Abstract
Technical communication (TC) as a subject, and more so a department in the university curriculum are few and far between in the Japanese educational context, even with STEM education. As part of this paper, an exploratory pilot study is described explaining the overall importance of such a TC certificate program and how an optional TC feeder course could help students understand the value of the TC and professional communication (PC) discipline for a typical Japanese computer science academic context, in preparation for the job market. Further, such a TC-focused introductory feeder course helps the university administration, students and teachers better understand how computer science as a discipline should also emphasize on technical and professional writing and communication skills in the language curriculum, for better project management, and helping students develop soft skills for the market. Further, another strong argument for such coursework (offered in English as a medium of instruction) is also related to developing students’ entrepreneurial and transition skills for the market. This paper highlighted on one such rare certificate program and feeder course in the computer science (CS) department of a Japanese technical university which helped students understand the scope of the market, how technical communication as a discipline has wide-ranging opportunities, besides helping students develop basic understanding of content areas such as manual and information design, usability, content management and delivery, technical language, visualisation etc. Finally, the paper ends with a discussion of a few of the well-known TC certificate programs and TC organizational infrastructure in the US academia, and how we can catch up with that trend in Japanese higher education.
Highlights
There are numerous technical communication (TC) programs that are part of the university curriculum especially for STEM students
technical and professional communication (TPC) Certificates/Programs in the US & Germany: So, in this context, it's more important to focus on a few major TC certificate programs from the United States, and explore the difference between the two situations
The section will discuss how the Univ. of Aizu TC certificate program is different from those programs, and the reasons behind the difference
Summary
There are numerous technical communication (TC) programs that are part of the university curriculum especially for STEM students. The reference here is more on TC programs that cater to technical students with more technically-focused TC courses, and on courses offered in the English departments in universities with the broad focus on language-focused organization, editing and documentation skills, including design and social media use, and organizational, negotiations and teamwork focused genres Another interesting point to mention in this context is that hardly any (if any) university in Japan has established a technical communication department, statistics argue that demand for technical writers in the Japanese industry scenario, which is largely export-driven is likely to increase multifold over the decade. The IEEE (Computing Curriculum Efforts) stressed the importance of including the mechanics and process of writing, acquiring the ability to communicate ideas effectively, and integrating these skills into the entire computer science program This certificate identifies and includes only those courses that are related to analytical reasoning and technical writing, including understanding of educational technology, technical and professional presentations, information architecture, production processes and intercultural communication etc.
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