Taking Technical Writing

I remember taking Technical Writing when I was in college some years ago.  That is when I became interested in the genre of writing.  It was intriguing because I could write, as well as use my graphic design skills.

I started by creating a couple of flyers, then we were asked to create a website.  I had a good website, and the professor really liked the work I did in the class.  I cannot remember any of the other Technical Writing classes or assignments, but I remember enjoying the classes.

I wanted to become a technical writer.  I remember telling my father I wanted to minor in Technical Writing.  I am still trying to figure out how my father became my college advisor.  In retrospect, I probably should have used my college resources to the fullest, rather than relying on my father to be everything for me in college.  He was good, but I think I could have received a more object view of my college career from a non-parent.  He did think getting a Technical Writing minor was a good idea.  I am glad, too.

I am now teaching Technical Writing classes.  I think I may be more excited about it than the students may be sometimes.  It is all because I had the Technical Writing minor as part of my Bachelor’s degree.

One-Minute Papers

Last week, I began using One-Minute Papers. I heard about them in a Professional Development session. I was weary of using them, but they interested me.

I used it for the first time in my ENGL1301 class. It was interesting to get the responses that I received. You give the students a post-it note or an index card. I used index cards. You then ask them to write 2-4 sentences on a question that you ask them. There are a number of questions you can ask them from content questions to learning questions. It is a great tool to gage student’s engagement in the class.

The question I asked last week was… What idea expressed in last week’s class strongly affected or influenced your personal opinions, viewpoints, or values? Overall, I received some good responses. The funniest ones are the ones where people said nothing influenced or affected them. I am always amazed at the handwriting some of my students have, some of them would make great fonts. I will continue to use this tool in my writing classes.

I am thinking about introducing them to the Sunday School teachers for my Sunday School class. I think it would be a good tool to engage people’s engagement in the class because sometimes it seems as if people aren’t engaged with the teaching.

Welcome to my Blog

I have asked my Technical Writing Class to create and maintain a blog as a project. I used to be a big blogger back in the day, but I haven't kept one in a long while. I'm excited about the blog. I'm looking forward to seeing what my students do. I'll also post my responses to the blog prompts I ask them to write about here as well. #imbackblogging