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English 357 Business Writing

Assignment 1: Observation

You and a partner are to observe a male and female conversing for ten minutes. Take copious notes on the observation, paying attention to body language (i.e., the way they are sitting, the way they move their legs, hands, and torso) and their facial expressions. The purpose of this assignment is not to capture them in time like a picture, but to show the ongoing interaction like a movie.

There is to be NO dialogue at all. You are strictly observing expressions and gestures.

Format:

1) State where you. (Community of Discourse)

2) State who are your participants (roughly their age, sex, race or ethnicity).

3) What you observed. This section should be rich with description and avoid interpretation.

For example)

Yesà Mary crosses her legs toward Jim and smiles in such a way that slightly shows her teeth,

Noà Mary looked happy because she was smiling and I could tell they were on a date.

Structure: memo format____________________________________________________________________________

Memo

To: Brett Butler

From: (your name)

Date:

Subject: Observation Report

Community of Discourse: The first floor of the Student Center at Morgan State University

Participants: Mary (you can make up names for them) is an African American woman between the ages of 18 and 21. Jimmy is an Anglo American man between the ages of 18 and 21. Both attend Morgan State University, so it can be assumed that they have a high school diploma or some equivalent.

Observation: This is where you give a detailed account of your observations.