05 Blueprinting
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Transcript 05 Blueprinting
Technical
Communication:
Blueprinting
Prof. Q
The Importance of Structure
Thinking is Random!!!!
What does the data suggest?
What should be emphasized?
How will the document be approached?
What belongs where?
What should you say in what order? Why?
How should you end?
Basic Structure
Introduction – Announces the topic and
provides an overview.
Body – Provides evidence, data, and
details.
Conclusion – Summarizes by taking a
position and making recommendations.
P. 84
Strategies for Outlining
List key topics
Set up a standard outline
Place key topics where they fit
Be consistent with outline notation
Refine your outline as you work
Sample Outline (Complex
Reports, Proposals)
I. INTRODUCTION
Background
Purpose of Report
Sources
Limitations of Report
Scope
II. DATA
III. CONCLUSION
Summary of Findings
Interpretation of Findings
Recommendations
More Strategies for Outlining
Chunking (brake down info in sections)
Sequencing
Spatial
Chronological
Problem-Solution
Cause and Effect
Paragraphing
Topic Sentence
Cohesiveness
Coherence
Clarifying Heads
Providing an Overview (Manuals, Long Documents)
Class Activity I
In your teams, answer the questions on
column A for two of the documents in
column B.
•How is the material
organized?
•Are paragraphs chunked
into discrete units?
•Are headings used? Are
they effective? Why?
•Does it follow a standard
sequence?
•Do all paragraphs have a
topic sentence and unity?
•A set of instructions
•A campaign report
•A detailed budget
breakdown
•An investigative report
•A proposal
About Style
Avoid ambiguous pronoun references.
Avoid ambiguous modifiers.
Bill
told Darius that he was working too hard.
Janice dislikes working with Magdalena
because she’s impatient.
Just place the dishes back in the cabinets
after 8 p.m.
Before she passed away, Jane told her
mother that she admired her.
About Style II
Use active voice whenever possible.
The
evaluation was performed by us.
Hard hats should be worn at all times.
Use passive voice selectively (don’t be
blunt).
You
did a poor job at editing the report.
Joe’s company fired him.
About Style III
Avoid Nominalization
My
recommendation is for a larger budget vs.
I recommend a larger budget.
Unstack Modifying Nouns
Be
sure to leave enough time for today’s
training session participant evaluation vs. Be
sure to leave enough time for participants to
evaluate today’s training session.
About Style IV
Avoid Jargon
Write Concisely
Eliminate Redundancy
Combine Related Ideas
Avoid Sexist, Racist, and Biased
Language
Avoiding Sexism
Use gender-neutral expressions
Don’t mention gender if it’s not relevant
Avoid sexist pronouns
Drop condescending endings
Use Ms.
Doing It Wrong!!!!
Doing It Wrong!!!
Class Activity
http://academicmaps.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-to-cope-and-overcome-irritated-and.html
http://blog.uta.edu/englishmatters/2012/10/01/customer-service/
Optional Homework
Read and Comment on Dr. Morris’ post
regarding today’s exercise:
http://blog.uta.edu/englishmatters/2012/10/
01/customer-service/
Using Visuals
To support text
On their own
Don’t include too much information
Provide brief descriptions
Label rows and columns
Line up data
Keep data brief
Credit your sources
Consider Audience
Types of Visuals
Tables (Numeric, Textual)
Graphs (Bar, Line)
Charts (Flow, Pie)
Illustrations (Full art)
Diagrams (How the parts fit)
Photographs and Video
Icons and Symbols
Further Reading:
Additional Strategies (p. 136)
Class Activity
As a team, find two websites that use
images to compliment text. Do these sites
use the visuals in a rhetorically effective
way? Why / Why not?
Document Design
Header includes Logo
Uses headings and bullets
Has ample margins
Bullet list breaks up paragraphs.
Samples on P. 142 - 143
Design
Elements
Grid Patterns
Margins
Paragraphs
Justification
White Space
Line Spacing
Indentation
Font Style
Font Size
Headings (Navigation)
Color, Shading,
Boldface, Italics,
Underlining
Bullet Lists and Numbers
Running Header and
Footer
TOCs, Indexes
Class Work
Fix the Document
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