Dr. Dean Taciuch
George Mason University

Spring 2013

English 388: 002
Course Syllabus

Catalog Description

Intensive study and practice in various forms of technical writing, including formal and informal reports, proposals, and technical correspondence. Emphasis on writing for a variety of audiences, both lay and informed, and on writing within various professional and organizational contexts.

Prerequisite
ENGL 302 or ENGH 302

Textbook
Pearsall. Elements of Technical Writing. 3rd edition Pearson. ISBN 9780205583812.
$38.33

Methods of Instruction

In addition to several short exercises (short reports, instructions, a Wikipedia entry), this class has a series of linked assignments involving individual as well as group work, culminating in a 15-20 page final project to be completed by groups of 3-4 students.

The groups will form during the first few weeks of class and begin investigating possible topics. I have assigned several large topic areas which the groups will need to refine based on their areas of study or careers.

Best Practices for [technique] in [discipline]
Examples
Documentary Filmmakers Statement of Best Practices in Fair Use
Code of Best Practices for Fair Use in Online Video
Open Access Publishing at GMU

Instructions for [important but difficult to use tool]
Examples
Using specific BlackBoard tools (such as Collaborate) for hybrid and online courses
Using any of the Virtual Computing Lab software to perform coursework

Important Changes or Developments in your Field
Examples
Incorporating changes in the DSM-V to [specific field in psychology]

The student proposals will be posted to a BlackBoard discussion group. Students will then use the Rating system to rate proposals (the ratings are, as far as I can tell, anonymous). The highest rating proposals (up to 10 total) will be selected and students will be invited to join those teams for the final project. Teams of 2-3 will be expected to produce a final document of 10-15 pages; teams of 4-5 from 15-20 pages.

I chose these topics for several reasons: I have a professional interest in them, they have wide applicability for scholars and professional writers in almost all areas, and all of the resources are freely available online. Keep in mind that professional and technical writers generally do not get to choose their subjects. Like many professional and technical writers, you will be responding to a request for proposals. Once your proposal is approved, your group will begin researching and preparing your report. Since these topics are relevant to my interests, I can serve as an appropriate audience (or at least as a proxy audience).

Assignments

All assignments except for the in class exercises and presentations will be submitted via BlackBoard. Any file format is acceptable as long as it preserves formatting (doc, docx, pdf, odf). I do not want paper copies of any assignments.

Writing in the Workplace Written Report: (10%)
Following the instruction for Assignment 1 on page 121, write a short (250-500 words, double-spaced) on the types of writing common in your career or area of study. The URL for the Occupational Outlook handbook in the text is incorrect; the correct URL is
http://www.bls.gov/ooh/

This is an individual assignment due on Jan 29.

Writing in the Workplace Oral Report (5%)
Following Assignment 2 on pages 121-122, form groups based on similar interests and prepare a 5-10 minute oral report on writing in your career or area of study.

Although there will be time during the first weeks to rearrange the groups, these groups will remain throughout the term, as the final project is also a group project focusing on your areas of study.

Groups should have 3-4 members; larger groups (up to six) will be responsible for larger presentations and reports throughout the term.

The presentations will take place in class on Feb 7. Use BlackBoard to upload any supporting materials (presentations slides, notes, etc). You should begin by uploading your Writing in the Workplace written reports so the group can begin outlining the presentation.

Instruction Set (10%)
After proposing a set of instructions and conducting a usability test on a peer (as in class exercises), write a short (2-3 page) set of instructions.

This is an individual assignment due Feb 15


Individual Project Proposals (5%)

The student proposals will be posted to a BlackBoard discussion group. Students will then use the Rating system to rate proposals (the ratings are, as far as I can tell, anonymous). The highest rating proposals (up to 10 total) will be selected and students will be invited to join those teams for the final project.

Following the details (but not the topic) for Assignment 1 in chapters 1 and 2 (pp 8-9, 19), propose a report on one of the following topics:

• Best Practices
• Instructions
• Important Developments and Changes in Your Field

This is an individual assignment due Feb 28

Group Proposal (10%)
Following the details (but not the topic) for Assignment 2 in chapters 1 and 2 (pp 8-9, 19), propose a report on one of the following topics:

• Best Practices
• Instructions
• Important Developments and Changes in Your Field

The proposal should include

• Project Summary/Introduction
• Rationale and Significance
• Plan of work (Task and Time schedule)
• Personnel

This is a group assignment due March 7

Wikipedia Edit (5%): Choose a Wikipedia "stub" (an unfinished article) on a topic you know well. Edit the article, following the Wikipedia guidelines, adding at least one new source of information. Post the URL of the article and your username to Blackboard.

This is an individual assignment due March 22

Progress Reports
Individual (5%) In this short (250-300 word) informal report, describe your contribution to the group project. What research did you contribute? Which sections did have a hand in writing? What other work did you do for the group project?

Individual progress reports are due March 29

Group (5%) The group progress report should be a full (1250-1500 word) report, following the outline given for progress reports on pages 139-140.

Group Progress reports are due April 12

Draft Sections (5%)
By April 5, you should have drafts of the main sections of the final report completed and uploaded to your group's BlackBoard area. Use the File Exchange function to share documents. You may also use the Discussion area and Collaboration tools to discuss the project.

The drafts will be submitted to the group area on BlackBoard, but you will graded individually on this assignment.

Draft Peer Reviews (5%). As the sections are completed, the group members are expected to read and comment upon the section. In addition to these informal reviews, each group member must complete a formal peer review of another member's section of the final report (peer review sheets will be posted to BlackBoard)

This is an individual assignment due on April 19

Semester Project Final Presentation (10%)

The groups should prepare a 10-15 minute presentation based on their conclusions and recommendations. Larger groups should prepare a longer presentation, but nothing longer than 20 minutes.

The presentations should include visuals. Please do not read your report as your presentation; this will not be acceptable.

The Final Presentations will be done in class on April 30 - May 2

Semester Project Final Report (20%)
The final report should be a recommendation report of 4000-5000 words (15-20 pages). Simplifying the structure given in chapter 9, it should contain the following:

• Executive Summary
• Introduction
• Discussion (this should be divided into several sub-sections)
• Conclusions and Recommendations
• Appendices (optional)
• References

Larger groups should prepare a longer report (I am assuming roughly 5 pages/person)

The Final Report is due May 3

In class exercises (5%)
Most weeks, there will be some in class writing or analytical exercise, mostly drawn from the textbook Activities for that week's chapters. These exercise will include

• Ch1 Activity 1 (tech samples)
• Ch 3 Activity 2 (outline tech sample)
• Instruction Prop
• Instruction usability test
• Audience Analysis exercise (based on ch 2 activities)
• Ch 7 Activity 1 (Codes of Ethics)
• Ch 7 Activity 2 (Codes of Ethics)
• Powerpoint exercise

Course Policies

Grading: The grades will be based primarily on the quality of the writing. As will see in this course, quality writing is clear, concise, and correct (both factually and grammatically). Since this a technical writing course, format and presentation are also important.

For the group assignments (which make up the bulk of the work in this class), group members will share the grade equally (if an assignment earns an A, all group members receive an A for that assignment). I will make exceptions if a group member is clearly not contributing equally, however.

C-range grades(70-79%) denote average college-level work. These are competent responses to the assignment, meeting all of the assigned requirements. Sentence-level errors do not significantly prevent comprehension.

B-range grades(80-89%) represent strong writing and presentation. In addition to the C-range requirements, a B-range assignment demonstrates some insight into the subject, provides original or very through support that is tightly woven into the argument, and is clearly presented. It has few sentence-level errors.

A-range grades (90-100%) mark exceptional accomplishment. Such assignments anticipate and respond to possible reader questions, use a wide range of support, provide unexpected insights, and use language with care and precision.

D- and F-range grades mark assignments which do not meet the basic expectations of the assignment.

Late Assignments: Late papers will lose 5% per day unless you (or your group) make prior arrangements with me.

Attendance: I will not take attendance, but it is not possible to do well in this course without regular attendance. Class discussions of the readings are necessary for the papers, exercises, and the research project. Topics will develop from the class discussions.

Students with disabilities: If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Office of Disability Services (ODS) at 703-993-2474. All academic accommodations must be arranged through the ODS.

GMU Nondiscrimination Policy: George Mason University is committed to providing equal opportunity and an educational and work environment free from any discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, or age. GMU shall adhere to all applicable state and federal equal opportunity/affirmative action statutes and regulations.

GMU Email: Students must activate their Mason email account and check it regularly. For privacy reasons, all class-related emails will be sent only to students' official GMU email addresses.

Important Dates

Course Schedule