I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Practical Writing

2. Course Prefix & Number:
ENGL 1422

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 3

Lecture Hours: 3

Lab Hours: 0

4. Course Description:

Students will learn to structure professional correspondence, including memos, letters, executive summaries and e-mails.  Longer reports will include proposals, mechanism reports, and multi-step, collaborative reports.  Students will learn to represent information for different audiences, such as co-workers, the public and upper-level administration, and they will use media such as power point presentations to enhance their messages.  Because writing is often collaborative, the course will emphasize working in groups, treating group members ethically, developing time lines for projects and dividing work within the group.

5. Placement Tests Required:

Accuplacer (specify test):

Writing Introductory College Level or Writing College Level CLC or Writing College Level or Writing Honors College Level

Score:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

There are no prerequisites for this course.

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

1. Course Equivalency - similar course from other regional institutions:

Alexandria Technical College, Engl 1460 Technical Writing, 3 credits
St. Cloud State, Engl 332 Writing in the Professions, 4 credits

III. Course Purpose

2. MN Transfer Curriculum (General Education) Courses - This course fulfills the following goal area(s) of the MN Transfer Curriculum:

• Goal 1 – Written and Oral Communication
• Goal 2 – Critical Thinking

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Demonstrate written communication skills	Complete numerous short written assignments and three or four longer reports.
Demonstrate interpersonal communication skills	Create a sustained, multi-step report in groups of three or four, working together and communicating clearly.
Apply abstract ideas to concrete situations	Apply abstract ideas like “audience” and “effective communication” to their assignments.
Utilize appropriate technology	Select and use appropriate media for communicating their messages.
Work as a team member to achieve shared goals	Work in groups to divide responsibilities, develop an appropriate time-line and complete their reports.

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Select appropriate communication choices for specific audiences. MnTC Goal 1
• Understand/demonstrate the writing and speaking process through invention, organization, drafting, revision, editing and presentation. MnTC Goal 1
• Use authority, point-of-view and individual voice and style in their writing and speaking. MnTC Goal 1 
• Employ syntax and usage appropriate to academic disciplines and the professional world. MnTC Goal 1
• Participate effectively in groups with emphasis on listening, critical and reflective thinking and responding. MnTC Goal 1
• Recognize and articulate the value assumptions which underlie and affect decisions, interpretations, analyses and evaluations made by ourselves and others. MnTC Goal 2
• Gather factual information and apply it to a given problem in a manner that is relevant, clear, comprehensive and conscious of possible bias in the information selected.  MnTC Goal 2
• Imagine and seek out a variety of possible goals, assumptions, interpretations, or perspectives which can give alternative meanings or solutions to given situations or problems.  MnTC Goal 2
• Demonstrate their ability to adapt the structure and tone of texts to meet the needs of different audiences. MnTC Goal 2 

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. Effective communication
• Students will learn how to adapt writing to meet the needs of different audiences
• Students will learn how document sturcture impacts effective communication
• Students will learn the importance of concise writing and effective sentence structure
2. Letters and memos
• Students will learn to distinguish between internal and external audiences
• Students will learn how to use audience needs to decide on content, tone and document structure
• Students will learn how to properly format professional correspondence
• Students will learn how to adapt the content of letters and memos to achieve a variety of goals (i.e. describing policy changes, generating support for a new ideas, rejection letters and invitation letters)
3. Mechanism Report
• Students will learn how to describe a mechanism using effecitve, concise descriptions
• Students will learn how to evaluate the effectiveness and appropriateness of process descriptions
• Students will learn how to import, label and use graphics
4. Proposals
• Students will learn to evaluate the effectiveness of arguments
• Students will learn what logical fallacies are and how to avoid them in their writing
• Students will learn to use facts and effective arguments to write persuasively
• Students will learn how to present an original idea to a potential boss via business letters and memos
5. Multi-part report
• Students will create a survey based on a research question they have developed
• Students will administer their survey and learn how to analyze and interpret data
• Students will learn how to create a production schedule and work plan to accomplish their goals
• Students will learn how to represent data graphically
• Students will explain and describe data to internal and external audiences
• Students will learn to summarize data and findings in a business letter format
• Students will learn how to make their findings public by writing a press release