COLLIN COLLEGE
COURSE SYLLABUS
Course Information
Course Number: ENGL 2311
Course Title: Technical and Business Writing
Course Description: Intensive study of and practice in professional settings. Focus on the types of
documents necessary to make decisions and take action on the job, such as proposals,
reports, instructions, policies and procedures, e-mail messages, letters, and descriptions of
products and services. Practice individual and collaborative processes involved in the
creation of ethical and efficient documents.
Course Credit Hours:
Lecture Hours:
3
3
Prerequisite: ENGL 1301
Student Learning Outcomes:

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Recognize, analyze, and accommodate diverse audiences.
Produce documents appropriate to audience, purpose, and genre.
Analyze the ethical responsibilities involved in technical communication.
Locate, evaluate, and incorporate pertinent information.
Develop verbal, visual, and multimedia materials as necessary, in individual and/or
collaborative projects, as appropriate.
6. Edit for appropriate style, including attention to word choice, sentence structure,
punctuation, and spelling.
7. Design and test documents for easy reading and navigation.
Withdrawal Policy: See the current Collin Registration Guide for the last day to withdraw.
Collin College Academic Policies: See the current Collin Student Handbook
 The College District may initiate disciplinary proceedings against a student accused of scholastic
dishonesty.
 Scholastic dishonesty may involve, but is not limited to, one or more of the following acts: cheating,
plagiarism, collusion, use of annotated texts or teacher’s editions, use of information about exams posted on
the Internet or electronic medium, and/or falsifying academic records.
 Collin faculty are required to report alleged violations of scholastic dishonesty to the Dean of Student
Development, who then investigates the case, and renders an administrative decision.
 Faculty are not allowed to assign a grade to the work in question until the Dean of Student Development
renders a decision
 Students found responsible for scholastic dishonesty offenses will receive an authorized disciplinary

penalty from the office of the Dean of Student Development.
Additionally, students found responsible for scholastic dishonesty will be assigned a penalty in this class
that ranges from a grade of “F” on the assignment to a grade of “F” for the course
Americans with Disabilities Act:
Collin College will adhere to all applicable federal, state and local laws, regulations and guidelines
with respect to providing reasonable accommodations as required to afford equal opportunity. It is
the student’s responsibility to contact the ACCESS office, SCC-G200 or 972.881.5898 (V/TTD:
972.881.5950) to arrange for appropriate accommodations. See the current Collin Student
Handbook for additional information.
Religious Holy Days: Please refer to the current Collin Student Handbook.
INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION
Instructor’s Name: Eleanor Mack
Office Number: B 103
Office Hours: By appointment only
Phone Number: 972-516-5090
Email: emack@collin.edu
Class Information:
Section Number: S02
Meeting Times: MW 2:30 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.
Meeting Location: I 231
Minimum Technology Requirement: Because you will need to submit your assignments online, please check to see if
you have the technology shown in the chart below. If you do not, let me know, and I can help you submit assignments
while you are on campus.
OS (Operating
System)
Access to the
Internet
Web Browser
Java Runtime
Environment
Windows
Apple
XP, Vista, 7
Mac OS 10.3 and higher
DSL, (High-speed is preferred) cable, satellite, fiber optic
Internet Explorer 6, 7, 8;
Mozilla Firefox 2 and higher
Required.
Java for Windows
Safari 2 and higher;
Mozilla Firefox 2 and higher
Required.
Java for Apple
Minimum Student Skills:
Students should be proficient in navigating the Internet, uploading, downloading files, using email, and be familiar with
the menus and routines in the Blackboard Learning Management System. Proficiency in word-processing software (i.e.,
MS Word) is considered fundamental.
Required Textbooks:
Lannon, John M. and Laura J. Gurak. Technical Communication, 13th edition. New York, Longman, 2014. ISBN: 0-32189997-0 (10-digit) or 978-0-321-89997-2 (13-digit).
Attendance Policy:
Attending class is extremely important in this course. If, however, you must be absent, you are expected to be prepared for
class in the same manner as those students who were present. Please contact a classmate for assignments and class notes.
 You must stay in class until it is dismissed, or you will be counted as absent. If you are more than 15
minutes late, you will be counted absent.
 If you have more than 7 absences, your final semester grade will be dropped 10 points.
Method of Evaluation:
Final grades for the semester are based on the following:
1. Writing assignments
2. Collaborative Project
3. Reading Quizzes
4. Oral Presentations
5. Peer Reviews
6. Final Exam
Total
500 points
100 points
60 points
30 points
40 points
100 points
830 points
NO LATE PAPERS ACCEPTED AFTER ONE WEEK!
Work not turned in receives a grade of 0%, not F.
Grading Scale:
A=
B=
C=
D=
F=
747-830 points
664-746 points
581-745 points
498-580 points
Below 498 points
All assignments are to be submitted within the course via turnitin.com
Writing Assignments Evaluative Criteria:
Written assignments are evaluated according to the criteria stipulated in the standardized writing rubric, which
will be provided for the class. In this course, students will be given a letter grade and an accompanying
percentage grade, based on the instructor’s evaluation of each assignment.
Delivery Method of Instructor Feedback and Turn-around Time for Submitted Work:
 Writing assignments will be graded and evaluated approximately within 7 days after the submission deadline
date. A student’s grade, along with instructor comments, will be available in My Grades.
 A letter grade and an accompanying percentage grade are given on all assignments for the course–for example,
“A” (95%). The percentage grade enables students to track their points earned progress during the semester and
report this progress to their academic advisors, if required.
 *All grades and grading comments are treated confidentially. This information falls under the purview of the
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law which assures students’ privacy to their
grades, transcripts, and other educational records at Collin College.
 Instructor Response: Students are encouraged to ask me questions or email me at any time using Collin email.
As an instructor, I respond to all such emails usually within a twenty-four-hour period.
 All student written responses and/or threads are due by midnight on the due date, except for the working drafts,
which are required in class on the due date.
 A student will earn a “0” for all unexcused late work, unless one of the exceptions documented below
apply. Exceptions: Medical reasons (validated by a physician’s written note) will excuse late work for a
student’s illness or that of a dependent child. Other reasons warranting excusal of late work include personal
or family situations (not work-related) over which the student has no control. (These situations, however, will
be considered on a case-by-case basis.) Job-related commitments are accepted with prior approval.

***All written assignments must be submitted to the Blackboard courseware, as specified in the assignment
directions. STUDENTS SHOULD NOT EMAIL ASSIGNMENTS since they cannot be accurately
documented in the Blackboard courseware and your grade book.
Peer Reviews:
As a student, you are required to share drafts of your written assignments. Dates for these are shown on the Assignment
Calendar. Research validates that effective peer reviewing and collaborative sharing of ideas during each phase of the
writing process increases a student’s writing performance.
Grade of Incomplete (“I”)
Students who are prevented from completing this course because of extenuating personal circumstances (documentable
illness or emergencies) may qualify to petition the College for a grade of “I” or “Incomplete” if they have completed 80%
of the assigned course work and are able to come to the Spring Creek campus to sign the Incomplete Contract. The
Incomplete Grade Contract requires the student to complete the remaining work in the course by a certain future deadline
agreed upon by the student and the instructor in the contract. Failure to submit assignments without authorized excusals
does not validate the requirements of an Incomplete Contract (See the College Catalog, linked on Cougar Web, about
Incomplete Grades and Contracts).
Course Calendar:
English 2311 S02
Calendar: Fall 2014
August 25 to December 14, 2014
Last day to withdraw from class with grade of "W" is Friday, October 17, 2014.
[Important: A student must initiate a withdrawal from a course. Instructors cannot drop students. After this date,
students will receive a performance grade.]
Week
Readings and topics
1
Course Overview; read
chapters 1, 2, 3, and 6
2
3
Date Due
Assignment
Point
Value
First quiz on chapters 1, 2, 3,
4, 6 Discussion of letters and
memos. Read Chapter 5
Wed., 9/3
RQ 1
20
Review Chapter 5
Monday, 9/8
Collaborative project begins
.
4
Discussion of employment
materials
Wed, 9/17
Collaborative Project DUE
100
5
Discussion of employment
materials
Wed, 9/24
Application Letter and résumé
draft workshop
20
6
Discussion of employment
materials
Wed, 10/1
Application letter and résumé
DUE
100
7
Discussion of Oral
Presentations and Materials
Wed, 10/8
RQ 2
20
8
Preparation for the
Recommendation Report
Wed., 10/15
Oral Presentations Begin
9
Discussion of Proposals
Wed., 10/22
Oral Presentations
10
Discussion of Proposals
11
12
Discussion of
Recommendation Reports
and Definition
Discussion of
Recommendation Reports
and Definition
13
Discussion of page and Web
design as well as visuals.
14
Holiday
15
Discussion of page and Web
design as well as visuals.
16
Final Exam Week
Wed., 10/29
RQ 3
Oral Presentations
30
20
Wed., 11/5
Proposal DUE
100
Mon., 11/10
Definition DUE
100
Wed., 11/12
Peer reviews of Report Drafts
20
Mon., 11/24
Recommendation report DUE
100
Wed., 11/26 to
Sun., 11/30
Thanksgiving Break
Wed., 12/3
Memo on Web page DUE
100
Mon., 12/8 to
Fri., 12/12
FINAL EXAM
100
Total Points Possible
830
The instructor reserves the right to revise this schedule, according to class needs.