Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Communicating Diversity: Writing And Reflections About Diversity In Organizational Settings, Andrea L. Meluch

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Diversity includes the differences among various personal and social identities that individuals carry into their professional lives and is an important element of organizational work (Allen, 1994, 2011). As students are expected to be competent communicators in diverse workplaces, this activity provides students with the opportunity to design and appraise diversity statements in an organizational setting. Specially, students share their personal experiences of diversity in college settings and craft a statement to capture diversity, equity, and inclusion. Instructors interested in this 45-minute activity will be provided with instructions on guiding a lecture, small group writing assignment, and class discussion related …

Name That Place: Reconsidering Diversity And Globalization Through The Architecture Of Ethnic Enclaves, Tim Michaels

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Introducing students to a conversation about the disbursement of cultures through globalization is often difficult to approach. In this single-class activity, globalization is introduced through a virtual game which is focused on ethnic enclaves, the small immigrant neighborhoods that retain much of the immigrants’ original culture despite existing within a dominant one. Students will reconsider their intercultural communication, diversity awareness, and understanding about the effects of globalization and cultural assimilation by assessing stereotypes that emerge from the architecture of ethnic enclaves. By challenging students to identify the location of several ethnic enclaves through pictures, without the broader geographic context, a …

Heroically Protecting Our Arguments: Using Superheroes To Teach Inductive And Deductive Reasoning, Christopher J.E. Anderson, Emily A. Mueller, Alana C. Schneider

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Abstract

Barkl, Porter, and Ginns, (2012) explain the importance of reasoning as it relates to fluid intelligence and an individual’s capacity to broaden their understanding of knowledge. With the difficulty many students find in recognizing examples of reasoning, this teaching activity uses student descriptions of superheroes to teach inductive and deductive reasoning skills. Educators are provided with the instructions to conduct a 50-minute lesson to explain these skills, allow students to form and recognize their own examples of inductive and deductive reasoning, and variations on how to conduct this assignment in both the physical and online classroom environments.

Salmonella In The Student Union! Applying The Best Practices In Crisis Communication In A Mock Crisis Activity, Ashleigh Day

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Crisis communication is utilized in many situations and by many organizations. Due to the nature of crises as well as their ability to produce high uncertainty and to threaten goals and well-being, there are communicative exigencies that need to be addressed relating to health effects and risks, which can vary depending on the crisis, publics, and the organization(s) that is(are) responding. This lesson plan uses Seeger’s (2006) “Best Practices in Crisis Communication” to illustrate how different organizations utilize and implement crisis communication during the onset of a crisis. Instructors are provided with an overview of the materials and procedures which …

Utilizing The Television Series Chasing Life To Develop A Deeper Understanding About The Complexities Of Providing Social Support, Sharlene T. Richards, Heather J. Carmack

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Teaching students to think critically about social support and to apply it to their personal and professional lives can be challenging. This activity facilitates deeper learning about the communication processes involved with social support as well as the implications of social support. Instructors are given specific scenes from a recent television series; the scenes depict some complexities of providing social support. These scenes prompt a lively discussion as well as a critical reflection about what makes social support effective and the consequences of ineffective social support for coping, identity, and relational closeness. Instructors are provided with a lesson plan (that …

Showing And Telling: A Technique For Teaching Delivery Skills, Justin J. Rudnick

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

This single-class activity provides a framework for instructors to “coach” students to use various delivery skills for presentational speaking. By rotating student groups through three stations, the activity cultivates the students’ understanding of direct eye contact, hand gestures, and vocal volume and articulation. Students prepare a story to share in groups and actively practice each skill while the instructor demonstrates acceptable standards. After completing a debrief discussion, students are better equipped to practice delivery skills with a frame of reference for how those skills should be cultivated in class.

Applying The Instructional Beliefs Model To Training And Development Research And Practice, Nicholas T. Tatum, Seth S. Frei

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

In 2011, Weber, Martin, and Myers introduced an innovative instructional model to more fully understand student outcomes within the classroom: the Instructional Beliefs Model (IBM). Results from this seminal article provided support to suggest that the IBM was a better predictor of student outcomes than previous models. Since its inception, this model has guided and informed subsequent instructional research (e.g., Goodboy & Frisby, 2014; Johnson & LaBelle, 2015; LaBelle, Martin, & Weber, 2013). While clearly applicable in the university classroom, the theoretical relationships outlined by the IBM offer transferability to additional instructional contexts: namely, training and development. Notably, there is …

The Media Ecology Of Etienne Gilson: Mediation In St. Augustine’S City Of God, Brian Gilchrist

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

Media ecology represents a vibrant, interdisciplinary area of research that considers the relationships among human beings, language, technology, and both real and virtual environments. The following question serves as a hermeneutic entrance for this article: how might Etienne Gilson’s approach to mediation invite further discussion about the relationship between media ecology and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition (CIT)? First, Gilson’s approach to mediation is analyzed, which explores how Neo-Thomism functions as a form of media. Second, Gilson’s analysis of St. Augustine’s City of God is explicated, which evaluates how Gilson mediated this significant religious text through CIT. Third, Gilson’s mediation of …

Family Size Decreases Conversation Orientation And Increases Conformity Orientation, Jenn Anderson, Laura Dirks, Natalie Graesser, Paige Block

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

The family is a critical context for the development and maintenance of communication patterns and relationships. Family’s communication patterns are derived from two orientations: conversation and conformity. Family members also use relational maintenance strategies to sustain their relationships. Previous research has established the association between communication orientations and relational maintenance strategies, but has not explored how family size (i.e., number of siblings) may impact these variables. This study reports on results from an online survey of N = 784 participants. Our results indicate that number of siblings negatively predicted conversation orientation, but positively predicted conformity orientation. In addition, conversation orientation …

Front Matter

Discourse: The Journal of the SCASD

No abstract provided.