Technical Report Writing Course - Chapter 1

Technical Report Writing Course - Fall 2022-2023

• Course Instructor: Dr. Mohamed Mahmoud
• University: The Egyptian E-Learning University (EELU)

Chapter 1: Introduction to Report Writing

• Learning Objectives:
  • Explain the communication process and its purpose for writing.
  • Understand the significance of business communication, key categories, and message types.
  • Describe the writing process and effective strategies.
  • Understand fundamental business writing principles and effective message creation.

Lesson 01: The Communication Process and Reasons for Writing

• Communication is crucial in personal and professional life.

• Communication can be verbal, written, or symbolic.

• Effective communication clearly transmits the message to the recipient.

• Effectiveness increases with distance from manual labor and organizational size.

• Communication process steps:

  • Sensing a need: Recognizing a problem needing a solution through communication.
  • Defining the situation: Gathering information about the situation for effective communication.
  • Considering communication strategies: Exploring different communication approaches.
  • Selecting a course of action: Determining message content, structure, format, and delivery channel.
  • Composing the message: Creating the message orally or in written form.
  • Sending the message: Delivering the message through the chosen channel.
  • Receiving the message: The recipient's reception of the message through the channel.
  • Interpreting the message: The recipient analyzes the message to get its meaning.
  • Deciding on a response: The recipient's response decision based on the message, if any.
  • Replying to the message: The recipient answers the initial message, if needed.

• Reasons for writing:

  • Intellectual reasons:
    • Thinking through ideas: Organizing, filtering ideas; remembering information; identifying logical errors in thought processes; making pros and cons lists to clarify positions.
    • Creating large amounts of information: Labelling ideas with concepts and terms; summarizing reading material.
  • Practical reasons:
    • Education and scientific papers: Writing papers, reports, and theories.
    • Applying for a job: Creating strong job applications and credentials.
    • Web writing: Online content creation.
    • Business communication: Sending proposals, messages.
    • Government: Filling out forms and applications.

Lesson 02: Introduction to Business Writing

• Core Categories of Business Communication:

  • Internal operational communication: Communication within the organization to implement procedures (e.g., setting goals, orders, reports, emails).
  • External operational communication: Communication with external parties (e.g., customers, agencies, advertisements).
  • Personal communication: Exchange of information and feelings between individuals.

• Types of Business Messages:

  • Verbal messages: Primarily used for routine tasks.
  • Written messages: Used for detailed or formal communication.
  • Routine messages: Convey information on events, status.
  • Positive messages: Express appreciation, praise, recognition.
  • Negative messages: Provide non-rude corrections, warnings.
  • Persuasive messages: Intended to encourage a specific action, such as sales letters.

True or False Questions

• Writing a CV is a practical reason for learning writing skills (True)
• Growing technology decreases the need for writing skills (False)
• Different situations need different communication strategies (True)
• Writing skills are not crucial as online resources offer sufficient information (False)

Additional Notes

• The course covers various types of business messages and communication.
• It emphasizes the importance of effective communication strategies.