Chapter 2T

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Chapter 2 Written Communications

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Chapter 2 Written Communications

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Examples !Business Correspondences !Reports !Technical Papers !Technical Specifications !PR Materials

Basics of Written Communication !What

! What's your motivation? ! What impact do you want to have on the

reader? ! What do you want the reader to do after

reading your work?

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Basics of Written Communication !Who?

! Who is your audience? ! How old are they? ! What relationship do you have with them?

(personal and business) ! What are their expectations?

Basics of Written Communication !How?

! What's the context? !Business, personal, public? !Part of a joint publication? !An isolated piece !A collection of separate pieces

! Where is it physically located? (medium)

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Basics of Written Communication What Makes Good Writing? ! All basics covered - spelling, grammar,

punctuation. ! A clear message

! Know exactly what you want to say ! A consistent style

! Consistent level of formality ! Consistent tone ! Consistent spelling

Basics of Written Communication ! Clear language

! Use simple terms wherever possible ! Use direct, active language

! "She was kicked by me" versus "I kicked her ! Language your reader(s) can relate to

! Coherent flow ! Linking between paragraphs ! Logical progression of content ! Lead the reader through the text ! Signpost - tell the reader what to expect

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Tips for Good Writing ! Short sentences

! Try reading your sentences out loud, with no pauses except where there are commas (short pause) and full-stops (longer pause).

! Short paragraphs (but not too short) ! In general, each paragraph should have one

point. ! Don't use newspapers as guidelines - their

"paragraphs" are often only sentences. ! Write a list of all the points you want to make. ! Put each point into a paragraph.

Tips for Good Writing ! Simple words, but not at the expense of meaning ! No acronyms

! Even if your readers will be able to work out the acronyms, they make reading harder.

! Only jargon appropriate for your audience ! If in doubt, explain your jargon, or use non-

technical terms instead ! What if you get stuck?

! Brainstorm ! Tell a friend ! Restate your aim ! Write an outline

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Spelling & Grammar !You are EXPECTED to know the difference

between: ! their, there, they're ! where, we're, wear, were ! here, hear ! its, its ! & many others homonyms

!Use the spell checker carefully!

Spelling & Grammar Common problems: ! Punctuation

! Capitals and full stops ! All sentences must start with a capital. ! All sentences should end with a full stop. ! You can not put a full stop in the place of a comma.

! Commas ! A good basic rule is to put a comma where you

would normally take a breath when you read the sentence out loud.

! If you are short of breath, be sparing!

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! Apostrophes ! Apostrophes denote possession except in a few cases

where they indicate a contraction. ! Basil's pocket calculator. ! James's lab coat. ! The dog wagged its tail. ! It's a bright, sunny day. ! Do not put an apostrophe at the end of every word

ending in 's.


! Semi-colons and Colons ! like commas, can be used to indicate the need for a

pause in the sentence. They can also be used to indicate that additional related information is to follow the preceding part of the sentence. In general, the two parts of the longer sentence could be stated as sentences in their own right.

! It is never necessary to use either a semi-colon or a colon although you may choose to use them to make your sentences more readable.

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! The Ampersand ! The ampersand (&), should rarely be used in

writing prose. It is effectively an abbreviation for the word 'and'. You should only use it where you are quoting text that contains the ampersand, e.g. a company name or similar.

! The ampersand is most generally associated with use for design purposes only.

Spelling & Grammar Common problems: ! Capital Letters

! The first letter of every sentence, or fragment of a sentence, should be a capital letter.

! Within sentences, capitals should only be used in proper nouns ! Capitals should also be used in official titles, for example the names of books or

films, but conjoining words, like 'and', 'the', 'of' or 'on', should never have a capital letter. For example: ! Monday ! July ! John F. Kennedy ! The Silence of the Lambs

! capitals should be used for abbreviations (see also the 'Language Tips' page). For example: ! British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) ! National Trust for Scotland (NTS)

! Where the abbreviation itself has become a recognised word, capital letters should not be used, as in the use of the word 'laser'.

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Spelling & Grammar Common problems: ! Capital Letters

! The first letter of every sentence, or fragment of a sentence, should be a capital letter.

! Within sentences, capitals should only be used in proper nouns ! Capitals should also be used in official titles, for example the names of books or

films, but conjoining words, like 'and', 'the', 'of' or 'on', should never have a capital letter. For example: ! Monday ! July ! John F. Kennedy ! The Silence of the Lambs

! capitals should be used for abbreviations (see also the 'Language Tips' page). For example: ! British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) ! National Trust for Scotland (NTS)

! Where the abbreviation itself has become a recognised word, capital letters should not be used, as in the use of the word 'laser'.

Spelling & Grammar Common problems: ! Numbers

! If the number is less than ten, the word should used. For example, write 'two' and not '2'.

! If the number is more than ten, numerical digits can be used. This can, however, look out of place in normal prose, particularly in fiction writing where numbers are spelled out until 100.

! For numbers up to 9999, commas should not be used to separate the first digit from the latter three. For numbers of 10,000 or higher, a comma should be used, as shown. This makes the number easier to read.

! In technical or academic writing, however, it is often important that numbers stand out and can be readily found. For this reason, it is entirely appropriate to express all numbers numerically in technical or academic reports or assignments.

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Technical & Research Writing Elements: ! Title Page ! Table of Contents ! Acknowledgements ! Introduction ! Body of Work ! Results ! Conclusion and Recommendations ! References ! Appendices

Essentials of Research !Finding Information !Verifying Information !Using Information

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Finding Information ! On the web

! Can you trust information on the web? ! Where to look? ! Depends on what you're looking for ! Some topics better covered than others ! Where to start? ! Yahoo/Google directories

! In the library ! In a Citation Index ! CDROM publication databases

Verifying Information ! On the web

! Who hosts the site? ! It is a personal page or an official one? ! What is the host's agenda? ! What is the author's agenda? ! Who links to the site?

! Other sources of information, like research papers and media reports ! Who quotes them?

! Check citation indices ! Look for other sources ! But be wary of multiple reports all stemming from the

same source

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Verifying Information !General Rules for information verification:

! Who said it? ! What is their motivation? ! Who else says it? ! Who else quotes it? ! No guarantees!

Using Information ! Quoting

! Name your source ! Make it clear when you are quoting ! Be precise

! If the quotation is edited, use an ellipsis (...)to indicate something was removed "Part of the quotation...another part

! If you edit, make sure you don't change the meaning! "I am...in favor of this decision

! Never quote a quotation - always check the original

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Using Information ! Referring to results or findings

! Acknowledge work which has has been done before ! Name all of the authors (possibly as "Author1 et al" in the

text, with the full reference in the references section) ! Be accurate

! Above all, be careful ! If you're not 100% sure of your source, use cautious

wording ! "Author1 reports that... ! "It has been reported that... ! "Some studies have found... ! "It has been suggested...

Using Information Plagiarism

"The (legitimate) use of another person's work, with an (illegitimate) lack of due acknowledgment of the source of that work

What does that actually mean? ! Using someone else's ideas or words in your own work and

not acknowledging whose ideas/words they are. ! You may NOT use anything from the web, newspapers,

journals, books or any other media unless you reference your sources in an appropriate manner.

! To avoid any problems you should reference correctly!

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Referencing !A way of telling your reader what you

have read (How informed are you?) ! Did the author read one or many sources? ! Did the author try to find primary sources or

did s/he rely only on secondary sources? ! Has the author read the essential sources

for the topic?

Referencing !A method of informing your reader where

you got your information (How widely did you research?) ! Did the author read a wide range of

sources to get a balanced view? ! Did the author try to verify what s/he read

by doing further research?

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Referencing !A system that allows the reader to verify

your statements by reading background information (Is your research credible?). ! Can the reader check the validity of the

author's statements by reading the same background info?

! Did the author present both sides of the argument, or only discussed one aspect?

Referencing Why do you need to reference? !Credibility, reliability, transparency:

readers can check your facts. !Expected aspect of university-standard

writing. !Avoids problems with plagiarism.

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Referencing When do you need to reference? 1. When using a direct quote

A direct quote is used when rephrasing the idea is not possible without altering an author's intended meaning.

Must use quotation marks " . 2. When paraphrasing someone else's idea

Paraphrasing is discussing what someone else has written in your own words

This does NOT mean you can just change a couple of words here and there and say it is in your own words.

3. When referring to a work that provides background information that is crucial to your work.

Assignment P-2 !Create a research plan:

1. Topic - describe the relevance 2. Tentative Title 3. Objectives of the research 4. Assumptions and hypothesis early

information about the topic 5. Possible sources of information

Chapter 2T

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