1. ICS 139W Critical Writing on Information Technology
Lecture 6
Emily Navarro
Duplication of course material for any commercial purpose without the explicit written permission of the professor is prohibited

2. Announcement
System change proposal final version due Tuesday, 12/8 11:55pm to EEE
Electronic version only
No peer reviews/previous version required
Do not miss the deadline!

3. Today’s Lecture
Summary of 139W
In-class writing exercise

4. Assignments Personal Statement Influencing Policy System change
Introductory tutorial
Proposal with slides
Resume/cover letter
Lots of presentations
Lots of critiques/reviews

5. Personal Statement: Lessons Learned
Understand the purpose of why you are writing
What is the goal?
Understand your audience
What sort of things will the admissions committee be looking for?
Understand how you are unique
How can you present that in a compelling, experiential way

6. Influencing Policy: Lessons Learned
How to write persuasively with a professional tone
Constructing logical arguments using syllogisms
“Getting to the point” right away
Recommending specific action (not just complaining)
Anticipating counterarguments
More about a public policy issue involving technology

7. Resumes/Cover Letters
Make it to the “good pile” by
Being qualified
Using perfect grammar, spelling, etc.
Following instructions
Apply to jobs you are interested in
Follow standard resume/cover letter mechanics
Show results, context, passion
Resume mechanics: Contact info up front, most recent experience first, etc.
Cover letter mechanics: mimics language, summarizes experience, etc.
Results: start w/ summary of your skills and accomplishments

8. System Change Intro: Lessons Learned
How to write for an audience of novice users
How to summarize the basic purpose and functionality of a program

9. System Change Proposal: Lessons Learned
How to write a business proposal regarding a technological issue
Further practice in writing persuasively with a professional tone
How to create and deliver a professional presentation with slides

10. Critiques/Reviews: Lessons Learned
What works
What does not work
And why!
Written and oral

11. Lectures Oral presentation techniques
Three laws of professional communication
Typography, illustration, data visualization
Resumes and cover letters (already covered)
The nature and structure of language

12. Oral Presentation Techniques
Linguistic behavior
Rate of speech, intonations, mannerisms
Non-verbal behavior
Gestures, movement, mannerisms, eye contact, apparent comfort
Organization
Structure in sections
Use effective redundancy
Finish with summary/conclusion
Visual aids
Use pictures, bullets, consistency
Know your material

13. Three Laws of Professional Communication
Adapt to your audience
Maximize the signal/noise ratio
Use effective redundancy

14. Typography, Illustration, and Data Visualization
Good typography helps readers distinguish between elements on a page/slide/diagram
Illustration is the meshing of words with images
Graphs
Charts
Tables
Diagrams
Photographs

15. The Nature and Structure of Language
Don’t:
Over-specify detail
Use overly complex wording
Overuse pretentious diction
Overuse weak verbs
Be ambiguous
Do:
Use examples
Vary sentence openers

16. In a Nutshell, you have learned how to…
Communicate
Orally
In (a variety of) written forms
About technological issues
In a professional manner
While customizing your communication to your intended audience

17. Thank you and have a great Christmas break!

18. In-class Writing