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FOUN 1008 SYLLABUS: SEMESTER 1, 2020-2021

This course is designed to help you recognize and use effectively the particular techniques and
strategies of professional writing needed for effective communication in your given discipline
(business, scientific, etc.) and post-graduation. By the end of the course, you should be able to:
• Understand effective techniques of information gathering and information presentation
• Produce high quality, well-written professional writing
• Communicate with an understanding and appreciation of your intended audience

In order to achieve these goals, the following learning outcomes will be targeted:
1. Choosing and using appropriate language and expression for written and oral contexts
2. Using the stages of the writing process diligently and conscientiously for improvement
3. Applying critical thinking and ethical reasoning to analyse audience, context, and purpose
4. Using problem-solving strategies effectively – situation analysis, criteria creation, inquiry
construction
5. Gathering, evaluating and integrating and documenting researched materials relevantly,
efficiently and effectively
6. Identifying, analyzing and using effective design and formatting choices to increase
usability in documents
7. Using graphics correctly
8. Developing and using task-specific skills to produce clear, relevant and effective
documents to purpose (e.g. letters, reports, presentations)
9. Recognizing the importance of teamwork for professional endeavours and practicing
cooperative and/or collaborative techniques

Recommended texts
Cunningham, Donald, Elizabeth O. Smith, and Thomas E. Pearsall. How to Write for the World of
Work. Seventh Edition. Boston: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005. 

Dutton, John, A. Effective Technical Writing in the Information Age. {https://www.e-

education.psu.edu/styleforstudents/node/1786}
McMurray, David. Online Technical Writer. {https://www.prismnet.com/~hcexres/textbook/}
Keller, Arnold. The Practical Technical Writer. New York: Pearson Longman, 2004.
Assessment
This course is 100% coursework. Specific pieces will be graded as follows:

(1) Group oral presentation to describe and analyse problems 15%

(2) Literature review 20%
(3) Correspondence documents (2) 20%
(4) Participation 5%
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(4) Proposal (written report) 40 %

Students must receive a pass in both the accumulated marks of the first four assessments (60%)
and in the proposal (40%) in order to pass the course.

COURSE POLICIES
Work requirements and recommendations

eLearning: Students should check eLearning bi-weekly, and at least 24 hours before each
class, for lessons, assignments, additional readings or web links. There will
often be material for you to print and bring to class.
Preparation: All students should come to each class prepared with questions, notations and
observations on the assigned reading. Failure to complete the assigned reading
will result in a failure to capitalize fully on the lesson, thereby creating a
backlog of work, late submissions and an increased chance of failure.
Process: Each student should keep a portfolio of all writing, from initial brainstorming
to completed paper. This process work should be submitted with finished
assignments, as requested.
Participation: Participation includes daily responses, in-class activities, peer review
sessions/discussions and participation in large group discussions. You are
responsible for your level of participation. This will be assessed over the
semester.

Assignments
Submission: Follow each assignment’s guidelines regarding when and how it is to be
composed and submitted. Please follow instructions or ask questions if you are
unsure. There will be NO email submissions unless specified.
Late papers: Extensions may be granted upon request. Without prior permission, late
assignments will be penalized. Late assignments after three days will only be
accepted if accompanied by a medical certificate.
Format: All assignments (drafts or finals) for this course must be typed or word-
processed. All assignments should adhere to professional documentation
standards or any other formatting that is specified in the instructions.
Plagiarism: All final assignments must be accompanied by the University’s Accountability
Statement (available online on the Main Library’s webpage) and UWI
guidelines on plagiarism will be strictly enforced in this course. Primary
guidelines are as follows:
o All work done for individual assessment must be your own
o Do not copy work from other students, books or the internet
o Do not cut and paste from internet or other sources without using
citations and referencing
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o Do not give your work to another student/person for their use OR use
another student/person to do your work
For further information on how to identify and avoid plagiarism, consult the
website: http://www.plagiarism.org.
Peer review: Every assignment must go through a process of peer editing at drafting stage
and every student will be expected to peer review. This exercise is useful for
academic self-awareness and fostering teamwork. Any assignment that is
submitted without peer editing will be penalised. Peer review guidelines
include:
o Attendance and preparedness for the entire scheduled class time.
o A focus on large-scale concerns and avoidance of proof-reading.
o A written commentary on the paper’s strengths and weaknesses.
o Making 2 copies of each draft available for peer review as requested.
Revision: It is your final responsibility to use the peer review exercise, my comments and
your own judgment to revise your drafts. Revision involves fundamental
decisions about content, structure and style and is not simply a checklist of
suggested changes that may have been made by your instructor or peers.

Attendance
Policy: Classes consist of three hours of workshops per week and students are advised
to attend ALL sessions for the full length. If your attendance is unsatisfactory
(less than 80%), and process cannot be validated, it may affect your grade
unfavourably.
Roll Call: Attendance is taken at each session. You have a responsibility to the group to be
at all the class meetings and on time.
Tardiness: Please make every effort to be on time. Excessive tardiness is disruptive. If you
miss more than 50% of the class, whether at the beginning or the end of the
session, you will be marked absent. Indicate beforehand if you must leave class
early for any reason.

Conduct
Classroom: Please respect the class by turning off all mobile phones ringers, refraining from
eating or texting in class and putting away all recreational devices (e.g. iPods).
Atmosphere: Please aim to create a classroom atmosphere that is open, friendly and free of
harassment. Within each class, there will diversity of ethnicity and race, gender,
sexual orientation, class, age, and disability, as well as religious and political
differences. While difference can engender conflict, it can also provide us with
opportunities to learn new things, compare experiences, test our assertions,
understand ourselves better, and find common ground. So, in this class, please
focus on the latter by using the language and attitude of respect.
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Communication
Email: All email correspondence to me should be conducted in a professional manner,
using appropriate language, format and content. When sending email, please
specify the course code and section in the subject line in addition to the purpose
for the correspondence. Do NOT send email without subject line and body text as
response cannot be guaranteed. Every effort will be made to respond to email
messages within 24 hours, except on weekends.