Module Overview for the Week of February 18: Correspondence, Part 2

Overview

You will submit your second Major Writing project, Proposal Memo: Assignment. This week you will have time to finish your document and then complete several checks of your draft to ensure that you meet all of the requirements for the activity.

For this project, you choose a kind of writing from the table you created for the Analysis of Writing in Your Field project and write a memo that proposes examining that genre in your Recommendation Report.

Your memo will explain your choice, how it will help you in your career, and what you will include in your research as you work on your report. I will review and approve your proposal (or suggest revision). To understand more about the connections among the Major Projects, read How the Major Projects Connect.

The audience for this project is me, Traci. Your goal is to convince me that the kind of writing you have chosen will help you prepare for writing in the workplace when you graduate (or during future internships or jobs). Your memo should persuade me that you have made a good choice and that you are ready to begin more in-depth research.

Objectives for this Module

After completing this module, you will be able to

• Analyze the rhetorical situation and determine the appropriate audience or users of written communication, considering the needs of global audiences and people with disabilities. [CLO 1]
• Use conventions of various workplace genres, such as proposals, instructions, correspondence, reports, and slide decks, with understanding of how the genre conventions can be used as heuristics and as principles of arrangement. [CLO 4]
• Apply principles of effective visual design for print and electronic presentation, including hierarchical, chronological, and spatial arrangements. [CLO 6]
• Identify and apply the principles of effective style in the composing of usable, reader-centered written communications. [CLO 7]

Note that you can find the full text of the Course Learning Objectives on the Syllabus.

Readings for the Week of February 18

Please complete all readings before beginning the quizzes for this module. This material introduces concepts you will need to successfully apply the objectives stated above.

1. Markel & Selber, Ch. 16: “Writing Proposals”
2. Markel & Selber, Ch. 8: “Communicating Persuasively”
3. Markel & Selber, Ch. 12: “Creating Graphics”
   • Characteristics of an Effective Graphic (extra summary of list from the chapter)
4. Daily Discussion Posts (DDPs)
   • #WeekendWatch: Chunking Your Paragraphs into Readable Bites (02/16)
   • #TuesdayTutorial: Convincing a Reader to Read Your Text (available 02/19)
   • #WednesdayWrite: How to Generate Readability Statistics (available 02/20)
   • #ThursdayThought: Put CRAP in Your Document Design (available 02/21)
   • #FridayFact: Proposal Readers Don’t Want Suspense (available 02/22)

Activities for the Week of February 18

Daily Discussion Posts Activities
(85 minutes—5 posts @ ~15 minutes each plus self-assessment @ ~10 minutes)

• Contribute to any or all of the following Daily Discussion Posts (DDPs) in Canvas:
  • #WeekendWatch: Chunking Your Paragraphs into Readable Bites (02/16)
  • #TuesdayTutorial: Convincing a Reader to Read Your Text (available 02/19)
  • #WednesdayWrite: How to Generate Readability Statistics (available 02/20)
  • #ThursdayThought: Put CRAP in Your Document Design (available 02/21)
  • #FridayFact: Proposal Readers Don’t Want Suspense (available 02/22)
• Complete the DDP Self-Assessment for the Week of 02/18 Quiz to report the work you did and record your score (100 points). Be sure to read the self-assessment at the beginning of the week so that you understand the expectations.

Writing Activities
(~4 hours, including time to write)

• Complete the any or all of the following Major Writing Project activities (600 points total).
  • These activities contribute to the first Major Writing Project in the course, Proposal Memo: Assignment.
    • Proposal Memo: Check for a Strong Subject Line and Information-Rich Headings (25 points)
    • Proposal Memo: Check for Professional Design  (25 points)
    • Proposal Memo: Check for Content Completion (25 points)
    • Proposal Memo: Editing and Proofreading (25 points)
    • Proposal Memo: Final, Finished Draft (500 points)

• Complete the Writing Activities Self-Assessment for the Week of 02/18 quiz to report the work you did (other than the final, finished draft) and record your score. I will grade your Rough Draft submission, according to the expectations listed in the assignment.

Extra Activities
(1 hour—3 quizzes @ ~20 minutes each)

• Complete the Readings Quizzes.
  
  • These quizzes cover the readings shown above and are designed to assess your familiarity with concepts you will need to know to produce deliverables for this module. These quizzes are the following:
    • 16 Markel, Writing Proposals (100 points)
    • 08 Markel, Communicating Persuasively (100 points)
    • 12 Markel, Creating Graphics (100 points)
• Ask any questions about the course in the General Q and A Discussion (0 points) in Canvas.
• Check the General Q and A Discussion for answers before posting.
• Asking a question is not required. Use the Inbox tool in Canvas for questions about grades or personal information that should not be shared with the class.