Improving Technical Writing for Civil Engineering Students Through Short Written Assignments

Abstract

Competent technical writing for civil engineering undergraduate students is an essential skill that can enhance effective communication, data analysis, and interpretation of results to make conclusions. These abilities are closely aligned with the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) criteria of outcome 6 starting from the 2019-2020 accreditation cycle, which requires students to be able to conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and discuss results, and draw conclusions based on engineering judgment. This study explores the use of a one-page letter report as a short written assignment to improve technical writing for junior and senior students. The one-page letter report emphasizes a logical structure used in technical reports and provides various benefits, such as providing a format that enables students to practice the entire writing process (e.g. drafting, revising, and proofreading) and facilitating instructors to grade manageable reports to provide timely feedback. The specific objectives of this study are to (1) assess the effectiveness of one-page letter report assignments and associated activities, such as technical writing instruction, individual practice, peer review, faculty feedback, and use of a good writing sample to improve students' technical writing and (2) assess the improvement of the new ABET outcome 6 by using the one-page letter report at a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI). Direct measurements were assessed based on scores of students' reports following a rubric, which was created according to the ABET outcome 6 and basic requirements of technical writing. Indirect measurements were conducted using a questionnaire survey in a Transportation Engineering laboratory course. The itemized report scores and survey results show that data analysis and interpretation of results are the most challenging sections for students to write. Faculty feedback was ranked by students as the most effective activity to help them improve technical writing skills, followed by individual practice and the use of a good writing sample. Additionally, students who initially perceived their writing skills to be weak reported a higher degree of improvement at the end of the course. Student surveys also affirmed that short written assignments moderately improved ABET outcome 6 because the writing process allowed students to reflect on experimentation and interpretation of results. Future work will explore curriculum planning and design at the departmental level to continuously improve technical writing for civil engineering undergraduate students from their first-year courses to their senior capstone design projects.