Business and Administrative Writing
Slippery Rock University 
English 309
Spring 1997
Writing Environment Index Page
To: Business and Administrative Writing Students
From: Dr. Barta Smith
Subject: Goals, Content and Policies English 309
Welcome to Business Writing. Below you will find requirements regarding
course content and classroom policies spelled out. Please feel free to ask
questions in class or the office whenever necessary. It is my hope
that you have an enjoyable, challenging, and successful semester.
The texts for this course are Contemporary Business Communication (Boone, et al., 1997) The Business Writer's Companion (Brusaw, et al.)
Goals
1) To increase student awareness of the varied and
complex rhetorical demands of writing performed
in professional settings.
2) To give students experience writing collaboratively and with the
computer hardware and software commonly used in professional settings.
3) To introduce students to the common functions and conventions of
business and administrative writing.
4) To demonstrate to students their ability to create professional documents
in content and appearance.
5) To help students develop a portfolio of representative work useful in seeking
employment and ultimately in functioning in the workplace.
Content
English 309 is an introductory course in business composition that includes
communication theory, business standards for correctness and format,
organization strategies, routine and special correspondence, proposals
and reports, application letters, and resumes. Assignments: There will be approximately 8 formal writing assignments,
representing roughly 80% of your grade.
We will discuss all of these in class and do class exercises to prepare you
for writing them. Some work on assignments will take place in class
and the computer lab. Some will be collaborative. One assignment will
involve a group presentation using Powerpoint presentation software.
Most assignments will be will be roughly of equal length and complexity.
If an assignment is longer or more difficult, you will be notified that it counts as two
assignments. At midterm we will have completed the correspondence
section of the course and you will submit a correspondence portfolio
with copies of your work and a reflection on your progress.
Each assignment will be accompanied by a rhetorical analysis that
explains its audience, purpose, and the rationale behind its composition.
Each assignment will provide you with the general parameters of a case
that you will develop with a company of your own choice. Individualizing
your work in this way will make it more interesting personally and challenge
you to demonstrate your desire to excel.
Participation: The remaining 20% of your grade will be a discretionary grade
based on your attendance, participation in in-class exercises and activities,
portfolio and revision record. All good writers rewrite, revise, and edit. The key is
to prepare assignments early, allowing time for this process. Editing practice
will be part of in-class work. You may also use your collaborative group and/or
classmates as readers. I am available, as well. You will have the opportunity
to revise work before turning it in for a grade. Policies
Several important policies need your attention. If you have any questions
regarding them, please feel free to ask for clarification. Attendance:
Two factors make attendance especially important:
1) Professional writing frequently requires collaboration and that reality
will be reflected in this course's assignments. You will be working
in groups throughout the term and prepare at least one formal
collaborative assignment. Class sessions will help you share
problems and solutions in the production as well as conception
of documents.
2) In class you will be assured of using common programs
employed by all members of the class.
Please note: Missing class more than once will automatically reduce your
grade and further absences will result in failure. Remember that missing
one class is the equivalent of missing a week! Standards:
Since this course is designed to simulate professional situations,
professional standards will apply. Work must be typed in the proper format
and on time. Make two copies of your work for submission so that student
work can be used for classroom discussion. Keep electronic copy of all
assignments since you will be asked to submit a disk with copies of all
your work at the end of the semester.
Since the business community is known for its conservatism and attention to detail,
standards for correctness are firm. In business, no document is knowingly
sent out of the office with a single error or the appearance of careless
preparation. Correctness is not the most important thing about writing,
but it is a minimum standard for acceptability in a professional context.
It is effectiveness, creativity and complexity in developing an assignment
that, in conjunction with correctness, constitute above average or excellent
work. Adopt the mentality of professionalism now and you will be well prepared
for the marketplace. Grading:
The discretionary grade represents my effort to reward both excellence
and diligence. It is my hope to nurture in you the desire to succeed and the belief
you can do so. Sitting in judgment on student work is a difficult task, especially
when aspirations outreach results. I will make every effort to be fair and to recognize
your efforts. Please feel free to discuss your grade on an assignment or for the
course with me at any time. I want you to succeed.
You will be graded on content (information); strategy (audience, purpose);
format/appearance (white space, neatness, format conventions): organization
(paragraphing, transitions, cohesion, unity, emphasis); and mechanics
(usage, grammar, spelling, punctuation). You may receive a paper back
with no grade and be asked to see me and resubmit if the paper falls well
below standards of acceptability.
I will assign a grade of excellent (A), very good (B), good (C), unacceptable
for a business setting (D), and no credit (F) to your final revised assignments.
I urge you to think of letter grades as descriptors to help you think of your
work not as completed and judged, but critiqued, directed, and open to
improvement. By grading your assignments but expecting revision, I
hope to foster an awareness on your part of the power you have over
your own performance as well as the situation you will meet in the
business world--that what you present when the deadline arrives is
what those over you consider your performance, that what you write
may well be submitted to superiors for approval and then revised
before being sent.
Business Websites of Interest
Semester Calendar
Dr. Barta-Smith's Home Page
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