Robert Wilhite’s Technical Writing 1

Syllabus

English 2413. Technical Writing at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Fall 2010

Welcome!

About your instructor, Robert Wilhite

Office: HSS 4.02.44. Hours: MW 2-3 TTh 11:30-12:30. Office: (210) 458-6593. Home: 490-9021. Note: I do not checkBlackboardfor messages. Call me or

Course Description in the 2010-2012 Undergraduate Catalog

“Prerequisite: Completion of the Core Curriculum requirement in rhetoric. Techniques of expository writing, particularly adapted to students in technological and scientific subjects. Exception: this section is intended for students interested in business. “

About the Course

This course is designed to be of use to students majoring in business, but it will illustrate the fundamentals of technical writing for students in all majors. This course is required for a BA in English with a Concentration in Professional Writing and for several Communications BA concentrations. It is an elective for many programs.

We will develop our ability to write formally, according to style guides. We'll write many business documents, basing them on a hypothetical firm of our choosing. We'll learn about various business vocabularies, including financial and marketing terminology. We’ll learn about graphic terminology, and we’ll become more tech-literate as we work with jpegs, mp3s, ppts, spreadsheets, blogs, and video.

We’ll present many of our ideas, and we'll create a portfolio online so that collaborators, potential employers, and graduate school admissions offices can see how well we can create documents.

Evaluation

The course grade derives from written assignments, presentations, quizzes, and attendance.

  • Writing: good grades come from being on-time and accomplishing assigned tasks correctly
  • Quizzes: on business terms and characteristics of common business documents
  • Attendance: every absence after three takes two points from the course grade

Scholastic Integrity

The first time I catch one, a dishonest scholar is given an immediate F for the course and is referred to the office of Student Judicial Affairs. No exceptions.

Required Materials

  • Alred et al, Handbook of Technical Writing, 9th ed.
  • You'll also need a flash drive, a printer, a video capture device (most cell phones work well), and a computer with a browser, an Office-type package, and video editing software

Students with Disabilities... MS 2.03.18. (210) 458-4157. Web: Utsa.edu/disability/students.htm

Tentative Schedule

Week 1 from 26 August

Th Getting started – courseoverview, policies, and introductions.

Week 2 from 30 August

TSchedule. Assignments.ppt. – general style sheet. Assigned: Business Overview and presentation. Imagining market needs, products, producers, marketing and capital.

ThGroups: enterprise plan – market needs, products, producers, marketing and capital. Formal writing. Review of sentence structure.

Week 3 from 6 September

TDue: Business Overview and presentation. Pre-presentation coaching: notes, body language and voice.

ThBusiness Overview presentations.

Week 4 from 13 September

TNo class. Enjoy!

ThTarget: return of Business Overviews. Common errors. Assigned: Vision, Mission and Values Statements and presentation. Last Business Overview presentations.

Week 5 from 20 September

TPost-presentation coaching and rubric.

ThDue: Vision, Mission and Values Statements and presentations. Assigned: Start-up Plan - Financial and Operating Readiness sections.

Week 6 From 27 September

TThe world of investment and fundamental financial terminology. Assigned: Quiz 1 (General Terms).

ThDue: Start-up Plan – Financial and Operating Readiness sections. Target: return of Vision, Mission and Values Statements. Common Errors. Assigned: Product Development Plan.

Week 7 from 4 October

TProcess thinking. Planning terminology: dependency charts. Example product development process(es) from class enterprizes. Stretch: groups - discussions of product development plans.

ThTarget: return of Start-up Plan – Financial and Operating Readiness sections. Common errors. Quiz 1 (General Terms).

Week 8 from 11 October

TDue: Product Development Plan. Assigned: Marketing Plan. Target: return of Quiz 1 (General Terms).

ThTarget: return of Product Development Plan. Assigned: Quiz 2 (Financial Terms). Working with Excel as a graphics engine: Gantt charts.

Week 9 from 18 October

TDue: Marketing Plan. Assigned: Integrated Start-up Plan with graphics and Gantt chart. Graphics: finding, saving, inserting, captions, Pic Cite.

ThQuiz 2 (Financial Terms)

Week 10 from 25 October

TDue: Integrated Start-Up Plan with graphics. Target: return of Marketing Plan. Assigned: Expense Budget. Excel functions.

ThTarget: return of Quiz 2 (Financial Terms). Assigned: Cash Position.

Week 11 from 1 November

TDue: Expense Budget. Assigned: Funding letter and Abbreviated Business Plan. Business correspondance basics – page elements.

ThDue: Cash Position. Target: 1) return of Integrated Start-up Plan with graphics, and 2) Expense Budget. More on business correspondance – application process, resumes, application letters, acceptance letters, refusals and resignations.

Week 12 from 8 November

TDue: Funding letter and Abbreviated Business Plan. Assigned: funding pitch (presentation 3). How to do an “elevator speech.” Target: return of Cash Position. Common errors.

ThDue: Funding pitches

Week 13 from 15 November

TMore funding pitches. Assigned: 1) ad video, 2) ad video rationale presentation, and 3) ad video script.

ThDue: ad video script. Visual literacy. Creating an online portfolio on free blog sites.

Week 14 from 22 November

TAssigned: final exam. Target: return of ad video scripts. Opportunity: early ad video rationale presentations and ad videos.

ThThanksgiving holiday. Don’t come to class.

Week 15 from

TDue: ad video rationale presentations and ad videos.

ThMore ad video rationales and ad videos

Important dates

  • Class survey online – 18 November through 5 December
  • Student Study Days - Monday and Tuesday, December 6-7, 2010. Classes do not meet.
  • Final Examination

-T 12:30 PM: Wednesday, 8 December, 10:30 AM until 1:00 PM

-Th 2 PM: Thursday, 9 December, 10:30 Am until 1:00 PM