Civic Issues 24DA01

Competency

In this project, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following competency:

• Communicate a position related to a complex issue in a civic context

Scenario

Training opportunities in the workplace (professional development) have become a sound investment for employers. In addition to reducing recruiting and retention costs, professional development has been demonstrated to boost productivity and job satisfaction. For employees, it also offers new opportunities for enhancing their skills and offers additional opportunities for positioning themselves for new opportunities within the organization outside of regular promotions. For the past seven years, your company has sponsored a professional enrichment program (PEP). Each year a small group or cohort of six to eight employees is chosen to participate in special professional enrichment activities in both group and individual formats. The participants are paired with mentors from leaders across the company. Employees each submit a letter and career plan that serve as their “application” to the program.

Update: You have just passed the mid-year mark of a professional enrichment program you were selected to participate in, and you are eager and ready to face new challenges directly. Your leadership has just announced they want to introduce a new aspect to the program. They will pilot this aspect with your group this year. The intent of this aspect is not just to grow you professionally within the organization but in broader settings as a member of larger communities. You have been requested to identify an issue that impacts the quality of life within a community of your choice and create a proposal to present in a civic setting to your audience. You strategize with your mentor and agree that once you select an issue, you will put together a proposal and presentation plan and draft presentation. This provides you with the opportunity to receive feedback from your mentor prior to presenting to your audience (the individuals or group who would have a vested interest in this issue).

Directions

Part 1: Proposal and Presentation Plan (approximately 1,000 words)

You will draft your proposal and your plan for communicating it prior to beginning to create the presentation itself to ensure you are establishing a clear narrative for your audience. Your mentor has also requested that you provide an analysis of your audience and how you will be addressing them (i.e., the location and format) to ensure that your presentation is suitable for this audience. This will ensure your mentor can provide you the best possible feedback.

1. Complex Issue: Select a complex issue from the provided list. Describe the “who” and “what” behind the issue you have selected so that your mentor can provide you feedback on the appropriateness of how you’ve situated the problem and your proposal for addressing it for your audience:

• Issue explanation
• Sociopolitical and historical context of the issue
• Importance to the stakeholders in impacted community

1. Annotated Bibliography: Remember, your mentor has been very clear that an appeal to your audience’s passions is not sufficient in addressing your complex issue. Provide research and evidence that supports your explanation of the complex issue and your recommendations around this issue:

• Use relevant and credible sources that represent a variety of perspectives
• Explain how sources inform potential and logical next steps based on resources

1. Your Position and Course of Action: Next, address the “why” behind the issue in your proposal ensuring you:

• Explain your position on this issue
• Describe a logical course of action or actions aligned with your proposal and supported by evidence

1. Audience Analysis: Lastly, look carefully at the “who” again and “where.” Potentially there will be individuals in your audience from diverse cultures aside from your primary audience. Discuss the following and how you will ensure your visuals and verbal or text narrative will address:

• Norms for the public venue and civic context in which you are presenting
• Communication strategies appropriate in addressing your primary audience
• Communication strategies appropriate in addressing multicultural audiences that differ from your primary audience (for example, are there linguistic preferences or nonverbal signs that would be preferable or not preferable?)

Part 2: Proposal Presentation (10–15 slides with speaker notes in slide deck, or 15-minute video with transcript)

Now that you’ve completed your plan and have a concrete approach around your idea, you feel even more confident about communicating your position! You have many choices for presenting yourself (slide deck with speaker notes or video with transcript). You know your choice will be the “how” behind communicating your position. Your choice of vehicle (slide deck or video) and the information you include in the speaker notes or transcript must address all of the following:

• Presentation of Issue: Set the stage for your audience:
• Situate your issue by clearly identifying it
• Briefly describe the sociopolitical context (local, regional, national, or global)
• Recommendation: Ensure you concisely and clearly cover:
• Main Idea
  • Articulate your main idea
  • Discuss why it is important
  • Use relevant and credible sources
• Call to Action
  • Describe a logical course of action or actions aligned with main idea
  • Include potential benefits and drawbacks
• Communication of Explanation: Ensure you are using your speaker notes or video narration/transcript to ensure your narrative:
• Aligns to the norms of the public venue in which you are presenting
• Addresses cultural needs and expectations of the group
• Appropriate Practices: Use conventions that are:
• Appropriate to persuasive argument
  • Clear and logical
• Suitable for a variety of cultural backgrounds
  • Eliminate figurative language such as metaphors, idioms, similes, etc.
  • Enhance the accessibility of your information with alternative text or transcripts that identify verbal or visual content
• Necessary to avoid communicating bias, either intended or unintended
• Articulation of Response: Clearly convey meaning, demonstrating an understanding of audience and purpose:
• Correct grammar
  • Avoid slang and jargon
• Sentence structure
• Spelling