Studs (1974). Who Build the Pyramids? In S. Terkel, Working: People talk about what they do all day and how they feel about what they do. New York: The New Press (pp. xxxi-xxxviii).