ACLC Courses

ACLC MAJOR PROGRAM

(42 semester hours of program-specific courses)

All of the following courses are required for a Major in Applied Communication, Leadership and Culture:

English 1010 – Academic Writing

ACLC 1060 – Putting Arts to Work I

This course examines the history, purpose, and uses of a Liberal Arts education, with a focus on the three key areas identified in the major: Applied Communication, leadership and culture. In this course, students explore the meaning of community engagement, citizenship and social responsibility. Students are introduced to community-based research and participatory action research. Current trends in the use of technology to promote social change are examined. This course is for students who want to develop skills and knowledge related to civic engagement and community service learning.

Putting Arts to Work is highlighted as a “Cool Course” in a Macleans article showcasing UPEI

ACLC 1080 – Digital Literacy

Digital Literacy is designed to prepare students for 21st century earning and employment. Four skill areas are focused upon in this course: i) Desktop Publishing – Students are introduced to the software that allows them to develop a professional media campaign. Students experiment with designing posters, promotional literature and brochures. ii) Social Media – Students are introduced to various social media packages. iii) Video Production – Students are introduced to the basics of video productions. Topics include camera and editing techniques; critical review and assessment of video productions. iv) Web Design – Any project or new venture requires a slick web presence. Students are introduced to the basics of web design. This course involves the application of these tools in a project-based setting to create meaningful and relevant products. The technical learning of the different forms of digital literacy is combined with deconstruction and critical analysis of media products. Students experience the course in a hybrid model of face-to-face and online formats.

University 2030 – Introduction to Leadership Studies

This course introduces leadership using a personal experience perspective and framework. Students will be exposed to various leadership models, best practices, and concepts essential to leadership such as sustainability and community development. University 2030 will assist students in developing an understanding of self, their role in community and in their profession. Students will be required to develop and implement a service learning project as part of the course work. Three semester hours. Restriction: Student must have second-year standing.

English 2340 – Public Speaking

English 2340 is an intensive practical course in public speaking that helps students from across the disciplines become confident oral communicators. By learning and applying the techniques that the very best speakers use, students will gain the kdge and experience they need to overcome performance obstacles and ultimately to find their own voices. The overall aim of the course is to move participants towards an extemporaneous speaking style that they can carry with them through their studies and into their professional lives.

  • PREREQUISITES: At least one 1000 level English course or permission of the instructor.

ACLC 2090 – Digital Humanities

Digital Humanities involves the use of computational skills, programs and applications in the gathering of evidence and data, preserving and representation of texts and other artifacts, and the use of such tools and techniques in the analysis of this evidence. Digital Humanities approaches can encompass highly sophisticated computational analysis of texts and visualization of data, or the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS)tools to map and analyse spatial and geographical aspects of a topic. In this course students explore the tools, methods and analytical potentials associated with digital humanity studies through team-based digital humanities projects. Each year, these course outcomes will be achieved through the study of a specific thematically based subject.

University 3030 – Leadership Theory and Practice

This course is designed to merge theory and professional practice. A leadership field placement (32 hrs) is a requirement of the course. The field placement will allow students to explore and actively engage in the community through educational efforts, activism, organizational efforts or other means. The placement will provide experiential learning and an opportunity to practice skills and knowledge related to leadership, and content acquired in previous university courses. Leadership portfolio models will be introduced and practiced. The portfolio will allow the student to identify strengths, learning experiences and competencies that they may wish to develop.

ACLC 3060 – Putting Arts to Work II

Drawing upon skills learned in ACLC 1060 and ACLC 1080, this project-based course examines the skills and knowledge necessary to complete an experiential learning project in one of the key career areas for Liberal Arts majors, such as journalism, human resources, marketing, NGOs, Arts and Culture, Government, and Education. Students work in teams to design, research, and present a project with application outside the university context. Each year, these course outcomes will be achieved through the interdisciplinary study of a specific thematically based subject.

  • PREREQUISITES: ACLC 1060 or permission of the instructor

ACLC 3080 – Leadership for a Changing World

This course introduces students to pressing global problems and to the ways that individual visionaries, governments, NGOs, and businesses have attempted to solve them. Students explore the connections between the local and the global through location-specific case studies. Topics for discussion may include: war, poverty, disease, forced migrations, and various forms of social inequality.

English 3810 – Professional Writing

This course introduces students from a variety of disciplines to the skills and tasks required for effective communication in a professional environment. The course focuses on the following: analytical reports, proposals, descriptions of processes, extended definitions, instructions, business correspondence, memoranda, graphics, presentation of data, and oral presentations. Assignments, designed for the student’s particular discipline, emphasize a sound analysis of the goals for each task, and the effective, economical, clear, and correct use of language to achieve these goals.

  • PREREQUISITES: English 1010 or permission of the instructor

Arts 4010 – Capstone Arts

This course for graduating Arts students examines the principles, purpose, and history of a liberal arts education. Students examine the place of the liberal arts outside the university setting and complete a career portfolio.

  • RESTRICTION: Student must be in fourth year standing in the Faculty of Arts, or permission of the instructor

Either

English 4040 – Communication and Rhetoric: Capstone Writing

This course examines rhetorical effects in language in a variety of contexts. It offers a comprehensive examination of the history of rhetoric, how words are used to talk about other words, questions about truth, and the connections between persuasion and power. The goal of the course is to explore a rhetorical understanding of language and other communicative practices in context.

    • PREREQUISITES: English 1010 and a writing intensive course

OR

ACLC 4000 – Advanced Workshop in Applied Communication

In ACLC 4000: Advanced Workshop in Applied Communication, students draw upon previous courses and accumulated knowledge about their chosen fields of future employment to design a subject-specific set of communication products. The purpose of this course is to provide upper-level students with an opportunity to hone the practical application of their communication skills through a workshop process. A requirement of the course will be that students use a variety of forms of communication in the presentation of their ideas and information on their chosen subjects.

  • PREREQUISITES: ACLC-3060 or English 2340 and English 3810 – Must be completed prior to taking this course.

ACLC 4060 – Putting Arts to Work III

Following on ACLC 3060, this course guides students through the development of a second, more ambitious project. Included in the course are an introduction to project management concepts and methods, with instruction on the process of developing a business plan, and an introduction to some of the fundamental techniques of modern marketing. Team projects require students to apply what they have learned to the work of community organizations. Each year, these course outcomes will be achieved through the study of different sets of social and cultural themes.

  • PREREQUISITE: ACLC 3060 or permission of the instructor

ACLC 4070 – Work Integrated Internship

In this course theory and professional practice are combined. Students work in an approved agency or professional workplace for a total of 40 hours. This capstone experience provides students with an opportunity to integrate essential and advanced skills in a field related to their future career interests. While students engage this internship/workplace project on their own, all projects are presented in a public forum.

  • PREREQUISITE: ACLC 3060 or permission of the instructor

ACLC MINOR PROGRAM

(21 semester hours of program-specific courses)

The following courses are required for a Minor in Applied Communication, Leadership, and Communication:

ACLC 1060 – Putting Arts to Work

This course examines the history, purpose, and uses of a Liberal Arts education, with a focus on the three key areas identified in the major: Applied Communication, leadership and culture. In this course, students explore the meaning of community engagement, citizenship and social responsibility. Students are introduced to community-based research and participatory action research. Current trends in the use of technology to promote social change are examined. This course is for students who want to develop skills and knowledge related to civic engagement and community service learning.

ACLC 3060 – Putting Arts to Work

Drawing upon skills learned in ACLC 1060 and ACLC 1080, this project-based course examines the skills and knowledge necessary to complete an experiential learning project in one of the key career areas for Liberal Arts majors, such as journalism, human resources, marketing, NGOs, Arts and Culture, Government, and Education. Students work in teams to design, research, and present a project with application outside the university context. Each year, these course outcomes will be achieved through the interdisciplinary study of a specific thematically based subject.

ACLC 1080 – Digital Literacy

Digital Literacy is designed to prepare students for 21st century earning and employment. Four skill areas are focused upon in this course: i) Desktop Publishing – Students are introduced to the software that allows them to develop a professional media campaign. Students experiment with designing posters, promotional literature and brochures. ii) Social Media – Students are introduced to various social media packages. iii) Video Production – Students are introduced to the basics of video productions. Topics include camera and editing techniques; critical review and assessment of video productions. iv) Web Design – Any project or new venture requires a slick web presence. Students are introduced to the basics of web design. This course involves the application of these tools in a project-based setting to create meaningful and relevant products. The technical learning of the different forms of digital literacy is combined with deconstruction and critical analysis of media products. Students experience the course in a hybrid model of face-to-face and online formats.

  • and four (4) other courses from the ACLC Majors list, including one at the 4000 level.