Assignment Outline
Reading Quizzes
These short, varied, timed quizzes will measure student reading and retention. Students will be
required to answer 5-7 short answer/multiple choice questions within a short time period. These
will appear in weeks 2 and 3
Discussion Posts
These QCQ discussion posts will require students to do an initial discussion post in response to
the reading by Thursday night of the assigned week, with two responses to peer posts due by
Sunday night. These are structured posts in which the student chooses a quote from the text,
explains what it means, why it is significant, and provides an illustrative example in a long,
detailed paragraph. The student then provides two generative questions based on the reading
from the text. For the response posts, students must respond to a question from two different
peers. These responses include an engagement of the question by sharing and explaining an
example, sharing and explaining a link, or sharing and explaining a quote from elsewhere in the
chapter in a long, detailed paragraph. Clearly, engagement means a thoughtful explanation in
response to the peer’s question. The goal of these assignments is to encourage students to
engage with the material and with each other through simulating a well-informed class
discussion. These discussions will appear in weeks 1 and 4-7.
Trend Analysis Paper
For this 3-4 page paper, students find a book, article, or webpage addressing a current trend in
organizational communication. This could be related to execution or technology, content or
strategy, or thematic changes in communication culture. For the paper, students will explain the
details of the trend, using two specific examples from their chosen source to explain the shape
and significance of this trend. They will then put this trend in the context of historical change as
they see it. Finally, they will speculate about the consequences of this trend in the next decade or
so. The goal of this assignment is to reinforce how organizational communication evolves
constantly and quickly.
Communication Failure Paper
In this 3-4 page analysis, students will find a news story from the past decade in which
organizational communication failure resulted in real-world consequences for an organization.
This could include government, universities, sports teams, companies, or mainstream/social
media outlets. To fulfill the assignment, students must provide a primary link to the news story,
at least two additional sources about the organization or situation, and integrate two quotes from
the text into their analysis. The fundamental questions organizing this analysis are as follows: 1.
What went wrong with the organizational communication with this situation? 2. Based on what
we have learned, how could the people involved have acted differently to get a better outcome?
The goal of this assignment is to have students use the text and other scholarly sources to apply
their knowledge to a real-world communication situation.
Leadership Reflection
This 1-2 page paper is a reflection on the student’s goals, course experience, and future
situation. To fulfill the assignment, students will answer a series of short questions with one-
paragraph answers, drawing on material from the text, anecdotes from class discussion, outside
sources, or personal experiences. The goal of this assignment is to help students reflect on their
experience in the course and what course content might be most useful in their future leadership
and organizational experiences.
Midterm and Final
The midterm and final will be short, timed, mixed-modal exams designed to assess student
preparedness and understanding of the course content. These will include multiple choice and
short answer responses. The exams are not worth much, but they are designed to see if the
students have enough understanding of the material to answer well and quickly without the help
of resources or AI.