This document provides an overview of an introductory undergraduate course on small group communication. The course will cover topics like group structure, conflict management, problem solving, leadership, and communication technologies. Students will learn theories and complete experiential activities and assignments to develop critical thinking skills. The goals are to provide exposure to theories, apply them to real groups, analyze group processes, improve group work skills, and lead discussions. Students will work in groups on a case study project and presentations. The course also includes individual assignments, an exam, and a creative project. Requirements, grading, policies, and the topic schedule are outlined.

1. 1
ORGC 212
Small Group Communication
Spring Quarter 2014
Instructor: Shawn Mikus B.S., M.A. Office Hours:
By Appointment
E-mail: shawnmikus@gmail.com
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
This is an introductory undergraduate course in small group communication. Course materials
will focus on the topic areas of group structure, conflict management, problem solving,
leadership, meeting facilitation, group culture, and communication technologies in small group
communication in organizational contexts. In this course students will learn theories and
concepts with regard to these topic areas and also will apply the theories to real life situations
through a variety of experiential activities. Assignments are designed to increase students’
practical knowledge of small group communication as well as develop critical thinking skills.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
The goals of the course is to provide students with (1) exposure to theoretical concepts related to
small group processes, (2) frameworks to apply those theories to daily events in small group
context, (3) skills to analyze success and failure of communication processes of a real life group,
(4) abilities to work in groups effectively, and (5) skills to lead an informal group discussion.
REQUIRED TEXT:
Required readings will be available on D2L.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND EVALUATION:
Case Study Group Project 200
Final Paper (85)
Final Presentation (85)
Three mini-assignments (30)
Class Leadership 100
Exam 100
Creative Project 100
Class Participation/Attendance 200
TOTAL: 700

2. 2
Course grading scale:
Your course letter grade is a function where your total course percentage grade falls within the
following percentage ranges:
A = 94 - 100 C = 74 - 77
A- = 90 - 93 C- = 70 - 73
B+ = 88 - 89 D+ = 68 - 69
B = 84 - 87 D = 64 - 67
B- = 80 - 83 D- = 60 - 63
C+ = 78 - 79 F = Below 59
Exams:
There will be one exam during the quarter. The exam will be taken half way through the quarter
(a midterm). Exam will not be rescheduled unless you provide documented medical or family
emergencies prior to the exams. Exam will consist of multiple choice, short answer, and essay
questions.
Group Projects:
In the beginning of the term, you and your classmates will be divided into working small groups.
In these groups, you will complete the following tasks:
 Schedule and attend regular meetings with your teammates
 1 quarter-long project: Case Study Project (with 3 mini assignments)
Case Study Project will be an in-depth exploration into a real-life team or small group. These
groups might include (but are not limited to) teams within a specific organization, sports teams,
firefighters, gangs, mountain climbers, musicians, military units, health care professionals and
government groups.
You will examine specific topic areas that are covered in class (e.g. conflict management, group
identity, leadership) when you look into your target team. This is an involved project that will
require you to work together with your group members throughout the quarter. The project will
culminate in a paper written by the team (15%), and a 20 minute group presentation (15%). More
detailed guidelines will be provided early in the term. Three mini assignments (5% in total) will
be given out to let me know how you are doing with the Case Study Project and help keep you
on track. The mini assignments also will help progress your final paper as we move along in the
quarter. Each mini assignment will require your team to write collectively 2-3 pages.
In-Class Leadership Project Each student will be responsible for leading a portion of the class
discussion. You will choose a topic for a particular day during the 2nd week of the class.
Specific guidelines and grading criteria for these group projects will be discussed later.
Creative Project Each student will be responsible for a creative project depicting an element or
principle of small group communications. The projects are to not be written in prose, (unless the
creative element is written i.e. poetry slam, song, poem etc.) and require no formal paper element.

3. 3
Students may use any creative avenue to portray their perspective on chosen principle. Each
student will give a short presentation on their project and how it relates to the class.
The purpose behind this project is for students to share diverse views of small group
communication elements and apply their knowledge to tangible examples. Projects are
recommended to be created with intent of sharing to the entire class.
I strongly encourage you to work on something you enjoy doing and apply it to the class content.
Individual Grade and Peer Evaluations:
Your individual grade for all the group projects depends both on the success of your group in
completing the assignments, and on your individual performance within the team (as privately
rated by your teammates). For each group project, your team members will fill out a Peer
Evaluation Form for your performance in the project and hand them to me. The highest possible
individual grade is the group project grade. If you contribute less than other members, your
individual grade will be lower than the group grade.
Class Participation:
This is a fun course, especially for the students who come to class every day and actively
participate in class discussions. I will keep track of the frequency and quality of your
contributions to class discussions and activities, attentiveness to lectures and fellow classmates’
presentations, and participation in in-class activities over the quarter. I expect you to come to
every class with full intent to learn, laugh and be ready to share your perspectives.
For these reasons, class attendance is very important in this class. Various activities for your
group projects will take place in the classroom. Each class meeting is worth 10 points (200 total
participation points divided by 20 total class meetings). Therefore, if you miss a class, you
automatically lose 10 points.
However, I too was a student and understand the difficulty of making every class. For this reason,
students will be allowed 1 ‘freebie’ absence. This excused absence will count towards your
attendance as normal. All other absences will be excused only in cases of documented medical or
family emergencies. I begin class on time. Arriving late or leaving early on regularity will result
in deduction from participation points.
COURSE POLICIES
Course Website:
All class assignments, lecture slides, supplementary readings, and individual grades will be
posted on the course website at <d2l.depaul.edu>. You are responsible for all materials listed in
the lecture slides, regardless of whether we focus on them in class. Some topics of lecture will
create longer discussion than others, therefore, if class discussion is rich, time may permit us
from covering other lecture slides. Contact information for classmates will also be available on

4. 4
this website. Make sure you enter a working email address in campus connect because that email
address is automatically transferred to d2l.
Submission of Written Assignments:
All written assignments must be submitted in hard copy at the beginning of class on due dates.
When you submit the assignments later than the due dates, 5 points will be deducted (from
maximum points possible) for each day after the due dates. When a week (two classes) passes,
the submission will not be accepted.
Email Communication:
I often have class announcements and contact individual students outside the class via email.
Make sure to have working email address on campus connection so that you are included in this
communication.
When you send me an email with any questions or concerns, allow at least 24 hours for
turnaround time.
Professionalism:
The most important enforcement of this class is to respect the opinions, views and comments
made by your fellow classmates. In this class we’ll learn best through the viewpoints of the
people who differ from us. Therefore, every member of this class should be treated with an open
mind and given full respect, regardless of your dissent. However, I do encourage respectful and
professional resistance and disagreement. Not everyone has to agree with one another, but in this
class, students will respect one another. (Only rant of the entire quarter…I promise.)
I like to create a fun, open, and friendly learning environment in the classroom. Professional
behavior from all of us is a precursor to accomplishing this goal. I expect you to display
respectful and professional manner to your classmates and your instructor. I expect you to avoid
the following behavior in the classroom:
 Using sexist, racist, or any insulting language
 Coming to class late and leaving early on a regular basis without notice
 Disrupting the class by having side conversations
 Reading newspaper and browsing the internet during classmates’ presentations or
lectures
Your professional behavior will be evaluated and counted toward your participation grade.
Academic Integrity:
Work done for this course must adhere to the University Academic Integrity Policy, which you
can review in the Student Handbook or by visiting
<http://academicintegrity.depaul.edu/Resources/Students/index.html>. Violations may result in
the failure of the assignment, failure of the course, and/or additional disciplinary actions.
Students with Disabilities:

5. 5
I do my best to accommodate the needs of students with disabilities. It is the student’s
responsibility to notify me in advance (within the first two weeks of the quarter) of any special
needs so proper accommodations can be made.
Course Topic Outline and Due Dates:
The schedule is subject to change. Any changes will be announced in class in advance.
4/1 Tu Syllabus Overview
Introductions
Course overview
4/3 Th Topic: Introduction to Small Groups
Handout: Introduction to Class Leadership Assignment
Class Leadership discussion in class
4/8 Tu Topic: Group Goals and Structure
Introduction to Case Study Project
Case Study Draft
Handout: Case Study Project and Mini-assignment #1
4/10 Th Topic: Group Identity and Culture
4/15 Tu Topic: Working in Diverse Groups
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (1)
4/17 Th Topic: Diversity Training
Case analysis: Iowa Corrections Center
Handout: Mini-assignment #2
4/22 Tu Topic: Nonverbal Communication
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (2)
Mini-assignment #1 Due
4/24 Th Topic: Problem Solving and Decision Making
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (3)
Handout: Mid-term Exam Study Guide
4/29 Tu Topic: Issues in Small Group Decision-Making
5/1 Th Mid-term Exam
5/6 Tu Topic: Group Creativity
Reading: Innovative and Creative Thinking: Generating New Ideas by Lumsden
& Lumsden 2004 (copy will be available on D2L)
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (4)
Video: The Deep Dive

6. 6
5/8 Th In-class group activity: Idea Generation Processes
Group Conference
Mini-assignment #2 due
Handout: Mini-assignment #3
5/13 Tu Topic: Conflict Management
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (5)
5/15 Th Conflict Case Study
Reading: For the Good of Many (copy will be available on D2L)
5/20 Tu Topic: Leadership
Reading: “Leadership Ensemble” from Fast Company (copy will be available on
D2L)
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (6)
Handout: Guidelines for Group Paper and Group Presentation
5/22 Th Topic: Group Facilitation
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (7)
Mini-Assignment #3 due
5/27 Tu Topic: Mediated Communication and Small Groups
Reading: Rosen, B., Furst, S., & Blackburn, R. (2007). Overcoming barriers to
knowledge sharing in virtual teams. Organizational Dynamics, 36, 259-273.
(copy will be available on our course website)
Class Leadership—Presentation/Discussion (8)
5/29 Th Group Conference
Creative Project Review
6/3 Tu Case Study Presentations
6/5 Th Case Study Presentations
6/10 Tu Case Study Group Paper and Peer Evaluations due at 9pm in digital
dropbox on D2L
6/12 Th Creative Project