The survey reported in this document was undertaken to determine the experience and opinions concerning written technical communications of prominent and successful engineers in a wide variety of engineering fields. A questionnaire sent to 245 engineers asked 11 specific questions, 8 of which dealt with the respondents' own experiences and the…

Secondary level composition classes can benefit from the assignment of factual papers. While literary analysis falls prey to subjective evaluation, the organization and synthesis of factual information eludes judgemental decisions. In addition, this approach can be relevant to the society in which the student lives by providing a field of subject…

Writing courses for preprofessional students focus on the fundamentals of grammar, spelling, and syntax for students majoring in one of the professional fields and can provide students with subject matter for writing and an opportunity to examine and practice the stylistic conventions of their particular fields of interest. Both the English…

The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of instruction methods and choice of textbooks or teaching materials on the quality and style of writing found in college freshmen English examinations. Eighty male, native English-speaking students (40 taking courses in technical report writing at Oregon Technical Institute, 40 studying…

This technical memorandum presents an outline of how to apply psycholinguistic and intellective concepts in order to enhance the readability and comprehensibility of written materials. Guidelines for making the reader's task easier are provided, and some readability measurement procedures are also discussed. The contents include: "Increasing…

The concept of technical communication as a "profession" is examined. Discussion of the attributes of a technical communication profession centers around the services provided, the characteristics of the individual, and the characteristics of the group. Groups similar in origin and state of professionalization to technical communication…

Describes recent changes at Michigan Technological University from a heavily literature oriented freshman program to one that develops writing skills, especially technical and business English skills. (RB)

Guidelines for authors in writing for vocational education journals are presented and explained. The article stresses the importance of writing for the particular audience and of following the distinctive journal style, including when and how to use popular or technical style, with examples. (MF)

Describes the three-day program a technical writing teacher used to familiarize students with library services and materials in preparation for writing a research report. (RL)

In this program, engineering students who have proven to be excellent writers are trained to give individual help to other students. (BB)

Describes a business writing course outline, and suggests using student writing to teach students to write clearly and effectively in a business writing course. (MKM)

Normalized legal drafting, a mode of expressing ideas in legal documents so that the syntax that relates the constituent propositions is simplified and standardized, and the query method, a question-asking activity that teaches normalized drafting and provides practice, are examined. Some examples are presented. (JMD)

Urges teachers of technical writing and graduate students in English to get off campus and engage in giving businesses advice intended to solve problems in technical communication, editing technical communication publications, and researching and writing such publications. (GW)

Describes instructional techniques, materials, and activities used in an intensive technical writing course taught to personnel at an Air Force Base during three weekends. (GW)