Sandra J. Nelson

Written Language Skills of Entry-Level Accountants as Assessed by Experienced CPAs

Experienced CPAs were surveyed to examine the perception of the written lan guage skills of entry-level accountants. The results suggest that written lan guage fundamentals in word selection and usage, sentence and paragraph construction, and other grammar and mechanics remain a problem for entry- level accountants.

Maximizing Cohesion and Minimizing Conflict in Collaborative Writing Groups.

Appropriately designed, collaborative writing experiences in business communication classes prepare students for participation in group projects on the job. When offered in conjunction with individual and competitive writing experiences (Johnson & Johnson, 1985), collaborative writing contributes to the total writing experience and addresses business communication needs. Instructional strategies, designed to produce successful experiences in collaborative writing, equip instructors to plan instruction for students in collaborative writing. Well planned, successful experiences in collaborative

Hypertext An Emerging and Important Medium of Business and Technical Communication

Hypertext, an electronic communication medium in which information is structured and accessed according to the audiences needs and interests, is increasingly used in business and technical communication. That use may justify curricula expansion in the development of the ability to communicate in hypertext from specialty courses to a variety of business and technical courses, including the foundation course. This article provides a concise overview of hypertext for instructors who may be considering this expansion but who need to become more familiar with the medium. The basic information that is provided includes the definition, uses, and advantages of hypertext. In addition, the terminology, theoretical bases, and essential structure of hypertext are discussed. Of particular concern to business and technical communication instructors who may be considering adding hypertext to their courses are the problems that the medium presents. Discussion includes considerations of linguistic design, computer capabilities, and human performance. Finally, behaviors that business and technical communicators should exhibit to encourage the use of hypertext are presented.Hypertext, an electronic communication medium in which information is structured and accessed according to the audiences needs and interests, is increasingly used in business and technical communication. That use may justify curricula expansion in the development of the ability to communicate in hypertext from specialty courses to a variety of business and technical courses, including the foundation course. This article provides a concise overview of hypertext for instructors who may be considering this expansion but who need to become more familiar with the medium. The basic information that is provided includes the definition, uses, and advantages of hypertext. In addition, the terminology, theoretical bases, and essential structure of hypertext are discussed. Of particular concern to business and technical communication instructors who may be considering adding hypertext to their courses are the problems that the medium presents. Discussion includes considerations of linguistic design, computer capabi...

The Status of Computer Use in Business Commu nication Instruction

The results of an ABC Undergraduate Studies Committee survey of members to determine the status of computer use in business communication courses are presented in this article. The majority of business communication instructors require students to complete all assignments on the com puter, and some instructors provide software training. Stu dents predominantly are using WordPerfect on networked IBM or IBM-compatible computers in labs managed by the college.

Boundaries and Banners in Business Communication: Does the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension Measure the Apprehension of Managers as Communicators?

The editor of The Journal of Business Communication presented an interesting argument against establishing boundaries for the discipline and for establishing a banner to focus the discipline (Reinsch, 1991). The argument can be made more concrete by analyzing an example which questions the boundaries and which may constitute a banner for business communication. Communication apprehension, as operationalized in the Personal Report of Communication Apprehension, is offered here as that example. Does the PRCA, one of the most frequently used instruments in the study of communication, address the aspects of communication apprehension as experienced by managers in business organizations? By examining the application of the PRCA to a specific context in business, it will be possible to take one step toward understanding a possible boundary or banner for business communication. This analysis is designed to assist scholars in the future who attempt to define

Design Options for a Desktop Publishing Course.

Recommendations to the developer of an undergraduate desktop publishing course are given concerning scholastic level and prerequisites, purpose and objectives, instructional resources and methodology, assignments and evaluation, and a general course outline. By using desktop publishing, students gain experience in preparing documents that are professional in form and content. After students master the hardware and software, instructional emphasis shifts to page layout and graphic design principles that students apply to the development of documents commonly prepared in the workplace.

Teaching Business Students to Write Performance Appraisals

Since many business students will conduct performance appraisals in future employment, instruction on performance appraisals is appropriate for the business communication course. This article contains a discussion of a unit on perfor mance appraisals, including writing comments to support ratings, drawing conclusions concerning performance, and making recommendations to improve performance. An exam ple of an assignment that requires students to complete an appraisal form is provided. Last, suggested teaching tech niques are given for the appraisal unit.

Stress in Business Communication: A Matter of Perception.

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