As instructors of technical communication, I wonder if you’ve ever considered that our university doesn’t offer an undergraduate program specifically for technical communication. Our English department is growing and evolving and every year we gain new interest and new students, but like many collegiate institutions, we only offer undergraduates a taste of technical communication through Read More…
Tag: undergraduate
The Pedagogy of Plain Language
Plain language functions in two ways in the communications classroom: first, it is incumbent upon the instructor to use plain language while instructing students; second, that same instructor must teach their students the use of plain language.
What do we want? Microinternships!: Micro-internships as a possible solution to providing more students more opportunities.
Internships are an integral part of the undergraduate collegiate experience. Many programs require one, and students gain valuable skills from this hands-on learning. Students often seek multiple internship opportunities throughout their academic career, yet few are available for those in the first or second year of undergraduate studies. Micro-internships may be a solution., There is Read More…
Persuading the BizCom Student about Persuasion
The book Effective Teaching of Technical Communication: Theory, Practice, and Communication discusses the pedagogy of teaching technical communication at the university level; Chapter 16, “Hidden Arguments: Rhetoric and Persuasion in Diverse Forms of Technical Communication” by Jessica McCaughey and Brian Fitzpatrick, examines the persuasive arguments embedded within forms of “objective” technical writing. In this chapter, Read More…
Teaching Technical and Professional Communication Through Interstitial Design
By Amanda Beres The field of technical and professional communication is changing to include a focus on social justice issues. More interconnected, wide, and vast, employers are looking for people who can think on a global scale. Now more than ever, technical and professional communication focuses on user experience. In fact, it almost is a Read More…
An Invitation to Participate: What, How, and Why
Charles Dickens bored the crap out of me in high school. I missed a section of reading one night, and even though I knew our English teacher wouldn’t allow me to retake her reading quiz, I went to class the next day in fine spirits. Looking down at five open response questions I couldn’t answer, Read More…
Using Discourse Patterns to Stimulate Class Discussion and Participation.
-by Amanda Beres Image from https://dailyillini.com/opinions/2018/02/07/networking-skills-taught-class/ Participation has always been difficult to define within the classroom. There is a lack of participation theory, leading to confusion about what participation means. Are we grading participation for its importance, or out of convention? Should participation be graded at all? Not all students will understand what participation means Read More…
Creating opportunities for participation and student involvement.
– by Amanda Beres Cartoon of students engaging with each other in an online format. Student participation is a struggle to assess and the collegiate level is no different. Walking in the classroom that first day was nerve-wracking, especially in terms of student participation. Thankfully, my experience so far has been positive! My students are Read More…