In what ways have my perceptions on what technical writing is and does evolved this semester?

Throughout the duration of this course, my understanding of technical writing has completely transformed. At the beginning of the course, I was a little confused about the goals of technical writing as well as the tools necessary to achieve those goals. I believe I now have a strong understanding. The goal of any technical writing piece is to provide the most information possible in a direct and comprehensible manner. I believe I understood this the most during the writing of my Technical Description, in which, I wrote about the F-22 Raptor fighter jet. This assignment required me to do a lot of research and convey the information I learned in the most productive manner. I could not simply rephrase everything I realized, I had to categorize the incredible amount of information available on the aircraft into smaller subsections of the object. I created subsections like History of the Craft, Exterior Design, and Interior Design. The need to create these subsections made me understand that technical writing involves a lot of picking and choosing when it comes to the level of detail. It also made me realize the types of formats necessary when conveying different types of information. 

To what extent and in what ways have I achieved (or not achieved) the course learning objectives? Use specific examples from our classwork to describe/explain what you did, how it helped you achieve the CLO (or not).

1. acknowledge your and others’ range of linguistic differences as resources, and draw on those resources to develop rhetorical sensibility

I have achieved this CLO by adjusting my vocabulary depending on my target audience. For example, my lab report on the topic of optimal cancer treatment involved a lot of technical jargon that only the intended audience(doctors and researchers) would understand. By adjusting my vocabulary, I made it easier for doctors to quickly digest the information I have to provide through my lab report.

2. enhance strategies for reading, drafting, revising, editing, and self-assessmen

I have achieved this CLO through hours of research, writing, and revising in each of my projects. One project that stands out to me as most relevant to this CLO is my technical description of the F-22 Raptor fighter jet. Not knowing much about the subject of the technical description, I was forced to research for hours different details about the aircraft. I had to find out about its history, its specifications, and its abilities. This required strenuous research with many sources. While writing the technical description, I was involved with a lot of revising and editing since I had to compress a lot of information into 7 pages. Before submission, I also practiced my self-assessment skills by grading my own work according to the given rubric. 

3. negotiate your own writing goals and audience expectations regarding conventions of genre, medium, and rhetorical situation

I have achieved this CLO by following the conventions of genre, medium, and rhetorical situation in each one of my projects. One example of this would be the PSA project. My PSA Project was about an organization named SolarOne. Since it is a PSA, the audience expects something short, informative, and easy to digest. To meet these expectations, I made the PSA in the format of a 45-second video with easy-to-read text and visuals, such as pictures and videos, for better engagement. 

4. develop and engage in the collaborative and social aspects of writing processes

I have achieved this CLO by practicing my ability to collaborate in a large group. One example of this would be my Engineering Proposal project. To create the proposal, I had to collaborate with my four other group members. I communicated with them over WhatsApp to make sure we meet the deadlines set by the professor. I was also welcoming toward any and all opinions they may have had and encouraged discussion of our project to further improve it. This project allowed me to become more comfortable with working in a big group and made me better understand what steps I need to take to make sure that the entire group is able to be successful. 

5. engage in genre analysis and multimodal composing to explore effective writing across disciplinary contexts and beyond

I have achieved this CLO by exploring different mediums through which information can be shared. Throughout the semester, I chose appropriate mediums to convey information. My Lab Report was presented in a PDF format, my Engineering Proposal was presented in a slideshow format, and my PSA Project was presented through a video. This variety allowed me to understand that there are many ways to present information that could be optimal at different times depending on the audience, the type of information, and the setting where the information would be presented.

6. formulate and articulate a stance through and in your writing

I have achieved this CLO by clearly stating my opinions and predictions in my Engineering Proposal. Though my proposal included a lot of evidence, it also included my opinion on what the future would look like. Through the report and slideshow presentation, I was able to articulate my predictions and use them as the basis of my proposal. One prediction I made was that food delivery drones would be much cheaper and more efficient at delivering food to customers than human delivery drivers. Though, upon articulating my prediction I provided evidence for it such as the cheap cost to buy drones, the high salaries that human delivery drivers require, and the problems that come with human error.

7. practice using various library resources, online databases, and the Internet to locate sources appropriate to your writing projects

I have achieved this CLO by utilizing different sources such as academic research, news sources, and government data. During the writing of my lab report, I cited a lot of research papers from other academics to set the context of my own lab report. I found these papers by utilizing different tools such as J-STAR, Google Scholar, and Google Search. 

8. strengthen your source use practices (including evaluating, integrating, quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, synthesizing, analyzing, and citing sources)

I have achieved this CLO by citing sources, creating reference pages, and integrating them into my writing. For every project, I used APA style formatting for all of my cited sources. I learned to cite quotes, evidence, images, and more. I learned to properly use in-text citations and also practiced citing sources on the Reference Page. My projects such as Lab Reports, Technical Descriptions, and Engineering Proposal Reports all have a properly formatted citations page along with in-text citations throughout the writing. 

What strategies, habits, or activities were effective and what you might do differently in the future?

Some strategies and habits I found to be effective were working on a project many days in advance, requesting feedback from my peers, and self-assessing each one of my projects according to the rubric. Not procrastinating on an assignment is crucial when it comes to creating quality work. Taking your time and making sure everything is right from the first time has helped me create well-formatted, mistake-free, writing. Not rushing also allows you to take a second to think about the bigger picture and what you want your writing piece to accomplish. Another habit that has helped me a lot is getting feedback from my peers. Everyone has a different point of view so seeing how your work sounds to other people is very helpful in improving and revising your work. Self-Assessing is also another strategy that you cannot skip. If a rubric is given, it’s always good to go over your work to make sure you are accomplishing what is required from the assignment.