Lecture 1 - Introduction To Technical English

Introduction
Ms. Syeda Tuba Javaid

MS TESOL and Applied Linguistics, UK
CELTA, University of Cambridge, UK
MA English Literature, Pakistan
Class Rules:
• The Four simple rules:
Seating
Bags
Discussion
Language

Introduction to
Technical English
What is writing for you?

Writing:
A Non-Productive Productive Activity
Activity
The writer is not the The writer him/herself is
producer of the messages the producer of the
that he/she is writing. S/he messages that is being
is using the skill to record written.
or store messages coming
from an external source.
The Importance of Writing:
• It helps you record history.
• It helps you transmit and preserve religious and cultural
values, ideologies, and views.
• It helps you serve people by providing you a means via
which we can share knowledge, experience, observation,
insight, etc.
• It helps nations grow.
• It helps us guide, instruct, etc.
• It helps immortalize ideas, insights, etc.
The Importance of Writing:
• It helps preserve a particular language through

codification.
• It is the most appropriate medium of
communication in a great majority of cases.
• It makes things permanent and long lasting. Word of
mouth is not considered reliable, but the written
word carries immense power.
Genres of Writing:
Fiction Non-Fiction
Drama Essays
Poetry Reports
Novel Research thesis
Novelette Research papers
Novella Memos
Short story Articles
Editorials
Reviews
Letters
TECHNICAL WRITING
SCIENTIFIC TECHNICAL BUSINESS
The goal is to record and The goal is to explain The goal is to administer,
share scientific findings how things work, train communicate with and
within academia . others in how to perform control others efficiently
specific tasks to in a work environment.
accomplish selected goals
or tasks. It aims to
provide authorities with
specific information
needed to decide future
course of actions.
What is Technical Writing?
“It is a long-established and important professional

activity that can be defined as a specialized field of
communication whose purpose is to convey technical
and scientific information and ideas accurately and
efficiently.”
“It can also be defined as the written communication

of engineering and scientific ideas, concepts, and
data presented objectively, logically, and accurately.”
What is Technical Writing?
“The accurate and factual recording of the knowledge that one
gains through one’s senses for the purpose of disseminating it is
technical writing.”
“It is a method of communication which deals with subjects in

• Engineering
• Business
• Trade
• Government
• Technology and Science”
History of Technical Writing:
• Prehistoric cave paintings in France and Spain that

illustrate primitive man’s techniques for hunting buffalo.
• Technical writing from Babylonians which has survived in
the form of clay tablets contains information about their
accomplishments in astronomy, mathematics, agriculture,
instructions manuals for making beer, etc.
• Ancient Egyptian technical writing on papyrus in the
fields of medicine and mathematics.
• More prolific technical writers were the ancient

Greeks. Their writings on mathematics, physical
sciences, biology, psychology, literature, etc provided
the foundations for the current modern Western
European and American civilization.
• Instruction books or manuals is an important area in
technical writing and it started in the 16th century
when the first manual on military weapons was
written.
• World War II brought a tremendous speed-up in research
and technology. As a result of this, the field of technical
writing grew up almost overnight. The country needed a
quick and efficient way to explain new scientific devices
and weapons to the non-scientists and soldiers who were
going to use them.
• Today’s modern world more than ever needs technical
writers to explain how to use the new systems, and
consumer products and services, spawned by recent
advances in agriculture, biology, chemistry, computer
science, engineering, and physics.
Technical Documents common in
the field of Engineering
• User manuals
• Procedure Guidelines
• Proposals
• Specifications
• Reports
• Business correspondence
• Minutes of meetings
• CV/Resumes
• Cover letter
The Importance
of
Technical Writing:
In most of the cases, these reports and documents are

one’s only form of communication with clients,
government agencies, managers, and professionals at
other facilities and companies.
The recipient will usually use the report or document to

perform a task, make a decision, solve a problem, or
acquire information and knowledge.
Common Purposes
of
Technical Writing:
• To give information (It is the primary purpose of

TW)
• To analyze and interpret events and their implications
• To persuade and influence decisions
Functions of Technical Writing:
• To serve as basis for management decisions

• To furnish needed information
• To give instructions
• To explain techniques
• To report achievements
• To analyze problem areas
• To determine design and system requirement
• To serve as basis for public relation
Functions of Technical Writing:
• To provide report to stockholders of companies

• To develop a product
• To provide service
• To record business proposals
• To procure business through proposals
Any questions?
Thank you

Lecture 1 - Introduction To Technical English

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Lecture 1 - Introduction To Technical English

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Introduction

Ms. Syeda Tuba Javaid

• The Four simple rules:

Ms. Syeda Tuba Javaid

Ms. Syeda Tuba Javaid

• It helps preserve a particular language through

“It is a long-established and important professional

“It can also be defined as the written communication

“It is a method of communication which deals with subjects in

• Prehistoric cave paintings in France and Spain that

• More prolific technical writers were the ancient

In most of the cases, these reports and documents are

The recipient will usually use the report or document to

• To give information (It is the primary purpose of

• To serve as basis for management decisions

• To provide report to stockholders of companies

Ms. Syeda Tuba Javaid

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