COMM 1107 Introduction to Linguistics

Formerly COMM 107. Credits: 3. (Cross-listed with ANTH 1101, MIKM 1145) An introduction to the scientific study of language, including phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, and the heritage languages of Cape Breton: Mi’kmaq, French, Gaelic, and English. 

COMM 1151 Professional Presentations

Formerly COMM 115. Credits: 3. Exclusion: COMM 1151 rules out credit for COMM 3155. Skills in chairing meetings, making interesting presentations on camera, incorporating various media in public communication, and producing video resumes. Lab component required.

COMM 2101 Research Concepts

Formerly COMM 261. Credits: 3. Review of research methods typically used throughout the discipline, and understanding of, and practice in, research design.  This course is a requirement for a four-year degree in Communication.

COMM 2103 Nonverbal Communication

Formerly COMM 203. Credits: 3. An exploration of various nonverbal message systems which include body movement, eye and facial behaviour, vocal cues, physical appearance, clothing, space, time, and symbolic behaviour in human interaction.

COMM 2111 Rhetoric in Popular Culture

Formerly COMM 251. Credits: 3. An exploration of popular culture (movies, music, television, computers, cell phones, tattoos, etc.). We discuss how we make meaning and interpret meaning of popular culture in a rhetorical context.

COMM 2116 History Goes to the Movies: Screening the Past

NEW Credits: 3. Cross-listed with HIST2116. Credits: 3. This course explores the ways in which history is represented in film. What do films convey to us about the past and how do they convey it? To what extent is history on the "screen" different than history on the "page"? How do films about history shape our perceptions, shared memories, and national mythologies? These and other questions will be examined in detail. A wide range of film types - from mainstream drama to experimental documentary - from diverse national settings, including Canada, United States, France, Germany, and China will be used throughout the course.

COMM 2151 Voice Production

Formerly COMM 201. Credits: 3. Voice and speech production, with attention to improving vocal quality, articulation, and pronunciation through the utilization of informal, formal, and electronic settings.  

COMM 2153 Effective Interview Techniques

Formerly COMM 215. Credits: 3. Foundations of interviewing within the broader context of basic communication theory, applying interview principles, and practices in various interview genres. 

COMM 2155 Argumentation and Debate

Formerly COMM 205. Credits: 3. Theoretical and experiential knowledge of argumentation and debate with participation in formal class debates.

COMM 2171 Introduction to Media

Formerly COMM 271. Credits: 3. Includes the social impact of media examined from the production side of the media process in a Canadian context.

COMM 2173 Videography

Formerly COMM 273. Credits: 3. Covers techniques of composition, camera use, editing, and aesthetics; application of broader communication theories to independent work on video production; and effective presentation of ideas, stories and cultural works. Laboratory and/or tutorial component included.  

COMM 2175 Issues in Media Studies  

Formerly COMM 255. Credits: 3. A survey of issues in communication media such as stereotyping, violence, gender, objectivity, ethics, culture, and values. Lab component required.

COMM 2177 Graphic Design for Media

Formerly COMM 277. Credits: 3. Covers composition, layout, typography, colour, and other elements of visual design and applies them to a variety of media. Some aspects of the course will require computer applications.

COMM 3101 Organizational Communication

Formerly COMM 305. Credits: 3.  An introduction to the philosophy, process, problems, and potential of human communication within an organizational context. 

COMM 3103 Interpersonal Relationships

Formerly COMM 311. Credits: 3. Advanced interpersonal communication including theories, research, and concepts examining relationships. 

COMM 3109 Strategic Corporate Communication  

Formerly COMM 351. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. This course will help students develop a keen awareness of the intersections between organisational culture, communication, identity, image, and reputation in creating positive relationships with organisational stakeholders; as well as the relevance of effective and ethical corporate communications to organisational success.

COMM 3111 Communication and Culture  

Formerly COMM 353. Credits: 3. The close connections between communication and culture and the ways cultures are constructed communicatively. 

COMM 3112/HIST 3112 Public History and Museology

Formerly COMM 380. Credits: 6. Prerequisite: 6 credits in COMM, or any 6 credits from Group 2 in the core, or by permission of the instructor. An overview of museum and heritage institutions over the past two centuries and how different nations, communities, and cultures interpret their history to the general public.

COMM 3113 Intercultural Communication  

Formerly COMM 307. Credits: 3. Communication between individuals of different cultures and subcultures and practical guidelines for mitigating miscommunication across cultures. 

COMM 3115 Communication and Social Change  

Formerly COMM 355. Credits: 3. Examines the ideologies and conditions of the pre-modern, modern, and postmodern social worlds as understood through their manifestations in cultural and technological change.

COMM 3117 Communication and Community  

Formerly COMM 319. Credits: 3. This course allows students to analyze concepts about community and communication as they relate to concepts of the public sphere, media, globalization, sustainability, social capital and interpersonal relationships. In particular it explores the symbolic construction of community and identity, participatory democracy, communitarianism, and the role of mass media in community. Students investigate their own communities as case studies.

COMM 3131 Communication Facilitation

Formerly COMM 321. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits from COMM1103, 1105, 2175 and an additional 6 credits in Communication or permission of the Instructor. An examination of theoretical and practical applications of facilitation in educational contexts. Learning styles, communication models, and facilitation strategies are examined.  

COMM 3133 Leadership in Small Group Contexts

Formerly COMM 325. Credits: 3. This course examines the communication components of small group and team interaction as they pertain to leadership and leadership emergence. Topics include communication characteristics of small groups, group norms and rules, group roles, group goals and motivations, sending and receiving messages, conflict resolution and decision making processes, and so forth.  

COMM 3135 Family Communication

Formerly COMM 333. Credits: 3. Examines communication patterns and networks within families that support or inhibit cohesion or change. Topics include family systems, communication patterns, self-disclosure, family themes, rules, relational stages, conflict styles, power and decision-making. Focus is on developing functional family networks and effective communication skills.

COMM 3136 Persuasion

Formerly COMM 303. Credits: 3. Philosophical, psychological, and communication foundations of persuasion and the role persuasion plays in a person’s life.

COMM 3137 Gender and Communication

Formerly COMM 345. Credits: 3. The communication similarities and differences between women and men in various communication contexts. 

COMM 3138 Women and Communication

Formerly COMM 347. Credits: 3. Communication as it pertains to various aspects of women’s lives and how contexts and cultural ideologies specifically affect women and their communication.

COMM 3139 Issues In Health Communication

Formerly COMM 309. Credits: 3. An examination of the ways that personal, cultural, and political circumstances influence how we experience and communicate about health and health issues. We explore how we communicate about health at different stages of our lives. Finally, we consider the communication competencies we can develop to help us better understand health information, work with health organizations, and develop as health citizens and advocates.

COMM 3151 Performance Studies

Formerly COMM 235/335. Credits: 3. Physical, vocal, and emotional techniques used in the presentation of aesthetic texts and everyday life. Students are given the opportunity for expression in a variety of interpretive performances. 

COMM 3155 Advanced Public Speaking

Formerly COMM 301. Credits: 3.  Prerequisites: COMM1105. Public communication theory aimed at improving communication effectiveness by constructing and delivering informative, entertaining, and persuasive presentations.  

COMM 3170 Multimedia Design

Formerly COMM 322. Credits: 6. Prerequisites: COMM2171 or permission of the instructor. Conceptual and application theory required for professional level skills in the use of digital communication media. Emphasis is on the development of design technique and the visual aspects of multimedia production. Students are required to complete design projects and there is a computer lab component.

COMM 3171 Computer-Mediated Communication

Formerly COMM 359. Credits: 3. This course is an eclectic overview of practical and scholarly approaches to computer-mediated communication (CMC) intended both for those with limited experience with CMC and those who use CMC regularly.

COMM 3172 Anthropology of Media

Formerly COMM 314. Credits: 6. Cross-listed with ANTH3172. Prerequisites: 12 credits in Anthropology and/or Sociology or Communication or by permission of the instructor. The bottom-up study of people's engagements with modern mass media, using ethnography to understand the social and cultural effects of mass media at the ground level. Television, movies and the Internet, situated in diverse social and cultural settings worldwide, will be the focus of the course.

COMM 3173 Mass Communication and Society  

Formerly COMM 357. Credits: 3. The history of mass communication and theories about the impact of technological change on human societies. May also appears as Histories & Theories of Mass Communication.

COMM 3175 Canadian Communications, Policy & Regulation

Credits: 6. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. In-depth study and applications related to specific issues in communication theory and research, rhetoric and media studies, and applied communication. 

COMM 3701/3703 Special Topics in Communication

Formerly COMM 351. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. In-depth study and applications related to specific issues in communication theory and research, rhetoric and media studies, and applied communication.   

COMM 3931 Facilitation Practicum

Formerly COMM 323. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: COMM3131, an additional 6 credits in Communication with permission of the Instructor and the Lab Coordinator. A 160-hour practicum that provides students with an opportunity to develop and strengthen their applied communication facilitation skills in an educational context while gaining first-hand experience in the design and delivery of communication training programs.  

COMM 4101 Rhetorical Theory

Formerly COMM 401. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. Examination of the nature of rhetoric through reading and discussing critical and theoretical works from classical to contemporary rhetoricians. 

COMM 4103 Communication Criticism

Formerly COMM 403. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. Critical evaluation of messages in a wide variety of communicative genres. 

COMM 4104 Sustainable Happiness  

Formerly COMM 435. Credits: 3. Cross-listed with EDUC4101. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication or by permission of the instructor. This course will introduce students to the research on happiness and subjective well-being that is emerging from the field of positive psychology. Students will also explore the impact that individual and national pursuits of happiness have on the well-being of people around the world and the natural environment through literature related to sustainability. Opportunities for engaging in sustainable happiness that does not exploit other people, the environment, or future generations will be addressed.

COMM 4105 Theories of Human Communication

Formerly COMM 405. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. The development of communication theory in the twentieth century in both the humanistic and social scientific approaches to communication study. 

COMM 4700 Special Topics in Communication

Credits: 6. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. Designed for upper-level students who are interested in a listed course that is not being offered during the current academic year. Students should consult the Department Chair for details and permission.  

COMM 4701 Special Topics in Communication: Political Communication

Credits: 3. Cross-listed with POLS4701. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. In today's media saturated society, we experience political activities and information about government policies through social and mass media. This course helps us to understand the communications deployed to influence political processes as well as their consequences for true citizenship.

COMM 4701/4703 Special Topics in Communication

Formerly COMM 495. Credits: 3. Prerequisites: 6 credits in Communication. Designed for upper-level students who are interested in a listed course that is not being offered during the current academic year. Students should consult the Department Chair for details and permission.

COMM 4800 Directed Study

Formerly COMM 498. Credits: 6 Prerequisites: At least 30 credits in Communication courses, and an overall average of 70% in communication. This course offers an advanced student of exceptional ability the opportunity to pursue individualized study in an area not otherwise offered in the course listings. Students should consult the Department Chair for details and permission.

COMM 4900 Senior Thesis

Formerly COMM 499. Credits: 6 Prerequisites: At least 30 credits in Communication with an overall average of 70%. An original research paper in which the student performs an in-depth study of an area of Communication. The thesis must be a work of exceptional scholarship, and is designed to prepare students for graduate programs or related further study. Students should consult the Department Chair for details and permission. 

COMM 4910 Honours Thesis

Formerly COMM 499. Credits: 6 Prerequisites: At least 42 credits in Communication with an overall average of 70%. An original research paper in which the student performs an in-depth study of an area of Communication. The thesis must be a work of exceptional scholarship, and is designed to prepare students for graduate programs or related further study. Students should consult the Department Chair for details and permission.