四个国家，四种未来：Tom Klinkowstein的地平线项目工作坊

过去的一年半，Tom Klinkowstein在四个国家和一些设计学生举行了一些工作坊的活动，叫做地平线项目，这个项目采用了NASA科学家John Anderson的方法。工作坊在纽约进行了半天，在土耳其伊斯坦布尔进行了两天，在中国上海进行了三天，在印度孟买进行了五天。

Klinkowstein, Tom. uiGarden (2005). (Chinese) Articles>Education>Information Design>Case Studies

実務文章と楽しみ文章との違い

文章には大きく分けて、実務文章と楽しみの文章があります。実務文章と楽しみの文章とでは、目的や役割、読み手の姿勢が異なりますので、その書き方もおのずと異なります。この２つの文章を、あたかも同じであるかのようにとらえている本がありますが、そのような本はビジネスの現場では使えませんので注意してください。

Technical Writing World. (Japanese) Articles>Business Communication>Education>Writing

Ευχρηστία και διαδίκτυο

Η αναγκαιότητα χρήσης του Internet στις μέρες μας είναι προφανής ακόμα και για ανθρώπους που δεν έχουν άμεση ή έμμεση σχέση με το αντικείμενο των Ηλεκτρονικών Υπολογιστών. Ο πλούτος της παρεχόμενης πληροφορίας, η αμεσότητα ενημέρωσης οι προσφερόμενες υπηρεσίες και τα εργαλεία που συγκροτούν την έννοια που αποκαλούμε συνολικά διαδίκτυο, προκαλεί δέος. Πολλοί μάλιστα μιλούν για "τεχνολογικό αποκλεισμό" σε περίπτωση που κάποιος δεν προσπαθήσει να προσαρμοστεί και να ενσωματώσει τη νέα αυτή πραγματικότητα στο τρόπο ζωής και εργασίας του. Προφανώς λοιπόν το έργο που έχει να επιτελέσει η επιστήμη της Ευχρηστίας Λογισμικού σε αυτό το τομέα είναι σημαντικό και θα πρέπει να γίνει κατανοητή από όλους μια πιο ανθρωποκεντρική θεώρηση της διαδικασίας σχεδιασμού και ανάπτυξης λογισμικού για το διαδίκτυο. Το Internet έχει αρχίσει να ενηλικιώνεται και πλέον πρέπει να βελτιωθεί με τέτοιο τρόπο ώστε να προάγει μια ευρύτερη ουμανιστική αντίληψη της χρήσης του υπολογιστή με κέντρο τον άνθρωπο και μέσο τον υπολογιστή που έχει σαν πάγιο στόχο να εξυπηρετήσει αρτιότερα, ταχύτερα, πιο ευχάριστα και πιο πλήρως τις ανάγκες του.

University of Patras. (Greek) Articles>Education>Usability>Web Design

Review: ABCs of E-Learning: Reaping the Benefits and Avoiding the Pitfalls  

I'm always skeptical when I first read the praise for a book, especially when a full page of testimonials is published just inside the front cover, as well as on the back. However, by the time I finished reading Brooke Broadbent's ABCs of E-Learning, I could've added my blurb of congratulations on a job well done.

Porter, Lynnette R. Technical Communication Online (2002). Articles>Reviews>Education>Online

ABET Countdown

How could four letters strike such fear in the hearts of normally stalwart faculty? Why would administrators loathe the mere mention of the word 'accreditation'? The source of their fear and frustration is a cycle of evaluation, assessment, and reporting that constitutes a six-year accreditation period.

Williams, Julia M. IEEE PCS (2005). Articles>Education>Academic>Engineering

Academic Programs in Information Design: The Bentley College Approach    

The focus of Bentley College's information design programs is the user, addressing universal behaviors (human factors) and task-related behaviors (goal-driven needs). All too often in the past, professional communicators have rushed to design external information products (books, illustrations, online help systems, and the like) to support the information requirements of a system. Increasingly, however, solutions are found much deeper in the system design, a concept we call knowledge-infused design.

Gribbons, William M. Technical Communication Online (2000). Articles>Education>Information Design

Accessible Information Architecture: Participatory Curricular Design  

This presentation describes the process of engaged negotiation that re-engineered an inappropriate course design to one that met student needs.

Salvo, Michael J. CPTSC Proceedings (2003). Articles>Information Design>Instructional Design>Education

Accessible Web Pages: Advice for Educators

While educators have embraced the responsibility of providing equal access to educational resources to all students, Internet technology presents new challenges in this area. Students who have vision or hearing problems, who have difficulties with motor control, or who face other challenges, such as learning disabilities or language barriers, may find the Web difficult or impossible to explore.

Thombs, Margaret M. Syllabus (2002). Articles>Education>Accessibility>Online

Accommodating Various Abilities and Disabilities

Training sessions invariably have participants that come from a wide array of backgrounds and have various talents and levels of expertise. Some will be outspoken and others more withdrawn. Some will already have a background in accessible design, while others may have never heard of Web accessibility. Your participants will also have a wide range of technical expertise. You may have die-hard developers that program in text editors or an administrator who doesn't know what HTML stands for. It's important that you gain an understanding of what your training participants' talents and knowledge levels are, and then take advantage of their skills and abilities.

WebAIM. Articles>Education>Accessibility

Accountable Assessment in the Age of Digital Labor  

Entrepreneurship is THE economic mode of the digital age and entrepreneurship is defined by risk. Students who will become workers must be comfortable, even engaged by, risk-taking.

Glaros, Michelle. Kairos (2001). Articles>Education>Assessment>Online

Acrobat How-to: Enhancing Tutorials With Interactive Elements

A funny thing happens to students after class: They forget what they've learned. But adding interactivity can engage the reader. Try these simple methods.

McCue, Claudia. Creative Pro (2004). Articles>Education>Tutorials>Adobe Acrobat

Across the Great Divide: Embedding Technical Communication into an Engineering Curriculum

The University of Maine has begun a multi-year effort to redesign the way it teaches technical communication to students in the College of Engineering. At its core, this new design will mean replacing the existing requirement of a stand alone course in technical communication.

Adams, David. CPTSC Proceedings (2003). Articles>Education>Engineering

Actively Learning About Readers: Audience Modelling in Business Writing    

The advantages of peer feedback in business writing classes are clear. Students receive more appraisals of their writing than any single lecturer can ever realistically deliver. Also, the feedback comes from different perspectives and sometimes carries extra credibility coming from fellow students. Students gain from giving one another feedback as well. It is certainly learning by doing. Critiquing the work of colleagues raises awareness of the many ways to approach a given task and demands skills of analysis and attention to detail. Delivering feedback also requires tact and the ability to look for positives to commend as well as areas to improve. Reviewing written documents is a skill that students will certainly use in their future work lives. However, many of us have experienced problems with peer reviewing. Students hesitate to criticise their friends and prefer praising in a general way rather than suggesting improvements, which requires confidence.

Holst-Larkin, Jane. Business Communication Quarterly (2008). Articles>Education>Business Communication>Audience Analysis

Adding to Your Tool Box

You've applied and interviewed for a position, but you don't get it because you don't have a particular skill set that the employer needs. You want to learn a new tool, but the software is expensive and you can't afford to spend a lot of money on software at this time. Do either of these scenarios sound familiar to you? If they do, you have some options for learning new tools and can add to your portfolio at the same time.This article looks at the options that you have for learning software -- teaching yourself, taking classes, volunteering, and on-the-job training.

Puffer, Paula. STC Northeast Ohio (2001). Articles>Education>Software

Administering Teacher Technology Training  

The collection of materials included here are designed to assist those, who for the first time, find themselves administering and developing an ongoing program for training teachers to use technology in the composition classroom.

Carnegie, Teena A.M., Amy C. Kimme Hea, Melinda Turley and David Menchaca. Kairos (2003). Articles>Education>Technology>Writing

Administration of an Electronic Classroom  

The electronic classroom in the Oklahoma State University English Department is now a little over a year old. In the three semesters we've been using it, a number of administrative challenges have surfaced. Some of those challenges were easily overcome, but others have been consistent dilemmas with no clear solution in sight. The day-to-day administrative issues in operating the facility center on issues of access and maintenance and repair. This article will focus on some of the major challenges with the intention of pointing out potential problems that may occur as other writing programs establish similar electronic teaching facilities.

Turner, John R. STC Proceedings (1995). Articles>Education>Online

Administrative Decisions in Online Graduate Education  

Much of the discussion about online education appropriately focuses on pedagogy and technology. Any planning for online education must consider teaching methods and the technology to support them as well as the appropriateness of these methods and technology for the students and course materials. However, administrative decisions also influence the success of the course or degree program. This paper reviews these issues based on the experience of Texas Tech University in five years of offering an online Master of Arts in Technical Communication. Issues include course concept, costs, administrative authority within the university, and student selection and retention. The paper looks briefly at legal issues and at the concern about impersonality in online education.

Rude, Carolyn D. STC Proceedings (2003). Articles>Education>Graduate

After Enron: Integrating Ethics into the Professional Communication Curriculum    

Recent scandals in the business community have alerted professional writing teachers to the importance of highlighting ethics in the curriculum. From former experiences in teaching courses emphasizing ethics, the authors have adapted the curriculum to include a limited discussion of ethical approaches and terms and assigned group writing projects that consider the effects of business on the broader community. As a result of the integration of this ethical component into the entire course, students learn major ethical approaches; gain a vocabulary of ethical terms they can apply in the business world; interrogate the larger questions of business and its interactions with the local, national, and international community; and engage in the kind of dialectical discussions that require critical thinking.

Kienzler, Donna S. and Carol David. Journal of Business and Technical Communication (2003). Articles>Education>Ethics

An Alternative to a Master's Program    

Discussions concerning the structure of technical communication programs raise a multitude of questions: how do we include both theory and practice? How much theory is appropriate for a program in an applied area? What do our students need and want? How can we meet our students’ needs and ourown academic goals? These questions can become even more intense when they relate to master’s degree programs and the demanding students they attract. We are faced with decisions about what thenature of a master’s program in technical communication should be.

Allen, Nancy J. CPTSC Proceedings (2001). Articles>Education>Graduate

Analysis of Virtual Classroom Environments: Survey of Classroom Dynamics in RSVP Courses  

Students can earn Master's degrees or continuing education certificates by at tending courses offered live satellite or compressed video or on videotape for delayed viewing. This panel discussion evaluates the effects of the various forms of technology and modes of interaction on the classroom dynamics in a live satellite class offered by Rensselaer Polytechnic institute (RPI).

Brunner, Kirsten, Roger A. Grice, David F: Hans, Teresa L. Hood and Leo J. Smith. STC Proceedings (1997). Articles>Education>Online

Anthropology and International Education via the Internet  

Tomoko Hamada and Kathleen Scott describe a collaborative classroom experience between students at the College of William and Mary and at Keio University, looking at the pros and cons of this international experiment. Their research helps to assess that collaboration, and draw conclusions that can be useful in understanding how people use technology to communicate, and how cultural differences affect that communication.

Hamada, Tomoko and Kathleen Scott. Journal of Electronic Publishing (2000). Articles>Education>Online>International

Applying Audience Invoked Models to Instructional Design Methods

You should know what appeals to and motivates your audience before you approach them with a suggestion for action. The same point is also true for writers. The writer must have a good idea of who the audience is and what motivates them in order to create arguments that will convince his or her audience to not only to read the text, but also to behave in the desired fashion after they have read the text.

Cleman, Kelly A. Orange Journal, The (2001). Articles>Education>Instructional Design

Approximately "Real World" Learning with the Hybrid Model

Most workplace professionals write documents in a fairly mature way. They typically write: Independently or with collaborators, without direct or constant supervision; With frequent interaction with team members at remote locations, and not just with those at their own division or company; With computers and other electronic equipment; and With the freedom to make important decisions about project and time management, such as determining when and how to interact with others, how to collaborate with irresponsible writing partners, how to resolve unexpected problems that arise, and how to meet deadlines despite mishaps and obstacles. How can instructors of business and professional writing prepare students for the relative freedom and independence of this kind of thinking and writing?

Spilka, Rachel. Teaching With Technology Today (2002). Articles>Education>Writing>Workplace

Are You Blogging Yet?

Web logs (also called 'weblogs' or 'blogs') are frequently updated website commentaries, short or long, organized chronically and sometimes include the blogger’s personal life.

Berger, Pam. Scarsdale Schools (2004). Articles>Writing>Education>Blogging