ENGL 288: Introduction to Technical & Professional Communication 

University of Washington

Department of English

Class Time/Day: Tuesdays & Thursdays (2:30pm to 4:20pm)

Location: Savery Hall 155

Instructor: Dr Linford Lamptey @ lodlampt@uw.edu

Office Hours: 

Course Description

Introduction to Technical and Professional Communication (ENGL 288) is a study of the principles and practices of technical and professional writing. Students learn about the rhetoric, style, organization, and conventions of technical and professional writing by analyzing and writing documents in technical and professional genres, including technical research reports, proposals, memoranda, professional correspondence, and instructions. Throughout the course students learn to focus on the audience and purpose of technical and professional documents and how to make ethical choices related to technical and professional writing. ENGL 288 considers the whole writing process, including planning, drafting, reviewing, and revising technical and professional documents, and it offers an English Composition (C) or Writing (W) credit to reflect this emphasis on writing as a process.

Course Audience

ENGL 288 is designed to improve the writing skills, rhetorical awareness, and professional prospects of three groups of students:

• Science and engineering majors preparing for technology-focused careers
• Humanities majors interested in exploring career options in technical communication
• Students of any major who want to learn about technical and workplace writing

ENGL 288 does not have any formal prerequisites. However, registration is not open to Freshmen and the course content expects students to be familiar with forms of writing other than technical and professional writing, such as academic essay writing.

What is Technical and Professional Communication?

Technical and Professional Communication (TPC) is the study of how individuals, groups, and organizations use writing, design, and other modes of rhetoric to achieve specific purposes. Many of these purposes relate to technology or other specialized fields. For example, engineers and scientists are expected to develop proposals, status reports, lab reports, and presentations, all of which need to be highly functional documents.  Other technical writers create instruction manuals, online help pages, and product websites.

Across TPC fields, professionals communicate ideas that are detail-oriented, informative, and tailored to the audience. To do so effectively, they keep in mind standards of usability, accessibility, professionalism, and social justice ethics. They design for both users and subject matter experts in their respective styles, and explain new ideas and products to the general public.

Learning Objectives

Students in this course will learn about the principles of technical and professional writing and practice applying that knowledge by writing technical and professional documents. After completing this course, students will be able to:

• Develop professional and practical skills in TPC (e.g., skills in written and visual communication, editing, critical thinking, research, and document design) 
• Analyze audience needs in order to write effectively in a variety of professional, technical, and scientific contexts
• Understand how to critically analyze texts, synthesize sources from research, and incorporate data into assigned writing clearly, concisely, and logically
• Demonstrate ethical and social justice oriented communication practices 
• Understand TPC writing processes as fundamentally collaborative, iterative, and dialogic (via feedback and revision)

Course Content and Assignments

ENGL 288 focuses on analyzing, designing, and writing technical and professional documents. Emphasis is placed on the writer clearly defining the audience, clearly presenting the purpose, and professionally presenting each document. The course content and assignments are broken down in these modules*:

• Theories and Fundamentals of TPC 
• Rhetoric and Ethics in TPC 
• Professionalization
• Technical Reports and Research
• Procedural Discourse

Below is the break down of assignments and grades

Reading/Taking Notes (10%)

Weekly-- By the start of each class session, you will write and upload your notes on the readings for the day. Organize your notes to reflect the reading material Summary, Analysis, Application & making Connections. Ask questions as well. See above on submitting or not submitting notes. 

In-Class Activities (15%)

Weekly--Most of our class sessions will have hands-on activities that you will do in small groups, discuss with the rest of the class, and turn in on Canvas. These in-class activities are, as the name suggests, class activities. They may not be completed outside class.

Drafts (10%)

Final drafts are incomplete without prior drafts. This class values the revision process and you should demonstrate meaningful reflection and metacognition about the composing process, learning, and rhetorical decision-making. Drafts must show careful thought and engagement of ideas read and discussed. Drafts must be polished at 70% in comparison to the final. Bullet point and incomplete drafts may not accepted.

AI & Procedural Paper (20%) Due--November 18 @ 11:59pm                                                                                                                                                                                            

In Week 6 --You will interact with Copilot, the university’s approved AI assistant, and analyze how it communicates. This assignment asks you to document key moments with screenshots, evaluate its rhetorical strategies, and connect your analysis to concepts from Technical and Professional Communication. You will also write a reflection on Copilot’s strengths, weaknesses, and ethical considerations, offering advice for future users..

Team Charter (10%)  Due by close of class-- November 04 by end of class

From Week 5 to 7-- To help you work effectively as a team, you will develop a professional document to guide group activity

Recommendation Reports (20%) Due December 9 @ 11:59pm 

From Week 6 to 10--Your final project will be a recommendation report where you identify a shared community problem, research it thoroughly, and propose a solution. You will collaborate with Copilot as a writing partner, using its support while applying your own critical analysis and course concepts to shape the report.

Note: If you meet the assignment deadline, then you can redo the final assignment one more time when not happy with the grade. You will have to notify me of intent a week and no more after grades are released. In addition, you will have to discuss with me during office hours your plan in completing the rewrite/revision. You will revise your reflection to include new learnings rewriting the final paper. I'll grade it and I'll record the higher grade. This privilege does not apply to late assignments or after that date.

See the modules for more details on these assignment sequences, and see Grading Policy below for information on how these units and other aspects of the course are graded.                                                                                                 

Grading Policy

Assessment will mostly be based on general completion of the course assignments, your ability to apply the concepts we discuss in class, and engage with in the readings. You will also be assessed on overall progress and a thorough final report. Because writing is a process, your first writing assignment will give me (and you) insight into the skills you possess as an experienced writer (yes, you) and, thus, set a goal for yourself to develop TPC skills.

The starting grade in this course is a 2.0. This grade requires completion of all assignments while meeting the minimum requirements. For each assignment in which you demonstrate exceptional awareness of TPC concepts and skills beyond the minimum requirements and expectations, this percentage will increase. Conversely, for assignments that you fail to meet the minimum requirements and expectations, this percentage will decrease. Therefore, if the expectations for an assignment are unclear, please email me or bring this up during office hours so we can work together to ensure your success. There will be rubrics and points attached to each assignment to help you earn your desired grade.

Accumulated work will not be accepted more than two weeks past the due date and will not be graded during the final weeks or near finals. Please ensure your work is always up to date and submitted on time.

Late Work & Extensions

Assignments are due when noted in the assignment listing. Any work turned in after the due time, will be 10% every weekday late. So if something is due Tuesday at 11:30am and you turn it in Tuesday at 11:31pam, it will be 10% off. And if something is due Tuesday and you turn it in Thursday, it will be 30% off.  Late work for major assignments will hold at 50% off, so you can still earn some points for turning in work. But please note: some work cannot be turned in late, such as peer responses and homework assignments we're discussing in class (synchronously or asynchronously).

However, I do recognize that sometimes you may need an extension on an assignment. If you contact me at least 24 hours before the assignment is due, I can most likely (although not always) negotiate an extension with you. Definitely review your quarter schedule in all your classes and if you see a very busy week ahead, ask now for a possible extension.

If you miss peer review, your instructor will try to pair you with someone who also missed peer review. Know that this isn’t always possible, however. Students are encouraged to contact the Writing Centers at all stages of their paper drafts.

Your grade for the course overall is calculated based on the following mapping. You can view your calculated grade in Canvas.