TCOM110
Concepts and Practice of Technical Communication
Get a thorough grounding in the broad discipline of technical communication as well as a framework for future courses. This course will familiarize you with the challenges that professional technical writers face and the standard practices they use. It will also give you an appreciation of your own competencies and deficiencies, and allow you to tailor the courses you take in the future accordingly.
Related program(s)
This course is available at the following time(s) and location(s):
| Section | Session(s) | Date/time* | Campus | Instructor(s) | Cost** | Registration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TCOM110-ON11371 | - | Sep 23–Nov 24, 2013 (Register by Sep 16, 2013) |
Online | Duncan Kent, Ariel Vergara |
$510 | Register |
| TCOM110-ON11411 | - | Jan 20–Mar 23, 2014 (Register by Jan 13, 2014) |
Online | Duncan Kent, Ariel Vergara |
$510 | Register |
| TCOM110-ON11412 | - | Apr 28–Jun 29, 2014 (Register by Apr 14, 2014) |
Online | Duncan Kent | $510 | Register |
* This course involves 20 instructional hours.
** Members of the Society for Technical Communication are eligible for a 10 percent discount. Please contact us to confirm your membership and register. You may not combine discounts.
What will I learn?
By the end of the course, you will be able to do the following:
- Identify the kinds of organizations that use technical communication as well as the documents they need
- Identify the attributes of good and bad technical documentation
- Describe the role and importance of planning, scheduling, testing, style guides, and editing in creating good documents
- Identify the primary methods of reproducing technical documents in different formats
- Describe the pros and cons of different formats for technical documents and how to appropriately use each one
- Describe the differences—particularly those related to legibility, reading speed, and search strategies—between print and online documents
- Use the standard document development methodology to write and produce effective user-focused technical documents
- Design print and online documents, both alone and collaboratively, that are legible and easy to use
- Write using plain English to organize and present information that communicates clearly
- Design and create a new media site (such as a website, blog, or wiki)
How will I learn?
- Group assignments
- Independent writing assignments
- Extra reading
- Online research and discussion groups
Who should take this course?
This course is open to anyone who wants to learn about technical writing or technical communication, and who wishes to study the best practices in the field.
How will I be evaluated?
Your grade will be based on the following:
- Assignments (75%)
- Participation (25%)
Textbooks and learning materials
All course materials including the course texts are available online.
You may purchase a printed copy of both texts from the SFU Bookstore:
- Kent, Duncan; Sharpening Your Writing Skills, 2002; Duncan Kent and Associates
- Kent, Duncan; Writing Revisable Manuals; 2006; Duncan Kent and Associates, ISBN: 978-084-0000262
Hardware and software requirements
In this course, you will work and communicate online. We will deliver the course materials and communication tools to you online in a program called WebCT. You will gain access to this program one week before the course begins.
Technical requirements:
- High-speed Internet access
- A web browser that supports tables, frames, Java, and Javascript
(The list of browsers supported by WebCT Vista 8.03 is available online.) - Adobe Acrobat Reader
Please submit all assignments in PC-compatible PDF format. Unfortunately, we cannot accept files that will open only on a Mac.