WRIT 3562W Sect.

011

Spring 2012

Instructor: Joseph Bartolotta Office Hours: TBA Email: barto137@umn.edu Class Time: 4:00-5:15 (M,W) Classrooms: STSS 432A (M); Kolthoff Hall 133 (W) Offices: 300 Nolte Center (Minneapolis)

Textbooks and Materials Description

Johnson-Sheehan, Richard. Technical Communication Today, 3rd Ed. New York: Longman, 2010.

Technical and professional writing (or workplace writing) is writing that communicates business, technical, or scientific information to readers or users who need this information to solve some problem or complete some task. Technical communication or workplace writing should be understood as persuasive texts that influence the decisions and actions of humans inside and outside of workplace settings. WRIT 3562W addresses the following writing practice and writing concepts:

Writing Practice:
Any study of workplace writing will require not only knowledge of the types of writing that happen in the workplace, but also practice with the skills needed in order to compose such texts. This writing-intensive course will introduce students to and allow them to practice the following: 1. The genres of workplace writing - Introducing the various written genres of workplace communication, such as memos, letters, proposals, instructions, and reports, as well as understanding the features that constitute these text types. 2. The skills of rhetorical and audience analysis - Analyzing writing situations, multiple purposes, and potential audiences in order to create texts that solve problems. 3. The spatial design of visual and verbal information - Understanding and working with the concepts of text arrangement and document design. 4. The features of "readable" written communication - Practicing the skills necessary to produce writing that is as grammatically-correct and as stylistically-appropriate as possible. Ultimately, the purpose of our study is to create workplace documents that respond to authentic workplace situations.

Writing Concepts:
More than just a simplistic instrument that translates knowledge to users, technical communication documents are cultural artifacts that reflect the social processes, economic realities, and political constraints of the context in which they were composed. Mundane technical communication documents, such as memos, letters, and email, are always embedded in complex social relations involving issues of knowledge, power, authority, and human activity. As such these documents require a careful consideration of their ethical implications. This course seeks to introduce students to these issues.

Assignments
In addition to major assignments, there will be shorter assignments. Shorter assignments serve different purposes: to plan or revise a major assignment, to practice strategies important to a major assignment, to examine issues relevant to a major assignment, or to explore communication. Therefore, failure to complete the smaller assignments on time may result in a failing grade for a major assignment. Shorter responses may not be graded if turned in late. All work completed outside of class should be typed. Make sure you have a backup copy of all work before you turn it in to be graded. Major assignments will be penalized one letter grade (e.g., from B to C) for each class period they are late. All major assignments must be completed for you to receive a passing grade at the end of the semester.

Class Attendance and Participation

Much of our work will be in groups. You are expected to fulfill your share of group work and to interact courteously with your peers at all times. Classes are run in a discussion/workshop format; therefore, regular attendance and active participation are important. One of the strongest components of any democracy is an informed citizenry that is ready to participate civically. Not being prepared for class preempts your ability to participate and may impede the inquiry of others, and I may excuse students who I discover to not be adequately prepared. Attendance to me is more than simply filling a seatit is a demonstration of a willingness to engage in the days topics. Missing more than one weeks worth of class may result in a lower grade. Missing four or more class sessions may result in an automatic failing grade.

Grading and Evaluation

Units and Grade Distribution
The course work is divided by 500 points. All assignments are not necessarily equal, although at the very least any assignment will account for at least 10% of your final grade. I also include a +/- 25 points for participation which I will issue at my discretion based on a students participation in class. While the attendance policy covers excessive absences, the participation points offer a punitive measure for those who are on the cusp of excessive absences
Assignment 1: Complaint and Rejection Letters Assignment 2: Technical Description Assignment 3: Planning Proposal/Resume Assignment 4: Instructions/Usability Report Assignment 5: Feasibility Study Assignment 6: Presentation Grammar Editing Activity Journals (Five at 10 points each) Participation 50 Points 50 Points 50 Points 75 Points 100 Points 75 Points 50 Points 50 Points +/- 25 Points

Grade Descriptions for Writing Assignments

A B C D F A AB+ Exemplary work; the qualities of a B paper, plus imagination and effective expression. Mature work; thorough analysis of the writing problem, appropriate and effective substance, good organization, and solid expression (style). Few problems in correctness. Competent, developing work; satisfactory analysis of the problem, organization, and expression, but nothing remarkably good or bad. Acceptable sentence structure; other problems in mechanics or usage may occur. Beginning-level work; presence of a defect in context, substance, organization, style, or delivery; inadequate treatment of the assignment. Possible sentence structure and other correctness errors. Basic-level work; lack of context, inadequate coverage of essential points, poor organization, 94-100% 90-93% 87-89% B BC+ 83-86% 80-82% 77-79% C CD+ 73-76% 70-72% 67-69% D DF 63-66% 60-62% 59% and below

What Do You Believe, Mr. Bartolotta?

I believe that the classroom is a sort of sacred space where we come together to ponder and discuss our world and our place in it. I believe that one of the most important parts of our understanding of our world and our place in it is by understanding how and why we communicate. Through this inquiry, we can come to realize our own strengths and weakness, and how messages, no matter how small, are transmitted to us. I find this type of inquiry extremely fun, but I also take it very seriously. These two sentiments may seem to conflict, but I believe that this inquiry, even at its most confusing or discouraging points, is still a celebration of the faculties of the human mind, and ultimately helps people appreciate themselves and others in a new dimension. By taking this class with me, you are agreeing to engage yourself and your world fully and critically. This class is a mature class for a mature audience and language may represent that. Academic work should not be divorced from the rest of our lives, and in this class, we will be examining materials from advertisements, film and other media that some may include language or themes some find offensive. The important idea to keep in mind when examining these materials is to be constantly thinking about how the material works rhetorically, and how the vocabulary or presentation of the material moves the audience to react to it. I believe in a democratic classroom where discussion is encouraged and everyone feels comfortable participating. Racism, misogyny, misandry, homophobia and other ideologies that are fueled by gross generalizations do not contribute harmoniously to my idea of a truly democratic classroom and will not be tolerated. I believe that labels we are assigned seldom touch the essence of our being, and that each individual, no matter what he or she has been labeled, is more complex than a single word can represent. Therefore, in our classroom, we will respect each others individual uniqueness and complexity by abstaining from generalizations.

Disability Accommodation
Any student with a documented disability condition (e.g., physical, learning, psychiatric, systemic, vision, hearing, etc.) who needs to arrange reasonable accommodations should contact the instructor and Disability Services (626-1333) at the beginning of the semester. 3

Academic Dishonesty
The University Student Conduct Code defines scholastic dishonesty as follows: Plagiarism, can result in a grade of F for the assignment, and may result in a grade of F for the course. Plagiarism can include submitting a paper: -written by means of inappropriate collaboration; -purchased, downloaded, or cut and pasted from the Internet; -or that fails to properly acknowledge its sources through standard citations. Understanding what constitutes plagiarism and academic dishonesty will help prevent you from committing these acts inadvertently and will strengthen your communication. Plagiarism is a serious legal and ethical breach, and it is treated as such by the university. If you have any questions about documentation, see me before you turn in an assignment.

Computer Ethics
All workshop and revised drafts of major assignments must be done on a word-processor. Because wordprocessors are powerful writing tools that can save time and greatly aid the processes of revising and editing, preliminary drafts are best done on a word-processor as well. Students can use the University's public computer labs, including the ones in Wilson, Walter, and McGrath Libraries. No fee is charged, except to use lab printers. Students may also use one of the 16 Macs in the Center for Writing in 15 Nicholson. University Technology Training Center http://uttc.umn.edu/training/ schedules regular training sessions. Students who think that computer access will present a serious difficulty should talk to me immediately. Save everything. I cannot stress this point enough: purchase a small thumb drive if you need toyou will not need to use more than a gigabyte for this classand backup your material there.

Student Writing Support

While I am always available for conferences about your writing, I know many students sometimes like to Scholastic Dishonesty means plagiarizing; cheating on assignments or examinations; engaging in unauthorized collaboration on academic work; taking, acquiring, or using test materials without faculty permission; submitting false or incomplete records of academic achievement; acting alone or in cooperation with another to falsify records or to obtain dishonestly grades, honors, awards, or professional endorsement; altering, forging, or misusing a University academic record; or fabricating or falsifying data, research procedures, or data analysis. (http://advisingtools.class.umn.edu/cgep/studentconduct.html) work with peers first. Students can get one-to-one-consultations on any course paper or writing project at Student Writing Support. Student Writing Support has several campus locations, including the main location in 15 Nicholson Hall. See http://writing.umn.edu/sws/ for details about locations, appointments, and online consultations.