COMMUNICATION STUDIES 146 ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES 146 COMMUNICATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT COURSE SYLLABUS FALL 1998 (T/TH 9:00 - 10:15) INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Dennis Jaehne OFFICE: HGH 108 PHONE: 924-5373 OFFICE HOURS: Tues. and Thurs. 10:30 - 12:00, And By Appointment COURSE DESCRIPTION: As environmental problems increase in scope and severity, we devote more and more of our public policy discourse to these contentious and contested issues. It is not always obvious how to interpret environmental discourse or what position to take. The various conflicting discourses about the environment depend upon different values and views of nature and the human place in nature. These discourses also operate by their own rules and conventions and thereby influence what people can and do think and say. The goal of this course is to help students become more critical producers and consumers of environmental discourse. Through reading, discussion and research projects we will explore the concepts of "nature" and "environment" and how we communicate about them. Neither nature nor environment take on social meaning until we have put them into our system of communication. It is our communication about nature that makes it meaningful to us. In this course we will learn about the difficulties we face in communicating about the environment and about the conflicting values and modes of discourse we employ. We will learn how cultural attitudes regulate our ways of life on the land and consider historical and cultural conflicts that have shaped public policy. We will look at our own (and others') personal idiom of speech about nature and compare that to the technical, scientific and managerial discourse of the public administrative world of environmentalism. COURSE TEXTS: Killingsworth, M. & Palmer, J. (1992). Ecospeak: Rhetoric and environmental politics in America. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press. Course Reader. (Maple Press, E. San Carlos St. 297-1000). Course Packet. (Reading Guides and Handouts, TBA). COURSE POLICIES: This course follows all university policies. If you are unfamiliar with these policies, please refer to them in the university catalog. Instances of plagiarism will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted according to policy. Those who have a disability of any sort and who require special assistance should identify themselves to me as soon as possible so that appropriate actions can be taken to assist. Effective this semester the university has adopted a new drop policy, a copy of which is attached to this syllabus. The most significant change in drop policy is that after Sept. 23 all drops must be approved by the university drop officer, who will allow drops only for documented extraordinary circumstances. COURSE ACTIVITIES: This is NOT A LECTURE COURSE. Improving our ability to communicate about the environment requires active learning and doing. Each student will be expected to complete reading guides as assigned that will structure discussion and aid participation on a daily basis. In addition, students will write papers and engage in group work. Each student will complete a term project. Students will write a short paper describing a nature experience, and a term project paper. There will also be an oral report of the term project. Students may undertake the term project either individually or, with the permission of the instructor, on a group basis. There will be two mid-terms and a final exam. One of the mid-terms may be substituted with a paper. A detailed instruction sheet for each assignment will be provided in class. A brief overview of the major assignments follows. 1. Nature Experience Paper: Go somewhere, and do something that, for you, is a "nature experience." Observe, reflect, meditate, and write up your thoughts and responses in two pages. These papers will be discussed in class. 2. [OPTIONAL SUBSTITUTE FOR MIDTERM] Animal Observation Experience Paper: Read two articles (on reserve in library) on zoos and animal observation. Make a personal field trip to a zoo or aquarium (e.g., San Francisco Zoo, Oakland Zoo, Marineworld, Monterey Bay Aquarium, etc.). Observe and reflect upon your animal observation experience in terms of human communication about nature and in light of your reading. Write up your thoughts in a five page paper. Paper will be due on the date of the midterm you wish to substitute it for. 3. Term Project: These are research projects that you will conduct over the semester. Specific options will be provided in class. You will plan the research to answer the question, write up your findings and turn in a final project paper. You will also make a formal oral project report of about 7 minutes to the class. COURSE EVALUATION AND GRADING: Course grades will be determined on a point system, as follows: READING GUIDES 20 @ 2 pts. 40 Points PARTICIPATION 25 Days @ 3 pts. 75 PAPER #1 (Nature, 2 pp.) 20 MID TERM 1 (or paper) 30 MID TERM 2 (or paper) 30 FINAL PROJECT PAPER 50 FINAL PROJECT ORAL REPORT 30 FINAL EXAM 25 TOTAL 300 Points Participation points will be awarded after each class session designated as a participation day on the following basis: 3 pts.= excellent participation; student has read the material and contributes substantially to the discussion; 2 pts.= acceptable participation; student pays attention, contributes a little, but has not grasped the material fully; 1 pt. = marginal participation; student may or may not pay attention or follow the discussion; makes little contribution; shows little or no evidence of familiarity with the material. 0 pt. = no participation. NOTE: All participation points are based upon my assessment of quality, not quantity of contribution! You need to be engaged in and by the discussion, but that doesn't mean you need to talk a lot. Course grades will depend upon the total points achieved, as follows: 291 - 300 A+ 261 - 269 B+ 231 - 239 C+ 201 - 209 D+ 282 - 290 A 252 - 260 B 222 - 230 C 192 - 200 D 270 - 281 A- 240 - 251 B- 210 - 221 C- 180 - 191 D- COURSE CALENDAR (Subject to Modification with Class Agreement) [NOTE: Starred days (*) are designated participation days.] TH 8/27 INTRODUCTION: Environmental Communication Painted Rocks, Medicinal Yews, Mosquito Museums T 9/1* State of the Village. State of the Language. In Class Discussion (Take Home Readings) TH 9/3* Basic Communication: Transmission vs. Ritual READ: Carey. GUIDE #1 DUE T 9/8* Nature and Personal Idiom. In Class Discussion. PAPER #1 DUE TH 9/10* Cultural Values and the Roots of the Crisis READ: White. GUIDE #2 DUE T 9/15* The Social Use of Nature READ: Evernden. GUIDE #3 DUE TH 9/17* Nature and Norm READ: Evernden. GUIDE #4 DUE T 9/22* The Loss of the Creature READ: Percy. GUIDE #5 DUE SEPTEMBER 23: LAST DAY TO DROP WITHOUT UNIVERSITY APPROVAL TH 9/24 MID TERM EXAM T 9/29* ECOSPEAK: The Environmental Communication Dilemma READ: K&P, Introduction. GUIDE #6 DUE TH 10/1* The Environmental Movement. READ: K&P, Ch. 1 (part). GUIDE #7 DUE T 10/6* Varieties of Environmentalism. READ: K&P, Ch. 1 (finish). GUIDE #8 DUE TH 10/8* Environmentalism and Science READ: K&P, Ch. 2 (part). GUIDE #9 DUE T 10/13* Discourse of Scientific Activism READ: K&P, Ch. 2 (finish). GUIDE #10 DUE TH 10/15* Rhetoric of Scientific Ecology READ: K&P, Ch. 3 (part). GUIDE #11 DUE T 10/20* Scientific Ecology, continued READ: K&P, Ch 3 (finish). GUIDE #12 DUE TH 10/22 MID TERM EXAM T 10/27* Ecodiscourse in the Media READ: K&P, Ch. 4. GUIDE #13 DUE TH 10/29* The Environmental Impact Statement READ: K&P, Ch 5 (part). GUIDE #14 DUE T 11/3* Managerial Discourse, continued READ: K&P, Ch. 5 (finish). GUIDE #15 DUE TH 11/5* Radical Environmental Discourse READ: K&P, Ch. 6 (part). GUIDE #16 DUE T 11/10* Ecotopian Discourse READ: K&P, Ch. 6 (finish). GUIDE #17 DUE TH 11/12* Ecological Economic Discourse READ: K&P, Ch. 7 (part). GUIDE #18 DUE T 11/17* Ecological Economic Discourse READ: K&P, Ch. 7 (finish). GUIDE #19 DUE TH 11/19* The Future of Environmental Discourse READ: K&P, Epilogue. GUIDE #20 DUE T 11/24 No Class--NCA Conference TH 11/26 THANKSGIVING T 12/1* Term Project: Oral Reports TH 12/3* Term Project: Oral Reports T 12/8* Term Project: Oral Reports FINAL PAPER DUE FINAL EXAM: MONDAY, Dec. 14, 7:15 to 9:30 a.m.