Planning and Organizing Strategies

Planning and Organizing Strategies 1 of 31

Planning and Organizing Strategies

© Steve Whitmore

May 2018

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The Contract – My Responsibilities

I will treat you with respect

I will arrive at class on time

I will end class on time

I will come to class prepared

I will endeavor to make the classes interesting

I will be fair in my grading practices

I will grade assignments as promptly as possible

I will either answer questions that are posed, or I will suggest resources where you can find the answers

I will help you deal with personal and study problems whenever possible


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The Contract – Your Responsibilities

Meet deadlines (4)

Participate in class (2)

Learn course content (2)

Prepare for class (1)

Feedback to others (1)

Finish degree this year (1)

I note that several of you have also listed multiple responsibilities.


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Your Goals for ENSC 803 To attain better writing skills (3) ? ? ? (Too broad?)

Improve writing process (2) (“Process” lectures)

Increase speaking confidence (1) (Can be done – see me)

Improve organization and clarity (1) (“Informative” lecture)

Relearn “academic mode” (1) ? (Yes, but not needed?)

Increase vocabulary (1) ? (Difficult, time helps)

Fewer errors (1) (“Revising” lecture)

Improve style (1) (“Style” lectures)

The more specific and concrete your goals, the more likely you are to achieve them:

I will learn to write better.

vs.

I will learn to organize technical articlesso they are easily understood. (Organization and Clarity)


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Your Concerns about ENSC 803 Good, Fast, or Cheap -- you are only allowed two of

these in any engineering project (includes writing):

1. Fast + Cheap = Inferior

2. Good + Cheap = Slow

3. Good + Fast = Expensive

Skills (Quality: good vs. inferior) 4

Time/deadlines/conflicts (Speed: fast vs. slow) 3

Workload/difficulty (Cost: cheap vs. expensive) 3

N/A 1


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Your Questions about ENSC 803 How do I make writing classes interesting?

• I look for strange, interesting, contradictory, weird things about life and communication. I also look for simple strategies that everyone can learn to use. Some classes will be boring, nevertheless.

Favorite place in BC?• Fishing the Kitimat River? Exploring Cody caves? Climbing cliffs near

Nelson? Walking on Crystal Cove Beach in Tofino? I can’t choose :-)

Can we be friends? • I’m friends with some undergrads, many grad students, most of my

colleagues, and a few administrators. Of course we can be friends.

Do I play any instruments?• No, my manual dexterity and my ability to carry a tune approximate 0.

Have lunch and share my wisdom? I’m not sure I have much wisdom to share, but no doubt, it all depends upon the context for the discussion.


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More Questions about ENSC 803 How did I get a tenured position without a PhD?

• My position is non-tenured, but I am a specialist in the writing of Scientists/Engineers (among other things). Few have that skillset, which means I’m rather difficult to replace ;-) As well, I really quite like working with Engineers and Scientists.

Is the Discourse Analysis Exercise on-line?• Yes, the material is on-line, but you will discover that it is much easier

to learn and implement the principles when preceded by the relevant lecture and when you can consult me and your team-mates while doing the analysis. That’s why it counts for so much of the participation grade.

Should I be concerned about coming up with a novel approach to a problem or can I use a past paper?• You can do either, but if you choose to revise an older paper, I expect

you will submit a copy of the older paper, do more research into the topic, and significantly revise the paper.


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More Questions about ENSC 803 I like cats because they are clean, funny, like to play, and

like people?• I also do. Additionally, they cuddle, chase imaginary things

(hallucinations?), and do some of the goofiest things I’ve ever seen:

How did you get my sock stuck on your head? (Ralph)

When did you learn that you could catch field mice if you stayed upwind when I burned off a field of grass? (Tigger)

What made you follow me a mile to the post office and wait outside until I was finished, and then follow me home? (Boots)

Why did you beat up the dog across the street? (Boots)

How did I improve my communication skills in scientific writing?• I took graduate courses in Educational Psychology, in Statistical

Research, and in the Study of Rhetoric. I also read a lot of stuff.



Learning Objectives

By the end of this module, you will be able to apply some

basic planning and organizational skills, including the

following:

Time management

Dealing with procrastination

Rhetorical issues and planning

Outlining papers effectively

Organizational patterns


Planning Strategies

Begin as soon as possible


Issues of Time Management

Length, complexity, and joint authorship make time

management all the more important!

When will you do any necessary research?

How long will it take to draft the document?

Will the document go through a peer or client review

(generally a slow process)?

How long will it take to prepare and duplicate the final

document?

How much time is required to deliver the document?


Time Management for Reports

Planning guidelines for 4 Environmental

Engineers writing a 50 page technical

report (some “boilerplate” text available)

Organization and research 5 days 25%

Drafting 3 days 15%

Peer review 1 day 05%

Revising and editing 5 days 25%

Formatting and duplication 2 days 10%

Delivery by courier 1 day 05%

Contingency 3 days 15%


Time Management

Example of a Simple Gantt Chart

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Deliver Report

Format Report

Final Editing

Revise 1st Draft

Create Figures

Write 1st Draft

Research Topic

Weeks

For lengthy reports written by multiple people, consider

using scheduling software such as MS Project.


Procrastination

The consequences of procrastination


Procrastination

Common reasons for procrastinating?

Hard work

Dislike writing

Uncertainty about where to start

Perfectionism

Apprehension about audience’s criticisms


Dealing with Procrastination

Recognize that procrastination makes it harder in the end

Overcome a dislike of writing by focusing on positive goals

Deal with the uncertainty of starting by asking questions

Replace a desire for perfection with a quest for excellence

Deemphasize potential criticism by viewing your drafts as

provisional (temporary)

Distinguish between procrastination and incubation


Rhetorical Issues and Planning

Consider audience, purpose, and tone

Use standard forms when required

Determine an appropriate perspective:

Perspective Possible Uses

1st Person (I, We, Organization) Letters, memos, reports, proposals

2nd Person (You) Manuals, procedures, letters

3rd Person (She/He, They, One) Reports, legal documents

No Person (Passive Voice) Scientific reports & articles, specifications


Organizational Strategies

Creating outlines

Using organizational patterns

Writing introductory paragraphs

Creating graphics


Topical Outlines

1. Fiber Optics in Telecommunications

1.1. Architectures

1.1.1. Active Pedestal

1.1.2. Double Star

1.1.3. Star Bus

1.2. Materials

1.2.1. Fiber Types

1.2.2. Strand

1.2.2.1. Core

1.2.2.2. Cladding

1.3. Applications

1.3.1. Residential

1.3.2. Commercial

1.4. Advantages and Disadvantages

1.4.1. Cost

1.4.2. Flexibility

1.5. Installations

1.6. Computer Simulations


Computer Outlines


Mind Maps


Taxonomies (Top-Down) Deductive

Fiber Optics in Telecommunications

Architectures Strand

Applications Advantages

Disadvantages

Star Bus Double Star

Active Ped.

Core Cladding

Residential Commercial 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

1.

2.

3.


Brain Storming

(Bottom-Up)

Inductive

Mike’s Process

(MindStorm)



Mike’s Process (MindMap)

Mike’s Process (Outline)


. . . . . .

Could then be entered into

MS Word “Outline View” and

expanded into the paper.


Patterns of Organization

Pattern Description

Chronological Sequence of events through time, as for describing a process.

Spatial According to physical relationships, as for describing an object.

Comparison/Contrast Explanation of similarities and differences, as for comparing old

and new designs.

Order of importance From most important to least important, as determined by

audience and purpose.

Problem solving Explanation of problem, method, and solution followed by

recommendations.

General to specific A general point followed by a more detailed explanation

and/or specific examples.


More Organizational Patterns

Place the obvious before the remarkable

Place the presentation before the refutation

Place the explanation before the complication

Place the solvable before the unsolvable

Place the agreement before the disagreement

Place the likely before the speculative

Place the rules before the exceptions


Introductions & Graphics

Some writers like to “perfect” the introduction prior to

starting to work on the rest of the paper.

• Useful for papers where the structure or conclusions

are unclear

• Recognize risk of perfectionism and procrastination

Experienced Engineers sometimes create all the

graphics for a document and then fill in the blanks.

• Useful for papers with a high visual content

• Recognize risk of insufficient explanation and

transition

Building from PowerPoint An alternative to starting in a document is to start with

PowerPoint and then transfer the material to MS Word:



Conclusion

Reflections: How much do you procrastinate and why?

Documents

Planning and Organizing Strategies