When designing Communication-Intensive (C-I) courses, faculty intentionally thread empirically-based instructional techniques throughout a course to achieve the dual learning outcomes of content knowledge and discipline-specific communication skills. When designed thoughtfully, C-I techniques do triple-duty, enabling:

1. high-impact, engaged instruction;

2. relevant experiential learning; and

3. quality informal and formal assessment of learning.

C-I faculty don’t simply assign communication projects to assess understanding of course material (e.g., write a final paper to document you get it; do a final presentation to show your stuff). Instead, C-I faculty strategically align instruction, learning, and assessment techniques to enable students to study, practice, and demonstrate content knowledge and communication skills relevant to the discipline/field. In other words, C-I course design centers on communication-rich teaching and learning that helps students develop knowledge and understanding of the course material and how to appropriately and effectively communicate that knowledge within disciplinary contexts.

C-I pedagogy is applicable across all disciplines because it is outcome-centric. Rather than focus on overly prescriptive tactics such as paper or presentation lengths (which are seldom transferrable across disciplines, and even more importantly, have little to do with effective learning), C-I pedagogy respects and embraces disciplinary differences by focusing on substantive engagement appropriate to the field.

To be classified as C-I, a course must incorporate:

• genres, audiences, and modalities germane to the course’s discipline;

• multiple communication modes commonly used within the field (concentrating on two modes for a 3-credit hour course is the standard);

• teaching, learning, interacting with, and connecting to, course content through practical, communication-rich activities; and

• iterative feedback loops that advance student learning and informally and formally assess relevant disciplinary knowledge, skills, and abilities.

So, how do you design a C-I course? Backward, of course!

Start with the end in mind, and work your way backward. This approach (often referred to as Backward Design) allows you to hone in on your priority student learning and teaching outcomes.

Here’s the million-dollar question: What do you want your students to know and be able to demonstrate at the end of the semester?

Answering this question about content and communication skills illuminates your end-goals. Knowing what outcomes you are working toward allows you to then create an efficient and effective course plan for your instructional methods, learning activities, assignments, and assessments. It’s much like using a GPS — you have to put in your destination first, then you can explore the route options. And you do have options in C-I course design, though they aren’t has binary as fastest versus shortest routes, or surface streets versus highways!

Identifying your end goals first also enables you to focus on communication skills that are contextually appropriate and relevant to the course’s discipline. In establishing your end-goals, consider this questions: How will students use this knowledge and these skills beyond the class?

You are the content and disciplinary expert, so C-I pedagogy doesn’t dictate what you should or shouldn’t teach. It simply sets a framework to optimize learning by integrating knowledge building and communication skills development.

To identify the what you should be teaching, and your students should be learning, about communication, consider these questions within the context of your course’s subject matter:

• What does communication look like in this discipline/field/industry?

• Which communication modes are most often used?

• How are the modes/mediums used to share information, interact, engage, and/or persuade within this field?

• What type of written, spoken, visual, and/or technological communication is common, expected, and/or most often used? 

Whether you hail from engineering, geography, history, math, theater, or anything in between, you are an expert of your field who no doubt engages in its rich communication practices within and beyond the classroom. Leverage your own professional experiences and those of your colleagues to identify communication goals most relevant and appropriate for the discipline/field/industry in which you are preparing your students. Use your disciplinary expertise to design a C-I course that builds students’ knowledge, cultivates transferrable skills, and creates evident value beyond the academic semester.