Syllabus

Each class will have assigned topics and accompanying reading assignments. Class material will supplement and build on the reading assignments, so it is important that you come to each class prepared with the reading assignment completed. Selected homework assignments designed to augment your understanding of course content will also be assigned. Timely completion of assignments is expected.

Relating course content to your own and others’ work environments is an integral part of learning, as well as developing a strong awareness of how healthcare is changing in the current marketplace. To that end, students are encouraged to relate course content to current work situations and to bring to class relevant materials from the media that enhance understanding and application of course concepts. Active class participation that reflects learning from the assigned readings, homework assignments, and classroom discussion is expected.

Written Assignments

In this course, you are expected to demonstrate writing proficiency. Pay careful attention to paragraphing, sentence structure, quotation conventions, spelling, punctuation, citation protocol, and other aspects of grammar. Remember to proofread, correcting any typing or printing errors. APA citations and references are required for all assignments, including discussion questions, and the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (sixth edition) is the overarching guide for APA style and form.

All papers written for this course should follow the standards that are applicable in the business environment. This includes a business-appropriate writing style and no misspelled words or grammatical errors. Presentation and organization, although not as important as content, will impact your grade. Always write as if the reader is unfamiliar with the material you are presenting.

It is important that you learn to catch mechanical errors in your writing. Research has shown that they can make a bad impression. In 2001, Larry Beason published a study of how businesspersons react to minor writing errors. He found that "For some readers, simple accidents or certain errors have little impact, while other readers see the same errors and create a damning portrait of the writer." Many of the business persons in his study interpreted mechanical errors as evidence that the writer was a poor businessperson—a faulty thinker, not a detail person, a poor oral communicator, and/or a poorly educated person. Some also interpreted mechanical errors as evidence that the writer was hasty, careless, uncaring, and/or uninformed.

(Beason, L. (2001). Ethos and error: How business people react to errors. College Composition and Communication, 53(1), 33–64.)

Consider this finding from the National Commission on Writing, which surveyed 120 American corporations and 50 state government institutions (College Board, 2004): The ability to write well "is now a core competence requirement for advancement," and "workers who cannot write and communicate clearly will not be hired and are unlikely to last long enough to be considered for promotion." Although two thirds of workers are expected to write business e-mails, proposals, and other correspondence, only one-third are able to do so in "clear, logical prose."

(College Board. (2004). Report from the national commission on writing. Retrieved from http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_downloads/writingcom/writing-ticket-to-work.pdf)

The following grading template will be used for written assignments for Weeks 2, 3, 5, and 6. There are 50 points possible on each assignment.