Assignments These assignments are saved in Rich Text Format as part of Microsoft word. Download the file then open it in your word processing application. These documents are suitable for take-home, graded assignments or in-class workshops. As whole documents created in the "real world," they complement the sentence- and paragraph-level editing tasks in the textbook. They are tailored to specific points in the term. Thus, an assignment that follows the chapters on style will focus on editing for style and will not require students to apply principles of organization and visual design. Numbering Scheme The first number in the assignment indicates the chapter in Technical Editing that the assignment can reasonably follow. The editing requirements are cumulative: students must apply not only the principles from one chapter but also from the chapters that precede the chapter. Thus, assignment 17.1 requires students to edit for organization, style, grammar, and consistency as well as for visual design. Assignments and Descriptions Assignment 15.1: Sentry Instructions This policy and procedure statement informs Navy and Marine security personnel of policies to follow when civil police officers request entry onto the base at Annapolis. Long sentences, sophisticated vocabulary, nominalizations, and passive voice increase reading difficulty and invite editing for style. Because the policy/procedure statement presumably follows the form of other such statements, students should be discouraged from reorganizing the sections. They may see opportunities for easing the reading difficulty by reformatting, but visual changes will not totally solve the problems presented by style. Some ambiguous points require queries to the author of the policy. Assignment contributed by Robert Shenk and first published in Teaching Technical Editing (ATTW 1985). Assignment 17.1: Rodeo Cafe' Employee Manual This 8-page manual (including the title page) presents problems of organization, style, and visual design as well as basic copyediting needs. It is suitable for a collaborative project. Students may discuss the purposes of an employee manual (to encourage specific behavior as well as to inform employees of benefits and requirements) as a basis for decisions about style and tone. Long lists and repetition invite reorganization. The 8 1/2 x 11 page is efficient in terms of the need for a manual that is inexpensive to reproduce and easy to update, but the page size presents a challenge for typography and readability.