CCOG for WR 227 Fall 2023
- Course Number:
- WR 227
- Course Title:
- Technical Writing (WR227=WR227Z)
- Credit Hours:
- 4
- Lecture Hours:
- 40
- Lecture/Lab Hours:
- 0
- Lab Hours:
- 0
Course Description
Intended Outcomes for the course
Upon completion of the course students should be able to:
- ADAPT: Apply key rhetorical concepts through analyzing, designing, composing, and revising a variety of deliverable documents for technical/professional contexts
- CONNECT: Engage in project-based research, applying appropriate methods of inquiry for clearly defined purposes (e.g., user experience research and client/organization research)
- ADAPT AND CONNECT: Collaborate with various stakeholders to develop and apply flexible and effective strategies for managing projects
- INQUIRE: Develop and adapt document design and composition strategies to meet the demands of diverse clients, organizations, and multicultural audiences
- REFLECT: Examine and respond to individual and professional ethical responsibilities across organizational contexts
Course Activities and Design
Assessment tasks include the following:
- Weekly or twice-weekly writing assignments
- Attendance in class and at three instructor conferences
- Active, positive participation in class and in small group activities
- Meeting assignment deadlines
Many instructors may have students submit a portfolio of the best revised versions of each of their written assignments at the end of the term for final evaluation. Oral reports, in-class interviews, or group presentations may also contribute to the final grade. Instructors may require in-class writing assignments and exams. Peer evaluation may be incorporated in the assessment process.
Course Content (Themes, Concepts, Issues and Skills)
Themes, Concepts, Issues
- Appropriate formats and writing styles for various types of technical and professional communications
- Audience analysis
- Communication with international audiences
- Document design
- Documentation
- Dynamics of collaborative work
- Editing
- Incorporation of graphics
- Interviewing
- Legal and ethical issues in technical and professional communications
- Readability analysis
- Researching
- Revision cycle
- Safety Messages
- Style guides
- Summarizing
- Usability testing
Competencies and Skills
For Outcome 1
Reading, interpreting, analyzing, and evaluating complex technical and professional documents and visuals.
For Outcomes 2 and 3
- Understanding the differences between and the appropriate audience and purpose for the most common types of technical and professional communication
- Composing, designing, revising and editing the most common types of technical and professional communications
- Researching primary and secondary sources, including the Internet
- Documenting source
For Outcome 4:
- Analyzing audience and purpose
- Incorporating audience feedback
- Selecting graphics appropriate for the targeted audience
- Selecting formatting options to create accessible, readable, ethical, and visually interesting documents for different audiences
For Outcome 5
- Understanding different types of graphics and appropriate uses
- Editing page layout, text and visuals for:
Conciseness
Preciseness
Clarity
Legal and ethical issues
Safety International audiences
Inclusiveness
For Outcome 6:
Working and problem solving with others to achieve a common communication goal, using collaborative techniques, respecting the work of colleagues, and meeting deadlines; listening and speaking reflectively.