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Technical communication in the twenty-first century (2nd De. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Gorgon, S. J. , & Gorgon, S. M. (2012). Technical communication: Process and product (7th De. ). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. All electronic materials are available on the student website. Assignment Formats Part of the learning experience for this course is learning how to create appropriate formats for business documents. The American Psychological Association (PAP) format is not appropriate for assignments.
For format guidelines, see the grading arterial posted in the Assignments thread in the Course Materials forum. Week 1: The Technical Writing Process Details Due Points Objectives Identify how writing methods are used in the corporate environment. Compare differences between technical and expository writing. Ongoing (all week) Readings Read the Week 1 Read Me First. Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 2, “The Communication Process: Preprinting, Writing, and Rewriting,” of Technical Communication Process and Product.
Read Chi. 3, “Clarity, Conciseness, Accuracy, and Ethics in Technical Communication,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Ongoing Participation and Discussion Questions Participate in class discussion. You must post at least two messages, including initial responses to Discussion Questions (Sq), to the Main forum on four separate days in the week. Respond to weekly discussion questions. Initial response to Week 1 SQ 1 due Thursday, August 29. Initial response to Week 1 SQ 2 due Saturday, August 31 .
Ongoing 50 Learning Team Assignment Complete the learning team charter to facilitate completion of the learning team presentation due in Week 4 and user manual due in Week 5. The learning team harder is available via the Learning Team Toolkit in the University of Phoenix online library. Monday, September 2 25 Individual Assignment Complete the University of Phoenix Material, Workplace Communication Comparison, located on the Materials page of the online classroom. Monday, Week 2: Technical Writing in the Corporate Environment Identify intellectual property issues in the corporate environment.
Design a memo with appropriate formatting for the corporate environment. Ongoing Read the Week 2 Read Me First. Read Chi. 4, “Communicating Effectively to Your Audience in a Multicultural World,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 6, “Routine Correspondence вЂ?Memos, Letters, E-mail Messages, Instant Messages, and Text Messages,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 4, “Ethics and the 6, “Researching and Evaluating Source Material,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century.
Ongoing Initial response to Week 2 SQ 1 due Thursday, September 5. Initial response to Week 2 SQ 2 due Saturday, September 7. Begin preparation for completing the Week 5 learning team assignment, the final version of the user manual. Select one of the following topics as the focus of your user manual and presentation: University Library Virtual Organizations Online discussion forums Write a 1- to 2-page memo to your facilitator describing which of the available topics your learning team has chosen.
Include an introductory paragraph indicating which of the three software applications the learning team has chosen as the focus of its user manual and presentation. Do not include more than one introductory paragraph. Include a preliminary table of contents for the user manual. Monday, September 9 Read the following scenario: Your manager wants to use web conferencing to hold weekly status meetings, but has not decided on a program. You have been assigned to do some basic research on available web-conferencing programs. Research and compare different web- conferencing programs using the Internet.
Write a 1- to 2-page memo to your manager that describes which web-conferencing program you believe is the best choice. Explain why you selected this program. Include a list of all web-conferencing programs you reviewed. Consider using a table to present your findings. Format the memo properly for management review using the course texts as a resource. Monday, Week 3: Writing Reports and Proposals Implement effective document design in technical writing. Develop a request for proposal. Read the Week 3 Read Me First. Read Chi. 9, “Document Design,” of Technical Communication Process and Product.
Read Chi. 10, “Using Visual Aids in Technical Communication,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 16, “Short, Informal Reports,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 17, “Long, Formal Reports,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 18, “Proposals,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 20, “Proposals and Requests for Proposals,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Ongoing Initial response to Week 3 SQ 1 due Thursday, September 12.
Initial response to Week 3 SQ 2 due Saturday, September 14. Write a rough draft of the user manual your learning team will submit during Week 5. Include the following items in your rough draft: Cover page Table of contents Headers and footers that include page numbers, copyright information, and other necessary information Headings Appropriate fonts Written instructions for accessing, navigating, and using the selected software application Visual elements, such as images, flowcharts, tables, and screen shots Numbers and captions for all visual elements (such as “Figure 1 .
Library Home Page”) Cross-references to all visual elements (such as “See Figure 1, below’) Effective page layout, including the order of information, use of white space, and highlighting Terminology definitions, a key to define any symbols or diagrams used, and any other necessary information to help the user navigate the manual Make sure the rough raft format resembles the format of a professionally produced, printed instruction manual. Text paragraphs are single-spaced with a line of space between paragraphs. Level 1 chapter headings are numbered Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, etc. And include the chapter title. Level 2 section heading are numbered 1 . 1, 1. 2, 1. 3, etc. , and include the section title. Monday, September 16 You are a manager or supervisor of a company and you need to acquire trainers to train your staff on using Microsoft@ Office@ programs. You must request proposals from various training companies and trainers to fill this need. Write a 3- to 5-page request for proposal (REF) for Microsoft Office training and include first-level and second-level headings for the items listed below.
You must include all 18 of the listed headings in the order listed below, even if the corresponding section includes Just one sentence. Introduction to the company, including: Description of the company The company’s business goals Introduction to the project, including: Project goals Time allocated to complete the project Budget for the project (the exact amount of money the organization intends to spend on the training) Description of the training that is needed
Administrative information, including: Desired qualifications of trainers Requirements for formatting and submitting proposals Confidentiality notice of all proposal submissions Employer and organizational reference requirements Contact information for clarification or questions Deadline for proposal submission Time frame for vendor selection Selection criteria Other items that may be important for inquiring candidates Format the REF to include the following: Page numbers Headers and footers Headings (make sure to include all the headings listed above) Monday, 150
Week 4: Preparing Presentations Implement effective layout and design in presentations. Develop a professional slide show presentation. Read the Week 4 Read Me First. Read Chi. 19, “Oral Communication,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 5, “Technical Communication in a Transnational World,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Read Chi. 23, “Presentations,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Ongoing Initial response to Week 4 SQ 1 due Thursday, September 19. Initial response to Week 4 SQ 2 due Saturday, September 21 .
Create a 7- to 10-slide Microsoft@ Powering@ presentation that could be presented in a student orientation to introduce your team’s selected software application. Include the following in your presentation: Speaker notes (approximately 100 words per slide) that provide information the audience would not see by viewing the slides. Introduction slide Conclusion slide Headings Graphics Easy-to-read fonts Appropriate contrast Effective slide design and layout, including amount of information and use of white space For tips on how to add narration to your presentation, refer to the University of
Phoenix Material, Recording a Narration, located on the student website. Monday, September 23 Write a 2- to -3 page critique of an online user manual. You can download manuals for various products from www. Safeness’s. Com or other websites of your choice. Include the manual link in your submission. In the first paragraph, identify the online manual that you will evaluate and provide a link to the manual. In the second paragraph, provide at least five criteria you will use to evaluate the selected online selected manual. Include first-level headings for each criterion you have chosen to use in evaluating the manual.
Include a conclusion paragraph that is logical, flows, and reviews the major points. Monday, Week 5: Writing Technical Instructions and User Manuals Determine criteria for writing a user manual. Develop a user manual with appropriate visual elements. Design effective written communication for user manuals and technical instructions. Read the Week 5 Read Me First. Read Chi. 12, “Technical Descriptions and Process Analyses,” of Technical Communication Process and Product. Read Chi. 13, “Instructions, User Manuals, and Standard Operating Procedures,” of Technical Communication Process and Product.
Read Chi. 18, “Technical Instructions,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Read Chi. 19, “Manuals,” of Technical Communication in the Twenty-First Century. Ongoing Revise the final version of the user manual based on the comments and revisions I have included in the Week 3 rough draft. Include the following items in your manual: Bullet lists and numbered instructions are single-spaced. September 30 Use the Learning Team Evaluation from the Toolkit Essentials tab in the Learning Team Toolkit to evaluate the performance of your learning team peers.
Because the ere evaluation is confidential, submit the peer evaluation to your Individual forum. Copyright University of Phoenix@ is a registered trademark of Apollo Group, Inc. In the United States and/or other countries. Microsoft@, Window”, and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other company and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Use of these marks is not intended to imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation. Edited in accordance with University of Phoenix@ editorial standards and practices.