Teaching Interpersonal Communication Online: Experiential Opportunities and Student Engagement

Authors

  • Tony Docan-Morgan University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

Keywords:

interpersonal communication, relationships, career, occupation

Abstract

This online undergraduate course introduces students to the various dimensions of interpersonal communication. Students learn about the role of interpersonal communication in forming and maintaining personal and social relationships, listening, feeling and expressing emotion, using language, self-disclosing, communicating nonverbally, perceiving others, and managing conflict. Students are engaged actively during online activities and discussions through reflection, synthesizing information and drawing conclusions, and applying course material to case studies and their own lives. Students complete quizzes, self-assessments, and an experiential assignment that requires them to identify an occupation of personal interest, investigate that occupation via a job shadow and interview, identify how course concepts may play a role in that occupation, and plan how to be a competitive job candidate for that occupation. 

Author Biography

Tony Docan-Morgan, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse

Dr. Tony Docan-Morgan is a professor in the Department of Communication Studies at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

References

Crispi, E. L., & Stivers, J. (2015). The syllabus re-imagined: From paper to website. Syllabus, 4(2), 1-11.

Hopkins, K. M. (2001) Manager intervention with troubled supervisors: Help and support start at the top. Management Communication Quarterly, 15, 83-99.

Teven, J. J., McCroskey, J. C., & Richmond, V. P. (2006). Communication correlates of perceived Machiavellianism of supervisors: Communication orientations and outcomes. Communication Quarterly, 54, 127-142.

Wilmot, W. W., & Hocker, J. L. (2013). Interpersonal conflict (9th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Wesp, R., Kash, M., Sandry, J., & Patton, L. (2013). Should syllabi communicate expectations regarding appropriate classroom behaviors? Syllabus, 2(2), 1-10.

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Published

2016-12-16

Issue

Vol. 5 No. 2 (2016): Fall

Section

Syllabi

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