Writing Plan Phases
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The Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science (CEMS), in the College of Science and Engineering, with 42 faculty members teaching more than 400 undergraduate students. The department offers two undergraduate programs: Bachelor of Chemical Engineering and a Bachelor of Materials Science and Engineering.

“CEMS' unique culture blends chemical and materials engineering to focus on a broad spectrum of problems central to economic growth, quality of life, sustainability, safety and security. We enjoy the thrill of discovery, and we pursue teaching and research in a collaborative environment that produces exciting synergies and an exceptional spirit of collegiality. The success of our students and alumni is a huge part of our proud tradition." 
-C. Daniel Frisbie, Department Head

Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Writing Plan

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Writing in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science

The Chemical Engineering and Materials Science faculty generated the following description in response to the question, “What characterizes academic and professional communication in this discipline?”

  • Reporting information and analysis
  • Describing processes
  • Providing necessary documentation for industry (failure analysis)
  • Creating regulatory and safety documents
  • Supporting business plans or venture proposals
  • Publishing and presenting original research (papers and presentations)
  • Communicating progress toward milestones 
  • Evaluating personnel, processes, and performance
  • Introducing standard operating procedures for companies and plants
  • Offering Instructions for operators and manufacturers, individually and in teams
  • Reviewing research and research evaluation
  • Clarifying one’s ideas or activities

Similarly, they identified a spectrum of potential audiences, including other scientists and engineers, industry executives, managers, and professionals, government agencies, officials, regulators, and research supporters, plant operators and employees, federal, state, and international agencies and organizations, trade groups, news media, and the general public.

Characteristics
PreciseQuantitativeUnderstandableVisual and illustrative
CriticalExplanatoryDescriptiveEngaging
ThoroughTechnicalInformativeDetailed
Audience appropriateOrganizedContextualClear
PersuasiveDocumentedDirectLogical
CitedSpace-constrainedMeaningfulFactual
AnalyticalConciseSpare 

Writing Abilities Expected of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Majors

The Chemical Engineering faculty generated the following description in response to the question, “With which writing abilities should students in this unit’s major graduate?”

Desired writing abilities for Chemical Engineering undergraduate students:

  • Record data based on research, testing, and experimentation accurately.
  • Describe procedures clearly and accurately so they can be reproduced under similar conditions.
  • Organize data according to the conventions and expectations of the discipline, with clear labels and references.
  • Organize calculations, formulae, and technical solutions legibly, systematically, and logically.
  • Communicate data numerically and graphically in well-composed, accurate sentences, tables, and figures
  • Identify key results and avoid unnecessary information when communicating them.
  • When figures are required, select the best type of figure or chart to display information based on purpose and audience.
  • Articulate interpretations of data from experiments, tables, and figures to draw accurate, evidence-based conclusions.
  • Connect solutions to problems and research questions to underlying chemical and physical principles.
  • Synthesize information from multiple sources to draw reasoned inferences and reach evidence-based conclusions.
  • Understand the role of assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties in reporting answers to technical questions and communicate that understanding to audiences.
  • Understand audiences' needs, technical knowledge, and understanding when writing and communicating information.
  • Use the technical language of the discipline precisely.
  • Justify decisions based on evidence.
  • Recognize and produce commonly written genres for chemical engineers or materials scientists: Professional correspondence, including executive summaries, technical memos, archival reports, etc.

The Materials Science faculty generated the following description in response to the question, “With which writing abilities should students in this unit’s major graduate?”

Desired writing abilities for Materials Science undergraduate students:

  • Understand the role of assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties in reporting answers to technical questions and communicate that understanding to audiences.
  • Articulate interpretations of data from experiments, tables, and figures to draw accurate, evidence-based conclusions.
  • Connect solutions to problems and research questions to underlying chemical and physical principles.
  • Record, organize, and communicate data numerically and graphically in well-composed, accurate sentences, tables, and appropriate types of figures.
  • Justify decisions based on evidence and present work in ways that make the logic and choices transparent to audience members.
  • Use the technical language of the discipline precisely.
  • Identify key results relevant to the intended audience and avoid unnecessary information when communicating them.
  • Organize calculations, formulae, and technical solutions legibly, systematically, and logically.
  • Synthesize information from multiple sources to draw reasoned inferences and reach evidence-based conclusions.
  • Describe procedures clearly and accurately so they can be reproduced under similar conditions.

Menu of Grading Criteria Used in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science Courses

Chemical Engineering Abilities Rating Criteria

What should students know and be able to do? (Ability) What will an instructor see in the writing or presentation? (Criteria)
1. Record data based on research, testing, and experimentation accurately. Each data sheet denotes the date, experiment, or equipment used, and the operator(s). The writing should be legible, and changes are shown using single-line cross-outs followed by the initials of the operator making the change. Tables of experimental results include unique run numbers, the time the data was recorded, units for all measured variables, and the precision of all measurement devices.
2. Describe procedures clearly and accurately so they can be reproduced under similar conditions. The text will include a narrative or list of the procedures (as appropriate for the assignment context/genre) that note key equipment characteristics and flow paths, steady state criteria, and independent variable ranges, such that no room for ambiguity or misinterpretation is possible.
3. Organize data according to the conventions and expectations of the discipline, with clear labels and references. Data tables and figures are organized by independent variables, with labels clearly identifying all the variables displayed. As needed, data tables and figures incorporate primary sources and references relevant to the topic (refereed journals, government, and trade publications). Any citations should be from the original source, and a consistent citation style should be used that allows for retrieval.
4. Organize calculations, formulae, and technical solutions legibly, systematically, and logically. Sample calculations, shown in memo/report appendices, are organized sequentially according to operations and chemical processes with equations and variables clearly defined. When numbers are plugged into equations, an explanation of their source (experiment run, reference to literature, constant) is included. Any narrative is also organized sequentially according to operations and chemical processes.
5. Communicate data numerically and graphically in well-composed, accurate sentences, tables, and figures Tables and figures should include clear labels, appropriate font size, and reasonable scale. Uncertainty should be noted. Figures should contain a legend (not only distinguished by color), log/linear scale should be evident, and data points should not be connected with line segments. Caption content should allow the figure or table to stand alone and should not assume familiarity from the audience. In-text figures and tables should be introduced within the main text, along with some corresponding narrative description.
6. Identify key results and avoid unnecessary information when communicating them. The communication highlights key results along with corresponding conclusions using only the reported results (extraneous information removed). Content within the communication cannot be removed without sacrificing the message (if content can be crossed out/removed without sacrificing the meaning, unnecessary information is present).
7. When figures are required, select the best type of figure or chart to display information based on purpose and audience. Figure type is selected with purpose in mind (precise values, distributions, regressions, etc.) based on the type of variables.
8. Articulate interpretations of data from experiments, tables, and figures to draw accurate, evidence-based conclusions. The text states/identifies significant trends (not forgetting to consider uncertainty) and compares results with those expected from the literature.
9. Connect solutions to problems and research questions to underlying chemical and physical principles. Within the text, equations/theoretical expressions are tied to physical principles, and the applicability of the model and its use in the context are clearly justified. Comments should be included that show why steps in a solution were chosen (justification) and the solution's reasonableness (or not).
10. Synthesize information from multiple sources to draw reasoned inferences and reach evidence-based conclusions. The document builds upon data, calculation, and/or observation, with all inferences representing valid interpretations of source information. The conclusion should reflect a valid interpretation of the source information.
11. Understand the role of assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties in reporting answers to technical questions and communicate that understanding to audiences. Approximations/assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties are identified and reported, and the subsequent calculations or analysis reflect those assumptions. After providing an answer, an explanation of the role of assumptions and limitations in that outcome should be provided to justify/assess the conclusion. The conclusion contains a statement related to uncertainty or limitations.
12. Understand audiences' needs, technical knowledge, and understanding when writing and communicating information. Audience and context should be considered regarding what and how to communicate. Memos should be short, clearly answering a single, well-defined question. Supplemental materials can be more descriptive (to allow a TA in a lab course to assess students' processes). Executive summaries should be geared toward non-technical audiences and address their interests (costs/safety/feasibility/scale-up).
13. Use the technical language of the discipline precisely. Words with specific or special meaning in the discipline are used correctly and appropriately.
14. Justify decisions based on evidence. The narrative states/reiterates the evidence applied when making decisions, with all assumptions stated.
15. Recognize and produce commonly written genres for chemical engineers: Professional correspondence, including executive summaries, technical memos, archival reports, etc. The format and content of the writing are consistent with the expectations communicated in the assignment document.

Materials Science Abilities Rating Criteria

What should students know and be able to do? (Ability) What will an instructor see in the writing or presentation? (Criteria)
1. Understand the role of assumptions, limitations, and uncertainties in reporting answers to technical questions and communicate that understanding to audiences. The writing will describe the relevant assumptions in the main text or appendices. The uncertainty values will be listed and the accompanying description of the results will describe the significance of the uncertainty in understanding the result.
2. Articulate interpretations of data from experiments, tables, and figures to draw accurate, evidence-based conclusions. The analyzed results (not merely raw data) are presented graphically or in tables. The text includes well-organized paragraphs, report sections, or presentation narrative referencing the figures and tables and providing an accurate interpretation or conclusion. Statements and figures are connected. The writing contains an interpretation of the results or a subsequent analysis that is consistent with the data in figures and tables and reflects critical thinking in reaching conclusions.
3. Connect solutions to problems and research questions to underlying chemical and physical principles. The writing contains a clear statement or reference to an underlying principle, and the selection and application of an analytical model and/or assumptions is consistent with these principles. The writing includes an explanation or statement about why an answer makes sense. The figures and tables included in the text are organized according to the independent variable.
4. Record, organize, and communicate data numerically and graphically in well-composed, accurate sentences, tables, and appropriate types of figures. The text contains figures that are designed to highlight important trends while avoiding a ‘data dump’ in which the audience is left to deduce what is important. The table headings, figure axes, and data series have appropriate labels with units. Labels are sized to be readable. The data present in tables and figures is described in parallel in the written or spoken narrative.
5. Justify decisions based on evidence and present work in ways that make the logic and choices transparent to audience members. When decisions are necessary, the text includes a clear statement of choice among alternatives, and citation of evidence for the choice. The writing explains what data was used (and what wasn’t) and how the choice was made based on the decision criteria. The explanation follows a logical flow.
6. Use the technical language of the discipline precisely. The text avoids imprecise use of technical vocabulary that has specific meaning in the discipline and avoids colloquial wording. Special technical terms and jargon are defined at their first use. Appropriate terms are used in conjunction with equations and calculations.
7. Identify key results relevant to the intended audience and avoid unnecessary information when communicating them. Introductions and executive summaries are concise and informative. Their text contains limited, high-level numerical data and conclusions compared to the level of quantitative detail that follows in the main body of a report. The text does not include extensive discussion of raw data. Instead, the text describes the analysis of data to extract material properties or other condensed parameters to describe in the primary narrative. If required, details are provided in an appendix.
8. Organize calculations, formulae, and technical solutions legibly, systematically, and logically. The variables and constants are defined in the text, the units of measure are specified, and the equations are delineated. Written reports include well-organized, complete appendices with analytical and numerical calculations. When required, the text describes derivations completely without missing any intermediate steps.
9. Synthesize information from multiple sources to draw reasoned inferences and reach evidence-based conclusions. Statements in the text are supported by reference to data and cited sources. Multiple sources of data are included and cited. The text makes clear connections to texts with references from observed trends in figures or data. Comparative statements are used to emphasize instances where there are similarities or differences. The text is balanced and pays attention to all or most key factors with reasonable weight.
10. Describe procedures clearly and accurately so they can be reproduced under similar conditions. The methods section is self-contained. Each step in the process is mentioned with details of materials and equipment, including manufacturer, model, etc. The text describes the independent variables and ranges of parameters studied.

Highlights from the Writing Plan

The Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science received approval for its First-Edition Writing Plan on May 28, 2024.

The WEC meeting 4 discussion indicated interest in formalizing the style guides and distributing them widely to all undergraduate instructors and students for consistency, rather than just those in the lab or design courses. This will enable more consistent communication of expectations across multiple courses in the programs. The intent is that instruction related to the early introduction activities (see implementation plan section 5.3) will strategically introduce students to content within the style guides so that students begin using the guides consistently in multiple courses in the curricula. During the implementation year faculty will be made aware of the style guides at feedback sessions and the liaisons will work with the faculty working group involved in developing the guides to develop pilot implementation activities in relevant courses.

In the follow-up implementation planning survey, eight faculty indicated an interest in developing and integrating peer review/response activities into their courses and seven faculty indicated interest in incorporating revision steps into assignments. WEC staff and departmental faculty will plan a workshop series on these topics and ask participants to share their initial attempts and their results.