ENGL 421Y - Technical Writing in Complex Environments

Unit 3: Incident Analysis Report

For our final project, groups of no more than three students will produce an analytical report
about an incident that demonstrates the role that documentation, data, and design play in
investigating and resolving complex problems. The incident you select may be a national
catastrophe, a small-scale accident, or an ongoing controversy; whichever direction you
choose, you must research both the incident itself and the response to it by various
stakeholders (i.e., corporations, non-profits, governments, community groups, universities,
research institutions, etc.). The main deliverable from this unit will be a 12-page singlespaced report that summarizes the basic details of the case (who/what/where/when, etc.)
and closely examines how information was produced, collected, circulated, and revised in the
hours, days, weeks, months, and even years after the incident. The overall goal of this
project is to critically examine a situation where technical writing played a pivotal rolefor
better or for worsein the distribution of information at a critical point that directly impacted
how professional communities and interested public groups understood or reacted to the
incident.

Assignment Details and Scoring Breakdown

Proposal Memo (30 points)
During the first week of Unit 3, each group will submit a 2-page proposal memo that briefly
describes the incident that will be the basis for the project and explains why the group
selected this particular topic. In addition, it must:

Summarize a few initial primary or secondary sources that will be used to begin
research
Explain how the group will collaborate to write the report (including technologies used
to meet and draft)
Identify the next steps in the process, including how you will start, dates for meetings,
and internal deadlines
Provide a conflict contract detailing how the group will deal with internal conflicts
(e.g., poor communication, missed deadlines, minimal participation, hostile or
indifferent behavior, etc.)

I will respond to your memo and help you refine your plans further and address any concerns
I might have; if necessary, groups may be asked to submit a second draft of the proposal
after working through some of my recommendations. Please write this memo as a group and
make sure everyone agrees on it.
Incident Analysis Report (75 points)
The main deliverable from this unit will be a 12 page, single-spaced report split into three
parts: first, an overview that presents the basic details of the case (who/what/where/when,
etc.) and sets up your argument or angle; second, an analysis that closely examines primary
and secondary sources to piece together not just what happened and why, but also how it
was investigated and the key documents that contributed to understanding of the issue; and
third, a closing that reiterates your argument or angle and describes the long-term impact of
the incident on stakeholders. The overall goal of the report is to critically examine a situation
where technical writing played a pivotal role in the distribution of information about an
incidentfor better or worseand directly impacted how stakeholders (i.e., corporations,
universities, governmental entities, nonprofits, community organizations, citizens, etc.)

understood and reacted to the incident. Each group will also be required to create at least
two original visuals, each of which must be a different type (i.e., a line graph and a table, a
photograph and a sketch, a timeline and a Venn diagram, a map and a diagram, etc.).
Additional images can be used but must be properly cited according to the citation system
your group chooses.
Collaboration Evaluations (45 points)
Because collaboration is such an important part of this unit, each group member will
complete an evaluation of the rest of their group. I will read the feedback and average the
evaluations to determine a collaboration grade, which will count for 30% of your final grade.
These evaluations will be submitted to me via a Google Form; these evaluations will only be
read by me, though I will use excerpts in the final grade report for each group member.
Please consult the Collaboration Guide on Blackboard for suggestions on how to manage a
successful collaboration.
Reflective Memo
At the end of the unit, each group member will submit a separate 2-page, single-spaced
memo reflecting on individual and group progress made during the project. The goal of this
document is for you to provide me with a glimpse into your groups writing process and to
reflect on the lessons you will take from this project into your future career. For this unit, I
would like you to reflect specifically on the following: (1) your groups process for planning,
writing, designing, and revising the report; (2) the decisions your group made regarding
research, design, organization, and audience; (3) your individual contribution to the project;
and (4) what you learned about writing, design, and communication that will be beneficial to
your other courses, internships/co-ops, and future career plans. This memo is not graded,
but helps me get a better sense of how each group approached the project.

Forming Groups
Rather than assigning groups for Unit 3 randomly, I want them to develop organically around
shared ideas and interests. For this to happen, each of you will need to post a thread in the
forum with the following information:

Your major, minor, and any areas of expertise

Your professional goal(s), career path, or dream job
Two or three areas of interest related to your field or major
One or two ideas for Unit 3 topics related to any of the above

This first round of posts will be due by 8am EST on Tuesday, July 19. You will then have 24
hours to read the posts and comment on those that you find interesting or that align with
your own major or career goals. The goal here is to not to form groups immediately, but
rather to look for several potential groups by identifying shared interests, common goals, or
ideas that fit with your own. For this to work you have to be okay with potentially giving up
your own ideas or combining them with others in your group. You are not required to post a
specific number of comments, but my hope is that you will get into more natural discussions
about how to combine topics that reflect everyone's interests.
The best groups aren't those who all have the same major or identical interests, but rather
those who able to identify complimentary interests and discover an incident, accident, or
controversy that exists at the intersection of all their interests. For example, in fall 2015 I
encouraged two Management students to work with a Pharmaceutical Sciences major and
their project on the counterfeit pharmaceuticals industry was a great blend of all of their

interests. It took them a little while to find a topic that combined business and pharmacy but
they were willing to reach out and learn more about an unfamiliar field.
The thread will close at 8am EST on Wednesday, July 20. Some groups will form quickly,
while others might take some time and effort. Once you have an idea for a group and a
rough topic, send me an email and make a post on the forum so it's clear you already have
enough members. I will make the final decision and reserve the right to reassign groups as
needed, but I will do my best to respect your choices. Groups will be notified on Wednesday
and will have until 11:59pm on Friday, July 20 to submit a collaboratively-written proposal
memo.

Narrowing Topics and Finding Sources

The best topics for this project are incidents that are relatively recent (within five years) but
not so recent that information will not be available yet. For instance, when searching in
October I was able to find a wealth of information on an environmental incident that occurred
in early August of the same year; had I looked in late August I may not have found much.
Most of the information we want will not be easily and readily available in a library or
database; instead, we will need to employ careful and strategic digital research strategies to
locate and evaluate potential sources. While the situations each group examines will differ
widely, each group will look at a mix of primary sources (i.e., those written by someone
directly involved) and secondary sources (i.e., those written by someone who relies on
primary accounts). Some examples of potential sources include state and federal reports,
local and regional newspapers, blogs, government websites, social media accounts, and
white papers, among others. All external sources (including images) will need to be cited, but
it is up to your group to decide which citation format (i.e., APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, IEEE,
etc.) makes the most sense based on what is commonly used in your major.

Page Design, Visuals, and Organization

All semester long we have talked about the importance of design, the genre conventions that
impact organization and layout, and the rhetorical use of visual ways of representing
information. As such, during Unit 3 you will be expected to format your Case Analysis Report
using the conventions of white papers and organize it using the standard structure of
scientific and technical reports (i.e., some variation of the structure discussed in Essentials
of Technical Communication, pp. 214-223). In addition, you will need to include two visuals,
which can be everything from images, illustrations, or sketches to maps, graphs, tables, and
videos or animations. These elements will all combine to create a document that is visually
appealing, structurally accessible, and rhetorically engaging.
a. Title Page/Executive Summary: Descriptive title/subtitle at top with
paragraph summary below
b. Table of Contents: List of descriptive section headings and page numbers
same page as Figures
c. List of Figures: Like the table of contents, but for all images (original and
cited)same page as TOC
d. Introduction: Description of the incident, forecast of your argument, and setup for structure

e. Case Overview: Detailed explanation of the key components of the incident

necessary to understand the analysis and argument you will present in the next
sections
i. Major stakeholders or groups
ii. Key events/timeline
iii. Important themes/topics
iv. Images w/ captions and figure numbers
v. Transition from overview to analysis
f. Analysis: The heart of the report where you break down the incident into
specific elements that you argue are important for better understanding the
cause of, solution to, and impact of the incident
i. Divide subsections based on what you want to analyze (e.g., impact on
stakeholders; importance of certain themes/topics; particular events or
instances/chronological time; specific geographic locations, etc.)
ii. Evidence from primary and secondary sources to support analysis
iii. Claims based on above evidence that tie into the larger argument
iv. Images w/ captions and figure numbers
v. Transition from analysis to conclusion
g. Conclusion: Restate most important information, closing argument, and
takeaways
i. Summary of key aspects of the incident, including stakeholders, events,
sources, etc.
ii. Reiterate and reinforce argument using evidence from analysis
iii. Takeaways from the argument and analysis (i.e., what do you want
readers to leave knowing about the incident, stakeholders, sources, or
argument?
h. Appendices: Important documents, artifacts, data, or images that are
supplementary to the text

i. Reference List: Citations for any external sources (including images) using
approved citation format