For your #WednesdayWrite, I have a meme for you, on the right side of the post. I know that you are writing proposals and reports (instead of essays), but the idea probably still applies.
The difference between Facebook (or Instagram or any other social media tool) and an essay is audience and purpose. With social media, you’re trying to connect with a friend, another student, or a family member. You probably have very particular people in mind. With your writing for classes, that may not be the case.
So here’s your #WednesdayWrite challenge (and I hope you will have some fun with this): Find another meme or cartoon that has to do with writing or communicating, whether in school, in the workplace, or with family and friends. Share the link to your image, and explain what underlying writing principles it relies on. For the meme here, I explained that it relates to audience and purpose.
Two ground rules:
Make sure it is appropriate for the class. It needs to be clean and avoid any kind of discrimination.
Don’t repeat an image someone else has posted.
As I can, I will add the images so that they display on the post.
Today’s #TuesdayTutorial focuses on how organizing information in your professional writing by using lists. Bullet lists and numbered lists make related information easy to read through, and because they are offset from the margins, lists stand out and catch the reader’s eye. Consider this example of a text written in a paragraph:
How To Fill Out Form I-765
Type or print legibly in black ink. If extra space is needed to complete any item, attach a continuation sheet, write your name and Alien Registration Number (A-Number) (if any), at the top of each sheet of paper, indicate the Part and item number to which your answer refers, and date and sign each sheet. Answer all questions fully and accurately. State that an item is not applicable with “N/A.” If the answer is none, write “None.”
You can read through the information, but it could be better with the right formatting. Compare the paragraph version above to this revision, which uses numbered lists:
How To Fill Out Form I-765
Type or print legibly in black ink.
If extra space is needed to complete any item
Attach a continuation sheet
Write your name and Alien Registration Number (A-Number) (if any), at the top of each sheet of paper
Indicate the Part and item number to which your answer refers,
Date and sign each sheet.
Answer all questions fully and accurately. State that an item is not applicable with “N/A.” If the answer is none, write “None.”
It should be immediately obvious that the version with the lists is easier to read. It provides a structure that works well with the F-shaped reading pattern.
I have two resources that you should read to learn more about using lists:
Read all four pages of Grammar Girl’s Formatting Vertical Lists (or listen to the podcast). The information will tell you when to use a colon with a list, whether to capitalize list items. how to use other punctuation, and why list items should be parallel.
Read Bulleted & Numbered Lists from the University of Minnesota’s Accessible U. This resource will tell you how to format your lists so that they work well with screenreaders and other assistive technologies.
For your comment on this #TuesdayTutorial, find a short passage from your short proposal that would benefit from being revised as a list. Show us your before and after versions in a comment.
By 11:59PM on Monday, March 26, submit your project in the Short Proposal assignment in Canvas. If you are using the grace period, submit your project by 11:59PM on March 29.
By 11:59PM on Friday, March 23, write your 03/23 Labor Log in Canvas. The grace period for your log entry ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, April 2.
Lynda.com videos are free to Virginia Tech students with your VT.EDU login. Start at the VT.EDU login page to access these resources.
On Thursday, our #InfographicInspiration explained background information on Gantt Charts, identified their basic characteristics, and outlined their strengths. As you probably recall, Gantt charts are one of the ways that you can organize the schedule in your proposal to make the details clear and easy to follow.
Today’s #WeekendWatch is a Lynda.com video that explains, step-by-step, how to use Excel 2016 to Create Gantt charts (7m55s). Videos are also available for these versions of Excel:
After watching the video, you can check out the contents for Excel 2016: Charts in Depth, the course that the Gantt Charts video is part of. It includes details on several other kinds of charts and more advanced information on using Excel to create charts.
If you are curious about Gantt charts, you can also watch the Lynda.com video Learning Gantt Charts (1h17m).
Note: This video has closed captioning, so it does not need a transcript.
We’ve looked at some videos that describe how headings contribute to a document. We’ve had posts on Information-Rich Signposts and Reader-Friendly Proposals. Today’s #FridayFact continues that theme with a resource that demonstrate how specific, informative headings increase readability.
This resource from the University of Minnesota shows the differences between generic category headings, descriptive headings, and informative headings. As you examine the three kinds of headings, think about how you can apply this fact to your proposal.
Use the arrows in the upper left corner of the PDF toolbar to move from one page to another.
The Short Report Proposal you are working on requires a schedule for the work you propose. Document design and readability play a role in the way you communicate your schedule. Explaining the information in paragraph form makes it harder to read. Consider this example:
At least two weeks before the bowl game, decide on a time, date, and place for your party; and then send out party invitations. Two weeks before the party, focus on preparations that can be finished in advance and then pulled out quickly when game day comes. This preparation includes: Buy and/or make maroon and orange, football-themed party decorations; Find your coolers, buckets, or tubs for drinks, or borrow them from friends; Buy beverages (e.g., beer, Soda or other non-alcoholic drinks, water); Buy disposable plates, bowls, cups, cutlery, and napkins; Gather your serving platters and snack bowls; and Gather or buy bottle openers, if your beer is in bottles. If you can store ice in advance, buy ice, lots of it. The week before game day, plan food for the event, and then arrange for catering, or plan to shop for ingredients and make whatever food can be made in advance yourself. Also plan seating arrangements for the party, borrowing any additional chairs or tables needed, and gathering resources in your home. A few days before game day, do a deep clean of your party location, including cleaning furniture, ice chests, refrigerators, and so forth. The day before the game, spot clean any areas that need it. Put up decorations and set out containers (bowls, platters, ice chests, etc.) so that they are ready to fill. The day of the game, turn your attention to finishing food preparations. Be sure to keep food at a safe temperature before and during the party. If you did not buy ice in advance, buy it an hour before the party begins. Once your guests begin to arrive, relax and enjoy the game.
UGH! You don’t need to read through that oversized paragraph to recognize that the details of the schedule are hard to follow. Document design can improve that information. You can revise the information in many, more readable ways, such as
a table that lists dates and deliverables or tasks completed.
a calendar with deliverables and tasked completedwritten on the planned dates.
a workflow diagram that lists expected dates along with the tasks.
Another popular option is using a Gantt chart, and that is the topic of today’s #InfographicInspiration. The information below from Wrike Project Management Software gives you background and general information on how Gantt charts work. Come back on Saturday for the #WeekendWatch, which will demonstrate how to create a Gantt chart in Excel.
You have read several resources on writing business and technical writing proposals. For today’s #WednesdayWrite, you will compare what you have read to a new resource and draw conclusions about the characteristics of and strategies for writing a proposal. I have broken today’s activity in several steps to structure the task for you.
Step 1: Review Previous Readings on Proposals
By now, you have read or viewed several resources on writing proposals. Review these resources to remind yourself of the characteristics of and strategies for writing proposals:
Read the WikiBooks page on Proposals from the Professional and Technical Writing text. Like entries on Wikipedia, this page is an open, collaboratively-edited text. It has been written by professional writing teachers and students. Unlike a textbook from a publisher like Bedford/St. Martin’s, this online text may not be polished, accurate, or well supported by outside resources. You have to determine the trustworthiness of this kind of text.
Step 3: Compare the Resources on Proposals
Compare the characteristics of and strategies for writing proposals that are presented in your previous readings and the new WikiBooks page.
Look for places that the texts agree or seem similar.
Note the places that the texts disagree.
Identify any information that is only included on the WikiBooks page.
Record any information that is missing from the WikiBooks page.
Step 4: Evaluate the WikiBooks Page on Proposals
Use the information you gathered in Step 3 to evaluate the Proposals page on the WikiBooks site. Determine its strengths and weaknesses, and then decide whether it is a trustworthy resource. Recognize that it’s possible for the text to include both strong, accurate information and weak, inaccurate information.
Step 5: Write Your Comment & Reply to Your Classmates
Write a comment on today’s post that reviews the Proposals page on the WikiBooks site. Think of your comment as something similar to a comment on a Amazon product or a YouTube video (but leave out the mean, inflammatory stuff). Tell us what you think about the WikiBooks page on Proposals and provide some details to back up your evaluation.
This post summarizes some of the changes that I am going to make to the course, based on the comments people made on the #WednesdayWrite: Midterm Evaluation post before Spring Break. Because there were a lot of comments about the grading system, I am writing a separate post on the changes to the grading system, which will be up by the weekend.
Comments on Daily Discussion Posts
Problem
The way that the site was set up there was no way to see all the comments that a person had made. This arrangement made it hard for someone to tell which posts that they had commented on and which they had not.
Solution
I have changed the Discussion system that the site uses so that there are a few more tools available. This video provides an overview of the new capabilities:
How to Add a Gravatar (Optional)
Gravatars are the little images that show beside a person’s name in comments on the course website. The word Gravatar itself stands for Globally Recognized Avatar, as the official explanation states. If you do not have a Gravatar set, the site displays the sideways G image. You do not have to add a Gravatar for this course, but you may if you’d like.
To upload an image for your Gravatar, you have to create a WordPress.com account (or log into one if you already have one). You need to use your vt.edu email address in order to match the comments you have made on the course website. Once you have setup your account, you can follow the instructions for Uploading Your First Profile Image.
Break Genre Analysis Report into Milestones
Problem Several of you commented that you were a little overwhelmed by the size of the Genre Analysis Report. You requested more milestones to help break up the project.
Solution
It’s easy enough for me to give you more structure for the project. Realize too that you can create your own milestones as you work on your proposal. When you create your schedule in your Short Proposal, you are, in fact, creating your own milestones. I aim to have a checklist of milestones for you to incorporate into your proposals on Saturday.
Add Quizzes
Problem A few people asked about adding quizzes to the course. They suggested either dropping some projects or supplementing the projects with quizzes to help with comprehension.
Solution
This request is harder to deal with. First, the department requirements for the course call for writing several different kinds of projects. Even if I add quizzes, I can’t drop the projects.
Second, quizzes don’t work well as a way to learn writing. People learn to write by writing. If there were quizzes, they would not be the multiple choice kind. Instead, they would be short writing activities that asked you to apply the readings to some particular scenario.
Since we are at the point in the term where you work on the longer, harder projects, I hesitate to add any more writing activities. For now then, I will not add any quizzes.
Add Job Application Resources
Problem
One of you requested that I add information on writing job application materials to the course. In particular, the course could benefit from information on resumes, cover letters, personal statements, and other job application documents.
Solution
I’ll add some readings and information on job application materials to the Daily Discussion Posts later in the term. The reason I stopped covering the customary job application materials was that most students taking the course have already written what they need for an internship or job search. The large number of seniors in the course, for instance, created these materials months ago (and many already have jobs). By fitting the materials in as Daily Discussion Posts, those of you who want can benefit from the info, and those of you who already have your materials won’t be bothered with busywork.
Final Comments
I am still working on changes to the grading system in response to your comments on the midterm evaluation. I will have that information posted later this week.
Additionally, if you want to say anything more about how the course works, you can add a comment to this post. I am always eager to improve the course if I can.
Photo Credits: Mile Marker by Preservation Maryland, QUIZ: Who is your favorite Doctor from Doctor Who? by methodshop.com, and Application – pen by Flazingo Photos—all three on Flickr and used under a CC-BY-SA 2.0 license
Lynda.com videos are free to Virginia Tech students with your VT.EDU login. Start at the VT.EDU login page to access these resources.
For your #TuesdayTutorial, I’m sharing a series of videos on Lynda.com that goes over the different parts that make up a proposal. Altogether, the videos will take 28m53s of your time. The videos include information all of the following sections:
Overview of proposal parts (4m40s)
Prefatory parts (5m28s)
Body parts (5m7s)
Ending parts (4m31s)
Appended parts (4m22s)
Visuals (4m45s)
Log in to see the video series. A preview is below:
In the midterm evaluation, some class members said that the comments on the Daily Discussion Posts were often redundant. To help make the comments more original, I am adding some specific questions that you can respond to.
After watching the videos in the series, read through the comments to see what others have already said. It’s your responsibility to add something new to the discussion. Think of comments like class discussion: You wouldn’t repeat what others in class said in a classroom, so don’t repeat ideas in our online discussion. Aim to say something new.
Here are some discussion starters to inspire your comments:
What one piece of advice from the videos stood out to you as good (or bad) advice, and why?
If you have written or used a proposal in an internship or job, how did the proposal in the workplace compare to the advice in the videos?
Choose one of the sections of a proposal and a specific audience of readers. Tell us how you would customize the section for that specific audience. For example, what would you include in the prefatory parts if your readers were potential new clients who were unfamiliar with how your company works?
An elevator pitch is a short, oral kind of proposal. If you only had one to two minutes to persuade someone to follow your recommendation, which part of a proposal would you include, and why?
What parts would you leave out of your elevator pitch proposal, and why?
Visit the Search page on the U.S. Grants website. Find a grant that relates to your career field, and compare the information on the sections required for the grant to those described in the videos. If you notice differences, talk about why the changes are there. Be sure to include a link to the grant you are discussing.
In addition to these specific questions, feel free to comment on anything else you noticed about the videos, just as you have in the past. You can also reply directly to someone else’s comments.
I hope you had an enjoyable Spring Break. This week we pick back up on the Short Proposal project, which tells me what kind of writing you will focus on in your Genre Analysis Report.
Thank you for the midterm evaluation feedback. I have several aspects of the course that I am working to improve based on what you had to say. I will write an extra this week to update you on the changes and improvements.
Readings for the Week
This week’s readings are specific sections from your online textbooks that focus on the organization of your proposal. Even short proposals will include most of these sections. To prepare for the workplace, review all of the following information. Sections marked with an asterisk are required in your short proposal:
Practice the process of organizing a proposal with the Business Proposal Package Activities from City University of Hong Kong. Try all four of the Activities at the bottom of the page. They are drag-and-drop and multiple choice style activities, which work as a self-test on your understanding of proposal structure.
TIP: The last of the four activities asks you to organize text into the correct order. You need to scroll down to the bottom to see the chunks of text.
TIP: For an easy way to begin drafting your proposal, I recommend copying the required section details from the assignment and pasting it into your word processor. That process will give you the details you need to include within the document, so you an begin adding your specific information under each heading.
Be prepared to post the full draft of your proposal for feedback from your Writing Group on Wednesday, March 21.
If you have questions about the assignment, post them in the Short Proposal Questions Discussion in Canvas. If you have a question you want to ask privately, you can send me a private message in Canvas or email tengrrl@vt.edu.
Watch for daily discussion posts this week and add a comment if you like. We will have posts on these topics this week:
#TuesdayTutorial: What to Include in Your Proposal
#WednesdayWrite: Review a Wikibooks Page
#InfographicInspiration: Scheduling with a Gantt Chart
#FridayFact: Informative Headings Help Readers
#WeekendWatch: Creating a Gantt Chart
Course Improvements and Changes
By 11:59PM on Friday, March 16, write your 03/16 Labor Log in Canvas. Your log this week covers March 3 to March 16 (because of Spring Break). You were not required to do any work during Spring Break, but if you did, be sure to record it.. The grace period for your log entry ends at 11:59 PM on Monday, March 19.
For your #WednesdayWrite, I have a meme for you, on the right side of the post. I know that you are writing proposals and reports (instead of essays), but the idea probably still applies. 
I hope you had an enjoyable Spring Break. This week we pick back up on the 