Curriculum Vita: Christopher Newport University
LIBERAL ARTS - BACHELORS DEGREE (DOUBLE MAJOR): COMMUNICATION STUDIES AND ENGLISH (WRITING CONCENTRATION)
(COMING SOON: Class Descriptions and Coursework Examples)
(COMING SOON: Class Descriptions and Coursework Examples)
Organizational Communication (Comm 345)
Course focuses on analyzing communication in organiza- tions and on organizational communication theory and practice. Multiple-level learning approach allows students to study organizational communication both academically and experimentally in both classroom and “real-world” settings. This course takes as its goal the preparation of each student to be a skilled and effective communicator in organizational settings. Visual Communication (Comm 312) This course will introduce students to the principles of visual literacy and provide hands-on experience in develop- ing visual media. Visual communication is one part of the overall category of multi-disciplinary human activities that we call communication. In this course we will limit our- selves to the communications and cultural systems which operate in the visual domain. Pop Culture and Critical Theory (Comm 326) This course examines how theories of high culture v. low culture, high culture v. popular culture, theories of Mass Culture (etc.), influence how we study American popular culture. Additionally, this course will incorporate criticaltheory/cultural studies when necessary to examine popular culture’s place in everyday life. The courses also examines what these theories tell us about how popular culture influences us, as individuals and as a society. Everyday entertainment (for example television, film, and internet content) is reviewed for its social impact. Students study their lives as media audiences and how theory can help them understand mass media’s impact. News Writing and Reporting (Engl 260) This course teaches students to develop, report, and write news stories. Students use the classroom as a newsroom,working together to focus story ideas, working together to craft and polish their stories. Local news editors and report- ers visit the classroom; students visit their newsroom. Media and Crime (Socl 215) Approaches to Literature: Writing Intensive (Engl 308W) This course introduces critical contexts useful for interpret- ing literature. Short papers permit practice in presenting analysis in support of interpretations, laying essential groundwork for the major. Students will also produce a substantive interpretive and analytical paper focusing on a major literary text, utilizing an approach informed by liter- ary theory and original research developed from electronic databases and print resources. Partially satisfies the Writing Intensive requirement. Gender Communication (Comm 330) This course focuses on the study of gender in United States, and includes both theory and practice. Subjects include images and self-perceptions of men and women, self-disclosure, language uses of the sexes, interpersonal attraction, nonverbal codes, intimate and public contexts. Language and Culture (Engl 330) This course looks at cultural and ethnic differences in communicative style, language use, and language socialization in speech communities around the world.Students will learn about recent trends in linguistic anthropological research in such areas as: communicative competence, communicative style and performance, language ideologies, language socialization, narrative, politeness and face, and ethnographic approaches to the analysis of interaction. At the same time, students will acquire a thorough grounding in knowledge of the linguistic and cultural diversity that exists in the United States (in general) and the Mid-Atlantic region (in particular). Persuasion (Comm 325) This course focuses on persuasion theory, research, and ethics. Attention is given to language use and symbols, nonverbal communication, and cultural and psychological approaches to persuasion. Tools and strategies are explored so that students can become responsible persuaders and effective evaluators of persuasion messages. Intercultural Communication (Comm 340) This course is an exploration into human communication in cross-cultural settings. Students examine the basic human communication process and determine how it is shaped by cultural values. Additionally, they learn how to confront and manage culture shock effectively in cross-cultural encounters. Intro to Human Communication (Comm 250) This course provides an overview of the field of communication from the 19th century to the present. It will survey the major fields of study in communication, including interpersonal, organizational, mass communication, and the study of culture. Reading Literature (Engl 208) This course introduces students to “close reading” to develop critical and interpretive skills for reading and writing about literature. Students will read poetry, fiction, and drama; study literary terms and effects; and write brief interpretive essays. Critical Thinking I (Phil 101) Behavior and Cognition (Psychology 201) Introduction and History of Rhetoric (Comm 249) This course is an introduction to the art and history of rhetoric, or the cultivated ability to produce persuasive discourse appropriate for particular occasions and audi- ences. The rise of rhetoric is uniquely linked to the rise of democratic practices, notions of citizenship, and civic participation. However, the history of rhetoric is rife with disputes over its purpose, its role, and its scope. This course surveys the origins of rhetoric in Ancient Greece to its cur- rent iterations, examining how debates over rhetoric shape persuasion and the construction of meaning. Interpersonal Communication (Comm 211) This course introduces the student to a theoretical and prac- tical study of face-to-face, two-way communication. The course stresses methods of creating effective and efficient communication in family systems, friendships, love, and work relationships. Computers and Programming II (CPSC 250) Intermediate Spanish (Span 201) |
Public Speaking (Comm 201)
This course introduces the student to effective speech preparation and delivery with emphasis on the extempora- neous mode of natural and direct communication. American Literature (1850-1920) (Engl 342) A study of major authors of American Realism and Naturalism (primarily latter 19th century), which may include Whit- man, Dickinson, Twain, James, Crane, Chopin, Dubois, and Wharton, as well as selections from the Local Color, Early Feminist, and African-American Movements. British Literature (20th Century to Present) (Engl 376) Study of major writers such as Conrad, Shaw, Joyce, Woolf, Lawrence, Eliot, Yeats, Auden, Thomas, Larkin, Hughes, Heaney, Hill, Walcott, Pinter, Stoppard, Churchill, Lessing, Naipaul, and Winterson. Fiction Writing (Engl 351) Practice writing and rewriting fiction. Close reading of stories linked to technical exercises. Manuscripts exchanged and discussed—in person or via email. Emphasis on the cultivation of effective fiction over time and through focused exercises. Partially satisfies the Writing Intensive requirement. Poetry Writing (Engl 352) Frequent opportunities to write, and sometimes rewrite, po- ems. Attention to poems and poets, mostly contemporary. Manuscripts discussed and read aloud in class. Variety of exercises, some formal, with plenty of opportunity to experiment and savor the full powers of poems. Confer- ences invited. Writing for Civic Engagement (Engl 454W) This course will help students analyze the communications, public relations, and grants needs of educational, social, political, arts, and faith-based organizations that work for the public good. Students will, through partnering with businesses, nonprofits, and government agencies, learn how to use writing as a vehicle for lasting social change. This course is recommended for students interested in public relations, fund raising and business, as well as the development of successful service-learning projects across the curriculum. Partially fulfills the Writing Intensive requirement. Literary Booms (Engl 428) Great Russian Realist Novelist (Engl 395) Shakespeare (Engl 421) Intensive study of the major plays of Shakespeare in their historical, cultural and performance contexts. Reading list available from the instructor. Senior English Research: Masculinity Studies (Engl 490W) Following up on practical skills and literary theoretical skills acquired in ENGL 308W, students will hone literary research skills. The seminar experience encourages students to explore a new theme, or return to a particular text to produce a fuller, more complex reading. Students will bring to the seminar a broad knowledge of literary text necessary to develop a thesis-driven interpretive essay that successfully incorporates the work of critics. Students may expand and deepen an essay devloped in an earlier course, if approved by the instructor. Partially satisfies the Writing Intensive requirement. Senior Communication Research: Critique and Reform of U.S. Public Education (Comm 452W) In this course students will be asked to construct a proposal and do preliminary research on an approved project. They will be required to write a problem statement justifying the need for their research, conduct a literature review of existing research on their topic, design a methodological procedure appropriate for examination of their research, conduct a preliminary study utilizing their proposed methodology, and write a discussion/conclusion section in which they outline preliminary findings, limitations, and suggestions for future research. Partially satisfies the Writing Intensive requirement. Rhetorical Theory (Comm 430) Plato’s dismissal of rhetoric as an unwelcome distraction to philosophy relegated persuasion to a position of secondary importance as an intellectual pursuit. Many intellectual heavyweights throughout history developed a variety of theoretical approaches to reconcile the tensions between philosophy and rhetoric. In this course, we will survey some of the most significant and influential theoretical approaches to rhetoric, from ancient Greece to the modern- day. We will focus on reading primary texts from such influential thinkers as Plato, Aristotle, Augustine, Bacon, Nietzche, and Foucault and others to develop a general overview on the evolution of rhetorical theory. |