Department of Speech Communication

Minnesota State University Mankato

Annual Report

Covering the Academic Year July 1, 2000 to June 30, 2001

The Department of Speech Communication experienced a good year this past academic year, planning for growth and progress in the Department, developing new courses for majors and students outside the major, continuing assessment, and continuing to serve a significant role in the general education of all university students.

Department of Speech Communication Goals

In order to realize its Vision & Mission Statement, the Department of Speech Communication has set the following goals:

1. To offer quality undergraduate and graduate programs that require students to master the basic concepts and practices of the field, to begin to explore the many areas of study within the field, and to master a specialized area of study.

Activities Undertaken:

The department continued to offer educational opportunities for undergraduate speech communication majors and minors, and graduate students. This year saw continuation in our relatively new SPEE 485 Senior Seminar course. This course, part of a sequence with SPEE 190 Introduction to Communication Studies, offers a capstone experience for non-teaching speech communication majors. This course requires students to demonstrate the knowledge and skills they have developed through their course of study in Speech Communication. Additionally, tied to the 190/485 sequence, as well as interwoven throughout the curriculum, the Department continued to require speech communication majors to compile and maintain a portfolio of student work. This portfolio is at the same time an assessment tool, a learning experience for the students, and a means by which students can see the "big picture" of their speech communication education, realizing how the concepts and skills from separate courses really do fit together. The department, after reviewing assessment data at a retreat in January, acted to make changes to the speech communication major and minor. The department acted to create a new course, SPEE 385 Communication Theory and Research. Students were coming into the 485 course with insufficient knowledge of communication theories and research methodologies. The department also reconfigured SPEE 190 Introduction to Communication Studies. This entry-level course will now have added emphasis on the history and development of the field of communication, added emphasis on key concepts and theoretical principles of communication, and less emphasis on specific theories and research methods in communication. SPEE 190 will now also be required of speech communication minors. The department also acted to make 101 (Interpersonal Communication), 102 (Public Speaking) and 190 prerequisites for upper division courses and admission to the major. Though there is no way to police this requirement, save doing individual registration for all students, this will send a message to students about how to prepare to meet the needs of the major. At the graduate level, the Department continued to offer a specialized graduate program that prepares students for employment as a college instructor, continued study in a doctoral program, or employment as a communication professional. Three graduate students have successfully defended theses this year, and two other students may have successful defenses prior to June 30, 2000. The department envisions a significant increase in graduate school enrollment next year, perhaps a doubling of class size.

2. To offer general education courses that provide students with the knowledge and skills to be critical thinkers and effective communicators in both professional careers and advanced study.

Activities Undertaken:

Serving the needs of General Education students continued to be a priority with the Speech Communication Department. The redesigned SPEE 100 Fundamentals of Communication course was offered for the second time this year. Utilizing a combination of large lecture and smaller recitation sections, this course served approximately 1500 students this year. The course requires students to demonstrate communication skills through public speaking, group presentation, and interpersonal activities. In addition to this course, the department also offered 12 sections of SPEE 102 Public Speaking, 10 sections of SPEE 101 Interpersonal Communication (a general education course under the old general education program), all of which filled to capacity (approximately 640 students), 2 sections of SPEE 203 Intercultural Communication (a Category 7 and 8 general education course--approximately 80 students), 1 section of SPEE 310 Performance of Literature (a category 6 and 11 general education course--approximately 30 students), and SPEE 220 Forensics (a Category 11 general education course, approximately 15 students), for a total of approximately 2265 general education students. Additionally, the department offered a number of extended campus general education courses, serving approximately 220 students, and 6 summer 1999 general education courses, serving approximately 220 students. Total general education students served in 1999-2000 approximately equaled 2605 students. The Department also acted to designate SPEE 233 (Public Speaking to Technical Professionals) a general education course (Category 1b). This course serves approximately 60 students a year. The department has already noted that a backlog is developing in general education category 1b courses. For fall 2001, the department will offer 750 seats in SPEE 100, and 168 seats in SPEE 102. Following completion of pre-registration this spring, the department has only approximately 300 seats open for an incoming first-year class that will number about 2000. The department is exploring additional ways to meet the demands for the general education courses.

3. To promote the performance of communication in both creative and scholarly venues.

Activities Undertaken:

The Department continued to promote communication performance in the 2000-2001 school year. Five speech communication students took part in the third annual undergraduate research conference at Minnesota State University, Mankato, Additionally, the department continued to both financially and personally support the Maverick Forensic Program. This program allows and encourages students to engage in communication performance of both scholarly and creative varieties. Over 30 students took part in some forensic-related activity this past year, cumulatively totaling over 2400 student presentations, and culminating in another trip by the team to the National Individual Events Tournament. One team member also represented MSU, M and the state of Minnesota at the Interstate Oratory Association national championship. The Maverick Forensics program staged a Forensic Showcase April 3, preceding the National Individual Events Tournament. Competitors who were scheduled to compete at the national tournament took part in a public performance attended by over 200. The department helped to sponsor two undergraduate students to attend the annual convention of the International Listening Association. The Department, under the leadership of Dr. Martine Linderman, co-sponsored (with Cultural Diversity) a workshop featuring a nationally-recognized speaker on cultural diversity in the classroom. The department also encouraged graduate students to take part in scholarly communication, with four students presenting research results at the National Communication Association convention, November 2000 in Seattle. Finally, after at least two years of discussion, the department developed a regular colloquium, with faculty and graduate students presenting six times during the year. Graduate and undergraduate students were also kept informed about and encouraged to submit material to other professional communication outlets.

4. To encourage students to explore and take part in the vocational and scholarly practice of communication.

Activities Undertaken:

As noted above, the department continued to encourage students to take part in a variety of communication activities. In addition to those noted above, more than 40 students took part in communication-related internships during the 2000-2001 school year, ranging from off-campus internships to on-campus teaching internships. Qualified students were also encouraged to become a member of Lambda Pi Eta, the national communication honor society, of which the MSU, M speech communication department is an affiliated member. This organization was revitalized this year under the faculty sponsorship of Nan Johnson-Curiskis. The members of this organization have done some fundraising and will hold a reception this spring for graduating speech communication majors.

5. To encourage students, graduate students, and faculty to take part in scholarship, research, and creative activity that will contribute to the personal and professional development of all involved.

Activities Undertaken:

As noted above, a number of speech communication undergraduate and graduate students were encouraged to take part in research activities, and took advantage of that encouragement to engage in and present scholarship. Speech Communication faculty were also active in scholarly and professional activity. Five faculty members attended the National Communication Association annual convention in Seattle in November of 2000. Three faculty members attended the 2000 Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota convention, one faculty member attended the Central States Communication Association annual convention, and one faculty member attended the International Listening Association convention. Faculty also took part in faculty development activities both on- and off-campus, with faculty members taking part in workshops offered by the Secondary Education Coalition, the Center for Faculty Development, Computer Training through the Electronic Academy and the Academic Computer Center. Faculty members also remained engaged in other professional activities, as the department remained home to both a national (Speaker and Gavel) and a regional (Communication and Theater Association of Minnesota Journal) communication journal. Faculty members also submitted material for publication, presented at national and regional conferences, and submitted proposals for future conference presentations.

6. To work with speech communication majors, minors and other interested students in developing an academic program that will lead to vocational and academic success.

Activities Undertaken:

Faculty members continued their work advising speech communication majors and minors, and other students interested in speech courses. Students worked with faculty to develop programs of study that will prepare the students for work or additional study. Much work was undertaken to help students understand the new semester system and the new general education program, with a great deal of time devoted to individual and group meetings concerning semester conversion and graduation requirements. Students were also informed concerning the new required courses in the Speech Communication major.

7. To encourage students to view education as a lifelong process and to remain aware of the relationship between communication, technology and society.

Activities Undertaken:

The department continued its efforts to remind students that education is not solely a vocational endeavor, and that much of their education will take place after they graduate from Minnesota State University, Mankato. Students were made aware of the many resources, both electronic and other, that are available both during and after an MSU, M education. The introduction of the electronic portfolio requirement for both teaching and non-teaching majors made it essential that students begin to comprehend the technological element of communication. The continuing development of assessment practices, especially the introduction of the Senior Seminar capstone course, requires that students demonstrate their knowledge and ability to use communication in the larger society as well as the academic society. And as always, students in all communication courses are either introduced or reminded of the principle that people understand and make sense of the world through the symbols that they use, and that symbol-making and symbol-interpretation is at the heart of the communication process.

Challenges for the 2001-2002 academic year:

The general education program will continue to be a major challenge for the 2001-2002 academic year. The department will continue to face difficulties staffing all the sections needed for general education courses and still serving majors, minors, and other MSU, M students requiring specific speech communication programs. A continuing challenge lies in the recruitment and retention of graduate students. The increase in graduate stipend has certainly helped the recruitment efforts, but the program will continue to work hard at recruiting. We plan to continue our efforts to develop a MFA in Forensics, which would help market our program nationally. The department will be undergoing an internal review as it prepares for a scheduled program review in the 2002-2003 academic year. This review process, while needed, will certainly take much time and effort. The department will also continue to struggle with ongoing changes to the teacher licensure component of our course offerings. MnSCU has approved a redesigned licensure program, and approval from the Minnesota Board of Teaching has also been granted, but continuing uncertainty with the legislature and the Profiles of Learning means that the BST program will require much additional supervision and refinement. An additional continuing challenge for the next academic year will be the need to institute and utilize a more comprehensive assessment program for all students. The new course arrangements, both for major and general education, should allow the department to continue to develop a better assessment plan.