ATTW 2

(A note of explanation: The Association for Teachers of Technical Writing (ATTW) is an emailing list that I subscribe to to better my understanding of what professional writers do. The posts titled ATTW are about the emails I receive.)

Several messages included job advertisements for professors of professional and technical writing at various universities. As a student, I tend to view professors at the top of the professional job spectrum, but it was interesting to note that just like someone fresh out of college, they too have to apply for jobs, create a resume and cover letter, go through interviews, and have references. That being said, no matter how high up we get in the professional job market, we will always have to rely on things such as these that we are learning about in class.

Another message talked about dreaded accreditation, a difficult but rewarding process. Through accreditation, schools can make improvements to learning and the writing process among students. I had never heard of this process before, but if it can help with the learning process across campuses, I hope my professors are implementing this technique.

Another message discussed how design might be helpful in understanding complex information. This is very interesting to me since we are going to be learning a lot about design (something I am not too familiar with) in this class. If what they are saying is true, by designing something  a different way, your audience can learn in an easier way from the material you are presenting. This is something all writers should make note of and consider throughout their writing process because by making something easier for readers, you are enhancing that line of communication and contact between reader and writer, as discussed in the Lindemann article.