Journal of Business and Technical Communication Oct 2004

Technical Communication Instruction in Engineering Schools

Laura Reave Western University

Abstract

This survey of 73 top-ranked U.S. and Canadian engineering schools examines initiatives that engineering schools are taking to improve communication instruction for their students. The survey reveals that 50% of the U.S. schools and 80% of the Canadian schools require a course in technical communication. About 33% of the schools utilize some form of integrated communication instruction, and another 33% offer elective courses in communication. Just 10 schools have created engineering communication centers to provide additional individualized coaching and feedback for their students. The most comprehensive preparation that engineering schools provide is a communication-across-the-curriculum approach that combines these instructional methods to offer concentrated instruction, continual practice, situated learning, and individualized feedback.

Journal
Journal of Business and Technical Communication
Published
2004-10-01
DOI
10.1177/1050651904267068
Open Access
Closed
Topics
technical communication

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (14)

  1. Mallette (2024)
    Listening, Reflecting, and Learning: A Methodology for Engineering Communicatio…
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  2. Luo et al. (2024)
    The Effectiveness of a Technical Communication Module for Automobile Manufactur…
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  3. McCall (2021)
    Getting the Story Straight: How Conflicting Narratives about Communication Impa…
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  4. Gallagher et al. (2020)
    A Collaborative Longitudinal Design for Supporting Writing Pedagogies of STEM Faculty
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  5. Read et al. (2018)
    Hidden in plain sight: findings from a survey on the multi-major professional w…
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Show all 14 →
  1. Conrad (2018)
    The Use of Passives and Impersonal Style in Civil Engineering Writing
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  2. Karatsolis et al. (2016)
    Supporting Technical Professionals’ Metacognitive Development in Technical Comm…
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  3. Brent (2011)
    Transfer, Transformation, and Rhetorical Knowledge
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  4. Wolfe et al. (2011)
    Teaching the IMRaD Genre: Sentence Combining and Pattern Practice Revisited
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  5. Steiner (2011)
    The Communication Habits of Engineers: A Study of How Compositional Style and T…
    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication
  6. Harlow (2010)
    The Province of Sophists: An Argument for Academic Homelessness
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  7. Wolfe (2009)
    How Technical Communication Textbooks Fail Engineering Students
    Technical Communication Quarterly
  8. Taylor (2007)
    Comments on Lab Reports by Mechanical Engineering Teaching Assistants
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication
  9. Russell (2007)
    Rethinking the Articulation Between Business and Technical Communication and Wr…
    Journal of Business and Technical Communication

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    <i>Writing4practice</i> in engineering courses: Implementation and …
    Technical Communication Quarterly
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    Technical Communication Quarterly
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