COMM2110: Course & Classroom Policies & Guidelines

Required Reading Assignments and Class Discussion

Assigned readings and classroom discussions give you information essential to promote conceptual understanding of key concepts and help you develop and refine your interpersonal communication skills. Effective communication requires knowledge of all of the factors that affect it, therefore it is critical that you complete the readings as assigned and participate actively in class discussions. Failure to do so will, without a doubt, adversely affect your assignment, exam, and class participation grades.

Classroom Civility

In this course, it is important that people and ideas are treated with respect, and that class time is used productively. Please avoid behaviors that make it difficult to accomplish our mutual objectives (e.g., side conversations, showing disrespect to classmates, coming to class late or leaving early, etc.). In addition, please turn off cell phones, pagers, or other wireless noise-making devices before entering the classroom.

Written Assignments

All written assignments must be TYPED and STAPLED

Formatting Guidelines: Written assignments must be formatted using the following guidelines:

• Times New Roman 12-pt font
• Double-spaced
• 1" margins on the top, bottom, & right and 1.25" margin on the left

Writing Quality Assumptions:

All of your writing should be of quality, both in content and style. I will not accept papers that don't comply with formatting specifications or have excessive grammatical and typographical errors. In general, I expect you to use a computer and to take advantage of the programs that guard against such errors; however, there is no substitute for good proofreading.

Electronic Submissions:

Occasionally, you may be required to turn in certain assignments or parts of assignments electronically; that is, as an email attachment. Should this be the case, save your documents as .doc (from Word) or as .rtf (from any word processing programs) first and then send it to the email address specified on the syllabus. If you anticipate that you will have trouble with this, make arrangements in advance of your assignment due dates to learn how. Please note the "late work" policy below.

Late Work and Missed Exams

Assignments should be turned in by the date (and time) that they are due. Assignments turned in after their deadlines are considered late. The penalty for a late submission is severe. Please review the guidelines below:

Due dates are clearly indicated on the assignment sheets. Quizzes are only available on the day that they are issued; if you miss class that day, you forfeit the opportunity to earn those points. No exceptions! Finally, this is the 21st century and no longer are computer problems reasonable excuses for late work. I suggest knowing the equipment well enough and allowing ample time in case of problems.

Students with Disabilities

If you have any disability which may impair your ability to successfully complete this course, please contact the Accessibility Services Department (BU 145, 863-8787, or acs@uvsc.edu). Academic Accommodations are granted for all students who have qualified documented disabilities. Services are coordinated with the student and instructor by Accessibility Services Department.

Academic Integrity

A fundamental concept of all educational institutions is academic honesty. All academic work depends upon the respect and acknowledgement of the research and ideas of others. Misrepresentation of someone else's work as one's own is a most serious offense in any academic setting. A student who knowingly assists another student in committing acts of academic misconduct shall be equally accountable for the violation. Each student is expected to maintain academic ethics and honesty in all its forms. This includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, and copyright infringement as defined below:

• Cheating - is the act of using or attempting to use or providing others with unauthorized information, materials or study aids in academic work. Cheating includes, but is not limited to, passing examination answers to or taking examinations for someone else, or preparing or copying others' academic work
• Plagiarism - is the act of appropriating any other person's or group's ideas or work (written, computerized, performed, artistic, etc.) or portions thereof and passing them off as one's own work in any academic exercise or study
• Copyright Infringement - is the act of using any copyrighted material without the expressed written permission of the owner or organization maintaining the rights to the work including music, written material, artistic choreography, performances, etc.

Re-writes & Extra Credit

Any re-writes or extra credit assignments that may be available will be offered to the whole class. In the interests of preserving equality and fairness, individual requests will not be entertained.

Click on the relevant links below to go to related course pages

• Revised Course Schedule - Click on this link for information on class meeting dates, topics covered, and assignment due dates
• Course Requirements - Click on this link for information on the assignments and exams that are required for successful completion of the course
• Critical Analysis - Click on this link for instructions and guidelines for completing the Critical Analysis paper
• Case Study Analysis- Click on this link for instructions and guidelines for completing the Case Study Analysis
• Assignment Due Dates - Click on this link for a snapshot of important assignment due dates and exam schedules
• Track your Progress - Click on this link for a breakdown of course grade and the final grade reference table
• Downloads - All of the course information is available for download in MS-Word or PDF formats

Return to COURSE HOMEPAGE - Click on this link to return to the COMM 2110 Course Homepage