TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

WHO AM I?

UNIT 1: Communicating with Employers

“Technical communication is information expressed in words (spoken and written) and images that allow individuals to perform work.”

When I looked at the syllabus and saw the first unit assignment was a cover letter, résumé and thank you letter I said to myself, “Wow, this will be a piece of cake.” However, as class progressed and we started getting into lecture mode I realized there were many important pieces to these documents that I was unaware off.

Analyzation of the audience and purpose of the documents played an important role in this assignment. I learned that in order to have an effective cover letter and resume, you have to tailor it to the position you want, which involves keeping the audience and purpose in mind.

After completing this unit I feel I have surpassed the learning outcome, for I now feel more confident walking into a job interview with my cover letter and résumé.

UNIT 2: Formal Proposals

Teams that work well collaboratively have a

mature process.

I was most hesitant about this unit considering I had never written a formal proposal before. In addition to that, I was also nervous about being grouped with complete strangers because I didn’t know if our personalities would clash or not.

I am happy to report they did not! I loved my group. We each had different strengths and played upon them when we worked together. The personality test we completed in class really worked, for without it the amount of success shown in each group wouldn’t have been evident.

After completing this unit I feel I have walked away learning how to better collaborate with individuals on a technical communication project.

UNIT 3: Usability

A usability tests a document to make sure it is adequately accessible or effective for the target audience.

When we figured out which communication problem we wanted to address in our proposal we had difficulty deciding how to effectively solve the problem. We wanted to create something easy to use and convenient for our target audience, which was Texas Tech students.

Then a light bulb went off as I was closing the Facebook application on my phone. “AN APP,” I exclaimed. Creating our app was enjoyable and we wish we could have made it a reality.

When we conducted our usability report there weren’t too many issues with our application. The only concern that was brought up was they had a hard time finding the menu button.

This unit helped me create effective technical materials that are suitable for a target audience and to conform those materials to the users personal knowledge.

UNIT 4: Instructional Documents

Prior to this assignment I had never written an instruction set before. The process was pretty straightforward, our group just had to remind ourselves to be as clear and precise as possible and not make the documents confusing.

We see instructions whenever we open a new product, but completing this assignment made me realize it is not as easy as it looks. There is a lot of planning and procedures that go into making an instruction set the best it can be.

After completing this unit I learned how to create an instructional document, and I enjoyed seeing the application screen-shots in our documents. In addition to that I learned how to choose technologies and tools appropriate for our communication project.

Instructions and procedures

should be clear and precise written for a particular

audience’s need.

UNIT 5: Presenting Proposed Actions

Visual aids should aid your presentation

OK, in all honesty this unit was terrifying for me because public speaking is not one of my strengths. It’s not that I am afraid of public speaking, it’s just that I don’t like to partake in things that I am not good at.

Overall, I am really glad this was a part of the course for it allowed me to strengthen an area that I am not so good at.

A key take away from this assignment is the quote in the speech bubble to the right. Throughout the years of making PowerPoint presentations I never stopped to think that visual ads should aid our presentation. I learned that it is important for you to be the presenter when you are presenting, not the other way around.

Conclusion

Overall, this course helped me gain a better understanding of the technical communication process.

A major take-away from this course is I learned you have to know your audience and purpose to create an effective

technical document. In addition to that, this course not only taught me how to write a cover letter, resume and thank you letter, it taught me how to be a professional communicator.

Each unit provided me with helpful knowledge that is applicable to any field of work I may embark on. After

completing this course, I feel more confident in communicating with professionals and more knowledge

about the technical communication process.