En 11 – PURPOSIVE COMMUNICATION: 3 Units

Section E
CUARTERO, Jose Mari B.
English Department
School of Humanities
2nd Semester, 2018-19

A. Course Description

Purposive Communication is a three-unit course that develops students’ communicative and

rhetorical competence through multimodal tasks suited to a multilingual and multicultural
audience in a local or global context. It equips students with tools for critical evaluation of a
variety of texts and focuses on the power of language and the impact of images to emphasize
the importance of conveying messages responsibly. Following a process-oriented approach to
teaching communication, it offers extensive language use and practice and promotes
opportunities for problem sensing and problem solving. Students are provided different venues
to apply knowledge of rhetoric in creating communication materials that address real-world
issues.

B. Guiding Principles

1. Because of its global spread, the English language has become a lingua franca and a marker
of identity for its users.

2. Cultural and linguistic diversity is a reality that needs to be respected, embraced, and
promoted.

3. English has been enhanced by its regular contact with other languages, and it is often used
together with other languages by multilingual speakers who make use of their rich linguistic
repertoire.

4. In today’s age, many speakers use English locally and globally in different domains for various
communication purposes.

5. Speakers, in general, shuttle between different languages, language registers, levels of

language, and language varieties, in given communication contexts through multimodal
means. Translingualism and multimodality, therefore, are resources that need to be
recognized, developed, and utilized.

C. Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, the student should be able to:

Knowledge
 1. examine the nature, elements and purposes of verbal and non-verbal communication in
various
multicultural contexts;
2. evaluate multimodal texts critically from multiple perspectives;
3. develop multimodal materials for various contexts and purposes;
4. analyze how the claims of a text persuades its readers by writing a relevant response
using logical
reasoning and argumentation;
5. analyze how the claims of a text persuades its readers by writing a relevant response; and
6. evaluate a problem critically and propose an effective solution to address it.

Skills
1. present ideas persuasively using appropriate and effective verbal and non-verbal
communication
strategies;
2. design appropriate and effective multimodal communication materials for different
purposes in
local and global settings;
3. apply rhetorical strategies appropriate to various contexts of communication;
4. use logical reasoning and rhetorical strategies in formulating sound arguments; and
5. write an essay that effectively integrates personal reflections, observations, and
experiences.

Values
1. exemplify cultural and intercultural awareness and sensitivity in communicating ideas;
2. appreciate the differences of the varieties of spoken and written English;
3. adjust to audience and context in presenting ideas; and
4. act upon the various roles of communication on society and the world.

Written Requirements and Time Frame

• Personal Essay --- 7 weeks
• Proposal Essay --- 8 weeks

Goal Setting: The Personal is Political

• Reid, Tiana. “Crushed”
• Noah, Trevor. Born A Crime.
• bell, hooks. “Theory a Liberatory Practice”
Messages in the Visual Culture
• Berger, John. Ways of Seeing.
• Tsing, Anna Lowenhaupt. The Mushroom at the End of the World: On the Possibility of
Life in Capitalist Ruins.
• Davis, Mike. Planet of Slums.
• Rivera, Marlon. Ang Babae sa Septic Tank
Rules and Regulations:
• Everyone should be part of the google classroom. Each of you should accomplish the
respective profiles with the complete personal data, along with a profile photo for easy
identification.
• Here is the class code for your section: n8ii7v
• Make it sure that you use your Ateneo gmail account. Other email addresses would not
be accepted by the system. Go to google classroom ASAP.
• Readings are mandatory in the classroom. Everyone is expected to have a copy of the
text, whether soft copy or hard copy. However, since most of you are still first year
students, a hard copy will be a much effective way to teach yourself how to read with
depth and right speed.
• Everyone is expected to have notes on the lectures and reading assignments. Notetaking
is a necessary tool to develop one’s capacity to read, write, and think. Without
notetaking, one could not have a means to gauge the importance of an idea.
• Mobile phones are allowed in class, but texting, taking a call and other mobile
communication should be done outside of the classroom. Step outside if you need to
respond to an emergency call.
• No copy of reading assignment means one cut or absence.
• The rest of the rules simply follow what is set in the university policies.

Grading System
Task 1: Personal Essay 40%
Process (drafts, seatwork, quiz, etc.) 5%
Draft 15%
Final Revision 20%
Task 2: Proposal Essay 60%
Process (drafts, seatwork, quiz, etc.) 10%
Draft 15%
Revision 20%
Presentation 15 %

Jan 21 (Monday) - first day of school, diagnostic exam

- Jan 25 (Friday) - LS Faculty Day
- Feb 4 (Monday) - President's Day
- Feb 5 (Tuesday) - Chinese New Year
- Feb 6 - 8 (Wed.-Fri.) - Department training for IEE**
- Feb 25 (Monday)- People Power Anniversary
- April 15 - 20 - Holy Week Reflection Days
- May 1 (Wednesday)- Labor Day
- May 17 (Wednesday)- Study Day
Consultation Hours
Every Monday 3:00-4:00 PM and please email first before coming to the department.
My email is at jcuartero@ateneo.edu