Breaking the Rules: Teaching Grammar “Wrong” for the Right Results in Technical Communication Consulting for Engineers

Do Writing Errors Bother Professionals? An Analysis of the Most Bothersome Errors and How the Writer’s Ethos is Affected

“…They also argued that instructors should mark and grade errors as part of the student’s grade. These findings suggest that much like Knievel et al’s (2010) working professionals, students responded to explicit grammar instruction. Recent research on the editing course (Melonçon, 2019) shows that a “grammar quiz” is a common option, but it is unclear how this emphasis on grammar instruction is considered throughout the course, and the editing course is part of a TPC degree program.…”

“…Related to Knievel et al’s (2010) findings, Quible (2006) developed teaching strategies to remediate sentence-level error and help stem the tide of a “lost generation of business writers” (Quible & Griffin, 2007). Quible (2006) used a quasi-experimental research study to explore whether error labeling and correcting—through the student practice of remediation exercises—result in stronger writing performance and fewer errors in subsequent projects.…”

“…But the limited research on teaching grammar and errors in TPC suggests that explicit grammar instruction would be useful. Knievel et al (2010) described a workshop they delivered as consultants to an environmental engineering firm. They noted that as "writing instructors professionalized during an era characterized by an emphasis on writing process and rhetorical concerns like audience and purpose," they were at first hesitant to meet the specific request of the manager who invited them to give a "refresher workshop focusing on grammar and mechanics" (p. 58).…”

“…Understanding that error and a reader's understanding of error are intimately tied to what is being read and the context of the material (Williams, 1981), technical and professional communication (TPC) scholars have begun to look specifically at errors in employers' editing tests (Boettger, 2011(Boettger, , 2014 employer perceptions of nonnative speakers (Wolfe et al, 2016) contexts of workplace documents (Brandenburg, 2015) comparisons between academics and working technical communicators (Boettger & Moore, 2018) TPC teaching (Knievel et al, 2010;Quible, 2006;Quible & Griffin, 2007) Building on this small body of work, our study examines which errors bother professionals. This study provides important data for understanding errors and how writers who make such errors are perceived in workplace writing contexts.…”