Semester                                 Self-Assessment and Reflection Essay

Introduction

Through the Writing for Engineers course I was able to explore the world of technical writing in the engineering field. In the course, we recognized and analyzed genres in engineering, and employed rhetorical strategies appropriate to engineering, technical communication, and science to explore ideas and identify compositional strategies.

During the semester, I worked on various projects within the class to hone these skills. Broken down into 4 phases: Phase 1: Introduction to Technical Writing, Phase 2: The Technical Description Assignment, Phase 3: The Memo Assignment, and Phase 4: The Lab Report. 

In this reflection essay, I will overview some of my work from the semester and discuss my growth as a writer. I will look at some specific examples from my assignments that I believe best showcased my strengths throughout the semester.

Phase 1: Introduction to Technical Writing

This phase was the introductory phase, and aimed to provide the foundational understanding of technical writing as it pertains to writing for engineers. The work for this phase consisted of simple tasks meant to ensure we were grasping the fundamentals of technical writing, by not only explaining them but acting upon them.

Assignment #3 of this phase, “What is Technical Writing”, required students to read and respond to 3 readings pertaining to technical writing and expected them to “demonstrate a basic understanding of the importance and types of writing in engineering as discussed in these readings”.

The following is an excerpt from my conclusion section of this assignment:

“There are many key attributes to consider when performing technical writing to ensure that it is done successfully. This includes employing high levels of clarity, purposefulness, and audience awareness. Technical writers must form their documents with high levels of clarity, ensuring that they can convey their intended message concisely, and be able to do so to diverse audiences. These audiences can include peers, supervisors, clients, and even readers looking to gain information on a topic. Technical writers must be well aware of these standard practices, especially when it comes to specifications related to technical writing in different fields. Furthermore, technical writers must recognize the transactional nature of their writing. This is because technical writing aims to provide pertinent technical information with the intent that it can lead to the facilitation of specific actions or changes regarding the content of said information. “

I believe this excerpt displays not only my completion of what was required from the assignment but also an advanced understanding of what technical writing encompasses, through my discussion of all the different aspects of technical writing.

Phase 2: The Technical Description Assignment

In Phase 2, we learned how to craft detailed technical descriptions that would be appropriate for the engineering field. As the course overview stated, “Through practical exercises and exploration, students will learn how to effectively organize information, ensuring that their descriptions conform to engineering conventions.” This phase ensured students could understand the importance of writing with clarity and organization in order to convey technical details fitting for their audience.

The culmination of this phase was the assignment “Technical Description of an object”. In this assignment, students were tasked to create a technical description of a pasta/cereal box which included an introduction, a general description and specifications, (general dimensions, material), the design specifications (colors, imagery, graphics, logos, text and typography, barcodes and information panels), and a description of functionality.

The following is an excerpt from the dimensions section of my submission of the assignment:

“DIMENSIONS:

L=Length

W= Width

D= variable depth

– Panel A=Panel C=J=L

– L x W X d= 2.9 cm x 2cm x 0.5 mm

– Panel B =Panel D=K=M

– L x W= 2.9 cm x 2cm x 0.55 mm

– Panel E=Panel G

– L x W x d= 27.5 cm x 2.9 cm x 0.55 mm

– Panel F=Panel H

– L x W x d= 27.5 cm x 7.8 cm x 0.55 mm

– Panel I

– L x W x d= 27.5 cm x 1 cm x 0.55 mm

– Cut out in Panel F (2cm from each edge of panel F)”

My work in this section demonstrates my understanding of the specificity and clarity required for technical descriptions. I outlined each panel’s dimensions, always making sure to list the units of measurement (cm), and also ensured to create a key for easier scannability which made it easier to identify the lengths, widths, and depths.

I overall feel very pleased with my work on the technical description, and I believe the excerpt above showcases my strengths in this phase.

Phase 3: The Memo Assignment

In this phase, students worked on their skills in crafting memos, a crucial communicational tool for not only engineering but many professional contexts. The assignments varied in subject matter, audience, and purpose, to ensure students could perfect writing memos in varying contexts, by maintaining the important principles of writing effective memos. 

One of the key assignments in this phase was the creation of a memo titled “CCNY Campus-Related Topic Memo”. In this assignment, students had to identify a concern related to the campus at CCNY, and craft a memo that addressed their concerns to an appropriate department.

I chose to discuss my concerns over the shuttle service at CCNY, calling for an improved shuttle service scheduling for students. In my memo, I aimed to highlight the inconvenience caused by the lack of a structured timetable for the shuttle service. Here’s an excerpt from the memo:

“The absence of a scheduling system not only leads to inconvenience but also induces unnecessary stress among students, particularly those reliant solely on the shuttle service for transportation.”

This excerpt showcases my ability to utilize clear and precise language to articulate the problem effectively and efficiently. When writing memos, it is crucial to write a memo that is both as clear and concise as possible, as memos are meant to be short pieces of writing that aim to get to their point quickly. 

Phase 4: The Lab Report 

In Phase 4, students had to perform an act of writing very prevalent in the engineering field, which is the creation of a lab report. Students had to write a lab report based on their research, which consisted of scoring search engines based on their utility to high-quality academic research for students. The lab report aimed to target many skills for students including writing with clarity, finding and analyzing results, writing in a structured format, as well as their ability to navigate between their understanding of informational and digital literacy. 

I was very pleased with my final form of the lab report, as I believed that I showcased all of these skills in my writing.

My lab report, which compared Google, Google Scholar, and Gale Academic OneFile by scoring on the CRAAP test criteria (Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose), found that Google was the weakest search option for academic research. I believe I articulated this very clearly and appropriately, as can be seen in the following excerpt.

“These findings align with existing literature, which highlights that using Google for research, as the existing literature points out as being the main method for students, is not the best research strategy. There are many databases on the internet, such as Gale Academic OneFile, which may be free provided through institutions and are significantly stronger assets for research than a simple Google search.”

The excerpt shows how after reviewing my results, I was able to analyze them and discuss them in a very direct manner which would be appropriate for a wide range of academic audiences. My lab report showcases my great understanding of the skills needed for high-level technical writing including structural organization, my research proficiency, precision and clarity, and analysis and discussion.

Conclusion

Reflecting on my journey through this course, I can see significant growth in my technical writing abilities. From understanding the fundamental principles in Phase 1, all the way to mastering the detailed execution necessary for a lab report in Phase 4, my work in every phase showcases my strengths as a technical writer and my growth in the genre. I believe my work in this course has put me in a great position for my writing in the future, as I now have a greater understanding of how to communicate technical topics in a detailed yet concise manner to a wide range of audiences.