This is the post for Friday, January 13, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Last Class Post: Today is the last day of class. I will post again when I have everything graded. Course grades are due by 11:59 PM on Tuesday, January 17.

Readings for Today

• Participation Assignment
• Completion Report Assignment
• Participation Log Assignment

Work for Today

• If you have taken advantage of the grace period, complete all of the chapter quizzes for the textbook by 11:59 PM tonight, Friday, January 13.

• Finish work on your final exam, the Completion Report, and submit your work by 11:59 PM on Saturday, January 14, following the submission instructions. There is no grace period for the final exam.

This is the post for Thursday, January 12, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Grace Period Reminders: You can use the grace period for your Genre Analysis Report and the chapter quizzes. However there is no grace period for the final exam (the completion report). Your final must be submitted by 11:59 PM on exam day (January 14).

Readings for Today

• Participation Assignment
• Completion Report Assignment
• Participation Log Assignment

Work for Today

• If you have taken advantage of the grace period, turn in your Genre Analysis Report by 11:59 PM tonight (January 12), following the submission instructions.

• Complete all of the chapter quizzes for the textbook by 11:59 PM tonight, January 12. If you need more time, take advantage of the grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, January 13.

• Begin working on the final exam, the Completion Report, by reading the assignment and related documents linked in the Readings for Today. Take time to ensure that your Participation Log is current, and begin looking for your best work to highlight in your report.

This is the post for Wednesday, January 11, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Participation Logs: Continue entering information in your log. You will use the details there as you work on your Completion Report (the final exam). I will post more information on the final tomorrow (Thursday).

Work for Today

• Submit your Genre Analysis Report by 11:59 PM today (January 11), following the submission instructions. If you need more time, you can take advantage of the grace period and turn in your report by 11:59 PM tomorrow (January 12).

• Be sure that you complete all the chapter quizzes for the course. The chapter quizzes for the textbook are all due by 11:59 PM on Thursday, January 12. If you need more time, take advantage of the grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, January 13.

This is the post for Tuesday, January 10, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Interviews: The interview for your report doesn’t have to be face-to-face. You can interview someone by email, Skype, or telephone. Whatever works for you!

• Reading Quizzes: The chapter quizzes for the textbook are all due by 11:59 PM on Thursday, January 12. If you need more time, take advantage of the grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, January 13.

Readings for Today

• Markel, Chapter 15, “Making Oral Presentations” (the last chapter of the text to read!)

Work for Today

• If you are using the grace period, be sure to upload your Progress Report in Quizzes in Canvas by 11:59 PM tonight (January 10).

• Share a draft of your Genre Analysis Report with your group in Piazza today, and provide feedback to your group members. Use the feedback that you receive today to revise your report so that you can submit it tomorrow (or Thursday if you are using the grace period).

This is the post for Monday, January 9, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Last Week: We’re down to the last week in the course, so there is a lot to finish. Pace yourself to make sure you finish in a timely way.

• Reading Quizzes: The chapter quizzes for the textbook are all due by 11:59 PM on Thursday, January 12. If you need more time, take advantage of the grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, January 13.

Readings for Today

• Markel, Chapter 12, “Writing Informational Reports” (for tips on progress reports)
• Example Progress Reports
  • TNG Progress Report
  • Shrek Progress Report
  • Progress of My Research on the Evacuation of the R.M.S. Titanic

Work for Today

• Write a progress report in your word processor that tells me

  • what you have completed for your Genre Analysis Report
  • what work you still have to do for your Genre Analysis Report
  • how you plan to complete the remaining work for your Genre Analysis Report

  Include any questions or concerns you have that may affect your progress. Use headings and design to make your report easy to read and understand. Aim for about 150 to 200 words. Specifically, go beyond simply saying, "I’m on track," to state exactly what is done and what is still on your to-do list. Upload your Progress Report in Quizzes in Canvas.

• Continue work on your Genre Analysis Report, which is due on Wednesday, January 11. Aim to have the basic information you need gathered before the weekend so you can begin concentrating on writing your report.

This is the post for Wednesday, January 4, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Progress on Quizzes: Quizzes for all the chapters in Markel are due on Thursday, January 12. Counting today, you have read ten of the fifteen chapters, or 66% of the chapters. Check that you have been keeping pace by taking the related quizzes.

Readings for Today

• Markel, Chapter 2, “Understanding Ethical and Legal Obligations” (issues to consider as you decide what to cover in your analysis)
• Markel, Chapter 9, “Writing Correspondence” (info on letters vs. memos vs. email)

Work for Today

• Post the draft of your Report Proposal to your writing group in Piazza. Follow the instructions on the peer feedback page to share details on your draft and to give feedback to the members of your group. The final draft of your proposal is due on Thursday. The grace period ends on Friday.

• As you read the chapters for today, think about how they connect. How do ethical and legal obligations influence whether you choose to write correspondence as a letter, a memo, or an email message? Post your thoughts and/or questions in Piazza.

• If you haven’t done so, complete your Participation Mid-Session Assessment today, following the instructions in Step 4 on the Participation Assignment page. You will not submit the self-assessment in Canvas. It is an important step however. Make sure that you are on track for the participation grade that you want to earn.

This is the post for Monday, January 2, 2017.

Notes for Today

• Happy New Year: I’ll keep the work light today since it’s officially a holiday.

• Hard Work Ahead: The next two assignments are connected. The Proposal tells me what you want to focus on for the Genre Analysis Report. The Genre Analysis Report is a longer research and analysis assignment, and it’s worth double.

• Choose Wisely: As you think about what to propose, focus on a kind of writing that you sincerely want to learn more about, something that will help you advance your career. The Analysis Report is your chance to dive into a kind of writing and find out exactly how it works. The best projects are always written by students who choose something they knew nothing about but that really mattered to them.

Readings for Today

• Report Proposal assignment
• Genre Analysis Report assignment
• Markel, Chapter 11, “Writing Proposals” (Look for pointers in the proposal assignment)

Work for Today

• If you took advantage of the grace period, submit your Analysis Project in Canvas by 11:59 PM today, following the submission instructions.

• Post any questions or observations about any of the chapter readings or the assignments in Piazza. Your posts will count as Class Discussion in your Participation Log.

• Get started working on your Report Proposal, which is due on Thursday. Aim to have a draft (including your resume) by the end of day on Tuesday. That schedule will allow you to post your draft for feedback from your Writing Group on Wednesday and then revise and turn in your work on Thursday.

• Want to work ahead? Read Markel, Chapter 10, “Writing Job-Application Materials” for tips on writing your resume, which you will include in your proposal.

This is the post for Friday, December 30, 2016.

Notes for Today

• Weekend Break: There will not be any posts for Saturday or Sunday. Daily posts will resume on Monday, January 2.

• Weekend Availability: I will check in during the weekend. I aim to reply within 24 hours to any questions in Piazza.

Readings for Today

• Markel, Chapter 6, “Writing for Your Readers” (help with phrasing, organization, paragraphing)
• Markel, Chapter 7, “Designing Print and Online Documents” (help with design and layout)

Work for Today

• Post any questions or observations about Chapters 4 and 5 in Piazza. Your posts will count as Class Discussion in your Participation Log.

• Use the feedback from your Writing Group in Piazza to revise your Analysis Project. Writing Group posts count as Small Group in your Log.

• Submit your Analysis Project in Canvas by 11:59 PM today, Friday, December 30, following the submission instructions. If you need extra time, take advantage of the grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, January 2. (I don’t count the weekend.)

• Want to work ahead? Read the Report Proposal assignment (Due Thursday) and the Genre Analysis Report assignment. There are related examples and textbook readings in the assignments.

This is the post for Thursday, December 29, 2016.

Notes for Today

• Discussion in Piazza: The conversations you are having in Piazza about your drafts and the assignments are great. You are doing the kind of participation that I am looking for in the course.

• Help with Ethics: If you need help with the Ethics column in your Analysis project, check out Chapter 2 of Markel.

• Feedback: I grade projects in the order they were submitted. I rely on the rubric and the commenting tools in Canvas, so you’ll find feedback there. If you’re unfamiliar with Canvas, use this support document to learn more about how feedback works: How do I view assignment feedback comments from my instructor using Crocodoc annotations?

Readings for Today

• Analysis of Writing in Your Field Assignment 
• Analysis of Writing in Your Field Rubric
• Example Analysis Projects:
  • Android Developer’s Example
  • Packaging Engineer’s Example
• Chapter 4 of Markel, “Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose” (help on these columns of your table)
• Chapter 5 of Markel, “Researching Your Subject” (help finding info on different kinds of writing)

Slideshow for Today

Get started on your project, by working through the slides in this Analysis Project Overview & Tips Slideshow:

Work for Today

• If you are using the grace period for the Bio project, turn in by 11:59 PM tonight, following the submission instructions. 

• Begin work on your Analysis Project by following the advice in the slideshow above. Your table needs a minimum of 10 kinds of writing, but you can add more if you have more to talk about. Also you can use different arrangements of the table or add columns that are appropriate for your field.

• To get ahead, share the draft of your Analysis Project with your writing group on Piazza. Use the Peer Feedback page to guide the questions you ask and the feedback that you give members of your group.

This is the post for Wednesday, December 28, 2016.

Notes for Today

• Reading the Textbook: I will begin suggesting when to read the chapters today. Because there are often delays in obtaining the textbook, all reading quizzes are due at the end of the term. To do well in the class however, reading the chapters as they relate to the activities in class will help you do better work.

• Discussing the Readings: As you read the textbook, look for places where you have questions, want more details, or would like to make a comment. You can add notes on things that you really like, things that your experience has confirmed in the past, as well as things you don’t like or have seen work differently in the workplace.

Readings for Today

• Professional Bio Submission
• Markel, Chapter 1, Intro to Technical Writing
• Markel, Chapter 3, Writing Collaboratively

Work for Today

• Post any questions or observations about Chapter 1 and 3 in Piazza. Your posts will count as Class Discussion in your Participation Log.

• Use the feedback from your Writing Group in Piazza to revise your Professional Bio.

• Submit your Bio in Canvas by 11:59 PM today, Wednesday, December 28, following the submission instructions. If you need extra time, take advantage of the 1-day grace period, which ends at 11:59 PM on Thursday, December 29.

• Want to work ahead? Read the Analysis of Writing in Your Field assignment (Due Friday) and its rubric.