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Assignment Descriptions & Examples

Infographic Introductions

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Client-Based
Project

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Instructions Project

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Job Application Project

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Infograph Inroduction

Infographic Introduction

​Introduce yourself to me and your classmates by producing a one-page infographic about yourself. This infographic will be displayed for the class on the front screen, and used to guide you through a short introduction talk.

Step 1: Consider the Rhetorical Situation

  • For all assignments in this class you will want to carefully consider your audience and purpose. Your audience is your teacher and fellow classmates. The purpose is for us to get to know one another better. But you are also trying to make a solid first impression, earn a good grade, and shape your image for the semester to come. As you design your infographic and answer the required questions, keep the rhetorical situation at the front of your mind.
     

Step 2: Consider your voice

  • As you answer the following questions about yourself, consider the image you want to project, and your place within the rhetorical situation. Answer these questions in your infographic.

    • Create a tagline for yourself.

    • What are your education/career goals?

    • What kind of writing/designing do you see yourself doing in your future career?

    • What are your strengths and weaknesses?

    • What should we absolutely know about you?

    • Help us get to know you personally (whatever you want to share)
       

Step 3: Pick a Tool

You can use any tool you want to design your infographic. You can draw it by hand, or use a computer application. I am a fan of Piktochart, but you might also explore Easelly, Infogram, Venngage, or Canva, or Visme. Do not pay any money to subscribe to a tool. You should be able to create a beautiful infographic using the free software.
 

Step 4: Design your infographic

You only have one page, so choose your words and images carefully. Design this to reflect your personality, as well as the rhetorical situation.
 

Step 5: Submit and present your infographic

You can submit your infographic to this assignment as a jpg or pdf. (A URL link will work too.) If you have chosen to draw your infographic, take a picture of it and upload the picture. Make sure you assignment is uploaded before the class on which it's due. In class you will talk us through your infographic in a brief presentation.

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View the assignment rubric here.

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View my sample infographic here.

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Thank you to my friend Dr. Jamie May at the University of Colorado for inspiration and guidance in creating this assignment.

Client-Based Project (Capstone Project)

This project pulls together the concepts you've been learning throughout the semester to help solve a real-world problem for a Galveston client. We will be working with a local, non-profit organization to apply course skills toward solving a technical communication problem. 

 

This semester we will be working with Access Care of Coastal Texas (ACCT). As a class, we will research this organization to learn more about them, then meet with someone in the organization to find out about their needs. What kinds of written communication does their organization utilize? Are there any repetitive tasks or procedures that cause problems or haven't been reviewed in a while? What kinds of written materials are used to train employees or educate new clients? How do they communicate with clients/customers?  

 

Next, we need to identify a project. Ideally, our class project is something the organization needs and something that we can reasonably do in the remainder of the semester. Depending on the scope of the project, we may decide to take-on several small projects in pairs, or work on one large project as a whole class. Examples of projects include:

  • Reworking an employee or organizational handbook

  • Creating new sets of instructions or organization procedures

  • Creating or redoing organizational forms

  • Recording a promotional video for the organization

  • Planning a social media campaign

  • Other ideas?

These are past examples of projects students have done, but I'm open to your ideas for this project depending on what you want to do and what our client needs. 

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Deliverable

This project is cumulatively worth 35% of your course grade, and it will be due in stages, including a collaboratively-written background report, a detailed proposal of your planned project, the actual project itself (what you've created/reworked for your client), and a presentation talking me and the client through your deliverable. Your final project should be guided by the needs of the organization you're working with. As always, I'll provide feedback and answer questions along the way.

See the course schedule for specific due dates of each of this project's milestones.

  • Background report (10% of course grade): As a class, research our organization, its constituents, and the environment in which it operates. This report will include an annotated bibliography supporting an APA formatted background report. 

  • Draft Proposal and Peer Review (5% of course grade): Submit a draft of your project proposal and help provide feedback/edits to peers' proposals. Proposals should include a title page and table of contents along with the following sections: executive summary, project background, benefits and feasibility, procedure and timeline, qualifications and experience, resources required, and conclusion.

  • Final Proposal (10% of course grade): Submit the full proposal for your project 

  • Final deliverable and presentation (10% of course grade): Submit and present the final deliverable you crated for your client presentation.

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Rhetorical Analysis

Instructions Project

​For this project you are going to produce clear and easy to follow set of instructions. A well done set of instructions will orient the user to their task, provide a list of tools or materials needed (if applicable), follow a logical sequence, and integrate text and visuals. 

 

As always, consider your rhetorical situation. The PURPOSE is to demonstrate how to do something with an organization. The AUTHOR is the voice of the organization for whom you're writing. The AUDIENCE is the end user. The MESSAGE is your specific set of written or video instructions. 
 

Deliverable

Create a resource in the form of instructions for something you think others in your organization might need help navigating. An important part of this assignment is considering your authorial voice (the organization on whose behalf you're writing) and your audience (target users). Examples might include how to sterilize equipment in a UTMB lab, how to apply for a scholarship at Galveston College, how to properly handle crime scene evidence for the Galveston Police Department, how to use a piece of software at your place of work, etc. Whatever resource you create, one portion of this project requires you to test it with an actual user. So make sure it's a process where you'll have access to the needed equipment, people, and resources. Additionally, the task shouldn't be so complex that it would take more than 30 minutes(ish) for the end user to complete.

 

You may either create written instructions or video instructions. Written instructions can be created using Microsoft Word, Piktochart or Canva. For video instructions you'll need some basic video editing software, but don't purchase anything. Here's a list of free resources that you can use for editing video footage, which can be shot using your camera phone. When choosing which format of instructions to create, consider your end user and how they'll be interacting with your document. For example, if you're demonstrating how to access Galveston College's e-book collection, students will likely be at a computer, phone, or tablet and a "how to" video may work best in this instance. If you are teaching employees to properly use a piece of equipment, a written printout posted on or next to the equipment may be more suitable. 

 

Video instructions should include:

  • ​A title page

  • ​A list of the tools/supplies needed (if applicable)

  • An easy to follow video

  • Call-outs (number steps, highlight important details)

  • Upload completed video to YouTube (Public or Unlisted privacy settings)

  • Enable and adjust Closed Captions or upload a transcript if sound is used
     

Written instructions should include:

  • A title

  • ​A list of tools/supplies needed (if applicable)

  • Numbered steps

  • Thoughtfully integrated text and images

  • Save final deliverable as a PDF file

 

Apply good design principles and make your instructions fit the voice of the organization for which you're writing. So, use the organization's colors, logo, or lingo (e.g., H-E-B employees are called "partners"; end users may be students, patients, or clients).

 

Finished projects should be uploaded to Canvas by the due date. Video files should be uploaded to YouTube and the link may be posted in Canvas. Written instructions should be saved as a PDF file and uploaded to Canvas.

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Project Timeline

This project is cumulatively worth 20% of your course grade, and it will be completed in stages. See additional details for each project milestone on Canvas. Complete the following activities by the due dates listed on the course schedule.

  • Proposal Memo (2.5% of course grade): Write a memo to your professor proposing your instructions project and how it address the elements of the rhetorical situation.

  • Draft Instructions & Peer Review (5% of course grade): Submit a draft set of instructions for peers in your work group, and provide feedback to one another.

  • Usability Testing Report (2.5% of course grade): Test your instructions with a probably user. A report of your findings will be submitted and used to refine your instructions ahead of the final submission.

  • Final deliverable (10% of course grade): This is the culmination of all your work, and your deliverable should be easy to use and appropriate for the rhetorical situation.​

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Instructions Project
Job Application Project

Objective

Create a professional resume and accompanying materials. Tailor it to a job that you could realistically apply for in the near future, based on your current education and abilities.

 

Deliverables

Prepare an effective and well-designed 1) resume, 2) cover letter, and 3) LinkedIn Profile for a job that you could realistically apply for in the near future. If you prefer not to create a LinkedIn Profile, you can write a statement of goals and choices paper instead. This job application packet should be for a real, specific job. This might be the next step in your career, an internship, or seasonal work (a summer job!). Find a specific job for which you could realistically apply in the near future. (Although this project doesn't require you to actually apply for this job, I want you to find a job that has potential.) Some good places to start looking include Indeed.com, Zip Recruiter, UTMB job board, Galveston College , and Galveston city/county jobs.

 

Resume

Your resume should highlight your accomplishments and abilities, not just list your skills. Look at some sample resumes in your desired career, and think about how you might alter your existing resume (if you already have one) to start molding yourself in that direction. Also, consider whether you want to create a skills based resume. or a chronological resume. Make sure your resume includes the following elements:

  • Name

  • Contact information

  • Objective or personal tag line (for a probable job)

  • Skill sets

  • Employment history (divided by skills or chronologically with most current job first)

  • Education

  • PDF format

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Cover Letter

The cover letter should be a separate document (also a PDF). A cover letter is a less formal chance for you to introduce (and sell) yourself and explain why you're a good fit for this position. Highlight the skills or abilities you have that would help this company, but don't just repeat your resume. Here is a good resource to help you with the content and format of your job application cover letter.

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LinkedIn Profile OR Statement of Goals and Choices Paper

LinkedIn is a social media platform used by many employers for posting jobs and finding candidates. Using LinkedIn best practices, set up an account and create a profile. Your profile will need to include the following:

  • A profile picture in which you look professional

  • Headline

  • An introduction paragraph

  • Background (work, education, and/or volunteer experience)

  • Make at least 3 connections (people you know in the community, classmates, etc.)

 

Statement of Goals and Choices: The purpose of this paper is for you to reflect on all of the influences that shaped your resume and cover letter. Some of the things that influenced your documents were purposefully considered choices (i.e., order of headings, fonts, wording choices, etc.). But some of the constraints you encountered were unintentional and unplanned (i.e., time constraints, technological limitations, too much or too little information). I want you to carefully and thoroughly consider all of the influences that impacted your resume and cover letter, and each of the choices you made along the way. Also consider the options that you discarded. Why did you choose one font or quality about your self to highlight over other options? Pay particular attention to how the choices you made are audience appropriate, and thoroughly justify all of your decisions. The final statement of goals and choices should be 1-2 pages long, single-spaced.

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Project Timeline: 

This project will be completed in stages. See additional details for each project milestone on Canvas. Complete the following activities by the due dates listed on the course schedule.

  • Rhetorical Analysis of the job situation memo: Write a memo to me, your professor, analyzing the rhetorical situation for a specific job.

  • Draft job pack: Submit a draft 1) resume and 2) cover letter for your peers to review and provide feedback.

  • Final job application pack: Upload a polished resume, cover letter, and either a LinkedIn profile or a Statement of Goals and Choices paper.

  • Revised job application pack: Based on my feedback, make one more set of revisions to your final documents.

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Job Application Project
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