Sp 318U Family Communication
Instructor - Tiffani Jackson-Davis, MS
Phone Number -503 -725-5375

Office - NH 23C
Location - Department of Communication Main Office

Office Hours:

· Mondays 9:00 AM -10:00 AM
· Wednesdays 9:00 AM- 10:00 AM
· Also By Appointment- must e-mail, or set up appointment in person prior to meeting
· During Finals week my office hours will be by appointment only

Fax Number - 503-725-5385

Email - a href=mailto:psu18662@pdx.edu> psu18662@pdx.edu (Preferred Method of Contact)

Required Text:

Yerby, J., Buerkel-Rothfuss, N., Bochner, P. A. (1998). Understanding Family Communication (2nd. Ed.). Arizona: Allyn & Bacon.

Available in the PSU Bookstore. Daily reading assignments from the text are listed on the course schedule. It is my expectation that the assigned readings are completed before each class session.

Course Description:

This course focuses on the study of families from a communication perspective; that is, how families create, maintain and reinforce patterns of interaction through daily living, story-telling and other habitual forms of communication. This course will also provide students with an understanding of the theories and practices of family communication, by providing a framework for discussing the communication, sociological and psychological aspects of family communication and relating them to daily life examples, with an emphasis on communication theory. Students will learn how families communicate rules, roles, and stories that are essential to the process of meaning-making in the family and to its development. Students will also analyze theoretical frameworks such as family systems theory, social construction theory and dialectical theory to issues of courtship and relational development, the changes in the life of families, and family roles, and apply them to the family context.

This course is not intended to be therapeutic. Students are not expected to discuss or reveal their own family conflicts and challenges, nor will students' personal experiences be discussed or managed during or after class. The course is designed to examine family communication from a theoretical perspective and it is not intended to help students work through their own family issues.

Course Objectives and Goals:

Student Objectives

By the end of this course students should be able to:

• Identify and describe key constructs, concepts and theories within the study of family communication
• Discuss and understand family communication from multiple perspectives
• Understand the influence of systems and dialectical theory on relational development, and family structure
• Consider qualitative aspects of communication in families and to apply what they learn to their own family experiences.
Students will also:
• Experience working in small groups.

• Provide a framework for discussing theoretical ideas about family process that have historical significance for family communication as an area of study
• Examine family communication as the family moves from the creation of the spousal/ parental partnership to the more complex nuclear family with connections to the larger culture
• Explore families as meaning-making communication systems.

• Class Discussion: Professional behavior is expected in the classroom. Practice critical listening skills and comments.
• Students are expected to give their undivided attention to the instructor and classmates. Do not work on assignments, pass notes, make distracting noises, or sleep during class.
• Although I encourage students to speak freely in this class, please speak ethically at all times. To speak ethically means to consider other points of view and not make false claims or use offensive remarks including inappropriate language. When in doubt, remain silent..
• Student's may eat and drink (non- alcoholic) beverages in class as long as it is not distracting to other students and/ or speakers.
• Cell Phones/ Pagers: Please turn them off or set them on silent mode prior to entering class.
• I request that you do not gather up your materials until class is completed. Such activity disturbs the discussion/ lecture and is disrespectful.
• Any student engaging in disruptive behavior will meet with me outside of class to discuss an appropriate course of action. Disruptive behavior may result in a student not receiving credit for attending class on the day the behavior occurred. If a pattern of disruptive behavior persists, more sever sanctions may be enacted.

If any of these expectations are not followed you may be asked to leave the room.

Attendance

Because arriving to class on time creates a positive, cohesive learning environment, attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class. Attendance is mandatory and expected, and will be reflected in the final grade. Because this is a communication course, it is necessary that all students contribute to the classroom community; therefore students are expected to attend all classes and remain until class is over. An attendance sheet will be passed around at the beginning of each class period. It is the student's responsibility to sign the attendance sheet. Students will be allowed three absences without penalty. If four classes are missed, only 30 points for attendance can be earned, if five classes are missed, only 20 points. Miss six classes and 0 points will be earned. More than six absences will result in failure of the course there are no exceptions. You will be considered absent if you sign in and leave or sign in for someone else.

If a student must be absent due to extenuating circumstances including death in the immediate family, serious illness, accidents, or other similar disasters, please contact me within 24 hours and we will discuss the situation.

It is the responsibility of students with conflicting school related activities (i.e. Athletics or Student govt.) to discuss their schedules with me within the first week of class.

Tardiness Coming to class late (+20 minutes) or leaving early will be counted as an absence for the entire class period. If students are tardy for any reason, they are responsible for finding out what was covered and whether any announcements were made. It is the student's responsibility to talk with me after class if not present when attendance is taken.

Requirements and Evaluation:

Course Assignments (75 points Due October 7th)

The course will consist of one 3 page take home writing assignment, a family collage and poster session, weekly discussion questions, a group project, two quizzes, and a midterm and final exam. The purpose of these assignments is for students to reflect on the course material and apply it to their daily life. All written assignments are to be typed, double-spaced on 8 1/2 x 11 inch white paper with 1 inch margins. Please follow APA (American Psychological Association) guidelines regarding fonts, headings, and pagination. Incomplete sentences and mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and spelling will have an adverse affect on grade.

Attendance (40 points)

Student involvement is essential to the success of the class and to the achievement of the learning objectives. Participation includes active listening and positive involvement with peers. Active listening requires complete attention, nonverbal encouragement, and listening for ideas and feelings without judgment. Active involvement includes coming to class prepared by having completed the assigned readings as well as high quality and timely submission of work. Family Collage (75 points Due October 28th)

The family collage and poster session will allow you to artistically express your ideas about family. The family collage can serve to represent your family/ or your definition of family and explore communication patterns, as decided by how you want to represent your ideas. Each collage will be graded on creativity, depth, effort and form of presentation. Have fun with the exploration of visually representing how you understand the concept of family.

5 Discussion Questions (10 points per question for a total of 50 points)

Each student group will be responsible for writing one question related to each discussion week's assigned reading (1 per discussion day). For five designated Friday's, the class will engage in a discussion facilitated by a student group (see syllabus for dates). There are no extra points given for additional questions, however, I encourage students to present multiple questions during Friday's class time. The discussion questions should inspire critical thinking. (Discussion questions are to be submitted at the end of class every Friday.)

Midterm Exam (200 points November 4th)

Final Exam (200 points December 2nd)

Exams are created to test recognition of theories, concepts, and application of course material from class meetings and course readings. The format for the midterm and the final exams will include short answer questions based on readings, in-class exercises and lectures up to the date the exam is given. The midterm and final will be in-class exams.

There will be no make up tests (except in cases of documented medical emergencies).

Term Project (200 points Due November 28th)

There will be one term project and I will provide complete written instructions and guidelines by the 7th week of class. The project will include interviewing family members and gathering family stories.

One Minute Assessments (0 Points)

These assessments are one or two sentences asking for students' positive/ negative comments regarding class. These papers will not include student names nor will they be graded.

Late Assignments

Assignments are expected to be submitted on the date they are due, regardless of whether student attends class. 5 points will be deducted off the total earned for that assignment for each additional day (including weekends) the assignment is not received. In most cases, papers that are emailed will not be accepted.

Grade Dispute

If a student does not agree with the grade received on an assignment or exam I must be presented with a written explanation of the dispute, detailing why it should be changed, within one week of receiving the grade. Within one week of receiving the dispute I will either return a written response or schedule a meeting to discuss the issue. I will never discuss a grade dispute during class time.

Students are encouraged to attend scheduled office hours or give me a call with questions regarding how they are progressing. It is the student's responsibility to keep track of all assignments, and point totals throughout the term. It is also a good idea for students to keep back up copies of their work (or saved to disk or computer) in case an assignment is misplaced.

Grading:

Point-Grade Equivalency: