Course Syllabus

Communication Skills in Environmental Science

ECO EVO 203A

Fall Quarter 2018

2 Units

 

Time and location: 2:00-4:00 Humanities Gateway 1341 (except Oct 10)

 

Instructor:

Steven Allison

949 824-2341

allisons@uci.edu

Office hours: By appointment, 3108 Biological Sciences 3

 

Course description: This course will train graduate students to communicate with non-specialist audiences about climate and environmental change issues. The course will feature a series of workshops led by experts on the technical, presentation, and contextual skills required for effective communication. Students will be prepared to convey messages across a range of media types and increase their competitiveness for career positions.

 

Learning outcomes—by the end of this course, students will be able to:

• Communicate their research interests to a broad audience
• Craft messages to target specific audiences
• Design and present visual media about environmental issues
• Address environmental issues from an interdisciplinary perspective
• Prepare for job interviews in a range of disciplines

 

Course Schedule (subject to change):

Date	Topic	Reading
Oct 3	Interpersonal communication skills (McWhorter) Baseline assessment: In class, write a public abstract of your research AND a summary of your public outreach and communication activities.  At home, use Loom to record 4-minute video of your research interests for an educated lay audience.
Oct 10	Communicating with the public: Open lecture by Sandra Tsing Loh, followed by workshop with Comm Skills students Materials from Sandra Tsing Loh NOTE LOCATION: Humanities Instructional Building 135
Oct 17	Distilling your message for the public (McWhorter) Practice elevator pitches or media interviews
Oct 24	Communicating with the public: Open expert panel (Janet Wilson, Rebecca Tuhus-Dubrow, Suellen Hopfer) followed by workshop with Comm Skills students Homework: Write an op-ed or news article	Example op-eds
Oct 31	Communication through web and social media (Annabel Adams, Laura Rico) Homework: Create a blog post; set up a Twitter account and strategy
Nov 7	Writing for the public: Open workshop (Janet Wilson, Annabel Adams, Erika Hayasaki) Workshopping titles, abstracts, op-eds, blog posts (any product most relevant for the individual student)
Nov 14	Tailoring your message to reach policymakers (McWhorter) Homework: Write a policy brief for a decision maker	Writing a policy brief: UNC Writing Center IRDC Canada FAO (section 4.1)
Nov 21	Oral presentation skills: creating a good presentation (McWhorter) Activity/Homework: Revise op-eds, social media strategies, blog posts	Presentation warm-up
Nov 28	Oral presentation skills: giving a poster presentation (McWhorter) Activity/Homework: Revise policy briefs
Dec 5	Selling yourself: job interviews and networking (McWhorter, Danny Mann [UCI], and Nicole Dubois and Tony Petros [LSA environmental consulting]) Activity: Mock job interviews
Dec 6	Mini-symposium with poster presentations 12pm-3pm, Croul Hall Lobby [Registration] Homework: Post-assessment: Re-do the video on research interests; revise your public abstract; update summary of public communication skills

 

Readings:

• Selected readings will be posted on the course website.
• Webinars by the American Geophysical Union: https://webinars.agu.org/webinars/

 

Grading: Students will be graded based on attendance and participation in discussion (20%), written/oral/video assignments (60%), and a final presentation of their work at the December poster symposium (20%).

Assignment	Points
Research video baseline	5
Public abstract baseline	5
Outreach/communication activities baseline	5
Opinion or news article	10
Social media strategy	5
Policy brief	5
Research video final	5
Public abstract final	5
Outreach/communication activities final	5
Poster presentation	20
Discussion participation	20
Total	100

Electronic devices: Please refrain from taking calls, texting, gaming, updating social media, etc. while in class. Minimizing distractions will contribute positively to your course performance.

 

Class format: The course will be structured as a series of two-hour workshops with student discussion, participation, group work, and peer evaluation. Six of the class meetings will be led by Bri McWhorter, MFA, who will cover skills in interpersonal communication, interview situations, and oral presentation. Students will put these skills into practice during class meetings and at the poster symposium. The symposium will be a half-day event on the UCI campus where students, faculty, and off-campus partners will be invited to view visual media and presentations created by the course participants.

 

Academic honesty and appropriate behavior: Students are expected to abide by UCI’s academic honesty policy: “The University is an institution of learning, research, and scholarship predicated on the existence of an environment of honesty and integrity. As members of the academic community, faculty, students, and administrative officials share responsibility for maintaining this environment. It is essential that all members of the academic community subscribe to the ideal of academic honesty and integrity and accept individual responsibility for their work. Academic dishonesty is unacceptable and will not be tolerated at the University of California, Irvine. Cheating, forgery, dishonest conduct, plagiarism, and collusion in dishonest activities erode the University's educational, research, and social roles. They devalue the learning experience and its legitimacy not only for the perpetrators but for the entire community.” Appropriate behavior is a requirement of this course, and inappropriate behavior directed toward instructors or students in class or outside class will have negative consequences for your grade.

 

Discrimination and sexual harassment: UC Irvine is committed to creating and maintaining an environment in which all persons who participate in University programs and activities can work and learn together in an atmosphere free of all forms of discrimination and harassment. Such behavior is prohibited by law and University policy. The University will respond promptly and effectively to reports of discrimination and harassment, and will take appropriate action to prevent, to correct, and when necessary, to discipline behavior that violates University policy and these Guidelines. Questions regarding the UC Policy on Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence or reports/inquiries from those feeling they have been subjected to sexual harassment or sex offenses may be directed to the Sexual Harassment Office in one of the following ways:

Main Line: 949-824-5594 
Sexual Harassment Call Line: 949-824-7037 (anonymous or not) 
TDD Line: 949-824-7593 
Email: oeod@uci.edu 
Campus Office: 103 MSTB
Medical Center Office: 333 City Tower, Suite 110 (by appointment)

 

Inclusive Classroom Policy: I will uphold the University of California, Irvine’s commitment to ensuring equality and valuing diversity. UCI recognizes that our individual differences can deepen our understanding of one another and the world around us, rather than divide us. In this class, people of all ethnicities, genders and gender identities, religions, ages, sexual orientations, disabilities, socioeconomic backgrounds, regions, and nationalities are strongly encouraged to share their rich array of perspectives and experiences. If you feel your differences may in some way isolate you from UCI’s community or if you have a need for any specific accommodations, please speak with the instructor early in the quarter about your concerns and what we can do together to help you become an active and engaged member of our class and community. For some of you, the following resources may be helpful:

• Diversity and Awareness at UCI - http://www.studentaffairs.uci.edu/diverse/index.php
• Disability Services Center - http://disability.uci.edu
• UCI LGBT Resource Center - http://lgbtrc.uci.edu
• Undocumented Student Support - http://dreamers.uci.edu
• UCI Counseling Center - http://www.counseling.uci.edu

 

Basic Needs Security: Any student who faces challenges securing sufficient food or housing and believes this may affect their performance in the course is urged to contact the Dean of Students for support (dos.uci.edu; 949-824-5181). Furthermore, please notify the professor if you are comfortable doing so. Also note the following resources available at UCI:

• Student Outreach and Retention Center (SOAR) – soar.uci.edu
• SOAR Food Pantry – located at the FRESH Basic Needs Hub at 4079 Mesa Rd (Lot 5 trailers), open M-F 10am-5pm

 

Special Accommodations: Should you require special accommodations regarding testing or group work, or find yourself unable to meet the course requirements according to the syllabus outlined due to unforeseen circumstances, family, medical, mental health, or immigration-related emergencies, etc. please speak with me as soon as possible. I will work with you to find reasonable accommodations and/or appropriate resources available to you at UCI.

 

Copyright © 2018 Dr. Steven Allison. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise indicated, all course materials are copyrighted by Dr. Steven Allison. All rights reserved. No part of these pages, either text or image may be used for any purpose other than personal use. Therefore, reproduction, modification, storage in a retrieval system or retransmission, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or otherwise, for reasons other than personal use, is strictly prohibited without prior written permission.