RE: Education (Was Re: Techwriting After the Boom)

[John Posada <JPosada -at- book -dot- com>]

That's fine.

However, don't put the cart first.

Base the instruction on Abstract, but then reinforce it with specific
example. Don't instruct from the perspective of a specific example, then
hope the person can correlate the specific example to include all other
possible applications by understanding it in the abstract.

Example: In my documentation, I'm covering technologies.
F'instance...Database and SQL. First explain it from the perspective of
applying the same understanding to all relational database. THEN give
specific examples of how that concept applies to MSSQL, which is what we are
using. However, with slight adjustment, they can apply it to Oracle and
others.

Suppose I explained it from the perspective of MSSQL. Great, they can use
MSSQL. However, when we go to some Oracle applications in the next few
months, how well will they be prepared for that if they don't have a
grounding in the concept behind the specific?

John Posada
Senior Technical Writer
Barnes&Noble.com
jposada -at- book -dot- com
NY: 212-414-6656
Dayton: 732-438-3372
"There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream
of things that never were, and ask why not?"
-----Robert Francis Kennedy, 1968 presidential campaign

> >> Because you cannot do so in an efficient way - you have to have a
> >> language in which contructs like functions, loops etc. can 
> >> be applied and tested. So you try to find a language that might be
> >
> > Efficient way or easy way?
> 
> I'd say both, For many if not all people, abstract concepts without 
> application are harder to understand than the same concepts 
> with sample 
> applications.
> Which means:
> - They will have to work harder to understand the same concepts (less 
> easy)
> - They will require more resources (teacher time, learning time) to 
> understand the same concepts (less efficient)

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Robohelp X3, from eHelp, lets you quickly and easily create 
professional Help systems for all your Windows and Web-based 
applications, including Net.

Buy RoboHelp Office X4 by June 13th and receive
$100 mail-in rebate, Plus FREE RoboHelp Plus Pack.

Order RoboHelp today: http://www.ehelp.com/techwr-l

---
You are currently subscribed to techwr-l as:
archive -at- raycomm -dot- com
To unsubscribe send a blank email to leave-techwr-l-obscured -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com
Send administrative questions to ejray -at- raycomm -dot- com -dot-  Visit
http://www.raycomm.com/techwhirl/ for more resources and info.