Foundations of
Technical Communication
Explore the discipline of technical writing, and enhance your writing techniques to meet the demands of today's business and industrial world. Familiarize yourself with the time-honoured skills and approaches needed to prepare effective, usable technical documentation - whether you are writing reports, proposals, computer manuals or other documents.
This course is divided into the following sections:
- About this Course
- This course explores the discipline of technical writing, and enhances your writing techniques to meet the demands of today's business and industrial world. It familiarizes you with the time-honoured skills and approaches needed to prepare effective, usable technical documentation - whether you are writing reports, proposals, computer manuals or other documents.
- About Technical Writing
- Technical writing began as a profession in the early 20th century. Its growth has been spurred on by specific events that increased the need to effectively communicate technical knowledge: events that both increased the need and enhanced the prestige of this profession.
- Understanding the Need
- The first step to successful writing is to understand what is needed. This includes understanding both the purpose of this publication and the audience we are trying to reach.
- Choose the Method
- Once we have an understanding of the purpose of our publication and the audience we are trying to reach, we are ready to choose the publication method we will use. Included in the publication method, is the form of the publication and the organization of its contents.
- Prepare the Draft
- In technical and business writing, our writing needs to be usable. This means it needs to be clear, concise, correct, and cohesive.
- Design the Presentation
- The presentation of information has value that extends well beyond aesthetics; it can determine whether the contents are accessible and understandable to our readers. A well-designed publication is easy to read, enables readers to quickly locate the information they need, reinforces the information structure, and instills a sense of confidence, about the information, in our readers.
- MRU Courses
- To receive your Technical Writing Certificate, complete 9 required courses (135 hours) plus 22 hours of optional courses within 2 years with a minimum grade of C in each required course. You may also register in individual courses provided you meet prerequisites.
- Exercises
- This section contains exercises designed to provide opportunity to practice the writing skills discussed in this course.
- Assignments
- The following four assignments will be used to determine a final mark for this course.
- Bibliography
- These publications contributed to the content of this course material.