Prof & Tech Communication ENGL-2210-001

Date: November 20th, 2022

To: Dr. Lisa Myers
From: Kai Pedigo
Subject: Reflection Memo

I am writing this memo to articulate the rhetorical choices that I made regarding this semester,
Fall 2022, as a whole and to reflect upon the progress I have made towards to Student Learning
Outcomes on the ENGL-2210-001: Professional and Technical Communication course stated on
the course syllabus. For this course, I worked towards the specific objectives “project planning”,
“project analysis”, “content development”, “organizational design”, “written communication”,
“visual communication”, “reviewing and editing”, “content management”, and “production and
delivery”.

The “project planning” outcome states, “planning, researching, and composing technical
documents (as a lifecycle process) in teams and individually”. This outcome was demonstrated
through the completion of each Major Writing Assignment. During the first Major Writing
Assignment (MWA1), I had worked in a group. As a team we brainstormed, planned, and
researched a topic that would be acceptable for the writing assignment. We decided to do our
project on “how to make chocolate chunk cookies.” We individually researched, planned, and
composed certain sections within the project and then came together as a group to complete it. It
was a valuable experience working as a group, as we were able to bounce our own ideas off each
other resulting in a unique and well-designed project with written and video instructions. I
completed the second Major Writing Assignment (MWA2) individually. I brainstormed,
researched, and composed a formal report titled “How Can we Improve Air Quality in
Albuquerque, New Mexico?”. There was a lot of research involved in this Major Writing
Assignment and I gained skills on how to obtain credible information from various sources to
plan and compose this technical document.

The “project analysis” outcome states, “identifying a document’s readers and a document’s
context relative to practices of composing for specific global, diverse, and multicultural
audiences. Understanding how technical documents occupy and respond to social justice and
community service contexts”. This outcome was demonstrated through MWA2. The conclusions
and recommendations stated within my formal report titled “How can we Improve Air Quality in
Albuquerque, New Mexico?” can reach a diverse group of people and benefit a large population
of individuals within the Albuquerque area, as many people are affected by poor air quality. This
report was composed specifically for individuals residing in Albuquerque, New Mexico with the
intention of promoting positive change.

The “content development” outcome state, “understanding how genre conventions impact
writing. Using contextual information to place specialized information into the appropriate
genre”. This outcome was demonstrated through my fable memo. The assignment was to create a
real-life incident report that was inspired by a fable. I chose to use the fable “The Owl and the
Grasshopper” as my inspiration. I named the two characters involved in my incident report “Mr.
Grass” and “Ms. Owl” after the grasshopper and owl from the fable. The characters, elements,
and situation worked together and were common in the specific genre that was chosen for this
assignment.

The “organizational design” outcome states, “practicing strong research skills with primary and
secondary sources to generate appropriate content. Generating strong research questions and
developing clear research practices”. This outcome was demonstrated through MWA2A from the
variety of sources that I used to obtain information for my report. I utilized Google Scholar, the
UNM library, and Google.com. Half of my sources are peer-reviewed journal articles, and the
rest are other, yet reputable, sources. These primary and secondary sources generated strong
research questions, conclusions, and recommendations that carried my report. I was able to
generate strong recommendations that can make obtainable changes. Without these sources, my
report would not be valid.

The “written communication” outcome states, “composing clear, stylistically responsible prose
that avoids errors and pays attention audience needs”. This outcome was demonstrated through
my complaint letter. I ensured that this letter was free of grammatical and spelling errors. The
subject and purpose were clearly stated and concise. It was important that I was specific about
the complaint that was to be addressed and ensured that it was written in a professional tone.

The “visual communication” outcome states, “using visual design principles to develop
audience-friendly data displays, including charts, tables, infographics, line graphics, and
presentations”. This outcome was demonstrated through Major Writing Assignment two through
my report by my use of various graphs. These graphs reinforced and enhanced my report by
creating a visual representation of the data that was included in my report. I included graphs that
showed the distribution of individuals throughout Albuquerque who have been diagnosed with
various chronic diseases that can be caused by or made worse by poor air quality, strengthening
my report and its recommendations.

The “reviewing and editing” outcome states, “across media and contexts, ensuring final clear
style, user-centered writing, and error-free spelling mechanics was shown in…”. This outcome
was demonstrated in MWA1. I completed MWA1 in a group. Each person in our group had their
own responsibilities. After we completed our own sections for the video and written instructions,
we peer-reviewed each other’s work to ensure there were no grammatical or spelling errors in
both parts. The resulting project was professional and well-written with no grammatical or
spelling errors.

The “content Management” outcome states, “gaining knowledge of the organization and
management of digital and textual information and learning the basics of information
architecture, web content management, and social networking” This was shown in MWA2. I
used a specific organizational design for the formal report. This report was also intended to
promote change within the community influencing social networking. Many of the graphs that I
created were through various programs and software. These graphs enhanced my report and its
organization.

The “production and delivery” outcome states, “developing skills in presenting information in
multiple modes and in various media: web, paper, oral, and video. Applying delivery skills to
emerging technologies”. This outcome was demonstrated through MWA1. My team and I
created both written and video instructions for the topic “how to make chocolate chunk cookies”.
The video instructions were uploaded through YouTube, which is accessible to a large number of
individuals, utilizing today’s modern technology. Our video included voice instructions along
with subtitles for accessibility. Our written instructions enhanced our video instructions by
providing a hard copy that included pictures and written directions.

I completed and submitted nine assignments throughout this course: A fable memo, complaint
letter, resume, postmortem PowerPoint report, emergency instructions, written instructions,
video instructions, formal report, and reflective memo. The written instructions were my
strongest item. I had a strong and organized design and ensured that I included photos and other
design elements to enhance it. It contained all of the information that was needed in a single page
and I used several organizational design elements that made it easier to read. Additionally, this
item was peer-reviewed by other members of my group. My weakest assignment was the formal
report. This was a large assignment that required the use of many different sources. I feel this
was my weakest assignment because I could have done better with the design elements of the
report. The majority of my report contained several pages of information, and reflecting upon my
work, adding additional design elements, such as additional graphs, would have enhanced my
report further.

The skills that I obtained through this Technical Writing course can be applied to other areas of
my life, such as in my future classes or workplace. During this course, we completed several
memos and technical documents. The example memos that I created can be a template for future
memos that I may need to write in an academic or professional setting. Other technical
documents such as our “complaint letter” can be used as a template that I can utilize in the future
when I need to address a concern. Many design elements were presented in this course. The
knowledge and skills that I gained through using these design elements will allow me to create
professional looking reports, presentations, and other documents in my future classes and
professional career. Because presentations were conducted through using various modes and in
various media, I will be able to create present many different types of documents professionally
including PowerPoints, video instructions, and written instructions in my future classes and
professional career. Formal reports are required in many upper-level courses and it was very
beneficial learning how to create my own formal report in this course. I learned how to access a
variety of credible sources and gained knowledge and skills on how correctly use these sources,
which will benefit me in my future classes. I also learned how to work in both an individual and
group setting which will be required in my future classes and career. This Technical Writing
course has given me many practical and useful tools that I will use for years to come.

Thank you for taking the time to read this memo. If you have any questions or concerns
regarding the information stated in this memo, please feel free to contact me by my cell phone
number (785)770-5119, e-mail me at kpedigo@unm.edu, or see me in Mitchell Hall 116.