The Technical Writing ( techwriting | 14 hours )

The Technical Writing Course is designed to help individuals improve their writing skills in the technical field, including technical communication. The course covers techniques for planning, writing, and editing technical documents and emphasizes identifying the target audience, selecting appropriate document formats, and using visuals and graphics effectively.

Participants will learn how to convey complex subject matter clearly and accurately and create informative content that their readers will understand and use. The course is available in both in-person and online delivery methods and includes an end-of-course exam to test knowledge.

Objectives

In this course, you will learn how to:

• Write effective technical documents, manuals, and white papers.
• Assess your audience and develop documents to meet their needs.
• Explain information clearly and accurately.
• Use diagrams, tables, charts, and other graphical tools effectively.
• Create informative content that your readers will understand and use.
• Test your knowledge in the included end-of-course exam.
• Leverage continued support with after-course one-on-one instructor coaching and computing sandbox.

Introduction to Technical Writing

• Effectively communicate technical information
• Manage common writing problems

The Writing Process

• Eliminate misconceptions that stall technical writing, such as writer’s block
• Drive your document design with scenarios
• Align your goals with the readers’ goals
• Identify implied knowledge

Ensuring Clarity and Readability

• Differentiate between the three levels of information: operational, tactical, and strategic
• Determine information needs with the Observe, Orient, Decide, Act (OODA) loop
• Create sentences with clarity and build clarity through sentence focus
• Solve common grammar problems in technical writing
• Evaluate readability using the Given/New technique
• Ensure consistency with a style guide

The Mechanics of Writing

• Select the appropriate words to connect with your audience and convey your message
• Edit for conciseness, accuracy, and quality

Structuring Information for Better Understanding

• Organize data to support readers' scenarios
• Determine when to use a list to highlight points
• Use tables for highly structured data
• Build cohesive documents with the Given/New approach
• Apply useful headings to support skimming

Designing Your Document

• Relate document structure to the audience with audience-driven document design
• Develop reference manuals and write white papers
• Differentiate between post-positive and pragmatic documents and implement the appropriate document format
• Structure introductions, conclusions, and other document sections

Developing the Look of Your Document

• Design the appearance of your page, including fonts, alignment, and white space
• Convey information with graphics, photos, and drawings