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Overview for Week 15

ENGL 3301, Fall 2021

This is (almost) it

In the words made famous by Will Willis on The History Channel’s Forged in Fire:

via GIPHY

If you’ve got any late work that you need to send my way, NOW is the time. On the syllabus I noted that November 29 (that’s Monday of this week) is the last day I’ll accept late work from the previous weeks of the course. Please do so if you’re going to do so!

I have two things to talk about this week:

  1. Your second major project is due this Tuesday, November 30.
  2. The final writing task, a “Final Debrief” is due on Thursday, December 9.

For Tuesday: Turn in Project 2

Your second major project, a report EITHER on technical and professional communication in your field OR on tactical technical communication, is due. Blackboard says it’s due at 5:00 pm on Tuesday, November 30; all the normal grace period practices still apply.

You must also turn in a reflective note about your project. Just like last time this can be as part of the “comments” with your submission or as a second document you upload with the assignment. This is the same prompt from last time, so the moves should be familiar. Just like you did with your fact sheet, spend a little time to think holistically about everything that went into–and everything that was cut out of–your fact sheet. Reflect on and write about 4 things explicitly as they pertain to project 2:

Your reflection will be as long or as short as it needs to be; there is no prescribed length. What I am looking for is depth and complexity of thought in how you understand writing and how you understand you** as a writer. I will not “grade” your reflections in terms of spelling, grammar, etcetera. But your reflection is required as part of your submission.

For Thursday: Getting ready for the final reflection

Nothing is due on Thursday, December 2. Actually, Thursday is a reading day, which technically means you’re supposed to be studying for finals (which begin on Friday, Dec. 3) but realistically it may mean you’re taking a nice, long nap. (Back in the day when I was a college student we called it “Dead Day,” but you can go for whichever you like…)

You do not have a final exam in this course, but we do have one, last writing activity: a **Final Debrief, due on Thursday, December 9**.

This writing activity blurs the lines between portfolio and reflective essay. You need to do the following:

  1. Collect 6 or more pieces of evidence of your growth as a technical, professional writer this semester. Your evidence should be screenshots or excerpts of pieces of writing you’ve done for this course. You may draw from anything you’ve written or created for our class over the course of the semester: your major projects, rough drafts of projects, discussion forums you participated in with your group, emails and chats about the course, or assignments/documents/powerpoints/images and other “stuff” you made along the way. Anything that you think is good evidence of you as a tech/prof writer. As you are selecting evidence, you have two possible approaches to choose from, and either option is acceptable:
    • Option 1: How far I came. Select evidence for your portfolio that helps tell a story of your growth, development, or change as a writer over the last fifteen weeks.
    • Option 2: The best of my best. Select evidence for your portfolio that you feel represents your best, most representative work in the course.

  2. Open your debrief by reflecting on and articulating your definition of technical communication/writing and your role as a technical writer. How did you understand it at the beginning of the course? How do you understand it now? Can you develop a stabilized-for-now understanding of technical writing that will be useful for you going forward in the future? How might this (re)definition of technical writing be useful to you in the immediate present and in your future as a professional who will inevitably write? Sources are nice, but I really want to know what YOU have to say.

  3. In the body of your reflection, present and discuss “what you’ve learned.” This part is all about YOU. That is, reflect on your work in the course–what have been the most important concepts for you? What are the important strategies, techniques, or theories that you’ve learned, and how do you plan on taking those forward into the future? This is also the section where you’ll present your evidence–those screenshots, links, or short excerpts from previous writings, reflecting on them either as part of your progress narrative or your best works narrative. Be sure to explain why you chose them and what you are trying to show with those six pieces of evidence. Please label and caption all pictures, as good professional writers know they should!

  4. End it. Say whatever you want to close it out. The most important thing in this assignment is to be honest–with yourself, and with me.

Requirements

How long should it be? Long enough to get the job done. Seriously, there is no word count or min/max page length requirement. Just write.

Turn in your reflection in the medium and format that best supports your purpose for this assignment: this could be a memo or letter to me, a powerpoint, a short video, or something else I haven’t thought of. I will not be grading on style, grammar, spelling, or any of that stuff. Just try to communicate effectively with me! The only way to fail this assignment is to not do it. The most important part is that you reflect on what you’ve done, what it means, and how it’s going to play out in your future.

Looking ahead

Week 16 is just turning in that debrief. It’s worth 10% of your final grade, so don’t forget! If you have questions about the debrief assignment, please email me as soon as you can!