Report Writing for Mechanical Insulation Inspectors PPGS 1230

Upon successful completion of this course the student will be able to:

Unit 1: Writing in Plain English

• Define the term technical writing.
• List the main characteristics of technical writing.
• Describe the three primary components of plain English.
• List two advantages of using plain English.
• Discuss four strategies to develop a simple, readable style of plain English.
• Describe three strategies for overcoming writer’s block.

Unit 2: Style – Active Voice, Clarity and Punctuation

• Write sentences that illustrate the use of active voice.
• List three instances where it is preferable to use passive voice rather than active voice.
• Explain the reasons for using passive voice rather than active voice when writing technical reports.
• Write sentences that show the correct use of colons, dashes, and semicolons.
• Write clear, concise, complete sentences that adhere to the standard conventions of grammar, punctuation, and style.

Unit 3: Organization and Blueprints

• Explain the importance of developing a blueprint for technical writing.
• List three strategies for developing a good writing blueprint.
• Discuss three instances where a blueprint for writing may not be appropriate.
• Develop a blueprint for a short informal report.
• Write well developed, coherent, unified paragraphs that illustrate a variety of sentence arrangements, conciseness, and clarity.
• Unit 4: Layout – Headings, Bullets and Graphics
• List two advantages of using good layout techniques when writing technical documents.
• Describe three layout techniques that are commonly in technical writing.
• Layout documents that demonstrate the use of headings, subheadings, lists, and white space.
• Describe the characteristics of parallelism in technical writing.
• Write lists and sentences that demonstrate the use of parallel structure.
• Edit lists and sentences to correct faulty parallel structure.
• Use bulleted and numbered lists to present technical information.

Unit 5: Technical Description

• Describe the key points to consider when writing a technical description.
• Analyze the subject, audience, and purpose when writing a technical description.
• Write a 300 – 400 word technical description of an object.

Unit 6: Informal and QAC Reports

• Describe the four parts of an informal report.
• Analyze the subject, audience, and purpose when writing an informal report.
• Write a short informal report that contains well-constructed paragraphs, organized topics, and visual elements.
• Explain the importance of revising and proof reading documents.
• Write an informal report based on the QAC reporting requirements.

Unit 7: E-Mail and Memos

• Write memos that follow the generally accepted conventions of format and style.
• Write e-mail messages that follow the generally accepted conventions of format and style

Effective as of Spring/Summer 2012