ENG 442 Spring 2018 TR Course Schedule

Note: All readings are in the Markel text unless stated otherwise. Readings subject to change as needed.
Week One

Tue, Jan. 9th

Syllabus Review
Blackboard
Icebreaker
Read: Introduction for Writers; Introduction to Technical Communication
What Is Technical Communication?
Thurs, Jan. 11th
Intro to Professional and Technical Writing
Why Technical Communication Skills Are Important in Your Career
Corresponding in Print and Online
Professional Email assignment
Read: Writing Emails: *TECH TIP: Why and How to Use Email for Business
Correspondence; GUIDELINES: Following Netiquette

Week Two

Tue, Jan. 16th

Skills and Qualities Shared by Successful Workplace Communicators
DOCUMENT ANALYSIS ACTIVITY: Following Netiquette in an Email Message
Professional Email analysis and drafting
Read: Boiarsky (2017). Effects of Communicating with Emails and Texts in Risk
Communication: Information Poor, Writer-Based, A-Synchronous. [Blackboard]

Thurs, Jan. 18th

Professional and Technical Organizations
Researching Technical Writing Employers: Job Search Engines
Finding the Right Position
Organization Analysis assignment
Professional Email due
Read: Writing Clear, Informative Paragraphs; Writing Correct and Effective Sentences

Week Three

Tue, Jan. 23rd

Professional and Technical Organization drafting
APA Style and OWL Purdue
Thurs, Jan. 25th
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Employment documents
Presenting Yourself Effectively
Employment Packet/Profile assignment
Organization Analysis due
Read: Characteristics of a Technical Document

Week Four

Tue, Jan. 30th

Reading Job Adverts
Understanding What Employers Want
Rhetoric: Audience and Purpose (Employer)
Career Services Presentation
Read: Writing Rsums; Writing Job-Application Letters

Thurs, Feb. 1st

Resume drafting
Cover Letter drafting
ETHICS NOTE: Writing Honest Job-Application Materials
Choosing the Right Words and Phrases
Read: CASE 1: Using the Measures of Excellence in Evaluating a Rsum

Week Five

Tue, Feb. 6th

Creating LinkedIn Profile
GUIDELINES: Using Social Media Ethically and Legally
GUIDELINES: Using LinkedIns Employment Features

Thurs, Feb. 8th

Business/Professional Presentations
FOCUS ON PROCESS: Oral Presentations
Analyzing the Speaking Situation
Organizing and Developing the Presentation
Visual Analysis/Redesign assignment
Employment Packet/Profile due
 Week Six

Tue, Feb. 13th

Presentation Tools: PowerPoint and Prezi
Visual Rhetoric
Preparing Presentation Graphics
Presentation Teams
Read: Tutorial: Creating Presentations with PowerPoint and Prezi [launchpad]

Thurs, Feb. 15th

Visual Analysis/Redesign Workshop
DOCUMENT ANALYSIS ACTIVITY: Integrating Graphics and Text on a Presentation
Slide
QEP Vocabulary Assignment

Week Seven

Tue, Feb. 20th

Visual Analysis/Redesign Workshop
QEP

Thurs, Feb. 22nd

Rhetoric: Purpose and Audience (Consumer)
Instructions assignment
Designing a Set of Written Instructions
Visual Analysis/Redesign due
Read: Writing Instructions: FOCUS ON PROCESS: Instructions

Week Eight

Tue, Feb. 27th

Planning for Safety
ETHICS NOTE: Ensuring Your Readers Safety
Drafting Effective Instructions
GUIDELINES: Drafting Introductions for Instructions
GUIDELINES: Drafting Steps in Instructions
Instructions analysis workshop
Read: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading Instructions; A Look at Several Sample Sets of
Instructions
Thurs, Mar. 1st. (Midterm)
QEP Exam (in class)
Midterm Exam due (Blackboard)

Week Nine

Mar. 3rd-11th: Spring Break

Week Ten

Tue, Mar. 13th

DOCUMENT ANALYSIS ACTIVITY: Presenting Clear Instructions
Instructions workshop

Thurs, Mar. 15th

The Workplace Environment
Problem-solving in the workplace: case study 1
Recommendation Report assignment
Understanding the Role of Recommendation Reports
Focus on Process: Recommendation Reports
Instructions due
Read: Identify the Problem or Opportunity; Establish Criteria for Responding to the Problem
or Opportunity

Week Eleven

Tue, Mar. 20th

Problem-solving in the workplace: case study 2
Determine the Options
Study Each Option According to the Criteria
Draw Conclusions About Each Option
Read: Formulate Recommendations Based on the Conclusions; ETHICS NOTE: Presenting
Honest Recommendations
Thurs, Mar. 22nd
Recommendation Report analysis and construction
Writing the Body of the Report
GUIDELINES: Writing Recommendations
Read: Moore (2017). The Technical Communicator as Participant, Facilitator, and Designer in
Public Engagement Projects.
 Week Twelve

Tue, Mar. 27th

Recommendation Report workshop
Sample Recommendation Report
WRITERS CHECKLIST

Thurs, Mar. 29th

Professionalization and Branding
Establishing Your Professional Brand
Crafting Your professional Brand
ePortfolio assignment
Recommendation Report due
Read: GUIDELINES: Presenting Your Professional Brand; TUTORIAL: Building Your
Professional Brand with LinkedIn, Twitter, and More [in LaunchPad]

Week Thirteen

Tue, Apr. 3rd

Professional online presence
Social Media
Public Relations Visit

Thurs, Apr. 5th

Professional website
Portfolio creation/curation of professional works
Read: Dorsey, S. (2016, May 17). ePortfolio lets job seekers shine. Next City.Org, Retrieved
from
http://nclive.org/cgi-bin/nclsm?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1789285736?accountid=
12120

Week Fourteen

Tue, Apr. 10th

Weebly.com
Wix
Website selection and construction
Read: Keist, C. N., & Bruer, S. (2016). Online portfolios: Marketing apparel merchandising
millennials into employment. Journal of Family and Consumer Sciences, 108(2), 54-57.
doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.14307/JFCS108.2.54
Thurs, Apr. 12th
Website construction
ePortfolio construction
Read: GUIDELINES: Revising Your Draft; GUIDELINES: Editing Your Draft

Week Fifteen

Tue, Apr. 17th

ePortfolio construction
WRITER'S CHECKLIST
Read: CASE 3: Understanding Why Revision Software Cannot Revise and Edit Your
Document [in LaunchPad]
Thur, Apr. 19th
ePortfolio construction

Week Sixteen

Tue, Apr. 24th

ePortfolio due

Thurs, Apr. 26th

Final Exam information

Week Seventeen

Tues, May 1st-4th: Final Exams