COMS 520 Communication Theory and Practices

For information regarding prerequisites for this course, please refer to the Academic Course Catalog.

Understanding communication theories is essential to understanding the discipline of communication studies. As Littlejohn states, “Theories provide explanations that help us understand the phenomenon we call communication” (2). This course will provide an overview of communication theories across the major areas within the discipline of communication studies.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations/notes

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussion

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences. Therefore, the student will complete one (1) Discussion: Class Introductions in this course. For this discussion, the student will post 1 thread of at least 250 words. For this Discussion, replies are not required, but they are encouraged. 

Discussions (4)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences leveraging Generative AI technology. The student will complete 4 Discussions where he/she will enter a predefined AI prompt into CoPilot, creating a 200-word output. The student analyzes the AI output, responding to questions provided as part of the instructions. Discussion threads should be at least 200 words and should include 2 scholarly citations outside the course textbook to substantiate the student’s arguments. The student will reply to 2 classmates’ threads. All replies should be at least 150 words and contain 2 scholarly citations. All posts should follow proper current APA style.

Essay Assignments (3)

Throughout this course, the student will submit a series of essay assignments, each constructed as an APA paper (APA Guide, Section 2.2) that includes a title page, the body, and reference(s). Each essay is designed to deepen the student’s foundational awareness of communication theory within a Christian worldview.

Traditions Essay Assignment

In this Traditions Essay Assignment paper, the student will submit a 1,000-word essay examining each Communication Tradition based on the criteria described in the assignment instructions. The submission should include at least 4 scholarly sources. Throughout this course, the student will be completing various stages of a research paper project. One element of the research paper is identifying which communication tradition the selected theory rests.

Book Report – Buber Essay Assignment

In this Book Report – Buber Essay Assignment paper, students will compose a 700-word essay discussing specific elements identified in the assignment instructions related to the book I and Thou by Martin Buber. The submission should include 2 sources, including the I and Thou text.

Theories Essay and Annotated Bibliography Assignment

In this Theories Essay Assignment paper, students will write a 1,000-word essay to examine 4 Communication Theories based on the criteria described in the assignment instructions. The submission must include 8 scholarly sources and an Annotated Bibliography Appendix briefly describing the content from each source. Throughout this course, students will be completing various stages of a research paper. One component of the research paper is identifying the significant elements of one communication theory.

Research Project Assignments (5)

Throughout this course, the student will be completing a research project regarding one theory of communication. The final product of this research project will be a 10-12 page research paper and a 10-minute multimedia presentation of the paper. For this project, the student needs to collect 15 relevant sources, which must be cited in the paper. All portions of this project must be correctly formatted in current APA style. This project will be submitted in the following stages:

Title Page and Research Question

The student will choose one of the theories discussed in the textbook to serve as the topic for the research project. Using the title construction design requirements detailed in the assignment instructions, the student will select and submit a title and research question for review. If the title selected is not acceptable, or if the title page format is not correct, the student will receive comments from the instructor. After a title is approved, the student may begin research for his/her project.

Introduction and Annotated Bibliography

The student will use his/her research to create a 400-word introduction paragraph following the composition design and length requirement as described in the assignment instructions. Generally, an introduction to a research paper should present its purpose, research question, and thesis statement. The submission should include 15 sources and conclude with an annotated bibliography appendix.

Literature Review

The student will submit the body of the paper, which should be the synthesis of the 15 scholarly sources found during the research process. This review should be written in paragraph format with appropriate topic sentences for each paragraph. Furthermore, through this literature review, the student should compare/contrast, analyze, and apply the scholarly perspectives presented in the research. Since the review will serve as the body of the paper, the student should aim to have between 9–11 pages of text.

Paper Submission

The student should submit his/her final research paper. The final paper should include 10–12 pages with the additional title page, abstract, and reference list. At least 15 sources should be listed on the references page, and all sources must be used and properly cited within the paper. This final paper should demonstrate flawless APA format.

Presentation (Video Discussion) 

The student will create a multimedia presentation of his/her theory that includes a video. The video should be between 7-8 minutes, include at least 15 peer-reviewed source citations, and be uploaded to Canvas following the instructions provided in the discussion page. The student will also submit a 300-word response to the presentation of 2 other students.

Quizzes (3)

Students will complete a scholarly writing quiz, a midterm exam, and a final exam. Each quiz will cover the Learn material for the assigned modules. Each quiz will be open-book/open-notes. The scholarly writing quiz contains 3 multiple-choice questions to be completed in 1 hour. The mid-term and final exam each contain 90 multiple-choice or true/false questions to be completed in 3 hours.