The University of Dayton Department of Communication received national attention in January in The Chronicle of Higher Education for its success in creating an introductory oral communication course based on a department-authored textbook and extensive student feedback

Gallagher, Clare

English

University of Dayton

University of Dayton eCommons College of Arts and Sciences Newsroom College of Arts and Sciences Administration 4-16-2018 Writing the Book on Communication Clare Gallagher University of Dayton Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.udayton.edu/cas_blog eCommons Citation Gallagher, Clare, "Writing the Book on Communication" (2018). College of Arts and Sciences Newsroom. 223. https://ecommons.udayton.edu/cas_blog/223 This Blog is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Arts and Sciences Administration at eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in College of Arts and Sciences Newsroom by an authorized administrator of eCommons. For more information, please contact mschlangen1@udayton.edu, ecommons@udayton.edu. 1/2Writing the Book on Communicationudayton.edu/blogs/artssciences/2018-stories/18-04-16-oral-communication.phpMonday April 16, 2018The University of Dayton Department of Communication received national attention inJanuary in The Chronicle of Higher Education for its success in creating an introductory oralcommunication course based on a department-authored textbook and extensive studentfeedback.“We don't know of any course in the country like it,” said Joe Valenzano, associate professorand communication department chair. “When we were developing the course, we knew whatwe wanted to do and we knew there was no textbook out there that did it.”In 2013, the University’s Principles of Oral Communication course was honored by theNational Communication Association for the custom textbook, Principles of OralCommunication University of Dayton. In 2014, the course won a national award as aprogram of excellence from the National Communication Association.“Those achievements alone are real recognition of the work that we’ve done,” Valenzanosaid. “In my career it was probably one of the most enjoyable projects I’ve ever been able toparticipate in.”When designing the course, Valenzano said four skills were crucial: explaining ideas tononexperts, advocating for a position or persuasion, engaging in dialogue over controversialissues and analyzing the messages others create.“I found the course was helpful for interviews and for giving presentations,” said StephenAntonini, a first-year student from Sylvania, Ohio.Faculty strive to make the class a place where students can explore key issues with peoplewho have different viewpoints.2/2“People come into this course thinking it’s just a speech course, and they even ask, ‘Howmany speeches do we have to give?’ That’s really not what this course is,” said JasonCombs, Department of Communication lecturer, the course director. “Part of what you will doin your professional life is give some presentations but beyond that there are so many othercommunications skills that are essential to being successful as an individual as well as thesuccess of our society.”The Chronicle article focused on the course's early development and how student feedbackplayed a critical role in the evolution of the course.“But when the communication department was developing the course it incorporated studentfeedback, which increased the level of buy-in from both sides of the lectern. That was justone benefit of including students in course design, professors at Dayton and other collegeshave discovered. The practice can also help students reflect on their learning and provideprofessors with fresh ideas for exploring a topic they may have been teaching for years," thearticle stated.When the course was first introduced, the department had difficulty finding an appropriatetextbook. It received 11 proposals from publishers and tested them in three sections of theclass. The department decided it needed its own textbook, but no one in the department hadtime to write it.According to Valenzano, the department received permission to use an existing textbook asa foundation, editing that book to the communication department's preferences. They nowupdate it yearly and can adapt the theme of course each semester to keep it uniquelyrelevant to the University of Dayton and align material with current events or issues.“In one chapter in the textbook, Christmas on Campus is used as an example. It’s somethingthat’s very relatable to our students,” Combs said.- Clare Gallagher ‘18  

Writing the Book on Communication

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