Define a Term for Two Audiences

Your Task

Part of the Homework portion of your course grade

Write a definition for two different audiences for one of the terms you’ve chosen for your User Document assignment.

You work as a Consultant at Maroon + Orange Digital, a company that helps their clients improve their communication with customers, colleagues, and the public. See the full scenario for all the details on the writing situation.

Review Markel & Selber Ch 20 for help with this project.

Assignment Learning Objectives

After working on this assignment, you should be able to:

Write a clear short definition.
Adjust the level of detail for different audiences.
Avoid unnecessary jargon.
Use examples to help readers understand unfamiliar terms.

Success Tips

Reuse part or all of your definition in your User Document assignment.
Use short sentences, chunked paragraphs, and other plain language techniques.
Follow the tips on Tengrrl’s Do’s & Don’ts for Workplace Writing page.
Check the number of words in your answer by going to the Tools menu and then choosing the Word Count command. Canvas will display a box with details on your answer.

Optional AI Feedback

AI-eligible logo, indicating that you can use AI for this assignment. You can submit a draft to your preferred generative-AI tool (e.g., Copilot, HokieAI, ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude) for feedback. If you do, follow these guidelines:

Keep the original draft untouched.
Use a prompt that asks AI to review your draft and provide suggestions for improvement only. (No direct revisions)
Save the AI comments or revision advice. I may ask to see your AI feedback if I have a question.
Add a submission comment that identifies which AI tool(s) you used and how you used the tools (in other words, what did you ask AI to do?).

You cannot ask AI to write this activity for you.

How You’ll Be Graded

Canvas will automatically give you credit for your submission.

I spot-check the work to ensure the grade is accurate.

If you shouldn’t have earned credit, I change the grade. This situation usually happens when answers are missing or incomplete. If time allows, I may ask you to try again.