atw: Re: Another accreditation idea
- To: <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 7 Feb 2007 11:55:14 +1100
Oh, and for it to be successful - it's gotta have an acronym ;)
-----Original Message-----
From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Craig Bligh
Sent: Wednesday, 7 February 2007 11:52 AM
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Another accreditation idea
Hi guys,
I've finally just caught up on all the accreditation discussions and was
surprised that nobody raised any of the successful accreditation schemes
for other professionals. (By successful I mean raising the profile of
members, increasing their average salary and gaining recognition in the
wider community.)
The most successful one that springs to mind is the Certified Practicing
Accountant (CPA) scheme (www.cpaaustralia.com.au). You could probably
group MCSE etc. under that banner too.
I'm guessing that there's a fairly vast core of knowledge that all CPAs
must share within their job roles, and that's the obvious point of
difference between accountants and us tech writers. BUT there is a core
of basic skills that all good tech writers share (or should share), e.g.
ability to analyse audiences and write content accordingly, consistency,
excellent grasp of English, ability to write accurate procedures, good
presentation skills etc.
Two things that successful accreditation schemes seem to have in common
are (admittedly high) membership/accreditation fees and an examination
(usually involving a fee). But that's the point - there has to be a
monetary and skills-based value attached to accreditation for it to be
well-regarded. (If it increases the average TW salary by a few grand
then it's obviously worth every cent.)
We wouldn't jump straight into the CPA model (and it's high fees) -
obviously we'd start small and build. Have a modest
accreditation/membership/examination fee and pass a basic agreed exam
(probably something just a bit more thorough than HCi's famous telephone
test).
And for any accreditation model to work - I agree with Shane - there
must be a single strong entity managing it. The CPA scheme is global,
and the STC is global - it probably makes sense to leverage STC's
experience and coverage. But then that depends on STC's plans.
Thoughts?
Craig
-----Original Message-----
From: austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:austechwriter-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Shane Herring
Sent: Monday, 5 February 2007 4:02 PM
To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: atw: Re: ASTC-NSW: Revisiting accreditation
Hi Bede.
Thank you for your email. While not a member of ASTC, I would like to
add an observation.
There currently appears to be three "recognised" versions of ASTC, you
have ASTC-NSW, ASTC-Vic, and STC (Australian chapter). I feel that
before any accreditation process starts that there needs to be some
consolidation in Australia. One umbrella organisation with state
chapters would be fine but for our sized population having three
separate organisations is ridiculous. Consolidation would add more
weight to any representational organisation.
If they are linked, and I'm not sure that they are, then there is a
fault somewhere as it appears that each is a separate organisation with
its own agendas.
Just a thought.
Regards
Shane
>----- ------- Original Message ------- -----
>From: SUNTER Bede <Bede_SUNTER@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>To: austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Sent: Mon, 05 Feb 2007 15:31:51
>
>Greetings
>
>The executive committee of ASTC-NSW met on Thursday
>18 January. Aside
>from general business we discussed whether as a committee we should
>facilitate the society's moving towards some form of accreditation for
>technical communicators. This we have decided to do, in the full
>knowledge that it will be a long haul.
>
>The committee's decision is based on the apparent need and desire for
>more formal professional recognition of technical communication. This
>is strongly evidenced by postings on this list (as have been views to
>the contrary). Note also that while 'accreditation' is perhaps not the
>most accurate term to describe this venture, 'accreditation' is what
>people seem to prefer to call it, so I guess we'll run with that term
>for now.
>
>
>As has been pointed out by a number of
>correspondents, the first step
>must be to identify what benefits accreditation might confer and on
>whom. We might find that there aren't enough benefits to make the
>effort worthwhile ...
>
>The first thing the committee needs to do is find an appropriately
>qualified project manager: this will be the subject of my next post.
>
>I will continue to inform the Austechwriter community of developments
>as they occur.
>
>regards
>
>Bede Sunter
>President ASTC-NSW
>
>
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+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-
Shane Herring
Write IT
M: 0429 693 953
E: shane@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
W: www.write-it.com.au
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