Exam 2: Adapting to Audiences

The president of a local community college is concerned that the majority of the new students this year are Caucasian males between the ages of 18 and 20; there are fewer international students, and virtually no students who have disabilities of any sort.In contrast, many other colleges in the province are attracting increasing numbers of students from diverse ethnic and racial backgrounds, and a growing number of students over the age of 25.After discussing the problem with top administrators of the college, particularly the head of public relations, the president issues a statement announcing a new policy on the use of bias-free language and visuals.The president calls on you to draft this policy.Create the college's draft, and make sure it contains not just guidelines, but also supporting reasoning that identifies why these guidelines are important Also, provide a few suggestions for how the college could implement the guidelines.

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Question 1

Correct Answer:

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Acceptable answers will explain both the advantages of bias-free language and visuals and what criteria they should fulfill.Bias-free language is language that does not discriminate against people on the basis of sex, physical condition, race, age, or any other category.Language and visuals both reflect and reveal an organization's understanding of the world.Therefore, if the college truly does see itself as an organization that welcomes all people and treats them fairly, it should ensure that its printed materials reflect that image.The college catalogue is a good example to illustrate this idea.If the catalogue uses biased language, then women, minorities, and people with disabilities may feel excluded.Photos that exclude people in wheelchairs or ethnic minorities may make it difficult for those people to imagine themselves as part of the college community.When an official document is biased, it sends the message that the college condones this type of attitude--even if it's unintentional.If the college wants its student population to reflect the population at large, it should be sure that photos in the catalogue include a sampling of that population and that its language is not distancing.

The _____ audience, though it does not have the power to stop the message and will not act directly on it, has political, social, or economic power.

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Question 2

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watchdog

"I have negotiated an agreement that gives you a 10% discount for any domestic flight charged on our company credit card." Indicate the option that both correctly evaluates the sentence and correctly explains the reason for the evaluation.

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Question 3

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At a staff meeting, Jill Joyce, your department head, tells you that the CEO has asked each department to submit suggestions for improving company-wide productivity.Jill asks each staff member to write a memo outlining his or her suggestions.Each department head is to pass on no more than 5 suggestions and there are 16 employees in your department, so Jill will have to screen them.The CEO will decide herself whether she will implement any of the suggestions.Before writing your memo you think about your audience.What type of audience is Jill?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 4

Which of the following is both grammatically correct and non-sexist?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 5

You are writing to alumni of the University of Saskatchewan to raise money for a scholarship.If you cannot personalize the letters, what would be the best salutation?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 6

List five techniques that will help you to create positive emphasis, and provide an example for each one.

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Question 7

Think of a business document that you have read or created, and that was clearly intended to reach multiple audiences.Identify these audiences, and classify them in terms of initial, gatekeeping, primary, secondary, and watchdog audiences.Did this document reach all these audiences successfully? If so, explain why; if not, explain where it went wrong, and how it could be improved.

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Question 8

_____ is a style of writing that looks at things from the reader's point of view, emphasizing what the reader wants to know, respecting the reader's intelligence, and protecting the reader's ego.

(Short Answer)

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Question 9

Which of the following words is LEAST negative?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 10

Give two guidelines to follow when discussing people with disabilities or diseases, and explain the importance of these guidelines.

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Question 11

Identify four areas to check to be sure that your writing is free from sexism, and explain how these areas are often the source of sexist language.

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Question 12

Identify five techniques that should be followed to convey you-attitude in your writing, and explain why they convey you-attitude.

(Essay)

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Question 13

Language that does not discriminate against people on the basis of gender, abilities, race, age, or any other category is called _____.

(Short Answer)

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Question 14

What is the BEST reason for addressing a woman as "Mrs."?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 15

Which of the following options is the MOST compelling reason to avoid relying ONLY on extrinsic motivators?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 16

In which of the following situations would using the word "you" typically NOT be a good choice?

(Multiple Choice)

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Question 17

List three questions you can ask to begin to analyze an organization's culture, and explain why these questions are useful.

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Question 18

Secondary audiences can include lawyers who may use your message, perhaps years later, as evidence of your organization's culture and practices.

(True/False)

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Question 19

Because it has been proven to be unbiased, clip art can be used freely in business situations.

(True/False)

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Question 20

Showing 1 - 20 of 94

The _____ audience, though it does not have the power to stop the message and will not act directly on it, has political, social, or economic power.

"I have negotiated an agreement that gives you a 10% discount for any domestic flight charged on our company credit card." Indicate the option that both correctly evaluates the sentence and correctly explains the reason for the evaluation.

Which of the following is both grammatically correct and non-sexist?

You are writing to alumni of the University of Saskatchewan to raise money for a scholarship.If you cannot personalize the letters, what would be the best salutation?

List five techniques that will help you to create positive emphasis, and provide an example for each one.

_____ is a style of writing that looks at things from the reader's point of view, emphasizing what the reader wants to know, respecting the reader's intelligence, and protecting the reader's ego.

Which of the following words is LEAST negative?

Give two guidelines to follow when discussing people with disabilities or diseases, and explain the importance of these guidelines.

Identify four areas to check to be sure that your writing is free from sexism, and explain how these areas are often the source of sexist language.

Identify five techniques that should be followed to convey you-attitude in your writing, and explain why they convey you-attitude.

Language that does not discriminate against people on the basis of gender, abilities, race, age, or any other category is called _____.

What is the BEST reason for addressing a woman as "Mrs."?

Which of the following options is the MOST compelling reason to avoid relying ONLY on extrinsic motivators?

In which of the following situations would using the word "you" typically NOT be a good choice?

List three questions you can ask to begin to analyze an organization's culture, and explain why these questions are useful.

Secondary audiences can include lawyers who may use your message, perhaps years later, as evidence of your organization's culture and practices.

Because it has been proven to be unbiased, clip art can be used freely in business situations.

Communicating in a Changing Business World

Planning, Composing, and Revising

Designing Documents, Slides, and Screens

Communicating Across Cultures

Working and Writing in Teams

Routine Messages

Negative Messages

Persuasive and Sales Messages

Planning, Researching, and Documenting Reports

Writing Proposals and Reports

Making Oral Presentations

Employment Communications

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