COURSE SYLLABUS

COURSE TITLE: TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION TERM & YEAR: SPRING 2019-2020

COURSE & SECTION NUMBER: ENG 133 TIME & PLACE:

SEC 04 8:00 – 9:15 Taylor L17
SEC 05 9:30 – 10:45 Taylor L17

NUMBER OF CREDIT HOURS: 3-0-3

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Janelle Pulczinski OFFICE LOCATION/HOURS: 205 Taylor Hall

MWF 11 AM – 1 PM
TR 1 PM – 3 PM
By Appointment

OFFICE PHONE: 260.665.4339 EMAIL: pulczinskij@trine.edu

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Emphasizes written and oral communication in professional situations for technical
fields. Concentrates on project-oriented instruction and assessment, which includes creating technical
documents (email, reports, proposals, instructions, et. al.) and adapting them to specific audiences and tasks.

PREREQUISITES: “C” or better in ENG 103 English Composition I/ENG 104 Intensive English Composition I

REQUIRED TEXT: Last, Suzan. Technical Writing Essentials.

https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/technicalwriting/

Please download or print the book so you have access to it if/when internet is not available.

OTHER MATERIALS: Access to www.trineonline.edu (Moodle)

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Communicate effectively (clearly, precisely, concisely, and ethically) in a professional environment,
specifically:
a. Analyzing writing tasks and determining what the audience expects.
b. Selecting methods and genres (e.g. instructions, proposals, lab reports, professional
correspondence, and presentations) appropriate to the task at hand.
c. Collaborating effectively.
d. Applying research to tasks and using credible sources in a manner that avoids plagiarism and
conforms to a system of documentation.
e. Choosing appropriate graphics for a task and clearly and effectively integrating these graphics
with a text.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
QUIZZES
Quizzes will be given on the material covered in our textbooks. Quizzes must be completed on Moodle prior to
the beginning of class on the day they are due— quizzes will close thirty minutes prior to class on each day
they are due. Quizzes cannot be completed late for any reason, including illness.

INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS
 Professional Correspondence: A series of emails that demonstrate your ability to communicate with
your classmates about the upcoming projects.
 Audience Analysis: An analysis of ways in which different audiences demand a change in which the
same information is presented.
 Performance Review (Final): A written explanation on your final project detailing what you have
improved and what you have left unchanged in your initial proposal, accompanied by a group
discussion (linked to group projects grade)
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GROUP PROJECTS
 Group Charter: The “rules” and policies by which your group will operate during the semester
 Dots Project: A set of instructions for constructing a structure you design
 Case Study: An analysis of a problem in your field
 Pitch Presentation and Handout: A brief presentation of potential solutions that address a problem on
campus to a panel of professors, accompanied by a handout with graphics
 Final TELA Presentation: A presentation of your proposed solution to an audience of Trine faculty and
staff
 Performance Review (Midterm): A reflection of your group’s performance on the Proposal Project. The
grade for this assignment will be determined by averaging the grades your group members assign
you.
 Final TELA Website: Final multi-genre project.

Group work is a required part of this course. Though I will give you time in class to work on your projects, you
will be expected to meet outside of class. If you are consistently failing to meet your responsibilities in the
group, your groupmates will use your Group Charter to determine a) if you will remain in the group or b) how
your grade will be affected.

GRADING/EVALUATION BREAKDOWN
For this course, your grade is based on the total number of points that you earn on each of the following
assignments:
INDIVIDUAL PROJECTS POINTS
Quizzes (8x10 points) 80
Professional Correspondence 25
Audience Analysis 50
Performance Review (Final) 25
TOTAL 180

NOTE: You must receive at least a 60% (108 points) on your Individual Projects to pass this course.

MINOR GROUP PROJECTS POINTS

Group Charter 20
Dots Project 50
Case Study 30
TOTAL 100

MAJOR PROPOSAL PROJECT POINTS

Pitch Presentation and Handout 50
Draft of TELA Project 40
Performance Review (Midterm) 30
Final TELA Presentation 80
Final TELA Website 100
TOTAL 300

ATTENDANCE/PARTICIPATION
As in the workplace, regular, punctual attendance for this course is mandatory. Attendance will be taken at the
beginning of class. Please come on time (or email me prior to class to inform me of your absence/tardiness).

Excused absences include: (1) Illnesses with a doctor’s note, (2) Deaths in the immediate family, as spelled
out in the student handbook, or (3) University-sponsored activities such as class trips and athletic
competitions. In the case of field trips, athletic competitions, or other University activities, it is your
responsibility to discuss the event with me before the missed class period. You will be required to complete
any work due prior to the absence. Class or team lists distributed via e-mail do not excuse you from class, but
rather provide confirmation that the activity is indeed University-sponsored.

Continued absences from class may affect your mastery of the materials and ability to complete assignments
and learning goals. If you need to be absent for any reason, I would appreciate an email to inform me prior to
your absence if possible. If you know you will be absent for any portion of the class and/or tardy regularly,
please notify me within the first two days of the course. More than 3 excused absences may result in a lower
grade. Even when you are absent from class, you are still responsible for submitting any work on time and
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contributing to your group project.

Attendance and participation will be recorded on Moodle, and you can check your attendance record at any
time. If you are more than 10 minutes late to class without prior notification, I will count you absent. If you
come to class less than 10 minutes late, it is your responsibility to notify me within two weeks to change the
attendance marker on Moodle.

Work Days are incorporated into the class so you have time to meet the demands of the class and to make
myself available to answer your questions about the work in the course. To be considered in attendance, you
must stay for the entire course meeting time and be working productively on material for this course.

GRADING/EVALUATION
I use a standard grading system, as follows:
100% – 90% A
89.9% – 86.6% B+
86.5% – 80.0 % B
79.9% – 76.6 %C+
76.5 % – 70.0% C
69.9% – 66.6% D+
66.5% – 60.0% D
59.9 % – 0 F

ACADEMIC MISCONDUCT
The University prohibits all forms of academic misconduct. Academic misconduct refers to dishonesty in
examinations (cheating), presenting the ideas or the writing of someone else as one’s own (plagiarism) or
knowingly furnishing false information to the University by forgery, alteration, or misuse of University
documents, records, or identification. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, the following
examples: permitting another student to plagiarize or cheat from one’s own work, submitting an academic
exercise (written work, printing, design, computer program) that has been prepared totally or in part by
another, acquiring improper knowledge of the contents of an exam, using unauthorized material during an
exam, submitting the same paper in two different courses without knowledge and consent of professors, or
submitting a forged grade change slip or computer tampering. The faculty member has the authority to grant a
failing grade in cases of academic misconduct as well as referring the case to Student Life.

PLAGIARISM
Taking someone else’s words or ideas and using them as your own is a violation of academic honesty and
integrity. This serious offense will not be tolerated in this class. Plagiarism includes taking papers or other texts
from the internet and submitting them as your own, using articles or other researching resources without citing
them, turning in an assignment written by another person or by a paper writing “service,” copying another
person’s words without proper citation (i.e., without using quotation marks and telling the reader whom you are
quoting), and borrowing someone else’s specific ideas – even if you paraphrase – without letting the reader
know where you found those ideas.

If you are in doubt as to what constitutes plagiarism, feel free to bring questions to me. The Writing Center on
campus can also address these questions. We will discuss in detail how to document materials for this class.
ALWAYS CITE YOUR SOURCES.

You are expected to submit your own work and to identify any portion of work that has been borrowed from
others in any form. An ignorant act of plagiarism on final versions and minor projects, such as attributing or
citing inadequately, will be considered a failure to master an essential course skill and will result in an F for
that assignment. A deliberate act of plagiarism, such as having someone else do your work, or submitting
someone else’s work as your own (e.g., from the Internet, fraternity file, etc., including homework and in-class
exercises), will at least result in an F for that assignment and could result in an F for the course.

ELECTRONIC DEVICES
 Please turn off cell phones, laptop sound, and other electronic devices before class begins.
 Electronic devices including smart watches and cell phones should be used for accessing the day’s
readings or class-related tasks only. Use of electronic devices is prohibited during exams or quizzes
unless directly allowed by the instructor.

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LATE SUBMISSION OF WORK

 Quizzes: must be completed on Moodle before the beginning of class on the day they’re due. I will not
reopen them if you miss them, so don’t ask.
 Presentations: cannot be missed
 Examinations: cannot be missed
 Major Assignments: can be turned in up to 3 days late with a 10% per day penalty. If you will be
absent, you still must submit your work to Moodle by the due date and time.
.
EMAIL
 E-mail is formal communication between you and me. You are expected to send professional e-mails
to professors, including me. This means including a subject and a greeting and using complete
sentences and formal spelling.
 I check my email regularly and will do my best to respond within 24 hours. Please note that I do not
check work email between 10pm-7am, so if you have a time-sensitive question be sure to contact me
at a reasonable time.
 Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any concerns or questions you may have throughout the
course. If you have a question about a grade you receive on an exam or assignment, please notify me
in writing within 24 hours, and we will set up a time to discuss your concerns.

ACCESSIBILITY
If you have any physical, emotional, or learning differences that affect your performance in the class, please
notify me of your needs so we can make the appropriate accommodations. I highly recommend any students
with accommodations talk to me as soon as possible so I am aware of any arrangements that need to be
made for assignments and exams.

WRITING CENTER
The Trine Writing Center supports student writing by working on specific assignments and by improving the
writing skills of students. Students work with peer consultants during any stage of writing, whether it is coming
up with ideas, organizing those thoughts, or putting the final touches on an essay. It is highly suggested
that you make an appointment for a session with a Writing Center tutor. While drop-in appointments
are sometimes available, they are not guaranteed. To make an appointment in advance either stop in
or visit: https://trine.mywconline.com/

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Because this syllabus is your contract with the course and with me, I ask you to sign it in recognition of your
understanding of the information provided within:

I acknowledge that I have thoroughly read and understand this syllabus. I understand that I am responsible for
informing my instructor of any conflicts or questions I may have about the information provided throughout the
course. If I have any immediate questions about the syllabus, I will email the professor within 24 hours of
reading it.

Signed: __________________________________________________ Date: __________________________

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COURSE CALENDAR1
UNIT 1: Audience Analysis
Class Topic Quiz Assignment Due
01 7 Jan Tues Introduction to the course
02 9 Jan Thurs Go over the final TELA
assignment
03 14 Jan Tues TechCom Ch. 1 PPT; Go over Ch. 1
Professional Correspondence
Assignment; Boeing discussion:
Importance of TechCom
04 16 Jan Thurs Speed-dating; Go over DOTS Professional
assignment Correspondence
Assignment Due by 5:00
on Friday the 30th
05 21 Jan Tues Choose groups; Professional Ch. 2, Ch.7
style Ch. 2 PPT; Go over group
charter assignment
06 23 Jan Thurs Tutorial: Writing Directions; Ch. 4
Team Communication Ch. 4
PPT
07 28 Jan Tues DOTS workday: Project building Group charter due by
and drafting 11:59PM
08 30 Jan Thurs DOTS Usability Evaluations 4 hard copies of text
instructions (no images)
due
09 4 Feb Tues Research Methods Ch. 5 PPT; Ch. 5 Final DOTS with images
Go over the Audience Analysis due by noon; Post to
individual assignment Moodle: Your group’s
ideas for topics for the
final TELA project by
11:59PM
10 6 Feb Thurs Tutorial: Conducting research; Ch. 6
Writing Summaries and Quoting
Tutorial and Citing and
Documenting Ch. 6 PPT
11 11 Feb Tues Tutorial: Writing Summaries Audience Analysis
Cont.; Partial Workday (Note: by Assignment Due by
this time, groups should have 11:59PM
their final project topic chosen)
UNIT 2: Workplace Communication Evaluation
12 13 Feb Thurs Introduce Case Study
assignment; Tutorial: Analytical
Writing
13 18 Feb Tues Workday: Case Study
14 20 Feb Thurs Introduce Performance Review Case Study Assignment
assignment; Tutorial on Creating due by 11:59PM
Websites: Wix, Weebly
15 25 Feb Tues Performance Reviews in class
(groups 1-2)
16 27 Feb Thurs Performance Reviews in class
(groups 3-4)
SPRING BREAK 2 MAR – 6 MAR

1Subject to reasonable changes or additions. Any changes will be announced in class and put on Moodle as soon as is
possible.
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UNIT 3: Small-Group Communication: Oral, Visual, and Written Communication

Class Topic Quiz Assignment Due
17 10 Mar Tues Go over Pitch Assignment; Ch. 3
Document Design Ch. 3 PPT;
Tutorial: Visual Rhetoric, Making
effective graphs
18 12 Mar Thurs Workday
19 17 Mar Tues Presentations, Ch. 8 PPT: How Ch. 8
to pitch your project; How to
make an oral presentation (ignite
tutorial)
20 19 Mar Thurs Workday
21 24 Mar Tues Practice Ignite Presentations Draft Ignite Presentations
(instructor only) by 11:59PM
22 26 Mar Thurs Workday
23 31 Mar Tues Pitch Presentations (outside Final Ignite Presentations
evaluators) and handout due by noon
24 2 Apr Thurs Pitch Presentations (outside
evaluators)
UNIT 4: Multimedia TELA Project
25 7 Apr Tues Tutorial
26 9 Apr Thurs Workday
27 14 Apr Tues Tutorial: genre podcasts, videos, Draft of TELA due
etc.
28 16 Apr Thurs Tutorial: statement of need or
editorial, etc.; partial workday
29 21 Apr Tues Workday
30 23 Apr Thurs Website Presentations Final Website
28 Apr Tues 8 AM – 10 AM (04) Finals Week Performance Review
11 AM – 1 PM (05)
Updated by E. Chancellor, RRSOHS, Trine University

© 2016 TRINE University