I have finished grading all the work for the course and submitted course grades in HokieSpa. As a reminder, I use Virginia Tech’s default grade scale (no rounding). Thank you so much for your work this term. Have a great fall term.

Unsubscribing from the Course Website and Twitter Updates

If you subscribed to the course website at the beginning of the term, you probably want to unsubscribe now. Look for an unsubscribe link at the bottom of the email message that you get from the course website.

If you were following the course Twitter account (@HokieTengrrl), just go the the page in Twitter and click the Unfollow button.

 

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This is the post for the week of August 2–8, 2016.

Readings for the week of August 2

Read the following for today’s work:

• Genre Analysis Progress Report Assignment
• Information on progress reports on pp. 327–334 of Markel (in Chapter 12)
• Example Progress Reports
  • TNG Progress Report
  • Shrek Progress Report
  • Progress of My Research on the Evacuation of the R.M.S. Titanic

Work for the week of August 2

• Continue working on Project 4. Remember to use the Genre Analysis Examples to guide your work.

• After reading the Examples, go to the Discussing Example Reports post in Canvas and make two replies, following the instructions that you find in the post. Your responses are due Wednesday, August 4 by 11:59 PM (1-day grace period ends on August 5).

• Submit a Progress Report, explaining what you have done so far and outlining what you still need to do by 11:59 on August 8 (2-day grace period ends on August 10). Your progress report should reflect all the work you have done through at least Friday, August 5, but ideally through the day you submit the progress report.

• Be prepared to submit your Project 4 Rough Draft for Peer Feedback by 11:59 PM on Wednesday, August 10. Feedback is due to your peer review partners by 11:59 PM on Thursday, August 11. Your project is due by 11:59 on Saturday, August 13. There are no grace periods for any of these submissions.

 

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This is the post for the week of July 19–25, 2016.

Readings for the Week of July 19

For today’s session, please read the following:

• Assignment for Project 3: Job Application Materials
• Proposal for Job Application Materials
• Project 3: Evaluation Section (what you propose for assessing your work)
• Additional resources for Project 3 (like info on LinkedIn)
• VT Career Planning Guide (skim the guide and use what applies to you)
• Information on résumés and cover letters and Chapter 10 of Markel

Work for the Week of July 19

By 11:59 PM on Tuesday, July 19
Write and submit your proposal for Project 3 by 11:59 PM. This proposal should be a short memo to me that tells me what you want to do for the project. Choose whatever will help you the most in the future, and follow the instructions to include the required information.

By 11:59 PM on Wednesday, July 20

• Take the reading quizzes on Chapter 10 of Markel. The grace period ends at 11:59 PM on Thursday, July 21.

• Working through the slides in this Tips for Job-App Materials slide presentation (applies to nearly everyone, no matter what project):

By 11:59 PM on Thursday, July 21
Post your draft, following the instructions on the course website.

By 11:59 PM on Friday, July 22
Give feedback to the two classmates who are assigned to you, following the instructions on the course website.

After 12:01 AM on Saturday, July 23
Revise your draft based on the peer feedback you received, using the Canvas Documentation to find your peers’ feedback.

By 11:59 PM on Monday, July 25Tuesday, July 26 (adjusted because of Canvas problems)
Submit your revised draft, following these instructions. If you need more time, use the grace period and turn in your work by 11:59 PM on July 28. Remember that there are no revisions or rewrites after your work is graded.

 

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I have skimmed your drafts in the peer review Discussion, and I have some general tips for you as you finalize your project.

1. Pay attention to the feedback from your peer review partners. Read through their feedback, and (assuming you agree) make the changes they suggest.
2. Read through the rubric for the assignment and compare it to your draft before you submit it. In only one or two cases, did I notice any attention to visual design or the use of images, both of which are required for an A.
3. Be sure that you compose the final version of your work in Microsoft Word (or another word processor). Save your file as a .doc, .docx, or .pdf file before you submit it.
4. Always spellcheck your work before you turn it in. Watch for simple errors that will lower your grade.

 

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This is the post for the week of July 5–11, 2016.

This site is the official home for our Summer II 2016 course (CRN #70934). Information on all assignments, weekly activities, and related resources will be posted here. Check this site regularly for the details on what to do for the course.

Overview of the Course Structure

Work through the files in this course overview slideshow for general information on the course:

After you read through the overview, complete the readings and activities for the week, which are all listed below.

Readings for the Week of July 5

For this week, please read the following:

• The pages for the Syllabus and Assignments.
• Information on course logistics.
• The assignment for Project 1: Professional Bio Statements.
• Advice articles on the Getting Started on Project 1.
• Examples for Project 1, to help you understand the assignment.

Optional, if you are new to Canvas and need help:

• Student Getting Started with Canvas Guide.
• From Scholar to Canvas – Tool Map.

Work for the Week of July 5

Below you will find the activities for the entire week. Feel free to work ahead, or to take advantage of the grace period.

By 11:59 PM Wednesday, July 6

• Confirm that your notifications in Canvas are set the way you want them. Note that Canvas uses your notification preferences to determine whether to email you or text you (or not tell you at all) about information in the site. See the section "How do I adjust my notification preferences?" in the Student Getting Started with Canvas Guide for more information on setting up your notifications. Note that for any time-critical announcements, I will email the class.

• If you have any questions about the syllabus or course logistics, reply to the Discussion for "Questions about the Syllabus and/or Course Logistics." If you have what feels like a personal question, you can email me.

• Quiz in Canvas:
  • Once you understand the information for the course and any questions you have are answered, Take the "Syllabus Verification Quiz" to confirm that you have read the Syllabus and information on course logistics. See the policies for quizzes on the course logistics page.
  • If you need more time, you have a one-day grace period for this quiz that ends at 11:59 PM Eastern on Thursday, July 7.

• Discussions in Canvas:

  • Note that for most discussions you will be working in small groups again to help manage the conversation. It’s hard to have a conversation with 22 people, so I have arranged the class into three groups.
  • Choose the “Readings on Professional Bio Statements” topic in Canvas, and discuss what you read from the articles on the Getting Started on Project 1 page with the members of your group.
  • Choose the "Analyzing Example Bio Statements" topic in Canvas, and post your observations on the examples for Project 1 using the discussion questions in Canvas.
  • If you need more time, you have a one-day grace period for this two discussions that ends at 11:59 PM Eastern on Thursday, July 7.

By 11:59 PM on Thursday, July 7
Post your draft, following the instructions on the course website.

By 11:59 PM Friday, July 8
Give feedback to the two classmates who are assigned to you, following the instructions on the course website.

After 12:01 AM on Saturday, July 9
Revise your draft based on the peer feedback you received, using the Canvas Documentation to find your peers’ feedback.

By 11:59 PM Monday, July 11
Submit your revised draft, following these instructions. If you need more time, use the two-day grace period and turn in your work by 11:59 PM on Wednesday, July 13. Remember that there are no revisions or rewrites after your work is graded.

Getting Ahead on Your Readings and Quizzes

I am allowing a week for you to receive your textbook. Next week, there will be a heavy amount of reading to cover all the introductory information. If you want to get ahead and you have the text, here is what to read:

• Details on the characteristics of technical writing and chapter 1 of Markel.
• Information on how ethical issues affect technical writing and chapter 2 of Markel.
• Suggestions for writing collaboratively and chapter 3 of Markel.
• Details on the importance of audience and purpose and chapter 4 of Markel.
• Strategies for adapting your writing to the needs of your readers and chapter 6 of Markel.

A quiz will be posted for each of these chapters. Additional readings will be posted for next week.

 

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Welcome to the Summer II 2016 session of Technical Writing. The course begins on Tuesday, July 5, 2016.

To prepare for the course, please do these things:

1. Buy the book. If you want the physical copy, you need to order it ASAP so that you have before reading quizzes are due. The ebook version is fine, and you will have it faster obviously.

• Markel, Mike. Practical Strategies for Technical Communication. 2nd ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2015.
  • Amazon eTextbook or paperback
  • Barnes and Noble paperback
  • VitalSource eTextbook Rental

2. Go ahead and check out the syllabus and the pages on course logistics and the course assignments, if you like. The post for the first day of class will be live next week.

3. If you have any questions, you can log into Canvas and ask in the Discussion forum for Questions about the Syllabus and/or Course Logistics. Naturally, if you have a personal question, you can send me an email message at tengrrl at vt.edu.

4. If you want to know a little more about me, you can read the About Me announcement in Canvas.

 
 
 

[Image: Detail from Why Good Writing Is Needed for Better Jobs]
 

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