This semester, I will run workshops for Professor Cherny’s ACCT 5400 (Principles of Auditing) in preparation for the students’ final paper project, a ‘lessons-learned’ assessment of an audit failure. It is different from my last semester’s work on oral presentations for ACCT4100 (Advanced Accounting) in the sense that the assignment focuses on writing (and not speaking), but the two do share a common goal: the coursework is designed to help the students develop as a more effective business communicator. My workshops will review principles of writing (the writing process, organizing the paper, how to do citations etc.) and move on to a (hopefully) in-depth look on the essence of an effective business paper. Even though this assignment may appear to be somewhat ‘old-school’ to some of the students, I hope that they will realize that writing is still an important part of business communication (just as much as the oral communication they practiced in ACCT4100) and they will learn a lot through this assignment. I am looking forward to meeting them at a workshop and hear what they have to say about their coursework. I will report back on the workshop in one of my next posts.
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CAC.OPHONY is a weblog on communication-intensive instruction at the college level and its implications for students about to face the challenges of writing and speaking publicly in professional settings. CAC.OPHONY is written and edited by the Fellows of the Bernard L. Schwartz Communication Institute, Baruch College, City University of New York.
Baruch College is the 2008 recipient of TIAA-CREF Theodore M. Hesburgh Award in recognition of the Schwartz Institute's outstanding faculty development programs.
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Yukiko,
We at the Fin/Eco have also been working on developing workshops on business writing. Some of the things we find challenging are : how to teach breveity/summarizing effectively, and how to teach how to build analytical arguments.
Students tell us that they appreciate someone taking the time to teach them skills that the faculty expects but does not teach: writing executive summaries, preparing public oral presentations.
Perhepas you and I can share some materials? We have some great handouts and power points. I'd love to hear more about your workshop. Let's talk?
Reply to Agnieszka
Agnieszka,
Sounds great.
We (and fellows working with Zicklin in general) can definitely share what we do with our respective departments and learn from each other. Let's talk after I finish this round of workshops so that I have more concrete things to share with you.
Reply to Yukiko