Devry ENGL216 2021 March Homeworks Latest (Full)

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 1 Homework  

Creating Simple

In the workplace, experienced employees are subject matter experts at what they do, and they are often called upon to provide help or training to new employees or colleagues from other departments. For example, a human resources generalist might need to show colleagues how to change their health care benefits, an office manager might need to show employees how to clear a paper jam from a copier, or a supervisor might need to show direct reports how to set performance goals and enter them using a new software program. In such cases, it is often more efficient to create instructional documentation to show people what to do rather than to provide individualized assistance repeatedly.

For this assignment, you will create a brief set of instructions to perform a simple workplace task that you are familiar with but that most people know little about. Ideally, these instructions will be based on a task that is relevant either to your current career or to the career you are pursuing. In addition to the examples shown above, here are a few more ideas.

How to safely operate an important device or piece of equipment

How to download, install, or use a certain type of software that your company uses

How to navigate a complicated website or program to locate an important resource

There are numerous possibilities for this assignment. Your choice will most likely reflect either your past, current, or future occupation. If you have military experience, you may choose to create instructions for a duty you perform regularly. If you are computer programmer, you may provide instructions on how to debug a program. If you are an engineer, you may show how a device you designed should be operated correctly.

How to Create Useful Instructions

Generally speaking, it is better to show people how to do something rather than just tell them. As such, effective instructions are highly visual. A side benefit of making your instructions visually oriented is that you'll have less writing to do. Here are two ways to create engaging, visually appealing instructions.

 

Screenshots: Screenshots are especially useful when showing someone how to perform a software or programming task using a screen. Take one screenshot for each step of the task, and then provide a brief caption, such as "Next, click on ....".

Photos: Photos are great for instructions related to operating equipment or devices. As above, take one photo for each step in the task, and provide a brief written description, such as "Next, push the blue button that says....".

Formatting and Length Requirements

You may format your instructions using either a word processor, such as Microsoft Word, or a presentation software, such as PowerPoint. The assignment should consist of between 6 to 10 steps. If the assignment is submitted in Word, it should be about two to three pages long, including the screenshots or photos. If the assignment is submitted in PowerPoint, it should be between 6 to 10 slides long.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 2 Homework  

Diversity and Inclusion at Work

Workplaces that are diverse and inclusive tend to be more successful than those that aren't. Unfortunately, not everybody sees it that way, and being diverse and inclusive in the workplace is often more challenging in practice than it is in theory.

Diversity has many dimensions, including the following.

Race and ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Religion

Ability

Age

These dimensions of diversity are discussed further in Chapter 4 of our textbook. For this assignment, you will respond to one of the following workplace scenarios.

Scenario 1: Challenging Hiring Decision

You are on the hiring committee for a key role in your organization. After a thorough and lengthy process, the committee has narrowed the field to two final candidates: Candidate A and Candidate B. The interview process has concluded, and now it is time to make a decision. Will you hire Candidate A or Candidate B?

Both Candidate A and Candidate B meet all of the requirements for hiring in terms of education and experience. That said, Candidate A went to a more prestigious university than Candidate B, and Candidate A also has slightly more job experience than Candidate B. In the interview process, both candidates answered the questions very well, demonstrating high levels of knowledge. Candidate A was a bit smoother and more confident, but Candidate B occasionally hesitated before responding but also seemed more genuinely enthusiastic. Candidate A is a traditional applicant, and Candidate B is from a historically underrepresented minority.

Later today you will be meeting with the hiring committee to make the final decision. Your task is to write a short message to share with the rest of the hiring committee in which you recommend hiring either Candidate A or Candidate B. Be sure to explain which factors were most important to you.

Scenario 2: Diversity in Advertising

You work for a company that produces a variety of popular and tasty breakfast cereals, and you spend a good deal on television and web-based advertising. In your ads, you strive for diversity of all kinds; however, one recent advertisement generated controversy. In it, a happy family with two mothers, a young son, and a toddler daughter are shown eating breakfast and engaging in lighthearted antics. Bits of cereal are tossed about, milk is spilled, and so on.

In response, members of an organization representing what they refer to as "traditional family values" have written numerous messages of protest and have posted them on social media. They feel that this portrayal of a nontraditional family is "morally wrong" and they are threatening to boycott your company.

Your task is to write a response to this organization and to post it on your website as well as your official social media platform sites. Your goal is not to engage in a war of words with this organization, but simply to make it clear that your company values diversity, and that you will continue to portray that diversity in your advertising materials.

Whether you choose Scenario 1 or Scenario 2, the length requirement for this message should be about the same—no more than one page.

For more tips and advice, please see the Assignment Connection in this week's lesson.

You will be graded based on the rubric below.

Remember to submit your assignment.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 3 Homework  

Telling the Boss Bad News

Successful organizations value candid communication, even when the news isn't good. Unsuccessful organizations, on the other hand, often ignore problems. In successful organizations, colleagues who speak up and raise issues are rewarded. In unsuccessful organizations, those who speak up are criticized. Most organizations exist somewhere on a continuum when it comes to encouraging candid communication. Some are highly open to it, others completely shun it, and most fall somewhere in-between.

For this assignment you will respond to this simple scenario.

Your supervisor has unveiled what she firmly believes is a great new plan that will improve what you do in your department (you may choose what type of business you are in based on your own career interests). After carefully studying the plan, however, you notice a number of potential pitfalls that are likely to make the plan fail (you choose the pitfalls). The problem is that your supervisor is extremely enthusiastic about the plan, and it appears that all of your colleagues are totally on board with it too. If you bring up your concerns, you are worried about being labeled as a negative person. At the same time, if you don't raise your concerns, there is a real chance that the plan will fail, causing real harm to your organization.

Your task is to write a message to your supervisor in the form of an email. In it, you will need to do all of the following.

Show appreciation for the hard work that went into the plan

Identify those aspects of the plan you believe will work

Identify those aspects of the plan you believe will not work

Suggest ideas that will help to address the problems you have found with the plan

Conclude with an offer to provide further help as needed

Effective emails are concise, clear, and complete. The recommended length of this assignment is about one page. In writing the message in Word, you should imitate the style of an email by including the To:, Subject:, and signature block.

See the Assignment Connection in this week's lesson for more tips and advice.

You will be graded based on the rubric below.

Remember to submit your assignment.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 4 Homework  

Formal Report or Proposal: Topic Selection

For this week's assignment, you will write a memo addressed to your instructor in which you share your plans for your Course Project. In order to convince your instructor to approve your topic, you must explain what your topic is, why you have chosen it, and how you plan to complete it successfully. You may find it helpful to divide your memo into three paragraphs: the what, the why, and the how. The recommended length of this assignment is one page. See Appendix B, Formatting for Letters and Memos, pages 560–561 to learn more about memo format and to see a sample memo. In addition, the Assignment Connection in the Week 4 Lesson will provide more tips and advice for choosing a strong topic.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 5 Homework  

Formal Report or Proposal: Annotated Bibliography

This week, you will create an annotated bibliography for your formal report or proposal. In it, you will identify four relevant, timely, and authoritative sources directly related to the topic of your report or proposal. It is highly recommended that you use the DeVry Library (Links to an external site.), especially the databases (Links to an external site.).

Each annotation will have these elements.

The correct APA-style reference

A summary of the source written in your own words (never copy the abstract)

One brief, interesting quotation, introduced with a verb phrase, author and date citation, and page number

An overall assessment of the article and an explanation of how it will be used in your report or proposal

Example

Tamaddoni, A., Stakhovych, S., & Ewing, M. (2017). The impact of personalised incentives on the profitability of customer retention campaigns. Journal of Marketing Management, 33(5/6), 327–347. https://doi.org/10.1080/0267257X.2017.1295094

Summary: This article contends that while there have been many studies made on churn (p. 328), the term used to describe loss or turnover of customers, there has been very little research on strategies to reduce churn. The authors contend that offering incentives may help companies to retain customers but that such incentives must be individualized based on customer buying habits to be effective. In other words, not all customers are equally worth retaining.

Interesting Quote: Tamaddoni and Ewing (2017) point out an often overlooked fact: "It is plausible to have a customer who is likely to churn and who is also not profitable" (p. 332).

Assessment: This well-researched and authoritative source will be very useful for my formal report, which focuses on increasing customer loyalty at the company where I work. It will support my point that our efforts should focus primarily on retaining our most profitable customers.

Tips

Use the Cite feature in our DeVry databases as a general guide but not as a substitute for understanding correct APA citation rules.

Pay close attention to capitalization and italics.

Put your sources in alphabetical order by the lead author's last name.

Submit your assignment as an APA-style document. The Assignment Connection in the Week 5 Lesson will provide more tips and advice.

Note: In an effort to improve your success in this course, you have the opportunity to resubmit your assignment for a better grade if you show proof of Tutor.com usage within a week after you original grade is posted. Tutor.com is an online tutoring service that provides 24/7 assistance to you at no additional cost. You can access Tutor.com in the course menu at the left-hand side of your screen.

You will be graded based on the rubric below.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 6 Homework  

This week you will submit a rough draft of your formal report or proposal. If you are writing a formal report, your rough draft will include the following elements.

Title Page

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Introduction

If you are writing a proposal, your rough draft will include the following elements.

Title Page

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Business Description

Business Objectives

Because the final draft must be at least 1,500 words long, your rough draft should be at least half that length or 750 words (longer is ok). For more information on the proper formatting of reports and proposals, see the Assignment Connection in the Week 6 Lesson.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 7 Homework  

Formal Report or Proposal: Final Draft

Your Final Draft for your Formal Report or Proposal is due this week. For more information on how to complete this assignment, consult the Formal Report or Proposal Overview page in the Introduction & Resources Module.

You will be graded based on the rubric below.

 

ENGL216 Technical Writing

Week 8 Homework  

Formal Report or Proposal: Presentation

Your Presentation for your Formal Report or Proposal is due this week. For more information on how to complete this assignment, consult the Formal Report or Proposal Overview page in the Introduction & Resources Module.