TECHNICAL

REPORT
WRITING
Instructor: MS. JOY L. MENDINA
Course Learning Outcomes (CLOA):
CLOA1:Conduct Criminological research on technical ways of writing reports on
different type of offenses.
CLO2: Apply the Principles of and Jurisprudence of Criminal Law, and criminal
evidence in writing technical reports.
CLO3: Collaborate effectively and independently in multi-disciplinary and
multi-cultural teams in writing police reports.
CLO4: Engage in lifelong learning and writing police reports in promoting
developments of criminology and criminal justice.
CLO5: Apply professional, social, and ethical standards in writing police reports.
CLO6: Effectively communicate orally and in writing police reports using both
English and Filipino.
INTRODUCTION TO TECHNICAL WRITING
 Technicalwriting is writing or drafting technical communication
used in technical and occupational fields. Technical writing
encompasses the largest sub-field in technical communication.

A technical report (also scientific report) is a document that

describes the process, progress, or results of technical or scientific
research problem like recommendations and conclusions of the
research.
 Technical reports are source of technical information, prepared for
internal or wider distribution by many organizations, it is often
limited to within the originating organization.
 OVERVIEW
• Technical writing is performed by a technical writer (or
technical author)
 is the process of writing and sharing technical information in a
professional setting.

• A technical writer's primary task is to communicate technical

information to another person or party in the clearest and most
effective manner possible.
EXAMPLE: Press releases, memos, reports and business
proposals.
 HISTORY
 Technical writing has only been recognize as a profession since World War
II, its roots can be traced to classical antiquity.
 Aristotle`s work cite as the earliest forms of technical writing.
 Geoffrey Chaucer's work, Treatise on the Astrolabe, is an early example
of a technical document.
 The earliest examples of technical writing date back to the Old English
period.
 Isaac Newton and Leonardo da Vinci prepared documents, during the
invention of the mechanical printing press, dating the onset of the
Renaissance.
HISTORY
 The events of World War I and World War II led to advances in medicine,
military hardware, computer technology, and aerospace technologies.

 In recent years, the prominence of computers in society has led to many

advances in the field of digital communications, leading to changes in the
tools technical writers use.
 Hypertext, word processors, graphics editing programs, and page
layout software have made the creation of technical documents faster
and easier, and technical writers of today must be proficient in these
program.
 Significance of
Technical Writing

“A CRIMINAL
INVESTIGATION IS
ONLY AS GOOD AS THE
REPORT THAT
Significance of Technical Writing

Law enforcers are required to write Those in the academe are also expected to
• beat patrol reports, • hand in research,
• fill up routing slips, • proposals,
• write traffic incident reports, • feasibility studies,
• compose blotter entries, and • technical reports and
• submit various kinds of police reports • many other classrooms written output.

With this writing demands, the need for developing technical

writing skill is highly expected. The more that a person is
inclined to learn and develop his writing skill, the higher is the
positive result of a good technical output.
Definition of Technical Writing
Technical comes from the Greek word “techne” which
means “skill.”
Skill – the ability to use one`s knowledge effectively and
readily in execution or performance
Technical writing then is a form of technical skills and is used
in fields like the military, police, computer industry, robotics,
finance, consumer electronics, biotechnology, and many other
fields.
Technical Writing
 Also termed as report writing. (Vicente et.al. 1997)
 Is the giving of an account or description of an aspect of a
particular art, science, trade, or profession learned by
experience, study, observation, or investigation.
 A communication in any field where the primary aim of which
is to convey a particular piece of information, for a particular
group or group of readers.
 BASIC PRINCIPLES OF GOOD
TECHNICAL WRITING
Mills and Walter (1988) pointed out important principles to
be considered in technical writing. These principles are
enumerated as follows: TECHNICAL
1. The writer of a report must have a specific reader or
group of readers in mind.
Has a specific reader.
2. He must decide what the specific purpose of his report
is and make sure that every part of his report Has a specific purpose.
contributes to that purpose.
3. He must use specific, single, concrete word and WRITER
familiar language that will not be misinterpreted.
4. He must make his report very presentable in format. Uses familiar language.
The lay out must conform with the standards forms of
writing. Produces reports that
are presentable.
Elements of Technical Writing

Subject Matter
Study of the investigation
Organization and Presentation of the
information gathered
 THE TWO IMPORTANT FACTORS OF
TECHNICAL WRITING

Subject matter refers to the objective information that the

writer wants to convey; whereas purpose refers to the goals that
the writer wants to achieve for himself and his written output.
The illustration below exemplifies more on these concepts.
 The subject of technical writing can either be:
• Tangible - Something that can be seen or touched, such
as a computer or software program, or information on how
to assemble a piece of furniture.
• Abstract - Something that involved a series of steps that
are not related to a tangible object. One example of this
might be steps required to complete an office process.
 QUALITIES OF A GOOD
TECHNICAL REPORT
 BREVITY – this is the quality of writing which is characterized by the shortness or briefness of the writing
material; this is achieved through presentation of ideas in a short but complete manner.
 CLARITY – this is condition of writing where ideas are simplified by making it easier for the readers to
understand. This is achieved by providing further examples, illustrations, or diagrams to clarify he text. A
conscientious writer considers that not all readers are well-versed with specific terminologies, therefore it
is his responsibility to convey his idea as clearly as possible.
 COMPLETENESS – this is the quality of writing where the ideas in the paragraph are entirely and free
from inconsistencies and errors in any form. A good writer is aware that one of his objectives is to
present information that is entirely complete.
 ACCURACY – this refers to the exactness and correctness of writing, as this is a result from precision,
conformity to grammar, and adherence to writing standards. There are writers who knows how to present
their ideas, but they are inaccurate in presenting facts. An effective writer is not only good at presenting
his ideas but also accurate in conveying all the complete facts. A well-written report is a product of an
accurate writer.
 The Technical Communication  Technical Communicator

 Technical communication  A technical communicator is a

is the process of conveying person whose job involves
technical information through technical communication.
writing, speech, and other Technical communicators are
medium to an intended audience. those who design reading
The main function of technical materials, edit proposals, write
communication is to convey manuals, create web pages, write
specific messages to specific laboratory reports, write
readers. newsletters, and submit various
kinds of professional documents.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD
TECHNICAL COMMUNICATOR

 Know his audience well  He must have enough

 Serves as a “Go Between” expertise
 A generator of truth  Know how to gather
information
 A good teacher
 He is respected and
 Has an excellent eye for credible
details
 Has a strong language
 Know how to coordinate skills
Elements of Technical Writing

In the field of Criminology:

 Subject Matter
- study or the investigation; done through
observation, analysis, experimentation, and
instrumentation in order to support and present
factual information regarding assigned cases.
 Some examples of technical writing include:

• Instruction manuals
• Policy manuals
• Process manuals
• User manuals
• Reports of analysis.
• Instructions for assembling a product.
• A summarization of a long report that highlights
and shortens the most important elements.
 Basic Principles of Good Technical
Writing
 The writer of a report must have a specific reader or group
of readers in mind.
 He must decide what the specific purpose of his report is
and make sure that every part of his report contributes to
the purpose.
 Hemust use specific, single, concrete word and familiar
language that will not be misinterpreted.
 Hemust make his report very presentable in format. The
layout must conform with the standard forms of writing.
 Basic Principles of
TECHNICAL WRITING
A form of communication in a specific field
(Criminology)

It conveys a particular piece of information:

(Criminological researches, police reports, blotter entries,
memorandum, circulars, legal documents)
It conveys a particular purpose:
(to research on a problem, to investigate a crime, to record
an occurrence, to disseminate information, to serve as a
legal basis.)

It has a particular group of specific readers:

(Criminology instructors, Director General, Chief of Police,
prosecutors)
 SELF-CHECK
Instruction: Write T if the statement is TRUE, F it is FALSE in the blank before each number.

____________________ 1. Technical writing is a skill that must be required by any practitioner in a

particular field of specialization.
______________ 2. When the writing demand is less, there is a need for the technical writer to
develop more skills in writing.
______________________ 3. The more that a person is interested to develop his writing skills, there is a

higher possibility of a good technical output.

_______________________ 4. The word “technical” comes from the Latin word “techne” that means

‘expertise’.
_______________________ 5. Technical writing is a communication in any field where the primary aim of

which is to convey a particular piece of information

for a particular purpose to a particular
group of readers.
_______________________ 6. Technical writing is a form of technical skill which is used field
of specialization.
_______________________ 7. Technical writing should be objective, clear and accurate,

concise and unemotional in its

representation of facts.
______________________ 8. A technical writer must have specific purpose and readers

before he writes a report.

_______________________ 9. A technical writer is exempted in following the conventions

and standards of good technical

writing.
_______________________ 10. Writing is also another form of communication, and there are

instances that it becomes

ineffective because the writer
can communicate well.
 INTRODUCTION TO TECHNICAL
WRITING
CHAPTER 3: Parts of Speech
CHAPTER 1: The Characteristics of Good Police a. Noun
Reports b. Pronoun
a. Clarity c. Verb
b. Accuracy a. Subject-Verb Agreement
c. Brevity d. Adjective
d. Specificity e. Adverb
e. Timeliness, Security, f. Preposition
Impartiality, & Completeness
CHAPTER 4: Punctuations
CHAPTER 2: The 5 Ws and 1H of Police Reports g. Colon
f. Who h. Semicolon
g. What i. Comma
h. Where j. Hyphen
i. When k. Apostrophe
j. Why l. Quotation Marks
k. How m. Parenthesis
n. Bracket, & Dash
o. Ellipsis Points
 REFERENCES
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_writing

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/word-definitions/definition-of-technical-writing.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technical_report#Description