atw: Accreditation - general points
- From: "Birtley-Kent, Christine" <birtleykentc@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "'austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx'" <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2004 12:33:31 +1000
I agree with some of your points but not others, Michael.
On the agreement side, even the testing I have suggested would involve a
huge array of tests with each test passed listed on the accreditation
certificate.
Tests would have to include each of the phases of a TW role:
- Analysis
- High level Design
- Detailed Design
- Paper Based Development (A full array of document types and possibly
a reasonable array of development products)
- On-line Development (A full array of document types and a reasonable
array of development products)
- Graphic tools and graphical skills
- Editing and Review
- Paper based Publication (Variety of styles from in-house to
commercial printer)
- On-line Publication (Variety of styles including intranet and
internet, Html, PDF et al)
Then there's all the consultancy and leadership skills
- negotiating up with stakeholders
- negotiating down with users
- project management
- team leading
Then there's possibly industry sectors with sectors like SAP, IT technical
writing, user technical writing, writing about machines type technical
writing etc etc.
And that's just for starters!
Regarding the slimy monster of fear, I think it has to be addressed because
if we do not address it, some interfering government body will. But we can
wait until someone designs a Cert IV in Business Writing or some such
aberration and then jump in over the top.
But I also am becoming more and more reluctant to call myself a technical
writer when I see the skill sets of others calling themselves technical
writers. We have to get rid of the dross (every unemployed project manager,
programmer etc) and re-establish the professionalism of our job.
Market forces are not doing that, because the market does not understand our
job. My perception is that our professional status as a group has dropped
dramatically since I started in this business and our role within
organisations has been steadily 'juniorised'. Market forces seems to have
eliminated most of the highly professional 'old hands' - I'd love to know
where they have all moved on to.
ck
-----Original Message-----
From: Michael Granat [mailto:mgranat@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, 23 August 2004 11:54 AM
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Re: Accreditation - non Sydney based technical
communicators
What can I say, Kirsty (T)?
Technical Communication covers so many disciplines (advertising,
medical, IT, science, teaching, you name it) where all manner of
things technical must be disseminated in a form that suits the
information needs of many and varied intended audiences.
So many (disciplines and audiences) in fact that I believe that even
trying to impose any form of accreditation will be unnecessarily
limiting, even fruitless or counter productive.
Yes, you might well tell that I am not in favour of the imposition of
accreditation, from wherever it might come.
Those of us who are really serious about our profession join our
professional societies to learn more and grow through the
professional interaction with our colleagues.
Those who do not, do not.
Market forces (and reputations) soon sort out the wheat from
the chaff.
You're only ever as good as the manual or help that you are working
on right now, which shows at an interview in any case.
I think the whole accreditation thing is a slimy little monster that
will die if we just leave the rotten thing alone in a corner.
If we keep feeding it with our fears, it will only grow big enough to
bite us in the behind eventually.
Market forces, guys. Market forces!
The Technical Communicators who do consistently fine work and who
prove that they know what they are on about get more work.
No course is going to teach anyone all that they need to know about the
many aspects of our profession, more aspect of which are developing
as we type.
Those of our colleagues who don't care about quality will not do very
well and will eventually go walkies.
Lets stop worrying so much about what others might perceive and just
jump in and keep doing a Stirling job.
Don't stress about accreditation. Our gene pool is self-filtering and
takes care of itself.
My 0.02 cents worth for a change (no pun intended).
(Actually 5 cents worth with the rounding benefit, so you got 2.5 times
the usual value!)
Sincerely,
Michael
Michael E. Granat
T/as Write Ideas
E-mail: mailto:writeideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Web: <http://home.pacific.net.au/~megranat/>
Without Prejudice.
E&OE.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kirsty.Taylor@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:Kirsty.Taylor@xxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: 23 August 2004 11:14
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Re: Accreditation - non Sydney based technical
communicators
Michael,
As you have so thoroughly mentioned, we have a could of active, official =
ASTC groups - namely in NSW and Vic. There are also some less formal ones=
,=20
like in Qld and WA. The Qld group is primarily a social group, although w=
e=20
have tried to make it more than that, as none of us have been able to giv=
e=20
the group the time it deserves, even though some of us did contribute=20
significant personal time to it (I won't try to claim that I was one of=20
them).=20
If I can be so bold as to try to speak for Ana and myself, we are both=20
members of ASTC NSW. Ana's been able to attend the conference a couple of=
=20
times, I could only make it once. It's a pretty hefty $80-$100 or whateve=
r=20
the membership fee is to receive a newsletter each month (ASTC NSW - I am=
=20
not disparaging the newsletter or the fee - I have stayed a member after =
all - just that that is all I get from my membership, as I can't attend=20
meetings). But that's my choice, and I choose to pay to be a member, even=
=20
though I can't attend meetings.=20
We have both met up with fellow TCs in Qld. We also are both STC Aus=20
chapter members (despite what the exchage rate has been like in past=20
years). We are both fairly well involved in what we can be in Australia. =
It's just discouraging to see so many great things coming out of other=20
states, which may stay state-based, and may not be able to have any=20
application to us. It's great that they're pursuing these interests, but =
why should we adhere to some accreditation system that ASTC Vic and=20
Swinburne uni have put together? And then maybe another one develops=20
between ASTC NSW and SU/UWS/UTS ... maybe we could even end up with one i=
n=20
Qld tied up with the TCs here and UQ and QUT.=20
Maybe it's territorial and close-minded, but if there is to be=20
accreditation, surely it should be a national thing, perhaps as a result =
of state-based effort, but something that we can all feel a part of.=20
Otherwise, those of us without even a local organisation to be part of,=20
will feel that we are having something foreign "imposed" upon us. And no =
one likes that.
KT
Kirsty Taylor=20
Editor=20
kirsty.taylor@xxxxxxxxxx
Mincom. The People. The Experience. The Vision.=20
<snip>
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