Task in Edu195A-Technical Writing (Midterm Task 1) : Submitted by Niña Amato
Task in Edu195A-Technical Writing (Midterm Task 1) : Submitted by Niña Amato
Task in Edu195A-Technical Writing (Midterm Task 1) : Submitted by Niña Amato
WRITING
(MIDTERM TASK 1)
1. Development
If you have been teaching your students to develop their essays using such traditional means as examples, anecdotes, testimony, data,
and research, then teaching technical writing will not be a strain. The same development techniques are applicable when the students
write memos, letters, and reports.
2. Grammar
Grammar is important in essays. It might be more important in technical writing. Whereas errors often can hide in longer essays, those
same errors loom large in one page memos or letters.
In a survey (Gerson) of over 700 technical writers (coast to coast) asked to list important aspects of correspondence, 98% ranked
correct grammar as an essential component of successful writing.
Grammar is not merely the concern of English teachers. Professional writers and business people perceive it as essential.
3. Organization
Essays employ topic sentences, transition between and within paragraphs, and a thesis statement. Technical writing usually does not.
In a memo, letter, or report, the thesis would be replaced by a subject line. The different aspects of organization help distinguish
technical writing from essays. Since paragraphs are shorter in technical writing (often between one to three sentences) than in many
essays, topic sentences are less important. Transitional words and phrases in an essay can be replaced by an enumerated list, by a list
of bullets, and/or by headings and subheadings.
4. Style
Of greater importance is the different style (word usage, sentence structure, and paragraph length) used in essays versus technical
writing. Essays rely on longer, more connotative words; longer, more complex syntax; longer, more detailed paragraphs. Technical
writing, in contrast, demands short, denotative words; short, simple sentences; short paragraphs with information clarified through
graphics (pie charts, line graphs, etc.). It has everything to do with audience and purpose.
The reader of technical writing does not have time, nor necessarily an interest in the subject matter. Envision this scenario. It is the
night before Christmas, your children are asleep, and you are trying to put together a Christmas present—a doll house, a train set, etc.
To assemble this present, you are sitting on the floor (you have been sitting there for two hours, as your aching back attests). You are
trying to read the complicated instructions which accompanied the toy (those instructions are a type of technical writing). You do not
enjoy the activity. In fact, you just want to end the task and go to sleep. That is a typical technical writing situation.
The same holds true when you read an instruction to install software, build a cabinet, lay tile, or any other task. People do not read
technical writing, such as instructions, for pleasure. The writing is a means to an end. Thus, to help people accomplish the task as
quickly and as efficiently as possible, the writing style should be concise—short words, short sentences, and short paragraphs.
5. Document Design
Document design refers to the physical layout of the correspondence. Essays consist of words, words, and more words, separated by
indentations to create paragraphs. Technical writing, in contrast, uses highlighting techniques and graphics for visual appeal to help
the reader access and understand the data.
Reference Material:
Gerson, S. (n.d.) Writing that works: A teacher’s guide to technical writing. Kansas Curriculum Center. Washburn University Topeka, KS
TECHNICAL WRITING VS. ESSAY
TECHNICAL WRITING
ESSAY
DIFFERENCES