Prompt
While there are some essential skills that help to define technical communication, there are many types of communication and writing skills. Different careers or majors will privilege certain skills over others, or may describe these skills differently. For example, one field may prioritize “interpersonal skills” while another may prioritize “written communication skills.” In some careers “critical thinking” is described as a kind of communication skill, while not so in others.
I’d like you to take this assignment as an opportunity to 1) be mindful about the types of skills you’d like to practice in this class and 2) communicate to me about what skills you think are important.
You’ll design a short presentation using Microsoft PowerPoint. Do a bit of research to determine the essential writing and communication skills you’ll need in your future career or field. Then, write a short presentation reporting back what you’ve found. This a pretty open-ended assignment and you can make this presentation your own, but basically your presentation should have the following information:
1. A title slide with your name and section number (a fun and engaging title wouldn’t hurt!).
2. A slide listing the field, career, or job you researched. List at least 3 main sources you used for this research (these could be in class readings or something you found on your own).
3. Between 1-3 slides that report back what you found (this will depend on what you found and how you’d like to present it). You can categorize these however you like but try to be specific and detailed. For example, don’t list “written communication” skills, as that can refer to a lot of things. Instead, try to list some specific written communication skills.
4. A slide that shows which skills you would like to work on in this class this semester.
Tips
In terms of research, you could use anything you find helpful. Search engines are a good start, but you could also use textbooks from other classes or readings from this class. You could ask a professor in your major or a friend or family member who has a similar job. Maybe there’s a blog written by an expert in your field or a LinkedIn article that you might find helpful. Career websites like Indeed or Monster sometimes have good information.