Assignments
Overview
The only way to learn to write is to write, actively and
often. This class will give you many occasions for writing. You'll
write individually and as a member of a team. You'll also learn
to comment effectively on others' writing as you learn to adjust
your information products to reflect appropriate comments from others.
Going public with your writing is an important part of this course
as it is an important part of professional life. As in a professional
setting, you'll discuss your work orally, both informally and in
one more formal team presentation.
To be successful, your response to each assignment must meet the
needs of the audience for that assignment and be well designed and
executed. Professionals address a variety of audiences, both those
who share their discipline and those outside, including supervisors
and subordinates, clients, other professionals, the media, and the
public at large. We'll discuss at some length the audience for each
assignment. Then to fulfill that audience's needs, you'll design
an information product that works:
- Its content is worthwhile, rich, accurate, and complete
- Its organization emphasizes what's important, makes information
easily accessible, and motivates the right reader response
- Its style is readable, fluid, appropriate, and correct
- It looks good; to adapt a line from Alice in Wonderland:
"much of what you see depends on how it looks."
The assignments form the core of discussion in class and provide
concrete instances for applying the advice in the text. Some assignments
are relatively simple. Some are more complex. All assignments model
the kinds of communication problems you may run into as a professional
and provide experience in writing to solve those problems. Part
of the game in class is to work through the options in the assignments
and figure out how best to play to your strengths, which should
be growing daily through writing practice. The more questions you
ask and comments you make, the better we'll all be. In addition,
feel free to send any e-mail queries as they come to you, at any
hour of the day. I specialize in pretty rapid response. Or stop
by the office.
As a running assignment throughout the semester, keep current on
scientific and technical information in the news. This assignment
reflects in part the recently revised criteria of the Accreditation
Board in Engineering and Technology (ABET), which note that engineering
graduates should demonstrate "the broad education necessary to understand
the impact of engineering solutions in a global and societal context."
(ABET also requires that students show "an understanding of professional
and ethical responsibility," and "an ability to communicate
effectively."). These criteria can be easily applied to students
in other technical and scientific fields as well.
Assignment Listing
- Self introduction
- Memo on an interview
- Informative memo
- Persuasive Web page
- Course progress report
- Proposal for team project
- Instructions
- Letter of application and resume
- Project report and briefings
Portfolio
For more about assignments, see "Updates"
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