This humanities course is designed to increase your awareness and appreciation for the complexity of interpersonal communication skills in everyday situations. 

You will learn through various means including textbook readings, PowerPoint presentations, online quizzes and journals, individual and group presentations and other world wide web resources.

By studying communication principles and practicing interpersonal competence, you will develop a greater tolerance and understanding of your own and others' attempts to interact in personal and professional relationships

IMPORTANT MESSAGE: Due to the interactive nature of this course, there are specific due dates that you need to follow to remain enrolled.  These dates may be different from the dates on your quick start syllabi (and other standard ELI dates), so you must check and then follow the Important Class Due Dates menu item on the left hand toolbar in our Blackboard course.

If you complete this course and do well, you will be able to: 

• report increased self-understanding and confidence in human interactions; 
• communicate ideas with fluency and rhetorical sensitivity; 
• apply nonverbal communication theory in communicating and evaluating messages; 
• use critical thinking to understand and resolve issues; 
• demonstrate principles of organization and synthesis of information; 
• adapt messages and behaviors to different communication situations; 
• employ internal and external dialog to respond to messages; 
• demonstrate respect for cultural and social diversity; understand the responsibilities associated with freedom of speech; 
• demonstrate awareness of historical, cultural and social traditions which influence communication events. 

The required textbook for this course is:

• Wood, Julia T. Everyday encounters: An introduction to interpersonal communication. 5th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. ISBN# 0-495-00653-X

For information on how to order your textbooks, go to http://eli.nvcc.edu/books/

Your course grade will be determined a speech, quizzes, journals, a group presentation and exams, according to the following points:

There are 2 exams in this course. You are expected to take your examinations at one of the NVCC campus Testing Centers. Be sure to allow enough time to complete your exam before the Testing Center closes; Testing Centers have specific policies relating to the administration of ELI exams. You will need to take a photo ID, your NovaConnect empl ID number, and the appropriate Exam Pass when you go to the Testing Center.  

For Testing Center locations, hours of operation and policies, click here.

For information on taking exams outside of the metropolitan area, click here.

I am here to help you succeed in this course. Occasionally questions or problems may arise. Here is how to contact me when they do:

E-mail : tmorra@nvcc.edu

1. Use your web browser to connect to http://www.nvcc.edu/bbstart. Follow the directions to determine your email, Blackboard and VIVA account user names and passwords.
2. Access your email account and make sure you know how to use it; you will be required to use this account for all course-related email.
3. Log on to Blackboard at http://learn.vccs.edu.
4. Click on this course under "My Courses." Review the entire course to make sure you understand what will be required of you. Then start completing the assignments.

Please note that account generation takes approximately one week from the time of your paid registration. If you cannot log on after one week, contact the IT Help Desk. If you can log on to Blackboard, but your course isn't listed, please contact ELI or your instructor.