Course Description
Technical Writing for the NASA Engineer (APPEL-TW)
Audience
This course is designed for NASA’s new and experienced engineers.
Goal
This one-day workshop provides intensive instruction in technical writing to assist you in improving your technical communication skills, allowing you to effectively communicate technical / project information to different audiences.
When asked what participants learned that would be most beneficial to their work, they said…
"Conversational/written responses to difficult communication situations, and how to best approach them." —GSFC, 2007
Learning Methods
Lectures and discussions will present key theories, concepts, and proven practices related to technical writing. You will participate in individual and small-group learning exercises to help develop your skills and competencies. Additionally, you will put this knowledge to work by writing technical / project reports such as technical assessments, technical evaluations, and work-in-progress status reports.
Specific Objectives
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Identify and explain the purpose of different types of technical reports.
- Determine specific components and formats of technical reports.
- Analyze the audience.
- Organize and structure a technical report.
- Write effective headings, factual information / detail and technical content.
- Create clear figures / tables.
- Avoid the common pitfalls of writing technical reports.
