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How to develop and write a case for technical writingCase of different sizes and shapes for teaching technical writing to engineers at Wayne State University have been developed. The case approach was adopted for some assignments because sophomores and juniors lacked technical expertise and professional knowledge of the engineering world. Cases were found to be good exercises, providing realistic practice in specific writing tasks or isolating particular skills in the composing process. A special kind of case which narrates the experiences of one technical person engaged in the problem-solving process in a professional rhetorical situation was developed. This type of long, realistic fiction is called a an "holistic" case. Rather than asking students to role-play a character, an holistic case realistically encompasses the whole of the technical writing process. It allows students to experience the total communication act in which the technical task and data are fully integrated into the rhetorical situation and gives an opportunity to perform in a realistic context, using skills and knowledge required in communication on the job. It is believed that the holistic case most fully exploits the advantages of the case method for students of professional communication.
Document ID
19820007092
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Couture, B.
(Wayne State Univ. Detroit, MI, United States)
Goldstein, J.
(Wayne State Univ. Detroit, MI, United States)
Date Acquired
August 10, 2013
Publication Date
December 1, 1981
Publication Information
Publication: NASA. Langley Research Center Tech. Commun., Pt. 1
Subject Category
Documentation And Information Science
Accession Number
82N14965
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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