The English 301 Technical Writing course as been a fulfilling experience. The completion of this course required the submission of a number a different assignments. Based on the feedback I received from my peers as well as my instructor, I made the necessary adjustments in editing to provide you with a showcase of my ‘Best Work’.
On this page you will find the following assignments:
- Revised Definition Assignment
- Revised Peer Review of the Definition Assignment
- Revised Formal Report Proposal and Progress Report with Surveys
- Revised Proposal Memo
- Revised LinkedIn Best practices memo
- Revised Memo to Evan Crisp
- Revised Complaint letter and Response letter
- Revised Peer Review of a Formal Report
Definitions Assignment– Definitions explain terms or concepts that are specialized and may be unfamiliar to people who lack expertise in a particular field. In many cases, a term may have more than one meaning or different meanings in different fields. The rationale behind this assignment was to appreciate the importance and role of definitions in technical writing. It is necessary to understand the audience in which you are defining the term to. We were asked to choose a relatively complex term used in our particular profession, then choose a situation and audience of “non-technical readers” to define the term for. The goal was to write our term out in a parenthetical definition, a sentence definition, and an expanded definition. I chose the term Xerostomia which is the technical term for dry mouth. Please find this term explained in the three different definition forms below.
Peer Review of the Definition Assignment– The objective of the peer review is to carefully examine the overall document and consider our partners writing techniques and strategies. We were asked to analyze the material our partner produced and note specific highlights and weakness’, then offer our partner positive feedback as well as critical and constructive advice for editing the assignment before submission. I had the pleasure of reviewing my partner’s definitions of the term Ranula. Please find my detailed review below.
301 Miranda Hoang Peer Review of Definitions
Formal Report Proposal- For the Formal Report Proposal our task was to begin the Formal Report process with some brainstorming. We had to think about workplace experiences that we could investigate and analyze to recommend an action to a perceived problem or deficiency. When trying to settle on a topic for the proposal it was important to analyze a setting that is of most interest to me, then determine a specific deficiency to explore. It was important to remain objective and explore the topics without personal criticism. As a dental hygienist, I felt it would be important for me to focus my proposal on a perceived deficit within the dental office. Currently Spencer Dentistry is working towards implementing an in-office periodontal program for our patients. Therefore, I settled on proposing an office protocol for proper diagnosis of periodontal disease, including protocol for timely referrals of patients of Spencer Dentistry to a periodontal specialist. Please find my Formal Report Proposal below.
301 Miranda Hoang Formal Report Proposal
Formal Report Outline– Once my proposal was approved by the ENGL 301 Professor (Erika Paterson) the next step was to create an outline for the Formal Report. For the outline it was important to determine what information is important to include in the report. I started with a typical standard outline including an introduction, body, and conclusion, then place key topics and subtopics where they fit into the standard outline. For a formal outline it is necessary to use a alphanumeric notation consistently throughout the outline. The outline is an important step in the research process and it can be revised throughout until the report is complete. Below you will find a link to the Report outline.
301 Miranda Hoang Formal Report Outline
Progress Report and Survey Questions for the Formal Report– The next step in the Formal Report process was to write an email memo to our professor detailing the progress of our report. The progress report memo intended to detail the audience of the report, as well as the purpose of the report. It was important to explain the significance and why is this investigation important to the reader. The progress report entailed a detailed bullet list of the research plan identifying primary data sources and secondary research sources. For the purpose of my report I chose to create a survey to distribute to fellow dental hygienists in hopes it would support my proposal. My secondary research included literature review of recommendations for periodontal diagnosis and referral as published by: AAP, CDHO, RCDSO, CDHA, ODA. The final step for the progress report was to create a writing schedule for each task in the Formal Report process including dates and description of how we will prepare. Below is a link to the progress report and survey questions.
301 Miranda Hoang Progress Report and Survey Questions
LinkedIn Best Practices memo- The purpose of this assignment was to share our research findings in the form of a memo addressed to our writing team. The memo provided a list of the ten Best Practices for using LinkedIn as a professional networking site. This was an informative assignment allowing me to familiarize myself with this professional networking site. Although I have yet to create my own LinkedIn profile, I feel it is a useful tool in todays technical world. Please find a link to LinkedIn Best Practices below.
301 Miranda Hoang LinkedIn Best Practice
Memo to Evan Crisp– The purpose of this assignment was to write a memo to Evan Crisp, a student who is disappointed his email correspondence to his Professor has not been answered. Evan has come to his ENGL 301 classmates for advice. Our response to Evan was to include best practices in writing an email to a professor. We were to ensure our memo response demonstrated a YOU-attitude. The link below includes Evan Crisp’s email to his professor asking to be added to his class, and my advice in the form of an email memo follows.
301 Miranda Hoang Evan Crisp Memo
Complaint letter and Response letter– The purpose of this assignment was to write two different business letters. The first was a complaint letter regarding an error on a bill, rude service, a mistake in delivery, or poor quality of some product you have purchased. We were to draw on our own recent experience for this complaint. I chose to write a complaint letter to Boston Pizza management for poor service we encountered when dining at one of their establishments with my daughter’s soccer team. For the second letter we were to imagine ourselves on the opposite side of this situation, representing a company or an organization and having to respond to the letter of complaint with an adjustment letter that delivers bad news (a “no” to demands for compensation or compensation less than or different from what the complainant may expect). Below is a link to the business letters I wrote.
301 Miranda Hoang Business Letters
Peer Review of a Formal Report– This purpose of this assignment was to give our partner constructive and balanced feedback, employing YOU attitude throughout the review of their Formal Report. A balanced review will allow our partner to complete effective revisions for the next stage of the report project. Our review was to begin by identifying the report by name and indicate in specific terms the strengths of the draft and also the specific areas of the draft where revisions would lead to marked improvements in the final presentation copy. It is imperative that a YOU-attitude was employed throughout the review, and focus remained on conciseness and detail. Below is a link to my peer review of my partners Formal Report Draft.
301 Miranda Hoang Peer Review of Formal Report Draft
