Writing the First Draft of the Technical Definition:
In unit 1 of ENGL 301, I was asked to write three different definitions of a technical term for non-technical audiences without backgrounds in the professional field in which the term is used. Since it was my first time introducing a complex term from my professional discipline to non-technical audiences, it was very challenging to start the assignment at the beginning. However, I was able to make progress after reviewing chapter 17 of the course textbook and the guides in the instructor’s blog thoroughly. The term I chose was Automation Testing, which is a type of software testing technique from the computer science field. The most challenging part was that I had to make the technical contents understandable to audiences who do not have background in software engineering and testing. In this process, I could improve my technical writing skills a lot by learning how to write different definitions of a technical term as well as how to deliver written information to the audience in a professional tone and organized format.
The three different definitions that I wrote for the term were a parenthetical definition, a sentence definition, and an expanded definition. Although three different definition types were used to define the same technical term, each has a different structure and purpose. I learned that a parenthetical definition is used to clarify the meaning of the word in the sentence by providing a more familiar synonym or a short explanation in parentheses. In contrast, a sentence definition is used to provide further elaborations about the term in a short sentence. Although both a parenthetical and a sentence definition can provide a general understanding of a term, an expanded definition can be used to provide more in-depth information about a term if audiences require a deeper understanding of a term. I learned that various expanding methods can be used to expand a definition such as examples and required conditions. In the assignment, I used five different expanding methods: Operating Principle, Visuals, Comparison and Contrast, Examples, and Required Conditions. Although various expanding methods are available, some methods are better than others depending on the nature of a term. For example, I chose a method of Required Conditions to introduce some technical restrictions of Automation Testing because it is a software testing technique that adopts various other technologies that may introduce new bugs to it. Overall, I could improve my technical writing skills by delivering three different definitions of a complex technical term to non-technical audiences in the process of this assignment.
Peer Review Process:
After writing the first draft of the technical definition, I was given an opportunity to read and review my partner’s (Cheka Duheme) work. In the process, I learned how to carefully examine my partner’s writing and offer positive feedback with suggestions for improvement. Since her technical term, pluricentric, was from the linguistics field in which I do not have background, reading her definitions as a non-technical audience was especially valuable to reflect on how others could read my writing. Furthermore, I could reflect on my work from her writing techniques and strategies. For example, I tended to have lengthy sentences in my writing, but all the sentences in her writing were very clear and concise without unnecessary words. My partner also provided me with critical and informative feedback for revision such as helping me improve the flow of the paragraphs and correct a citation for the visual. Overall, I could learn how to provide and receive critical feedback on writing in the peer review process.
Revision Process:
After the peer review process, I was given a chance to revise and improve my definition assignment based on feedback from my partner. From the perspective of a non-technical reader, my partner could provide me with thorough and critical feedback that was very helpful to improve my work. Based on feedback, I could improve the flow of my writing by rewording some sentences as well as correcting issues with grammar such as punctuation and verb tense. Furthermore, I was able to correctly format and alphabetize citations in work cited. My partner also provided me with positive feedback on how I organized the structure of the document clearly. This positive but critical feedback helped me to figure out what is my strength and weakness in writing. Overall, the peer review and revision process helped me to improve my technical writing skills. I was able to learn how to examine team members’ writings and offer positive feedback to them. I could also learn how to revise my writing based on the received feedback. I look forward to the next assignments for more peer review opportunities to improve my technical writing skills.
Links to Assignments:
Peer Review Assignment: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl30199c2022w2/2023/02/12/assignment-1-3-peer-review-of-definitions/
Revised Definition Assignment: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl30199c2022w2/2023/02/15/assignment-1-3-revised-definition-of-automation-testing/