- Time Required
- 8–10 hours, including reading time
Welcome to Week Four of the course. At this point, you should have completed and submitted the first Major Project, Survey of Website Writing In Your Field Informal Report Assignment if you’re keeping up with the Target Due Dates. If you need details on catching up with that project, visit the assignment page.
The next projects in the course focus on writing clear and concise documents. Not only does this topic deal with using plain language when you describe technical topics, but it also considers how document design contributes to creating a reader-centered document.
Holidays & Events This Week
- Holy Cross Day, a Christian holiday, takes place on Thursday, September 14.
- Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated from September 15 to October 15.
- Rosh Hashanah, the celebration of the Jewish New Year, begins at sunset on September 15 and lasts through sundown on September 17.
- Vishwakarma Puja, a Hindu celebration of the God Vishwakarma, takes place on Sunday, September 17.
If any of these events interferes with your work in the class, send me a message with Canvas Inbox and let me know how you need me to adjust your due dates.
Objectives for this Module
By completing this week’s activities, you address the following course objectives:
- Analyze the context; determine appropriate audiences for or users of planned communications; assess needs of global audiences and people with disabilities. [CLO 2]
- Practice workplace genres related to specific fields (e.g., proposals, instructions, correspondence, reports, technical specifications and slide decks); illustrate how genre conventions can serve as heuristics and as principles of arrangement [CLO 3]
- Design and evaluate strategies for testing the usability and overall effectiveness of documents [CLO 5]
- Illustrate the ethical and human implications of research findings and workplace products on diverse audiences [CLO 6]
Activities to Complete
Due Dates
- All work is due by 11:59 PM on Friday, September 15.
- Grace Period:
- Ends at 11:59 PM on Wednesday, September 20 for your Check-in Survey.
- Ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, December 1 for the rest of the week’s work.
📚 To Read This Week
- Technical Writing Essentials
- Resource Module: Plain Language
- Resource Module: Document Design
- Resource Module: Intercultural Communication
📝 To Do This Week
- Begin work on the second Major Project, User Documentation Revision & Reflection Memo, which has a Target Due Date of Friday, September 29. Use these resources:
- User Documentation Revision & Memo Criteria
- User Documentation Revision & Memo Assignment
- User Documentation Revision & Reflection Memo Self-Check
- Scheduling note: September 29 is the first night of Sukkot. If you observe Sukkot, please shift your Target Due Date to a better day. I want you to be able to celebrate the holiday.
- Try out strategies from the course by submitting these activities:
💬 To Ask Questions (Optional)
- Optional ways to discuss class issues:
- Post public questions in the General Q&A Discussion in Canvas if it can be shared with the class.
- If you have a private question, send me a message with the Canvas Inbox.
- Ask a question or make a suggestion anonymously with the Anonymous Questions & Suggestions form.
- Post public questions in the General Q&A Discussion in Canvas if it can be shared with the class.
📓 To Check-In This Week
- Fill out the Week 4 Check-In Survey to let me know how you are doing in the course.
Photo Credit: Image from page 531 of "Cyclopedia of American horticulture" by Internet Archive Book Images on Flickr, used under public domain.