Cross-cultural blunders caused by inappropriate use of language are a common problem in international professional communication. They cause misunderstanding, lead to business failures, and tend to be offensive at times. Such blunders may occur in business ads, slogans, products names, and instructions. Understanding their causes and finding…

The study investigated the importance of two elements in the process of syllabus design (ends / means specifications, program implementation) in the faculty of Islamic and Arabic studies, Nile Valley University, designed in 1995. Results indicate that the ends/means specifications stage is used to present the general aims and the objective of each…

Analyzes problems inherent in the Challenger project. Suggests that these are illustrative and worth the consideration of business communication teachers and practitioners as well as communication consultants. (JAD)

Discusses ways to make the professional consulting experience successful and to understand an organization's communication problems. States that consultants should be aware of how the organization's culture may affect its members' communication practices, and should learn to read various signs of organizational culture. Emphasizes that effective…

Describes how technical and communicative skills can be combined for training technical writers. Technical Education is a bimonthly supplement to Industrial Arts and Vocational Education. (Editor/GB)

Argues that too little information on audience analysis is available to technical writers and suggests that such analysis should be done in relation to the reader's level of competence and motivation. (TJ)

A common aphorism in the halls of education is that the writing skills of Americans decline over time. Compared to the "golden age of letters," so the argument goes, each subsequent generation of writers is worse than the last. Although contemporary readers and educators commiserate over encounters with bad writing, a fair comparison of 18th…

Indicates that ambiguity, one of the major faults of technical prose, occurs in at least six ways: ambiguity by implication, ambiguous word order, ambiguous words, dangling participles, improper or missing punctuation, and faulty pronoun reference. Suggests cures for each and provides examples for students to discuss and correct. (TJ)

Surveys five basic obstacles frequently faced by the technical writing consultant: establishing goals, extracting information, assimilating information, translating the information into final form, and testing the information. (GW)

Provides sets of alternative answers to 10 situations technical writing consultants often face. Cites pertinent resources that are available. (RL)

Suggests that, while there are some good qualities among today's technical communicators, there are many weaknesses. Suggests some ways to eliminate such weaknesses. (TJ)

Explores the problem of sexist language in written communication. Offers a definition of sexist language, and suggests possible solutions for eliminating sex bias in language. Urges technical writing instructors to address the issue in their classes, noting that sexist language can cause serious problems in efforts to communicate effectively. (MM)

Notes that communication problems arise because of differences in world experience, in the amount of common knowledge shared within cultures, in the structure of societies and the workplace, in culturally specific rhetorical strategies, and even in differences in processing graphics. Suggests technical writing teachers find ways to incorporate…

Reports on a study that describes the areas in which the communication skills of secretarial students in law offices, legal secretaries, and lawyers can be improved. (KS)

Suggests creating subtle but simple controversial issues and personalities for student assignments to help students consider the problem of audience in technical and business writing. (TJ)