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Arrive, Survive and Thrive in Prof. Nixon’s SEU Spring 2010 Classes

An Open Note to All of Prof. Nixon’s Students at Southeastern University:

We’re almost off and running in our Spring Semester classes at SEU. The syllabi will be e-mailed to all my enrolled students, and I’m also posting links to them (on Scribd) here when they are available.

So that we can make the most of this semester, please (Please, PLEASE) take some time to read through the blog posts I’ve included here. I promise you, it will be well worth your time. (How often do professors let you get inside their heads, letting you know their tips for success and their pet peeves?)

Additionally, here are a few more tips:

  • When communicating with me via e-mail (or Facebook), always put your course number (such as COMM 4333) in the subject line to help me immediately identify who you are and frame your questions or comments. Do your best to write in full sentences, paying attention to standard English grammar and spelling. Always sign your e-mails with your first and last name, as your SEU e-mail address will not make that readily apparent to me.
  • When submiting an assignment in BlackBoard, always put your last name as part of the file name, and also include your name in the document itself. Papers submitted without your last name as part of the file name cannot earn full credit.
  • If an assignment is due inBlackBoard, the only way to get full credit for the assignment is to submit it in BlackBoard. (E-mailing an assignment to me can be risky; I receive 250+ e-mails a day, and there’s a chance I will not even see it in my inbox.)
  • Follow me on Twitter, if you really want to get inside my head. (What’s Twitter?)

Let’s make this a great semester together!

(PS: If you’re one of my SEU students reading this post, please leave a reply to this post so that I can know you have read it. If your reply doesn’t show up immediately, no worries — I may need to approve it before it appears, if you’ve never commented on my blog before.)

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Arrive, Survive and Thrive in Prof. Nixon’s GSU Spring 2010 Classes

An Open Note to All of Prof. Nixon’s Students at Georgia Southern University:

We’re almost off and running in our Spring Semester classes at GSU. This semester, I’m teaching six (yes, six) courses, and they are all taught online. The syllabi will be e-mailed to all my enrolled students, and I’m also posting links to them (on Scribd) here.

So that we can make the most of this semester, please (Please, PLEASE) take some time to read through the blog posts I’ve included here. I promise you, it will be well worth your time. (How often do professors let you get inside their heads, letting you know their tips for success and their pet peeves?)

Additionally, here are a few more tips:

  • When communicating with me via e-mail (or Facebook), always put your course number (such as PRCA 3330) in the subject line to help me immediately identify who you are and frame your questions or comments. Do your best to write in full sentences, paying attention to standard English grammar and spelling. Always sign your e-mails with your first and last name, as your GSU e-mail address will not make that readily apparent to me.
  • When submiting an assignment in GeorgiaVIEW, always put your last name as part of the file name, and also include your name in the document itself. Papers submitted without your last name as part of the file name cannot earn full credit.
  • If an assignment is due in GeorgiaVIEW, the only way to get full credit for the assignment is to submit it in GeorgiaVIEW. (E-mailing an assignment to me can be risky; I receive 250+ e-mails a day, and there’s a chance I will not even see it in my inbox.)
  • Follow me on Twitter, if you really want to get inside my head. (What’s Twitter?)

Let’s make this a great semester together!

(PS: If you’re one of my students reading this post, please leave a reply to this post so that I can know you have read it. If your reply doesn’t show up immediately, no worries — I may need to approve it before it appears, if you’ve never commented on my blog before.)

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Integrating Poynter’s NewsU

For spring semester’s PR Writing course that I’ll be teaching online, I will be augmenting my own content and our textbook with several courses offered by Poynter’s NewsU.

Here are the ones I’m considering so far:

If you’ve used NewsU courses in your college classes, I’d love to hear from you.

And are there additional NewsU (or other source) courses I should consider? I’m really hoping to find a good course on using AP Style, specifically.

barbara_is_listening.

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Jumpstart on Nixon’s Spring 2010 GSU Classes

If you’re looking to get a jumpstart on my classes at Georgia Southern University this spring, here are the books that I will be using. I’ve linked to many of them at Amazon.com, but of course you can purchase them from anywhere you like. I recommend you try the Facebook Marketplace first, so you can get a good deal AND help a fellow student.

For all my classes

  • Reliable Internet access
  • Headset/mic (for interaction in online class discussions)

Social Media for Public Relations (PRCA 3030)

Public Relations Writing (PRCA 3330)

Public Relations Practicum (PRCA 3711/4711)

Making Connections: Facebook and Beyond (FYE 1220)

  • No textbook needed

Questions? As always,

(PS: Syllabi for my classes will be posted in early January.)


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The 5 Rs of Prepping for a PR Writing Test

One of my former students at Georgia Southern University found out recently that the job interview she secured also involves a writing test. She asked for some advice on how to best prepare. So . . . here we go.

  1. Read several of the company’s recent news releases to get a feel for the company’s style.
  2. Re-read Strunk’s The Elements of Style. Though it was written long before most recent grads’ grandparents were born, its principles of simplicity and clarity still ring true.
  3. Register for one (or more) of Poynter’s News University courses, such as Cleaning Your Copy or The Lead Lab.
  4. Review your The Associated Press Stylebook 2009, and use Post-It flags to mark sections that are problematic to you. Maybe even take some of the online AP style quizzes.
  5. Refresh yourself on common editing marks. You may also be asked to edit a story someone else wrote.

What additional suggestions would you recommend?

barbara_is_listening

(Many thanks to John Kraft and Sherry Carr Smith for their suggestions.)

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Best Blog Posts from #PRCA3339 Fall 2009

Italia! by Kaptain Kobold.My Public Relations Publications students have been blogging all semester. Today, I’m taking the time to highlight some of the best blog posts from the semester.

I hope you enjoy reading these posts as much as I did.

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Survive, and Maybe Even Thrive, in a Group Project

UPDATED 12/5/09 – Scroll to end to see update. [Originally published on 9/2/09]

Working Together Teamwork Puzzle Concept by lumaxart.

“Oh, no . . . you mean we have to work in GROUPS in this class?” Though my PR Research students didn’t lament this out loud, I wondered how many of them dreaded the thought of ever working in a group project in a class. I bet many of them did (or do).

In today’s PR Research class, we collaborated, using Google Docs, on tips for how to survive a group project. Here’s a summary of what our class recommended:

  1. Communicate regularly
    • Mass messages….so all are on the same page
    • Praise often; it will motivate the team to work harder to achieve a common goal
    • Summarize at the end of each team meeting to ensure that each person leaves the meeting knowing what’s expected before the next meeting.
    • Send out a weekly update (with what’s been accomplished and what’s left to do)
    • Communicate as a whole, by using group text messages
    • Form a Facebook group
  2. Ensure that you’re aiming to achieve the same goals
  3. Manage your time.
    • Consider making a group calendar filled with internal deadlines that you set for yourselves. (Google Calendar might work well for this.)
    • Show up on time for group meetings (let people know if you’re running late)
  4. Meet regularly, even it’s only to touch base and confirm you’re where you should be in your project work.
  5. Delegate task based on strong points, and make sure you complete what is delegated to you
  6. Remember the platinum rule: Do unto others as they want done unto them
    • Be considerate of others
    • Be patient with your group members
    • Be flexibile
    • Have a good attitude
    • Be respectful
    • Work together
    • Contributing the same amount of work and time

Finally, before you begin working together in earnest, make an inventory of the skills of each group member. Also find out what each person would rather NOT do, if given the choice. This will help you divvy up the work more effectively. And exchange cellphone numbers, e-mail addresses, Twitter usernames . . . whatever will help you stay in touch effectively.

UPDATE: Ensure that every member of the group thoroughly reviews the entire project before submitting it. (And reviewing is more than simple proofreading.) You don’t want any unpleasant surprises based on information that was primarily written by another group member.

What other tips do you have for working together successfully in teams?

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PR Portfolio Reviews

Before the Thanksgiving break, my students in the PR Practicum class met with another colleague and me for their portfolio reviews. Many thanks to Lisa Muller, Pam Bourland-Davis, Urkovia Andrews, Michelle Groover and Alex Grovenstein for their assistance. Though many students did exceptionally well, here are a few things I noticed in the portfolio reviews that might help you in the future, when it’s for a job and not for a class:

In the Hard-Copy Portfolios

  1. Turn your portfolio toward the interviewer(s) when sharing its contents. I was surprised at how many students didn’t think to do this.
  2. Put tabs in your portfolio to make it easier to find specific items when they are asked for. Don’t fumble through the portfolio trying to find the items.
  3. Include as broad a range of items as you can to show off a variety of your public relations skills.
  4. The more samples you can include that were actually used by clients, the better.
  5. If you include a lengthy paper/project as part of your portfolio to highlight your research skills, include an executive summary to showcase three or four of the key findings. It’s highly unlikely that the interviewer will take the time to read the whole paper/project.
  6. For your leave-behind, always include a copy of your resume (even if they already have one), along with a sampling of your best work (perhaps one news release, one photo, one brochure/flyer/newsletter). Put this in a professional-looking folder.
  7. Use a new portfolio, not something you’ve recycled from a class. New doesn’t have to mean expensive; shop around.

During the “Regular Interview” Portion

  1. A few students rephrased the questions as the start of their answers; this was a nice touch. It showed how carefully you were listening. This is also a great skill for company spokespeople to have.
  2. Ladies, watch the length of your skirts. Some were a tad short (or had slits too high) for a job interview.
  3. Tone down the amount of jewelry. In general, women can wear one earring in each ear (lobes, not cartilage). In general, men should avoid earrings.
  4. When you speak, be sure to drop your voice at the end of declarative sentences. When your voice goes up, it makes you seem unsure of yourself.
  5. If you are interviewing with more than one interviewer in the room, answer the question to the person who asks it, and make at least occasional eye contact with the others in the room.
  6. And, always (ALWAYS) have a few questions prepared that you can ask the interviewers.
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Best Service for Recording Guest Speakers?

This spring, I’ll be teaching several classes online for Georgia Southern University, including Social Media for PR and PR Writing. I’ve planned to include several guest speakers to enrich the students’ (and my own!) learning experiences. I was planning on just using Skype and Callburner, but then I got to thinking . . .

Which software/service is the best for recording the guest speakers?

Requirements

  • Record audio for guest speaker and me
  • Easy to post audio online (will need to embed in blog and perhaps add to iTunes U)
  • Free or low cost

Would Also Be Great

  • Record video from guest’s webcam
  • Record presentation (PPT) if the speaker is using one
  • Allow for students who are listening live to also contribute to the discussion

I’d appreciate any suggestions of what works well & what you’ve tried that didn’t live up to your expectations.

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Public Relations Research Final Exam

New pens and crochet-in-progress by hddod.PRCA 4330 Students

For your final exam in Public Relations Research, we’ll do something a little non-traditional. Create a list of the five most important things that public relations students need to know about conducting research, and explain why these things are important. Be sure to touch on a variety of the topics we covered in our PRCA 4330; the only required topic to discuss is the role of ethics in PR research. This exam (as noted on your syllabus) is worth 15% of your grade in the class.

Format (your choice)

  • Create a PowerPoint & upload it to SlideShare (should have at least 7 slides, with detailed notes in the Notes panel)
  • Create a podcast (audio recording) using Utterli (should be ~5-10 minutes long)
  • Create a video & upload it to YouTube (should be ~5-10 minutes long)
  • Write a blog post of ~500 words
  • Write a traditional paper and post it in GeorgiaVIEW as an attachment to the Final Exam assignment

DUE: No later than Wednesday, December 9 at 5pm. Reply to this blog post with a hyperlink to where I’ll find your final exam. (My preference is for you to embed it in your own blog.) Remember, if I can’t find it, I can’t grade it.