To find my answer to the problem requires consideration of two ways in which the problem may be viewed.
EN360 Technical Communication
Directions: Be sure to save an electronic copy of your answer before submitting it to Ashworth College for grading. Unless otherwise stated, answer in complete sentences, and be sure to use correct English, spelling and grammar. Sources must be cited in APA format. Your response should be four (4) double-spaced pages; refer to the “Assignment Format” page located on the Course Home page for specific format requirements.
Part A: Written and Oral Communication Skills
Locate a website for an organization that hires graduates in your major. Besides technical skills, what writing and communication skills does this organization seek in a job candidate? Write a one-page essay on what they say directly on this subject. Include reasons why each skill is important, and any additional written/spoken skills that you believe would give a candidate a competitive advantage.
Part B: Effective Writing Teams
a. What types of projects require collaboration?
b. What are four primary attributes of an effective writing team? Provide an example for each.
Part C: Internet Source Distortion/Misrepresentation
From media, personal experience, or the Internet, identify an example of each of the following sources of distortion (faulty causal and/or statistical inference) for the following:
a. A study with questionable sponsorship or motives
b. Reliance on insufficient evidence/hasty generalization
c. Unbalanced or biased presentation
d. Unexamined assumptions
e. Faulty causal reasoning
Part D: Checklist for Style – Local Newspaper
Using the “Checklist for Style” on the following page (also found in Chapter 11 of your textbook), rewrite the following letter to a local newspaper.
In the absence of definitive studies regarding the optimum length of the school day, I can only state my personal opinion based upon observations based by me and upon teacher observations that have been conveyed to me. Considering the length of the present school day, it is my opinion that the day is excessive length-wise for most elementary pupils, certainly for almost all of the primary children.
To find my answer to the problem requires consideration of two ways in which the problem may be viewed. One way focuses upon the needs of the children, while the other focuses upon logistics, transportation, scheduling, and other limits imposed by the educational system. If it is necessary to prioritize these two ideas, it would seem reasonable to give the first consideration to the primary reason for the very existence of the system, i.e., to meet the educational needs of the children the system is trying to serve.
Grading Rubric
Please refer to the rubric on the next page for the grading criteria for this assignment.
This is the end of Assignment 4.
CATEGORYExemplarySatisfactoryUnsatisfactoryUnacceptable
20 points15 points10 points5 points
The student describes 4 or
more well-written, currently
marketable skills with
reasons why each skill is
important.
The student describes 4 or
more well-written, currently
marketable skills with fewer
than 4 reasons why the skills
are important.
The student describes 4
currently marketable skills,
but does not provide
support for his or her
choices.
The student describes
fewer than 4 currently
marketable skills, and does
not provide support for his
or her choices.
20 points15 points10 points5 points
The student describes 4 or
more types of projects that
require collaboration + 4
attributes of an effective
writing team with examples
of each.
The student describes 2 to 3
types of projects that
require collaboration + 4
attributes of an effective
writing team with only
partial examples.
The student describes only
1 type of project that
requires collaboration + 4 or
fewer attributes of an
effective writing team with
only partial examples.
The student fails to
describe any projects that
require collaboration +
provides inappropriate
supporting attributes of an
effective writing team.
20 points15 points10 points5 points
The student provides 5 well-
written/evaluated examples –
one for each of the 5 sources
of distortion.
The student provides 5
adequately
written/evaluated examples
– one for each of the 5
sources of distortion.
The student provides
passably written/evaluated
examples that may or may
not cover each of the 5
sources of distortion.
The student provides
poorly written/evaluated
examples that may or may
not cover each of the 5
sources of distortion.
15 points 12 points 8 points 5 points
The student’s new iteration
is less than half the length of
the original and is free of all
the errors outlined in the
“Checklist for Style”.
The student’s new iteration
is less than half the length of
the original and includes no
more than 3 of the errors
outlined in the “Checklist for
Style”.
The student’s new iteration
is less than or equal to half
the length of the original
and includes no more than 5
of the errors outlined in the
“Checklist for Style”.
The student’s new
iteration is more than than
half the length of the
original and includes more
than 5 of the errors
outlined in the “Checklist
for Style”.
10 points 8 points 5 points 2 points
Student makes no errors in
grammar or spelling that
distract the reader from the
content.
Student makes 1-2 errors in
grammar or spelling that
distract the reader from the
content.
Student makes 3-4 errors in
grammar or spelling that
distract the reader from the
content.
Student makes more than
4 errors in grammar or
spelling that distract the
reader from the content.
15 points 12 points 8 points 5 points
The paper is written in
proper format. All sources
used for quotes and facts are
credible and cited correctly.
Excellent organization,
including a variety of
thoughtful transitions.
The paper is written in
proper format with only 1-2
errors. All sources used for
quotes and facts are credible
and most are cited correctly.
Adequate organization
includes a variety of
appropriate transitions.
The paper is written in
proper format with only 3-5
errors. Most sources used
for quotes and facts are
credible and cited correctly.
Essay is poorly organized,
but may include a few
effective transitions.
The paper is not written in
proper format. Many
sources used for quotes
and facts are less than
credible (suspect) and/or
are not cited correctly.
Essay is disorganized and
does not include effective
transitions.
Format – APA
Format, Citations,
Organization,
Transitions (15
Points)
Mechanics –
Grammar,
Punctuation,
Spelling (10 Points)
Part A: Written and
Oral Communication
Skills (20 points)
Part C: Internet
Source
Distortion/Misrepre
sentation (20 points)
Part D: Checklist for
Style – Local
Newspaper (15
points)
Part B: Effective
Writing Teams (20
points)