Syllabus

COM 419: Communication & Conflict

Monday & Thursday, 8-9:30 a.m.
Spring Term, 2021 (Feb. 8-May 22)

Instructor: Colin Storm
Office hours:

Monday & Wednesday 3-4 p.m.
Friday 12-2 p.m.
Or by Appointment

Required Course Material

Fisher, R., Ury., W. L., & Patton, B. (2011). Getting to yes: Negotiating agreement without giving in. New York: Penguin Books.
Noah, T. (2016). Born a crime: Stories from a South African childhood. New York: Random House. **Highly recommend the audiobook!**
Tutu, D. (1999). No future without forgiveness. New York: Doubleday.

Learning Outcomes

Designed to explore problems involving intrapersonal and interpersonal
communication. Emphasis will be placed on social, cultural, psychological, and political conflicts and breakdowns; organizational barriers to communication; and conflict resolution. Prerequisites: COM 220, COM 322, and junior status or instructor consent.

A student who completes the Communication Core should be able to:

Awareness of the interconnectedness between self, others, and calling
Understanding of communication systems in order to foster justice
Skills for collecting, analyzing, evaluating, and interpreting messages
Competent communication across differences and contexts
Ethical communication and dialogical practice

As a result of full participation in this course, you will be able to:

Understand and compare theories and research in conflict communication (PLO 3).
Distinguish between constructive and destructive communication in applied settings: interpersonal, organizational, intercultural, and public sphere (PLO 4).
Construct effective and ethical messages that result in productive management of conflict (PLO 5).
Comprehend interrelationships of power, culture, language, and thought in cross-cultural conflict and conflict in non-Western settings (PLO 1, 2).

Pepperdine Mission

“Pepperdine University is a Christian university committed to the highest standards of academic excellence and Christian values, where students are strengthened for lives of purpose, service, and leadership.”

This course supports Pepperdine’s mission to create students who are equipped for lives of purpose, service, and leadership. In particular, this course focuses on the development of the student as a whole while embracing issues of diversity in addressing real-world problems through conflict resolution. In doing so, this course helps to develop students who can facilitate dialogue, action, and opportunities for local and global leadership. The themes of the course are profoundly influenced by the words of Jesus Christ and the Scriptures.

Proverbs 12:18 “There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”

Class Expectations

#1: Show up and participate
To do well in this class, it is important that you show up prepared and ready to actively participate.You have two free absences before you start losing points. For every absence between 3-7, you lose 10 points from your total grade. If you miss more than 8 classes for any reason (excused or unexcused), you will automatically fail the course. If you are absent from class, it is your responsibility to find out what you missed. Please let me know ASAP if you have an emergency or university-excused absence.

#2: Be respectful
Please show respect for all members of the Pepperdine community. Racist, sexist, homophobic or negative language will never be tolerated. @BlackAtPepperdine has shown there has been an underbelly of racist behavior and language. This is not acceptable under any circumstances. Please also be respectful toward me by not causing unnecessary disruptions and paying attention. TL;DR: Be a good person.

#3: Respect class time
For the hour and a half we meet, I ask that you please put social media away. I know it’s difficult, but I will give periodic social media breaks during class. Please use technology for class-related things during our meeting time.

COVID & COM 300

This is a weird time, but attendance is also an important part of your educational experience. My expectations are that you attend all of our Zoom meetings. However, if you contract COVID, please let me know as soon as possible. We can monitor your symptoms and make adjustments to assignments as needed. If someone you care for or live with contracts COVID, and it is affecting your role as a student, let me know and we can make adjustments to assignments as needed. If I contract COVID, I will make adjustments. If you live overseas and cannot attend class via Zoom because of time differences, alternative options and expectations will be given. Please be safe, look out for each other, and have grace.

Course Content

Course materials prepared by the instructor, together with the content of all lectures and review sessions presented by the instructor, are the property of the instructor. Video and audio recording of lectures and review sessions without the consent of the instructor is prohibited. Unless explicit permission is obtained from the instructor, recordings of lectures and review sessions may not be modified and must not be transferred or transmitted to any other person. Electronic devices other than laptops (e.g., cell phones, PDAs, calculators, recording devices) are not to be used during lectures or exams without prior permission of the instructor. Please take the time to fill out the Course Evaluations at the end of the semester. Thank you in advance!

Pepperdine Resources

Any student with a documented disability (physical, learning, or psychological) needing academic accommodations should contact the Student Accessibility Services office.
If you are concerned with the conduct or behavior of another student, particularly if you or anyone is at risk of violence, please contact me or the TItle IX office immediately. I take every threat seriously. If you feel threatened know that I will believe you and take that extremely seriously. I am committed to the well-being of each student. It is common for students to discuss non-course related issues with faculty and, when possible, faculty will keep such conversations strictly confidential. However, because federal law views faculty members as mandated reporters of any incidents of sexual misconduct, if a student informs a faculty member of an issue of sexual harassment, sexual assault, or discrimination, the faculty member is required by federal law to bring it to the attention of the TItle IX Coordinator, La Shonda Coleman. The Title IX Coordinator will make the student aware of all options and resources available to them under Pepperdine University policies and under the law.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is the pursuit of scholarly and creative activity in an open, honest and responsible manner, free from fraud and deception, and is an educational objective of the Seaver College and Pepperdine University. Cheating, including plagiarism, falsification of research data, using the same assignment for more than one class, turning in someone else’s work, or passively allowing others to copy your work, will result in academic penalties at the discretion of the instructor. In serious cases it could also result in suspension or dismissal from the university.

For more information, please refer to the Pepperdine University Code of Academic Integrity.

24/7 Rule

Your grades will be consistently posted on our Courses site so you can keep track of your progress. If you would like to speak with the instructor about a grade, please adhere to the 24/7 rule:

Wait 24 hours to contact the instructor. Take this time to calmly reflect on the grade you earned and the nature of your disagreement. Remember that grades are a reflection of your performance on a given assignment rather than the level of effort you put in, or your general knowledge and/or ability. Also, revisit the requirements of the assignment.
After 24 hours, contact the instructor to set up an appointment to meet.
If you plan to request an adjustment to the grade, compose a brief outline of the points that you think you deserve, based on the assignment requirements. Submit your written appeal at least 24 hours before meeting with the instructor to discuss your request.
You have 7 days after a grade is posted to arrange a time to speak with the instructor in person about your grade. After the 7-day period, you agree that your grade is correct.

Assignments

Assignments	Due	Points
Discussion Leader	Various	20
Discussion Participant (x7)	Various	35
Guest Speaker Participant (x3)	Various	15
Theology/Ethics Essay	March 19	25
Midterm Exam	March 25	100
Case Study Essay	May 7	50
Case Study Presentation	May 13	20
Final Exam	May 20	100
TOTAL		365

	A (95-100%)	A- (90-94.9%)
B+ (87-89.9%)	B (83-86.9%)	B- (80-82.9%)
C+ (77-79.9%)	C (73-76.9%)	C- (70-72.9%)
D+ (67-69.9%)	D (60-66.9%)	F (<60%)

Written assignments: Unless otherwise noted, please turn all assignments in on Courses.

Please type all of your papers in APA style with 12-point, Times New Roman font, 1″ page borders and double-spaced lines.

To be an effective communicator, you need to be able to write clearly and succinctly. I’d rather have three pages of strong writing than five pages of fluff. Your papers will be evaluated on their clarity, college-level critical thinking, clear communication, grammar, and punctuation. Mechanical errors (i.e., spelling, punctuation, grammar, style, usage, etc.) detract from your message, and from your credibility as a professional communicator.

Late work: In order to receive the maximum grade for an assignment, you need to turn it in on time. I will accept work for up to five days late at a penalty of 10% per day. Any work turned in more than five days late will not be accepted. I understand sometimes technology breaks down at the last minute, but every assignment you have will be assigned at least a week in advance, thus last-minute technology issues are not a valid excuse for turning in an assignment late. Exams cannot be made up.