We will have three weekly classes, which involve lectures, discussions, and in-class workshops. We will discuss the content and form of scientific and technical writing, developing a professional style that is correct, simple, and lucid. You will write regularly, for practice and review. Performance standards and expectations will be very high.

ATTENDANCE

The following is a policy of the College Writing Program. Given experience with too many absences in classes last year, it is also my policy. Attendance will be noted and absenses will be reflected in final grading.

The small-class environment of WRT classes makes dedicated attendance and full participation the responsibility of each and every class member. Students who miss classes are responsible for 1) explaining the absence and/or verifying its necessity; 2) getting the assignments from a classmate or me; and 3) if I agree, making up the missed work. If you notify me in advance, absences for religious holidays, athletic participation, or other university-sanctioned events are excused. I may approve other absences (for illness, accident, or personal tragedy); however, it is your responsibility to contact me—via email or a phone message—to explain your absence within 1 day of the missed class, or to provide documentation at the following class meeting. Absences that are not university-sanctioned or approved by me in advance will mean a loss of points or a deduction to the final grade. While allowance can be made for an emergency, generally, students who miss a total of three weeks of classes will fail the course.

GRADES

Grades are based on writing assignments, participation, and attendance. If you do not contribute to class discussions in a meaningful way, this may be reflected in your grade. There will be a variety of in-class and out-of-class writing assignments, both formal and informal. (details).

PLAGIARISM (academic honesty)

The following is a policy of the College Writing Program

You need to understand plagiarism and its consequences. Please consult the URI Student Handbook about academic honesty and related issues. The penalty for plagiarism is a zero for the assignment and a report to your academic dean, who has the option to fail you for the course. In addition, the charge of academic dishonesty will go on your record in the Office of Student Life. Technical Communication offers help on matters of plagiarism and how to acknowledge source material. If you need more help understanding when to cite something or how to make clear your references, please ask!

SPECIAL NEEDS

Any student with a documented disability is welcome to contact me as early in the semester as possible so that we may arrange reasonable accommodations. See also, Disability Services, Office of Student Life, 330 Memorial Union. Phone: 401-874-2098 (for TT access call R.I. Relay at 1-800-745-5555).

SCHEDULE (Spring 2008)

Class: TTh 11:00—12:15, 308 Washburn
Office Hours: Spring 2008 Teaching and Office Hours

You may also wish to use the Writing Center, part of the Academic Enhancement Center on the 4th floor of Roosevelt Hall. All writers, all disciplines, all levels, and all stages of writing are appropriate for help or drop-in tutorials. Call ahead if possible (874-4690) for and appointment. (more)

Week 1 (January 24)

The course: Goals, syllabus, grades, assignment schedule, procedures.

Scientific Writing: We relate science to scientific writing.

Technical Writing: Technical writing is defined and some examples given. (notes)

Assignment: Assignment 1—Scientific Journals in Your Field

Week 2 (January 29,31)

The Journal Article: The Scientific Method and Science Writing

• The Introduction: What belongs (or does it?) and why?
• Methods: Science, reproduceability, proprietary rights, ethics.
• Results: What was observed, how to report it.
• Discussion: Answering the question and reflecting on what it meant.

The Technical Writer's Audience: We categorize and visualize readers. (notes)

• Categories: Experts, technicians, managers, and general readers
• Characteristics: Education, experience, responsibility, demographics, cultural, personal.
• Attitudes and Expectations: What did they expect when they started to read?
• Outcome focus: How will the reader use the document? How will the document affect the reader?

The Process: What to Think About Before and As You Write. (notes)

• Audience
• Purpose
• Generating and Organizing Ideas
• Drafting
• Revising

Reading:

• Introduction to the Refereed Journal Article (a few thoughts)
• Scientific Research Articles Deconstructed (handouts).

Assignment: Assignment 2—Journal Article IMRAD Structure

Week 3 (February 5, 7)

Introduction to Style and Readability: 10 most common flaws and their corrections

• Use readable sentence patterns
• Make subject the agent of the action that is contained in the verb (passive voice, Is verbs, dummy subjects)
  • (Notes) (Exercises)
• Use personal pronouns
  • (Notes)
• Avoid difficult words (latinizations, redundancy)
  • (Notes) | (Exercises)
• Noun clusters
• Use wh-connectors (who, what, where, how, when, that, which) in wh-connections
  • (Notes)
• Avoid interruptions between subject and verb or verb and object
• Remove multiple conditions from left branch or middle positions
• Use a positive form of a statement (avoid negatives)
  • (Notes) | (Exercises)
• Adjust sentence length to audience (Readability Indices)

Reading:

• Handout—Readability Guidelines

Assignment: Assignment 3—Style and Readability

Week 4 (February 12, 14)

Nominalizations: Recognizing and revising to liberate trapped verbs and adjectives

• Recognizing nominalizations (endings -ance, -ion, -ment, -ness, -ence, -ity, etc.)
• Wordiness
• Prepositions
• Nominalizations as subjects
• Nominalizations and verbs
• Revising
• Useful nominalizations (gerunds, common words—assignments, reports, meetings, etc.)
  • (Notes) | (Exercises)

Job-Applications: Resume and application letter; what a search committee does.

Reading and Exercises:

• Handout—Nominalizations
• Job-Application Materials (handouts)

Assignment: Assignment 4—Resume and Job Application.
Note that this assignment is being given early to allow students who are actually applying for jobs, graduate school, internships, etc., to greatly refine their materials. Early drafts of resumes and letters may be reviewed with the instructor before the due date.

Week 5 (February 19, 21)

More style and readability: Keys to punctuation.

• The comma
• Punctuating clauses, with and without conjunctions; essential and non-essential clauses
• End punctuation, the semicolon, the colon
• Apostrophe, quotation marks, brackets, ellipsis

Reading and Exercises from The Little, Brown Handbook:

• Chapter 28 ("The comma"), exercise 13, pages 489-490.
• Chapter 29 ("The semicolon"), exercise 7, page 499.
• Chapter 30 ("The apostrophe"), exercise 6, page 507.
• Chapter 31 ("Quotation marks"), exercise 4, page 518.
• Chapter 32 ("Other Punctuation Marks"), exercise on chapters 27-32, page 532. (Copy, in MS Word)

Exercise: "The Homework Machine" (MSWord Document) (Note: this will complete the portfolio of exercises on style and readability (assignment 3)

Week 6 (February 26, 28)

Even more abuses:

• Split infinitives, dangling modifiers
• Misused words and illiteracies, singulars and plurals
• Tense in scientific writing
• Euphemisms, jargon, bureaucratese
• Numbers

Gender Issues: Problems and Solutions from The Handbook of Nonsexist Writing

Week 7 (March 4, 6)

Research Strategy: Process for developing evidence. (notes)

• Primary (originates from author) and secondary (originated from previous authors) sources.
• Narrowing by restricting subject, time, place, or events
• Schedule, deliverables, work plan / outline, primary and secondary source data, quality evaluation
• Primary sources
• Secondary sources
• Basic research tools

Definitions: describing new developments or technologies in discrete fields (notes)

• Parenthetical
• Sentence
• Extended
• Revising (checklist)

Reading:

• Researching Your Subject. (handouts)
• Definitions and Descriptions (handouts)

Assignment: Assignment 5—Defining Your Philosophy

Week 8 (March 11, 13)

Formal Reports: An overview

Feasibility Studies: What do we propose to do and what should we consider in doing it?

Strategic Planning: An Introduction.

Reading: handouts.

• Writing Formal Reports. (handouts on alternatives on planning, feasibility, example of refereed journal article)
• Strategic Planning

Assignment: Assignment 6—Strategic Plan

March 17-21 is Spring Break

Week 9 (March 25, 27)

Proposals: Selling your best ideas to the people who want to help you

• The Gladiator Pit: Identifying funding agencies
• Grantsmanship: The art of separating a funding agency from its money
• Orientation: Traditional granting versus outcome funding
• The Drill: The Components of successful (funded) proposals

Collaboration: Leadership skills for collaborative writing

Week 10 (April 1, 3)

Oral Presentations: The speaker as writer.

Powerpoint: Suggestions for effective presentations.

Reading:

• Tufte on Powerpoint (handout)

Week 11 (April 8, 10)

The Popular Press. On whales and rippling brooks: A discussion of variation in forms and styles for popular writing.

Purpose Analysis. Thinking after you've written. Analyzing what you said and what you wanted to say. A strategy for moving, adding, or deleting pieces of writing.

Assignment: Assignment 7—Popular Press

Week 12 (April 15, 17)

The technology of contemporary writing: Broadening your skill set beyond MSWord.

Writing for the web: What it takes to publish in cyberspace.

Blogging: Why scientists are beginning personal journals shared with the planet.

Reading:

• Jakob Nielson: Writing for the Web (handout)

Week 13 (April 22, 24)

Page Design: Helping the reader with effective page layout.

Reading:

• Designing the Document (handout)

Week 14 (April 29)

Evaluations: SET's and in-class discussion of what worked and didn't this semester.

(April 29 is the last day of classes.)

Wrap-up: SET's and final feedback

Assignment: Assignment 8—Informal Communication