TECHNICAL COMMUNICATIONS - Professional blog

Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020
New Zealand Diploma
in Engineering Level 6
COMM4010 (DE4103)
TECHNICAL LITERACY
VERSION 3 LEVEL 4 CREDIT 15
ASSESSMENT:
TECHNICAL COMMUNICATIONS
TUTOR: Janine Whitworth
STUDENT:
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

 	Read this paper thoroughly. Provide a comprehensive report for your given topic based on the following instructions. It is strongly recommended to use the services of the Ako Awhina Team (LF’s) [Service is part of your compulsory student services fee!]
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© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 2
Assessment Purpose
This Assessment will demonstrate the student’s communication skills1. It will assesses the
student’s ability to perform research and convey technical information in an understandable and
structured manner. This assessment is designed to practice your research skills and your ability
to summarise and condense ideas and information gathered and state them in a clear concise
and logical manner.
1 Communication skills are expected as per ‘Graduate Profile’ of the NZDE Programme Document.
© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 3
Instruction
This assessment is about communication skills.
The purpose of this assessment is for you to demonstrate your ability to communicate technical
information in a clear and logical way.
As an engineer in industry you will often be asked to produce a report or presentation either to
communicate findings generated from a specific investigation or to provide a summary /
overview of a given situation or process. The purpose of this communication will be to educate
or inform members of your team, other departments, senior management or even the client.
Your communcation should be in a clear and logical sequence. It should state its purpose,
introduce the topic or provide a backgound as to why you chose this topic.
Chose a topic that is relevent to your study. The topic must be related to engineering to allow
you to communicate a deeper techical understanding of a topic (i.e. over and above general
knowledge).
Your choice should be something you find interseting (e.g. a hobby) or something that could
potential assist in your future studies (e.g. from a topic you will study later in the programme).
You will then produce a report, which will also form the basis of a presentation which you will
present to your classmates and a judging panel.
Know your audience, teach us something new….
Task One
 The Report shall be between 1,800 and 2,000 words for the main body. Excluded from the
word count are e.g. (but not limited to) cover page, table of contents/figures, tables, captions,
introduction and conclusion and references.

	Formatting shall be according to instructions and shall meet the criteria on the following page.

Task Two

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The presentation will be 8 minutes long.
The presentation format shall be according to instructions provided.
Q & A will follow presentation (not included in your presentation time).

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Think about a topic, question or a field you are interested in.
Turn above topic/question/interest into a question. [see examples on Moodle]
How does xyz work?
What physical principles are at work here?
Can I predict and/or calculate what will happen next?
Present the topic and an outline to tutor for approval and feedback by the specified date.
Produce a draft report and presentation.
Student will finalise the report and presenation and submit on time.

© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 5
What is an Outline?
An outline should contain the following:
Report Outline:

 	Title page showing topic / author / revision or status (e.g. outline) Section headings with text outlining what would be contained within the remainder of the section Sub-sections headings only Fully formatted to allow generation of table of contents / table of figures
 

Presentation Outline:
The following bullet points are geared towards PowerPoint instructions. The student may
choose to go ahead without PowerPoint. This choice will not affect his mark.

 	Aim for a total of max. 8 slides. [This is tutor advice, not a marking criteria!] First slide should be

o Programme Name [NZDE],
o Course name [Technical Literacy],
o topic and
o name (of presenter)

	Slide 2 should contain the reason you chose the topic. This is when you should convey your passion for the topic to captivate the audience. Last slide should always be the references used. [This slide is a must for submission but does not need to be presented during the up front assessment.] Aim for 5 content slides. Outline what you intend to cover per slide including a timing goal (e.g. slide 2 = 1min; slide 3 = explanation 1 = 2min; etc.)
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A draft is an almost finished assignment.
For the draft, content is added to the outline.
While an outline is the skeleton of the report, the draft is the completed assignment. It will
need trimming (shortening), re-organizing, shifting of sections around to follow a more logical
sequence and other fine tuning before it becomes the final version.
Consider a draft to be about 75% of the way to the final version.



Report Draft:
 In a draft your word count should be higher than the target.
 More than the required number of sources have been included.
Presentation Draft:
The following bullet points are geared towards PowerPoint instructions. The student may
choose to go ahead without PowerPoint. This choice will not affect his mark.

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Treat a Draft as a final version that is ready ahead of time so you have time for fine-tuning.
Aim for a total of max. 7 slides. [This is tutor advise, not a marking criteria!]
First slide should be
o Programme Name [NZDE],

o Course name [Technical Literacy],
o topic and
o name (of presenter)

	Slide 2 should contain the reason you chose the topic. This is when you should convey your passion for the topic to captivate the audience. Last slide should always be the references used. [This slide is a must for submission but does not need to be presented during the up front assessment.] Aim for 3 or 4 content slides. Outline what you intend to cover per slide including a timing goal (e.g. slide 2 = 1min; slide 3 = explanation 1 = 2min; etc.). Use e.g. Speaker Notes’ section.
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© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 7
Type of Report
If your topic lends itself to an investigation it should finish with a conclusion and
recommendations, if it is an overview (of a process or situation) it should finish with a summary
and next steps or future use (if applicable).
Any of the Engineering Fundamentals Lab Reports are examples for Investigations.
An exmaple for an overview topic could be: Processes within a concrete batching plant.
Suggestions relating to the Report topic
Below topics were chosen by students over the last few semesters. Each student received a
high mark. These topics are meant as ideas only. Topics from this list may not be used by you.

  	The Physics of Drifting (Theory as well as experiment) How does an oscillating fan work? Automated variable length inlet runners
    	Concrete Admixtures Piston skirts (ppt) & Piston Design in automotive combustion engine (report) Could synchronized cars change the spin of the earth? GPS technology in roading Integrated Circuits (IC’s)

In general, stay away from broad topics such as “solar power” (or similar). If a boad topic peeks
your interest, drill deeper and pick a sub-set thereof.
If in doubt, ask your tutor! We’re here to help.
© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 8
Task One – Technical Report
1. Produce a Technical Report on a Technical Subject
2. The main body of the report shall be between 1,800 and 2,000 words2. Excluded from
word count are:

 	Summary / Executive Summary Tables
	Captions
	Footnotes
	References
3. Formatting shall be according to instructions in this assignment sheet.
    	A4 paper size Font style: professional please (not “Comic Sans MS”) Font size 12 for most font styles allows for easy reading. Spacing in a readable manner (e.g. 1.5 line space) Reasonable margins (allow sufficient margin for hole punching)

4. The Marking Schedule is attached. (Read it!) It includes a “self-Check” column which is
solely for your reference and will not be part of your mark.
5. The report must be properly and professionally structured.
6. Flow of information must be well organized.
7. Avoid spelling or grammatical mistakes.
8. Acceptable formats: .doc, docx [Note: pdf is not allowed]
9. The Report shall meet the criteria stated within this document.
10. Cite at least five sources of information. Acceptable sources of information are (but not
limited to):

	Journal papers
	Conference papers
	Peer Reports
 	Books Credible websites. Note: Wikipedia and Yahoo are not considered credible websites.

2 If in doubt re word count, discuss with tutor.
© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 9
11. In order to receive full marks in the respective marking criteria, you will need to include a
minimum of five sources. Out of these five sources, only two may be internet websites.
All sources must be properly referenced with the APA7 reference system. All sources must
be properly cited within the text and matched with the reference in the Appendix.
12. Contains at least one technical sketch (drawn/created by the student).
13. It is suggested that you have the report proof-read before submission to:
 Correct the mistakes in following the instructions.
 Correct grammatical and spelling mistakes in the document.
 Ako Awhina Team (EF’s) are available to assist with this.
© Toi Ohomai Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020 Page 10
Task Two – Presentation

    	Prepare your presentation for your classmates (technical depth required). The topic & the outline of your presentation must be submitted to the Tutor for approval. The first draft of your presentation must be submitted to the Tutor for approval. Your presentation should be 8 minutes long. Your presentation must include visual aids, e.g. PowerPoint, graphs, slides, etc. You must inform the tutor one week prior to your personal presentation date if you require extra gear (e.g. flip chart, etc.). The Tutor may print your presentation notes. In this case, files to be printed have to be emailed minimum 3 working day before presentation date. The last slide(s) shall be your reference slide(s). They need to be included and submitted but do not have to be shown during your presentation. Your Final Presentation including your notes must be submitted in line with assessment gird on the cover page of this document.
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NOTE: Marks are allocated for your Time Management.
In order for you to maximize your points for the two components of this
assignment, read the marking Rubik’s carefully! (see following pages)
Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020

Presentation Criteria	Inadequate / incomplete: Significant improvements required	Adequate / Sufficient: Meets standard but not more	Above Average / Excellent: Goes beyond required standard – potential full marks	Mark	Self Check
Delivery:	Opening Remarks	No intro about self or name only Little if any introduction of content	Intro of self beyond name Adequate introduction of content	Excellent introduction of self (1) Excellent introduction of content (1)
Why topic was chosen	Reason not stated	Reason understandably provided	Reason & passion related to audience (1)
Interest created	Not clearly defined – hard to follow	Able to follow	Comprehensive, easy to follow – clear (1)
Development of rapport	No or little rapport	Adequate rapport	Audience engagement maintained (1)
Clear/audible voice / punctuation / speed variation / pauses / dynamic range / enthusiastic	Inaudible voice & lacks enthusiasm – shows lack of rehearsal	An adequate delivery, could be improved	 Audience engagement maintained (1)  Snappy, tight & well executed, clearly well-rehearsed, excellent delivery (1)
Gestures / eye contact / mannerisms / body language	Inappropriate body language	Appropriate body language	Confident & professional body language (1)
Professionalism	Sloppy & unprofessional dress standard	Physical presentation adequate	Presenter has made an effort to dress professionally & appropriately (1)
Use of notes	Too much reliance on notes	Appropriate amount of reliance on notes	Little or no reliance on notes (1)
Subtotal for Delivery:	/ 10
Content:	Relevance & Scope	 Irrelevant content/disjointed  Poor level of understanding of requirements	 Mostly relevant  Adequate coverage	 Excellent relevant content & scope covers all required criteria (5)
Examples	None or poor examples	Examples were adequate	Excellent examples (4)
Conclusion	There is no conclusion	Conclusion only hinted at or conclusion slide but does not contain conclusion.	There is an obvious conclusion summarizing the presentation. (1)
Subtotal for Content:	/ 10

Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020

Presentation Criteria	Inadequate / incomplete: Significant improvements required	Adequate / Sufficient: Meets standard but not more	Above Average / Excellent: Goes beyond required standard – potential full marks	Mark	Self Check
Structure:	logical	Difficult to follow	Mostly logical presentation of material	Presented in a logical way (1)
Organisation	Disjointed and lacks organisation	An adequate amount of organisation	Excellent structure & organisation (2)
Transitions	Transitions were distractive	Not enough to distract from presentation	Excellent clear & smooth transitions (1)
Subtotal for Structure:	/ 4
Visuals:	Visual support	Little or no visual support of presentation	Sufficient visual support of presentation	Excellent visual support of presentation; relevant & professionally presented (1)
Variety	Lacks variety	Some variety	Excellent variety (0.5)
Visual impact	Low visual impact	Some visual impact	High visual impact (0.5)
Correct	Spelling and grammar issues	Some spelling and grammar issues	No typos / errors (1)
Concise	Lack of key words or bullet points only – some long paragraphs	Mostly key words or bullet points	Excellent use of key words or bullet points only – no long paragraphs (1)
Subtotal for Visuals:	/ 4
Presentation started and finished on time	Presentation went over/under time by more than 1 minute	Presentation went over/under time by more than 30 seconds but less than 1 minute	Presentation was on time or was no more than +/- 30 seconds over/under time (2)
Subtotal for Timing:	/ 2
Subtotal Presentation overall (so far):

OVERALL Mark: Presentation
(Total of 30 possible Marks)

Poor – Average
(0 – 12 Marks)

Average – Good
(13 – 25 Marks)

Very Good – Excellent
(26 – 35 Marks)

Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020

Report Criteria	Inadequate / incomplete: Significant improvements required	Adequate / Sufficient: Meets standard but not more	Above Average / Excellent: Goes beyond required standard – potential full marks	Mark	Self Check
Structure:	Table of Content & Table of Figures	Not created	Created manually	Created using appropriate MS Suite tools (4)
Logical Outline	Difficult to follow	Mostly logical presentation of material	Presented in a logical way (6)
Organisation	Disjointed and lacks organisation	An adequate amount of organisation	Excellent structure & organisation (6)
Appropriate sections with headings identify content	Not presented	Adequately handled	Given in outstanding quality (4)
Subtotal for Structure:	/ 20
Visuals:	Visual support	Little or no visual support of presentation	Sufficient visual support of presentation	Excellent visual support of presentation; relevant & professionally presented (3)
Captions for Figures	Not included &/or poor quality	Mostly adequate	Excellent; MS Tools applied (2)
Variety	Lacks variety	Some variety	Excellent variety (1)
Visual impact (re graphics)	Low visual impact	Some visual impact	High visual impact (1)
Hand sketch	Not included &/or poor quality	adequate hand sketch quality	Excellent hand sketch quality (1)
Visual impact (re document overall)	Low visual impact	Some visual impact	High visual impact (2)
Subtotal for Visuals:	/ 10

Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020

Report Criteria	Inadequate / incomplete: Significant improvements required	Adequate / Sufficient: Meets standard but not more	Above Average / Excellent: Goes beyond required standard – potential full marks	Mark	Self Check
Content:	Content Quality	Poor content quality / quantity	Mainly adequate quality/quantity &/or some content irrelevant	 Excellent choice of content (3)  only relevant content (3)
Word count (1,800 – 2,000 words for main body)	Over or under specified word count by more than 100 words	Over or under specified word count by less than 100 words	Within word count criteria (3)
Technical vocabulary	Too low for audience	Somewhat adequate	Relevant, clear & contributes to a relevant tone for the report (4)
Concise	Report covers irrelevant side topics	Reports mainly stays on track	Report is concise and precise (4)
Correctness: e.g. Spelling, punctuation, grammar; 3rd person singular; past tense	Spelling and grammar issues; other issues	Some spelling and grammar issues &/or minor other issues	No typos, errors &/or other issues (4)
Intended Purpose: A professional technical report	Not achieved (more of a Wikipedia entry than technical report)	Purpose mainly achieved	Excellent & professional report (4)
Research Techniques – General:	Not achieved (more of a Wikipedia entry than technical report); research skills not conveyed	Purpose mainly achieved showing basic knowledge of research techniques.	Demonstrating excellent research skills/techniques (4)
Research sources: (min. 3 different kinds)	Only one kind of source given	Two different kinds of sources used	Three (or more) different kinds of sources used (4)
Research quality:	Only mainstream google search executed/used	Mainly credible sources selected	Only credible sources selected (4)
Image ref’s do not count!	Research quantity: (min. 5 required)	Less than five sources referenced / used	Five sources referenced / used	More than five sources referenced / used (4)
All images references	One (no) image(s) referenced.	All images referenced and identified as such in bibliography.	All images referenced and identified in bibliography (2)
Referencing	No referencing standard used; &/or some form of referencing attempt shown	incorrect referencing standard used (but all sources cited)	APA6 was correctly applied throughout (2)
Subtotal for Content:	/ 45
Subtotal Report overall (max. 75):

Technical Communications Assessment Brief_Rev 07 S1 2020

Subtotal: Presentation (out of 35 Points)

Subtotal: Report (out of 75 Points)

OVERALL Mark:
ASSESSMENT
(Total of 105 possible Marks)

Poor – Average
(0 – 50 Marks)

Average – Good
(51 – 90 Marks)

Very Good – Excellent
(91 –110 Marks)

= %

Time Management	Inadequate / incomplete: Significant improvements required	Adequate / Sufficient: Meets standard but not more	Above Average / Excellent: Goes beyond required standard – potential full marks	Mark	Self Check
Milestone 1: Topic Selection Originally Due: 13/ 03 / 20 Extended to 20 / 03 / 20	Late &/or not according to instructions (0) or: No submission	Late but according to instructions	On time and as per instructions (2)
Milestone 2: Draft Report & Presentation Due: 01 / 05 / 20	Late &/or not according to instructions (0) or: No submission	Late but according to instructions	On time and as per instructions (6)
Milestone 3: Final Report & Presentation Due: 15 / 05 / 20	No submission (0)	Late submission	Submission on time (2)
Subtotal for Time Management:	/ 10

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