TECHNICAL WRITING Five Important Principles in Good Technical Writing

DISCUSSION 1. Always have in mind a specific reader, real or imaginary,

Acclaimed proponents of technical writing Mills and Walter when you are writing a report. Always assume that he is
(1981) gave several definitions to aid us in understanding the intelligent, but uninformed.
nature of technical writing. According to them: 2. Before you start to write, always decide what the exact
Technical writing is writing about scientific subjects and purpose of your report is, and make sure that every paragraph,
various technical subjects associated with the sciences. every sentence, every word makes a clear contribution to that
Technical writing is characterized by certain formal elements, purpose.
such as its scientific and technical vocabulary, its elements, 3. Use language that is simple, concrete and familiar.
such as its scientific and technical vocabulary, its use of 4. At the beginning and end of every section of your report,
graphic aids, and its use of conventional report forms. check your writing according to this principle; “First you tell
Technical writing is ideally characterized by the maintenance the reader what you’re going to tell him, then you tell him what
of an attitude of impartiality and objectivity, by extreme care you’ve told him.”
to convey information accurately and concisely, and by the 5. Make your report attractive
absence for any attempt to arouse emotion.
Technical writing is writing in which there is relatively Purposes of Technical Writing
high concentration of certain complex and important 1. It serves as basis for management decision.
writing techniques, in particular description of mechanisms, 2. It furnishes needed information.
description of process, definition, classification, and 3. It gives instructions.
interpretation. 4. It records business transactions through proposals.
To students, perhaps, Technical writing may just be a 5. It produces business proposals.
requirement to pass an assignment, but to professionals, it 6. It serves as basis for public relations.
may be any of the following which is required to fulfil a task. 7. It provides report to stockholders of companies

PRODUCTS of technical writing Properties of Technical Writing

•Business letter is a type of written communication. It is The following properties of technical writing are also known
written using formal language and follows formal elements of as “considerations” when writing technical reports.
letter writing. People usually write business letters to 1. Subject matter. In writing technical papers, you must ask
communicate with companies, organizations or individuals the question, “What will I write about?” The subject matter
with the purpose of applying for a job, making requests, is an essential element in technical report writing. Some
seeking appointments, etc. examples of this are description of a process, writing about
•Contract is a written agreement between two people under a theory, or submitting a policy.
mutually agreed terms. 2. Audience. When thinking about the audience, ask
•Monograph it is detailed essay or book on very specific topic. “Whom am I writing for? Or who are my intended
It is usually written by professionals or academicians on topics readers?” This a property which pertains to a particular
of interest concerning their specific fields. reader of a technical literature.
•Printed action memo is a ready-format memorandum that 3. Expression. This property refers to two basic modes in
only requires a checkmark on the appropriate box that which a technical report has to be delivered – writing it or
contains the message. This is especially useful for busy people reading
to make quick decisions and act on the circumstance it. Your expression of the content will depend on your
situation. awareness of your audience’s/ reader’s psychology and your
• Graphic aids are drawings, sketches and illustrations that aid style in writing to be able to reach your audience’s/reader’s
the readers in understanding the presented data. understanding.
•Instructional manuals are written to guide the readers on 4. Style. This refers to how the material is written. A technical
how to assemble, maintain, and operate an apparatus, writer uses clear, specific point of view, objective, impartial,
machine or gadget. and
•Brochures are pamphlets or flyers that endorse a product in emotional style in writing.
such a way that the potential customer will be convinced that 5. Arrangement of materials. This pertains to how ideas
the product is effective and eventually avail of the product. should be organized in chronological, spatial or logical order,
•Proposals are written suggestions on how to make the from
company or organizations require this before an general to specific or specific to general, and use illustrations
agreement is to present the information.
reached.
•Memoranda are inter-office written communication used to
disseminate information.
Earlier, technical writing is treated as a unique form of written 3. Contract law- covers written warranties or their implied
communication because of its important qualities, purposes, warranties.
and properties. Let us elucidate it further by enumerating
striking differences between this form of writing which is more 4. Liability law- pertains to responsibilities or obligations of
writers especially claims they made on their paper.
formal and academic compared to other writing forms. For
instance, writing can be grouped into five basic types:
•Technical writing conveys specific information about a
technical subject to a specific audience for a specific Principles of Ethical Communication
purpose. Technical writers are like researchers. Both take into
•Creative writing is fiction – poetry, short stories, plays and consideration the bounds and limitations to things that
novels – and far different from technical writing. they write.
•Expressive writing is a subjective response to a personal They carefully study the information to be presented and they
experience – journals and diaries – whereas technical writing are aware that prudence has to be exercised
might be objective observations of a work-related experience
or research. Do’s of Technical Communication
•Expository writing “exposes” a topic analytically and •Abide by relevant laws.
objectively, such as news reports. Like technical writing, the •Abide by the appropriate corporate of professional
goal of expository writing is to explain or reveal knowledge, code of conduct.
but expository writing does not necessarily expect a response •Tell the truth.
or action from the reader. •Be clear.
•Persuasive writing depends on emotional appeal. Its goal •Avoid discriminatory language.
is to change one’s attitudes or motivate him/her to •Acknowledge assistance from others
action
Don’ts of Technical Communication
•False implications – assuming the outcome of a project or
Differences between Technical Writing and Creative Writing making sweeping generalizations.
Writers have different writing styles. There are writers who •Exaggerations – expressing situations in extreme
are more inclined to the straightforward or direct form proportions
of writing while others are on the creative or literary. Below •Euphemisms – writing about situations in seemingly
are differences between technical writing and creative writing good conditions even though they are not
based on content, audience, purpose, style, tone, vocabulary •Don’t mislead your readers.
and organization
Principles of Ethical Communication
Technical Writing Creative Writing Technical writers are like researchers. Both take into
Content Factual, Straight- Imaginative, consideration the bounds and limitations to things that
forward metaphoric or they write.
symbolic They carefully study the information to be presented and they
Audience Specific General are aware that prudence has to be exercised.
Purpose Inform, instruct, Entertain, provoke,
persuade captivate
REINFORCEMENT 1

Style Formal, standard, Informal, artistic, Reflect on the following situations. What will you do if you are
academic figurative faced with any of them?
Tone Objective Subjective
1. You are the boss of the company. You received a report
Vocabulary Specialized General, evocative
about missing boxes in the shipment from one of your
employees who made an inventory. Your company ordered
150 boxes, but two boxes were missing.
Relevant Laws and Ethical Considerations Related to
2. You are in a hurry to submit the proposal for a very
Technical Writing
important meeting. However, your fellow employee who is
There are four bodies of law that are relevant to technical the main proponent forgot to sign the proposal. It is 2:50 PM
communication, Technical writers must be aware of legal and the paper has to be submitted by 3:00 PM. What will you
and ethical consideration when preparing technical papers. do?

1. Copyright law- covers the protection of the rights of the 3. An attendance sheet is being passes around in the
author seminar room. You were asked to write your purpose for
attending because it is about professional development. What
2. Trademark law- pertains to federal protection (different will you write?
from registered trademarks).
 THE WRITING PROCESS 3. Re-Writing Stage
This stage is also known as the "revision" stage. We revise to
Discussion ensure that
From the moment we started to learn the ABCs and become 1. the content of the paper is relevant;
familiar with different words we learn from books, people, or 2. there is organization and coherence in the arrangement of
the internet, we develop the skill not only of reading but also the ideas; and
of writing. They say that when a person is good in reading, 3. grammar and mechanics are clearly observed.
he/she can become good in writing. How is this possible?
Reading is an input skill, therefore writing is its output. EXPLORING EXPOSITORY TECHNIQUES
3 BASIC STAGES: Exposition is a writing technique used by a writer when
1. Pre-Writing Stage his/her intention is to explain something, to analyze an idea,
to classify a thing, to give the correct definition of a term, to
This is the first stage in the writer does before he writes the make others follow directions, to point out similarities or
first draft. In this stage, the writer composes or supplies differences, to clarify causes and effects, to present data, to
information pertaining to: interpret research work, and others.
a. Purpose of the paper. This is necessary to determine the
content of the paper to be included, the organization and Therefore, many textbooks and other printed or electronic
style of material make use of this type of writing. It is probably the
the paper. most utilized form of writing.
b. Choice of topic. A writer has to explain or justify his/her Lesson 1. CLASSIFICATION
chosen topic.
c. Gathering information. A writer must be able to find Classification is dividing something into groups, classes,
sources of information to enrich his/her topic. categories, etc. This is normally done in accordance with
Pre-writing Techniques: several criteria (standards or principles of judgments are
based).
1. Keep a writer's journal by recording personal experiences,
perceptions, and ideas Classification is done by the writer when he/she believes
2. Do free writing. Write about whatever comes to mind. that there are shared qualities or characteristics about a
3. Brainstorm by listing ideas as quickly as they occur. subject matter.
4. Cluster by drawing lines and circles to show connections
between ideas. It is also called webbing or making GENDERED POWER PATTERNS
connections.
5. Ask questions using the news reporter's 5Ws-Who What? Research (Helgessen, 1990; in Wood, 2001) reveals general
Where? Why? When? and How? differences in how women and men define and use power.
6. Read with focus. This entails reading efficiently locate and Men tend to see power as finite and as something to guard
collect specific information.7. Listen with focus. This means closely. Women are more likely to regard power as unlimited
listening efficiently to locate and collect specific information. and to share it freely. Another difference is how the sexes see
8. Observe by noticing details around you through the the ends of power. In general, men see power as something
senses. an individual has and uses to enhance individual status. The
9. Imagine. Probe your imagination for ideas, often use a tendency among women is to perceive power as a resource
"what if? Approach for empowering others and building strong collaborative
teams. Differences in orientations toward power are
2. Writing Stages
consistent with gender communication cultures and the
The writing stage is the part where we begin to write our first divergent rules of communication they teach men and
draft. We know that not everything that we write is perfect at women.
the first go. Hence, you must remember what to do and what
Let us answer the following comprehensions, questions:
not to do during this stage.
1. What two classes are being compared/contrasted in the
Do's and Don'ts of Writing a First Draft passage?
2. How is gender classified?
1. Don't overanalyze your writing 3. What descriptions are based on the similarities and
2. Do feel free to follow the flow of ideas where it is leading differences?
you, even if it is not what you initially planned. The passage on "Gendered Power Patterns" illustrates a
3. Don't exaggerate details. simple form of classification. Let us try and analyze the next
4. Do work on the details as much as possible to keep the passage on "Education in the Philippines" an article which is
story fresh in your mind. published in Wikipedia.
5. Don't worry yet about how good your writing is.
Education in the Philippines
6. Do have fun!
Education in the Philippines is provided by public and private
schools, colleges, universities, and technical and vocational
institutions. Funding for public education comes from the Methods of Defining Terms
national government.
There are two methods of defining terms: simple and
At the basic education level, the Department of Education extended definition.
(DepEd) sets overall educational standards and mandates
1. Simple definition could be formulated by bearing in mind its
standardized tests for the K-12 basic education system
three parts: the species, genus, and differentia. This method of
although private schools are generally free to determine the
definition is commonly used in technical writing whether
own curriculum in accordance with existing laws and
formally, semi-formally, or non-formally.
Department regulations.

On the other hand, at the higher education level the When using simple definition, note that a species or the term
to be defined may be introduced by a determiner, a genus or
Commission on Higher Education (CHED) supervises and
the class/category where the term belongs is always
regulates colleges and universities, while the Technical
connected to the species by a linking verb. Both species and
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) for
genus can be introduced by a determiner. To make the
technical and vocational institutions regulates and accredits
technical and vocational education programs and institutions. definition complete, a differentia is written to give the
characteristics of the term that make it different from other
For the academic year 2017-2018, about 83% of K-12 terms belonging to the same genus.
students attended public schools and about 17% either
attended private schools or were home-schooled. Species (term to Genus (the Differentia (a
be describe) class where the characteristic of
By law, education is compulsory for thirteen years term belongs) the term)
(kindergarten and grades 1-12). These are grouped into three
levels: elementary school (kindergarten-grade 6), junior high Language is form of
school (grades 7-10), and senior high school (grades 11-12); communication
they may also be grouped into four key stages: 1st key stage An architect is a professional who designs
buildings
(kindergarten-grade 3), 2nd key stage (grades 4-6), 3rd key
Communication is a process of giving and
stage (grades 7-10) and 4th key stage (grades 11-12). Children
receiving
enter kindergarten at age 5.
information
Institutions of higher education may be classified as either
public or private college or university, and public institutions
Another method is expanded definition. This is done by
of higher education may further be subdivided into two types:
stipulation, operation, explication, cause and effect,
state universities and colleges and local colleges and
classification, example, and other rhetorical functions
universities.

How to classify?

One way of classifying objects or ideas is to look for

relationships among them and to organize them into groups.
It may either be on the basis of their similarities or
differences.

Lesson 2. DEFINITION

"Without words, without writing and without books, there would

be no history; there could be no memory of humanity." 2. Informal definition on the other hand does not follow a
Discussion pattern. The only objective is to give meaning to a word that
is unfamiliar or explain the special meaning of a familiar
There are times when we are asked by people around to us word.
define or give meaning to an unfamiliar word. How do you
reply? Word meanings enter informal definition by means of
providing denotative or connotative meaning. Denotation is
Do you find yourself saying "it is like this...” “it resembles the basic literal meaning or the dictionary meaning of words
that...” “it is similar to...” while connotation is the additional shade of meaning that
words imply aside from its dictionary meaning
When we define words or unfamiliar terms, we give concise
Connotation is the positive or negative associations a word
but exact meanings of unfamiliar words and special meanings
naturally carries
of familiar words. For people of all ages, definition is a useful
technique in oral or written communication. It is particularly
a must for a technical writer to be able to define the terms
with multiple meanings and those that are unfamiliar to the
reader.
Pointers when Defining Terms
Now, let us read the passage on "How do you make paper
1. Never give definitions of a term that include any of its from a tree?" It is an article written by Stacy Wonders
derivatives. For example: definition is the act of defining. published in wonderpolis
When a liquid evaporates, it absorbs heat. The refrigerant
2. Do not use is where" or "is when" to define a term. Don't used in a refrigerator has a very low boiling point and it
say "Christmas is when Jesus Christ is born" or "A classroom evaporates in the metal coils. As this happens, it absorbs heat
is where you and as a result, the evaporator coils cool down.

will find students." As soon as the temperature inside the refrigerator rises from
above a predetermined level, the thermostat causes the motor
3. Use the simple present tense (active and passive voice). to start. Freon vapor is drawn from the evaporator coils by
Consider the following examples: the compressor, reducing the pressure and allowing liquid
refrigerated to move into them. The liquid in its turn
Documentation is the process of acknowledging the sources evaporates, absorbing heat and cooling the refrigerator. The
used in developing a research paper. (active) cool refrigerant passes through the condenser, where it is
changed back into a liquid form and is eventually forced back
The process of acknowledging sources is called into the evaporator coils.
documentation. (passive)
The process continues until a preset temperature is reached.
4. Often we use relative clauses to give additional information. At this point the thermostat cuts out the compressor and the
For example, refrigerator remains idle. When the temperature rises above
the pre- determined level, the thermostat triggers the
"Documentation is the process of acknowledging the sources compressor into action once more and the cooling cycle
used in developing a research paper. This is also another way recommences. (Thorn and Badrick, 1990)
of helping researchers who may be later on reading your work
to do further research themselves." How Rice Cookers Work (Jessika Toothman)

Lesson 3. DESCRIPTION OF A PROCESS Rice needs two things to evolve from a hard, little grains to
big, fluffy morsels -- lots of water and lots of heat. For this
Writing the perfect paper is a lot like a military operation. It reason, cooking rice happens in four phases: sitting in water
takes discipline, foresight, research, strategy, and if done right, boiling, absorbing water (steaming) and resting.
ends in total victory."
- Ryan Holiday - Rice cookers automatically guide rice through these few
stages. The appliance consists primarily of a main body an
There are writing tasks that entail an explanation of how inner cooking pan, an electric heating plate, a thermal. sensing
something works, how something is done, or how something device and some buttons.
is made. That is why knowing how to describe a process will
enable a technical writer and his/her reader to perform or do Water and rice sit inside the cooking pan while it's inserted
something. into the rice cooker's shell. The pan's weight depresses the
thermal-sensing device, and the heating plate quickly brings
In describing a process, a writer explains the arrangement of the water to a boil. The sensing device is a small, spring-
a sequence in chronological order. As it is used in technical loaded thermometer that gauges the temperature of the pan's
writing. the process is akin to mechanism description. Here, contents. It's set into the bottom of the rice cooker's main
process description includes sequence, instructions, and body.
procedure.
Simple rice cookers usually warm their contents by
There are two separate concepts which we must briefly transferring heat from the heating plate to the cooking pan,
explain here: "How to do something" and "How something and the type of metal used can improve that transfer Some
occurs." The first calls for instructions or procedure; the metals copper and aluminum for example highly conductive.
second, for sequence. In other words, they transfer their heat easily. A wide range of
materials can be used for the cooking are pan, and each type
In like manner, process is also a description of equipment, may affect the overall time it takes to cook the food.
materials, and procedures. Graphic materials are used for
detailed presentation of the process. The writer makes use of The process for cooking the rice is simple. Water, boils at 212
sequence markers to follow the natural or mechanical system. degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius), and once it reaches
a steady boil, it won't get hotter. As long as there is water in
When we describe a process or procedure, we often use the the pan, the temperature should be stable. Once the rice
present passive tense: is/are + v + ed. For example: is absorbs all the water in the pan, the temperature will start to
manufactured, is controlled, etc. rise. The rice cooker senses this change and will either switch
off or switch to a warming cycle. At this point, the rice
When describing a process, we use sequence markers to link
sentences like first, second, then, next, subsequently, finally, at
last.