Students

LING3381 – Language and Culture in the Workplace

2024 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Maria Herke
Felicity Cox
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
40cps at 2000 level or above
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit focuses on three main topics: 1) intercultural communication and pragmatic understanding, 2) critical analysis of institutional discourse, and 3) ethnographic description of organisational structures and how linguistic evidence can inform an understanding of workplace/institutional culture. During this unit you will learn how to analyse spoken and written texts according to multiple theoretical frameworks of discourse analysis and develop the tools necessary to critically evaluate workplace structures and practices. The skills and knowledge gained in this unit are applicable in careers focused on solving communication problems between different cultures, or in researching and recommending communication strategies in organisations. Completing this unit will open your eyes to the way in which workplaces and other institutions propagate social inequalities, and provide you with the tools to challenge this.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Apply ethnographic methods and linguistic analysis to develop an understanding of how a workplace or other institution constructs an organisational culture.
  • ULO2: Critically evaluate discourses of power within institutional and organisational contexts.
  • ULO3: Develop organisational communication strategies that address social and cultural inequalities within a workplace or other institution.
  • ULO4: Communicate an analysis of workplace language and culture across written and spoken media.
  • ULO5: Use linguistic analysis of text and interaction to study cultural practice and identity within workplaces and other institutions.

General Assessment Information

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in the Macquarie University Assessment Policy.

All final grades are determined by a grading committee, in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor.

Students will be awarded a final grade and a mark which must correspond to the grade descriptors specified in the Assessment Procedure (clause 128).

To pass this unit, you must demonstrate sufficient evidence of achievement of the learning outcomes, meet any ungraded requirements, and achieve a final mark of 50 or better.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

Late Submissions

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (OF THE TOTAL POSSIBLE MARK) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern. 

 For example:

Number of days (hours) late

Total Possible Marks

Deduction

Raw mark

Final mark

1 day (1-24 hours)

100

5

75

70

2 days (24-48 hours)

100

10

75

65

3 days (48-72 hours)

100

15

75

60

7 days (144-168 hours)

100

35

75

40

>7 days (>168 hours)

100

-

75

0

 

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Lecture Engagement Activities 5% No Weekly
Workplace Interaction Analysis Task 30% No Week 7
Evaluation of communicative practices and strategies video presentation 20% No Week 9
Workplace language and culture report 45% No Week 13

Lecture Engagement Activities

Assessment Type 1: Participatory task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 1.5 hours
Due: Weekly
Weighting: 5%

 

Embedded within the Echo360 slides accompanying each lecture are multiple-choice questions for you to answer which check your understanding of the content. The questions can be attempted multiple times and simply demonstrate that you have listened to the lecture and have understood the content.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Use linguistic analysis of text and interaction to study cultural practice and identity within workplaces and other institutions.

Workplace Interaction Analysis Task

Assessment Type 1: Qualitative analysis task
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 30%

 

For this assessment task, you will be provided with some workplace texts and spoken workplace interactions. You will choose either a text or an interaction to analyse. If you choose to analyse the interaction, you can use either a Conversational Analysis approach or an Interactional Sociolinguistics approach. If you choose the text, you will use a Critical Discourse Analysis Approach. More details about this task will be provided on iLearn.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Critically evaluate discourses of power within institutional and organisational contexts.
  • Communicate an analysis of workplace language and culture across written and spoken media.
  • Use linguistic analysis of text and interaction to study cultural practice and identity within workplaces and other institutions.

Evaluation of communicative practices and strategies video presentation

Assessment Type 1: Media presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 9
Weighting: 20%

 

You should choose a workplace or institution as the focus for this task. This should be your own workplace, or any institution with which you are familiar such as a university, a sports team or student society. Your objective is to develop a short (5 minute) presentation that evaluates the communicative practices and strategies used by the organisation you have chosen. The video presentation will be submitted online, and you will receive peer feedback on your video.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Apply ethnographic methods and linguistic analysis to develop an understanding of how a workplace or other institution constructs an organisational culture.
  • Develop organisational communication strategies that address social and cultural inequalities within a workplace or other institution.
  • Communicate an analysis of workplace language and culture across written and spoken media.
  • Use linguistic analysis of text and interaction to study cultural practice and identity within workplaces and other institutions.

Workplace language and culture report

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 45%

 

Building on the evaluation prepared in the video presentation, write a report on the workplace or institution you have chosen. You should focus on the way in which the language used in the workplace (as evidenced by textual artefacts) constructs a workplace culture contextualised by wider understandings of cultural and linguistic diversity.

 


On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Apply ethnographic methods and linguistic analysis to develop an understanding of how a workplace or other institution constructs an organisational culture.
  • Critically evaluate discourses of power within institutional and organisational contexts.
  • Develop organisational communication strategies that address social and cultural inequalities within a workplace or other institution.
  • Communicate an analysis of workplace language and culture across written and spoken media.
  • Use linguistic analysis of text and interaction to study cultural practice and identity within workplaces and other institutions.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Lectures and Seminars

This unit is taught by one pre-recorded lecture each week, uploaded to the iLearn page , and one seminar which takes place on a Monday on campus. The seminar will begin in Week 2.

You should make sure you have viewed the lecture before coming to class. It will also contain participation quizzes for you to check your understanding. The completion of these counts towards your unit mark.

Required Textbook

Vine, Bernadette. (2020) Introducing Language in the Workplace. Cambridge: CUP.

Please buy a copy of this if you can. It is available as an e-book though Amazon, but note that the library has been unable to source an electronic copy at the present time. All other readings will be made available via Leganto.

 

Individual zoom appointments are also available throughout the session on request. (details on iLearn). Contact Maria.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit ask.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

The Writing Centre

The Writing Centre provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via AskMQ, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Inclusion and Diversity

Social inclusion at Macquarie University is about giving everyone who has the potential to benefit from higher education the opportunity to study at university, participate in campus life and flourish in their chosen field. The University has made significant moves to promote an equitable, diverse and exciting campus community for the benefit of staff and students. It is your responsibility to contribute towards the development of an inclusive culture and practice in the areas of learning and teaching, research, and service orientation and delivery. As a member of the Macquarie University community, you must not discriminate against or harass others based on their sex, gender, race, marital status, carers' responsibilities, disability, sexual orientation, age, political conviction or religious belief. All staff and students are expected to display appropriate behaviour that is conducive to a healthy learning environment for everyone.

Professionalism

In the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, professionalism is a key capability embedded in all our courses.

As part of developing professionalism, students are expected to attend all small group interactive sessions including clinical, practical, laboratory, work-integrated learning (e.g., PACE placements), and team-based learning activities. Some learning activities are recorded (e.g., face-to-face lectures), however you are encouraged to avoid relying upon such material as they do not recreate the whole learning experience and technical issues can and do occur. As an adult learner, we respect your decision to choose how you engage with your learning, but we would remind you that the learning opportunities we create for you have been done so to enable your success, and that by not engaging you may impact your ability to successfully complete this unit. We equally expect that you show respect for the academic staff who have worked hard to develop meaningful activities and prioritise your learning by communicating with them in advance if you are unable to attend a small group interactive session.

Another dimension of professionalism is having respect for your peers. It is the right of every student to learn in an environment that is free of disruption and distraction. Please arrive to all learning activities on time, and if you are unavoidably detained, please join activity as quietly as possible to minimise disruption. Phones and other electronic devices that produce noise and other distractions must be turned off prior to entering class. Where your own device (e.g., laptop)is being used for class-related activities, you are asked to close down all other applications to avoid distraction to you and others. Please treat your fellow students with the utmost respect. If you are uncomfortable participating in any specific activity, please let the relevant academic know.


Unit information based on version 2024.01R of the Handbook