Blog Response Week #10

ENG 301

3/23/15

Word Count: 754

Introduction:

            “Writing a proposal calls for the same process of planning, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading that you use for other kinds of documents” (Markel, 440). For my group’s Proposal Project, we need to really utilize all five of these processes in order to compose a successful report and recommendation about our selected institute- the Institute for Humanities Research. Each component of our report will reflect on how much we have learned and how we have developed our professional literacies throughout this course.

Description:

            On the first day of class, myself and my peers evaluated ourselves by filling out a professional literacies self-assessment. We were asked to rank ourselves based off our own experiences working with certain literacies on a scale of “novice” to “expert”. For instance, I ranked myself as in between “low-intermediate” and “high-intermediate” for my Meeting Literacies because I have had many experiences with formal meetings in the work place; however, I do not feel as though I am an expert just yet. When it came to Proposal Literacies, I definitely felt like a “novice”; I have written research papers in previous courses, yet the way a proposal is written was entirely new to me. I learned about the different “deliverables” of proposals, which is what the presenter will deliver to their audience at the end of the project- these will reflect whatever research was performed for the purpose of the report. Proposals require their presenter to be persuasive and one must persuade their reader of three things: 1. that you understand the audience’s needs, 2. that you already figured out what you plan to do and that you will be able to do it, and 3. that you are a professional and you are committed to fulfilling your promises (Markel, 444). This project will hopefully reflect my group’s overall progress in developing our professional literacies. I feel as though the best way to learn and to improve our writing skills is to practice creating these types of documents; I have definitely learned a lot so far.

            The Proposal Project has also reinforced knowledge that I have already acquired from past assignments about the importance of writing collaboratively. There are some definite advantages of working collaboratively, although I usually prefer working alone if I am unfamiliar with my partner or team members because I am nervous about how much our work ethics may vary. However, I understand that collaboration can be critical to being successful in the work place so I am willing to apply it to my school work. First of all, writing documents with other people can draw on a greater knowledge and a greater skill base (Markel, 58). Documents can be more comprehensive and accurate when multiple people are composing them, plus having several authors will offer more questions and suggestions on how the document could be improved. Communicating effectively is critical in writing collaborative documents, especially when you are unable to meet up with your teammates in person on a regular basis.  It is important to utilize the time you do have to spend with your group, and to work productively. We need to listen to each other carefully, allow everyone a chance to speak, don’t become too emotionally attached to your own ideas, and always ask pertinent questions (Markel, 67). Being able to participate in team projects in this course (amongst others), as well as in my own working environment, has definitely taught me that you will not always get along with the people you work with on a personal level, however, it is critical that you find a way to be helpful to one another and to pull your own weight.

Conclusion:    

Through the use of effective teamwork and our new knowledge on writing proposals, I hope that I, as well as my team members are able to successfully understand and execute this our recommendation report regarding our institute. “A recommendation report can be the final link in a chain of documents that begins with a proposal and continues with one or more progress reports” (Markel, 514). Planning, drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading are all essential parts of the writing process that I have practiced and developed for technical communication. Based on my team’s conclusion that the Institute for Humanities Research would benefit from participating more in social media, we will recommend that they engage in a flyer campaign which will promote their new social media addresses in order to increase awareness about the institute and therefore engage the public.