Technical Writing

Damien Cowger, Assistant Director,

Russell E. Horn Sr. Learning Center
 Technical Writing
• Addresses particular readers
• Helps readers solve problems
• Uses design to increase readability
• Consists of words or images or both
 Types of Writing
• Manuals
• Term Papers/Lab Reports
• Journal Articles
 Things to Consider: Manuals
• Analyze your Audience
• Goal is to inform
• Set of steps
• Disclaimers and warnings
 Things to Consider: Term
Papers/Lab Reports
• Analyze your audience
• Goal is to present findings
• Involves synthesizing information
• Poor writing=poor research skills
• Is meant to persuade audience to accept your
findings
 Parts of a Term Paper/Lab Report
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Materials and Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion
 Abstract
• Single paragraph
• Gives background and purpose
• Explains methods
• MAJOR findings
• Recommendations
• Keywords (6)
 Introduction
• Establish why work is important
• Describe the hypothesis
• BRIEF review of previous research
• A place to define important terms
• Briefly describe methods (what you did)
 Materials and Methods
• Purpose is to convince reader that your
approach was appropriate
• Describe in detail for duplication
• Give description or list of materials used
• Describe procedures and decisions
• Assume the reader is unfamiliar with
particulars
 Results
• Present evidence to support claims in your
Discussion
• Objective language. Save subjective language
for Discussion
• Summarize the data relevant to the question
• Omit irrelevant data but explain why
 Discussion
• Sometimes called the Analysis
• Interpret your results. What do they mean?
• Start with most important findings
• Focus on offering explanations
• If your results refute your hypothesis, argue
for rejecting it
• If findings are different, suggest explanations
 Conclusion
• Summarize main points of report
• Review the purpose of your research
• Summarize the most important implications
• This is your last opportunity to persuade
• Don’t introduce new information
Things to Consider: Journal Articles
• Analyze your audience
• Purpose is to share long form experiment
results
• Avoid use of “we” and “I.” Be passive.
• Contain most recent research
• Are for experts by experts
 Penn State Harrisburg
Russell E. Horn Sr. Learning Center
Writing
Math, Business, Statistics,
Science, and Language Tutors
Academic Success Coaching
Speeches/Presentations
CONTACT US:
hbg.psu.edu/learning-center
717-948-6475
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