English 424: Technical Writing--Reflecting on It All
Eenaiyah Aboubaker
Sending: Crafting Documents that Accurately Represent the Meaning
Recieving: Understanding the Context in which the Reader Creates Meaning
Technical Writing typically means writing that tries to communicate across an expertise "divide"--usually conceived with the speakers holding the upper hand in expertise, but not always in hierarchy/power (politics). Take, for example, the engineer trying to present something to managers--sometimes those managers were once in engineering positions themselves, and so the presentation is to an audience that shares some common ground. But the priorities of the managers--what counts to them--are now different even if they share the background. The "difference" between speaker and audience is even more distant than that when the managers were never engineers, and don't share the background. Key recent examples of failures of TC are when engineers and NASA managers have had to decide about Space Shuttles -- one blew up on take off, another on re-entry, and in both cases speakers failed to get the key points across. As we've read and discussed all semester, a key to success in such situations is an understanding of rhetoric, the theory of situational communication design.
In this class we've studied about technical writing and what it means to be a good writer. We've found that in order to be a good writer we have to have a clear understanding of rhetoric and be able to implement it in our writing. By understanding the rhetorical aspects and features of a given situation, we are better able to design documents for use in that situation. Starting out, we had only a vague understanding of what rhetoric is. We'd had the negative stereotypes about it and didn't realize that it could be practically applied to different situations in order to achieve a desired effect or reach a certain goal. To learn more about rhetoric, we read a number of excerpts and pieces by different writers who had experienced technical writing in the workplace and the need for a better understanding of rhetoric. We discussed the different things that we learned about rhetoric and then tried to implement them in projects so that we could witness the practical aspects of utilizing rhetoric.
These projects included a Team Introductory Memo and a Process Documentation memo, a Creative Rhetoric Scenario, an Airbag Case, as well as a Context and Genre Analysis. Each of these projects required that we took a look at and gained a better understanding of who our audience was for each document and what the document's intended purpose was. We had to make sure that our documents conveyed the message that we wanted them to and that they functioned properly in the context in which they would be used. We also had to have an understanding of the context that the reader exists in and the context in which the document would be read and interpreted. By being able to consider and utilize these contextual aspects surrounding our document, we were able to "find the available means of communication" or find the best way of expressing ourselves in the way that we wanted.
What I gained from this class was the understanding that a lot more goes into technical writing than most people realize and that to be a good technical writer you have to understand and be able to utilize rhetoric, use skills of invention, as well as create or state the implied meaning that may exist but are invisible in a given context. I also gained a better understanding of rhetoric and what it means to use it and have written about it, in-depth, in the following projects.
The Team Introduction Memo
(TIM) and Process Documentation Memo (PDM):
Connecting with the Reader
Contextualizing the TIM & PDM
Our first assignment in ENGL 424 was the Team Introduction Memo. The purpose of this memo was to introduce ourselves to the class and make an argument as to ways we could connect with the other members of the class using examples from our previous experience. We were also making a claim about what we had to contribute to the class. This assignment was more difficult than it would seem. It's not entirely straightforward in nature and challenges us to consider our reader and thinking about where the reader is coming from and how we can craft the document so that we connect with the reader. This project challenged us to use the existing knowledge we had about rhetoric and put it to use. While writing the Team Introduction Memo, we had to keep in mind not only our audience but the purpose for our writing as well and keep our writing appropriate to the context at hand. Many of us, initially, wrote documents of poor quality that didn't connect with the reader at all and were centered on talking about ourselves. After revising the memos several times and conducting several user tests, we slowly started to realize what it was that we were supposed to be doing in regards to the memo. By being able to construct a document that no only fulfilled its purpose, but also connected with the reader and kept them interested as well as making a claim and providing support for the claim, we were better able to realize what goes into the process of writing a successful rhetorical document.
The Process Documentation Memo, or PDM, was a memo that we wrote to document the process that our document went through noting the changes that it went through and the reasons for those changes. This was to show that there were contextual reasons to change our document but we had to be able to explain why these changes were necessary and, therefore, explain the rhetorical aspects of the Team Introduction Memo. Writing the PDM helped us bring to light many of the invisible aspects of the context of our writing. Aspects that we would normally overlook as being something ingrained in and invisible to us. These invisible features of a context are usually subconscious and not given much thought. But it is these features that are what really affects the way that a document functions in a given context. By being able to bring these features to light, we can more appropriately focus the purpose of the document until it functions very well.
Reflecting on the TIM & PDM
Looking back on this assignment, I can understand why it was a necessary and important assignment for us to do. It helped me realize just how complex a seemingly simple document is when you think about all the information that needs to be kept in mind during the process of writing it. Rhetoric involves being able to understand the context surrounding a document that will effect and influence the way that document is read and the way that the meaning comes across and is interpreted. I think that the mistake that most writers make when they write is that they don't keep their audience in mind. Another mistake that can be made is not having a clear understanding of the document's purpose or how it's intended to function after it's been finished. When I first attempted to write the Team Introduction Memo, I thought of only very superficial connections that I might have with my audience and wrote about myself as if I were giving a profile about myself. Only after many more tries was I able to understand the connection I needed to be making had to be stronger than just superficial or coincidental similarities. I was able to write about experiences that I've had in the past with writing or with working in groups and how that's affected my understanding of the writing process as a whole. These are things that most students, especially students majoring in writing, have experienced and it connects with their similar experiences, validating my claim. That is how I was able to use rhetoric in my Team Introduction Memo.
I think that writing the Process Documentation Memo helped me realize the different messages I seemed to be sending with my Team Introduction Memo. It helped me keep the reader in focus as well as the purpose for writing the document. It also helped me realize the different phases that documents go through before they are complete. A common misconception is that documents are "born" perfect and a lot of hard work and effort are overlooked on the part of the reader. The PDM also helped show the importance of keeping the reader in mind when creating the document. If the document is not designed for the reader, then who else would it be designed for? But most of all, the PDM also utilized the process of stating a claim and backing it up with examples to warrant the claim and, thus, prove the point.
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The Creative Rhetoric Scenario:
Analyzing the Audience
Contextualizing the Creative Rhetoric Scenario
The Creative Rhetoric Scenario was a project in which we were to create a fictitious dialogue between ourselves and a person very close to us. The reason for this is that, with people we are close to, we know them so well that we can predict their reactions in a certain situation. Not only that, but we were to attempt in the conversation to bring the conversation to the topic of rhetoric and then explain what rhetoric is to this person by giving them examples. The main problem would be the misconceptions that most people have about what rhetoric is. Most people wouldn't be willing to accept our definition of rhetoric unless we argue our point well. In this project we were to employ our skills of rhetoric, as well as our tacit knowledge about the person we were talking to, based on our understanding of them and the context in which our relationship with them lies and use all of this information to our advantage in the conversation.
Reflecting on the Creative Rhetoric Scenario
When reflecting on this project, I'm inclined to think that it's actually more difficult than I first thought it was. The hardest part for me was actually identifying the invisible features of the context between myself and my mother, the person I chose to use in my scenario. I am so used to the way things are in our context that they don't seem at all strange or out of place. But that is how these things become ingrained in people so that they become invisible. After identifying these things and being able to express them and explain them, the second hardest thing for me was actually explaining what rhetoric is. I think that took almost half of the, already lengthy, dialogue. This project illuminated a lot for me in terms of being conscious of the aspects of different contexts that we have with people and the ways that we interact with them. We use our knowledge of these things to reach a desired goal depending on what our goals are. If we want to persuade a friend of ours to buy us lunch, we may ask them in different ways depending on who that friend is. And that is the best thing that I've learned about rhetoric.
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The Airbag Letter Case:
Analyzing the Context
Contextualizing the Airbag Case
The Airbag Letter was probably the most interesting project assigned to us in that it seemed to be more of a problem solving exercise than anything else. We were given a scenario in which there was a need that had to be fulfilled in writing. Customers for a fictitious motor company were writing in with their concerns about airbag safety. Our job was to rewrite an existing letter to fulfill certain needs and requirements. Those needs were not explicitly stated for us but, rather, we were to asses the different needs that this document would fulfill and try to craft it in the best way possible to give the necessary information to the right people without being rude or without forgetting to cover the legal aspects that the letter should fulfill. We were to use our skills as technical writers to asses and to figure out what the needed components of the document were and to use our rhetorical skills to write the letter in such a way that would not be offensive to the many different types of customers that read the letter while still providing them with the information that they need.
Reflecting on the Airbag Case
This exercise seemed most relevant to the type of work that we will be doing as technical writers once we reach the job market. I also enjoyed writing the letter because it was relatively straightforward in that it was to contain certain features within a certain scope. The document was also to be designed for maximum usability on the part of the reader. I accomplished this by putting the most important information in the form of a bulleted list within the body of the document. We also user tested the documents on a couple separate occasions as a way to check our understanding of the assignment and to asses whether or not the document was working the way that it should. This was a good experience in that it simulated the types of processes a document might go through before it is published in the real world.
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The Context & Genre Analysis Project:
Writing Processes and Practices
Contextualizing the Context & Genre Analysis Project
The Context and Genre Analysis Project was a project where we had to think of a context that we once worked in, in which multiple documents were used to serve and fulfill different purposes. We had to think of the ways in which these documents were used and the processes that they went through to fulfill their purposes. We then had to show how these documents and processes were individual to the context in which they work and that the reason they work is because of the contextual factors affecting them. We had to write background information about the organization or context that we chose to write about that would help explain the document we would focus on and explain why a document like that would be needed. We then had to focus on one of the documents functioning in this context and explain that document in depth in regards to the function that it is serving and how it differs from other similar documents in its genre. We then had to explain why this particular document was needed and why a similar document from the genre couldnt be used as a substitute, explaining that the document works because of the contextual factors affecting it.
Reflecting on the Context & Genre Analysis Project:
This project was good exercise and helped us to put in perspective many aspects of document design in regards to creating documents to a specific purpose and function within an organization. This is a valuable skill to have and be able to implement in a business setting because a writer who has an understanding of these things will be able to design better functioning documents. The hard part of this project was focusing on just one document or process when there are so many that could be talked about from any one organization. But to write a useful analysis, it was important to look closely at just one document and the way that it functions. I think that I now have a better understanding of why documents work the way that they do by being able to keep in mind the contextual factors surrounding the document.
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