Proposal
to Create Online Technical Writing
Resources on the UNT Writing Lab
Website
By Krissy R. Carlson
K. Carlson
Proposal to Create Online Technical Writing Resources
Summary
UNT’s Department of Linguistics and Technical Communication lacks a website that includes
definitions, exercises, and printable worksheets for technical writing students. Students often
need an online source of information because the Technical Communications Lab tutors address
only computer and program issues in the lab. The technical writing tutors in the Writing Lab can
help students with their technical writing projects and concepts, but only if those students come
in for a tutoring session or participate in an online tutoring session. Additionally, the Writing Lab
lacks a section on its website that specifically addresses technical writing.
Because students lack access to a UNT-sponsored technical writing website, they often refer to
outside sources to obtain information about technical writing projects. Some of these websites
are outdated or incorrect and fail to coincide with the rules that govern our technical writing
projects. If the Writing Lab includes a technical writing section on its website, students can
access information used in the technical writing classes at UNT and find exercises that they can
use to hone their technical writing skills. The website can also include printable worksheets so
students can print them out and practice.
The Writing Lab staff is in the process of updating the Writing Lab website. They can easily
develop additional web pages and documents and add them to the website. Additionally, the
Department of Linguistics and Technical Communication is in the process of creating a new
website. The old website has an inoperable link to “Labs” on it, which the site developer could
easily link to the Writing Lab website. The Writing Lab tutors and the Technical Communication
Lab tutors can collaborate to decide the necessary material for these web pages and then use that
material to create website content for students, without additional cost to the Department of
Linguistics and Technical Communication.
Current Problems for Technical Writing Students
Technical writing students study a wide range of disciplines, the majority of which are in the
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) areas. Because STEM classes
typically do not focus on writing skills, these students may lack a wide knowledge of writing
styles and grammar. Therefore, STEM students often require additional help with their technical
writing skills. Additionally, the department hosts several international students who may require
more thorough explanations than those given by instructors in the classroom. Technical writing
instructors may lack the time to meet with these students individually to discuss technical writing
issues at length, so the absence of an easily accessible online resource could hinder both students
and instructors.
When technical writing students go to the Writing Lab for tutoring, they often ask if the
Department of Linguistics and Technical Communication has a website that contains information
about and exercises for technical writing. Because the department lacks a website, tutors often
have to refer students to outside web sources. I have searched several technical writing websites,
and while some of them are good, most of them contain outdated or incorrect information that
fails to coincide with our technical writing textbook or syllabi.
Some students do not understand the principles of technical writing, and they need more help
than the Writing Lab tutors can give them in a thirty-minute tutoring session. Additionally, some
K. Carlson
Proposal to Create Online Technical Writing Resources
students easily understand the principles of technical writing, but they want to see additional
examples of different types of documents. Many students request printable worksheets and web
exercises so they can hone their technical writing skills.
Students today are more technically-savvy and expect to find information quickly on the Internet.
They tend to become frustrated if they are unable to easily find the information they seek. These
students may then just do what they have to so they can “get by” and pass the class. This
situation is not indicative of the experience the Department of Linguistics and Technical
Communication wants its students to have.
Proposed Solution: Create a Technical Writing Section on the
Writing Lab Website
The proposed technical writing section on the Writing Lab website would include definitions,
exercises, and printable worksheets about specific aspects of technical writing that coincide with
the textbook and the syllabi. We can link the syllabi from our technical writing classes to the
website and hyperlink the topics to web pages that contain exercises and worksheets specific to
those topics. This will allow beginning technical writing students to easily find additional
information about their current projects and hone their skills as technical writers.
We can include the following sections on the website:
 An overview of technical communication and its real-world applications
 Sample syllabi with hyperlinks to additional sources of information about each
assignment
 A technical writing style section that will help students pass their style exams
 A documents section that will give examples of different types of major assignments
Each of these sections would address a specific aspect of technical writing and serve as an
addition to the textbook.
The Writing Lab could also include the following sections to supplement the information in the
textbook:
 An organization section that will conform to the information in the textbook
 A design section that will enable students to effectively design technical documents by
giving examples of
o Visuals
o Color
o Layout
o Headings
o Bindings
o Delivery (Medium)
Qualifications and Budget
The Writing Lab tutors and the Technical Communication Lab tutors can collaborate and
develop the content for these web pages. The tutors in the Technical Communication Lab help
students only with computer- and program-based issues, but they often have students ask them
K. Carlson
Proposal to Create Online Technical Writing Resources
writing-based questions. The Technical Communication Lab tutors can use these students’
questions to help define additional writing problems that students encounter while working on
their documents in the Technical Communication Lab. The Technical Communication Lab tutors
can then share that information with the Writing Lab tutors. Because they are experienced in all
genres of writing, including technical writing, the Writing Lab tutors can then develop the
necessary content during their “down times” when they do not have students to tutor.
Additionally, by keeping the content development in-house, the Writing Lab, in conjunction with
the Department of Linguistics and Technical Communication, will be able to create the material
at no additional cost to the department.
Conclusion
As a former tutor in the Writing Lab and a Teaching Fellow in the Department of Linguistics and
Technical Communication, I often have students come to me seeking additional technical writing
materials that they can access on the Internet. Many of them struggle with the basic aspects of
technical writing because they lack a strong background in writing. A website with information
and exercises that supplement the syllabi and textbook would benefit these struggling students
and allow proficient technical writing students to sharpen their technical writing skills.