Running head: ANALYSIS OF WRITING IN PROFESSION/DISCIPLINE BH.1

ANALYSIS OF WRITING IN PROFESSION/DISCIPLINE BH.6

Analysis of Writing in Profession/Discipline: Civil Engineering

Joshua Dornbusch

ENGW3315 Interdisciplinary Advanced Writing in the Disciplines

January 29, 2015

Analysis of Writing in Profession/Discipline: Civil Engineering

Civil engineers have a wide array of roles and responsibilities. These roles and responsibilities range from administrative tasks to designing activities to management responsibilities (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2015). The scope of responsibilities that civil engineers have make them significant consumers of information in the written form. The objective of this report is to therefore examine the genres of writing in the discipline of civil engineering to better understand both the discipline and the communication that takes place within this discipline.

Overview of Civil Engineering Discipline

Civil engineering takes place both indoors and outdoors. Indoor tasks including planning, modeling, holding meetings, conducting research, designing, and managing projects. Outdoor tasks include examining job sites, managing field crews, supervising the progress of projects, and analyzing risk factors (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2015). The values that are held by civil engineers include quality, stability, accuracy, and professionalism. Civil engineers also are not generally risk takers and prefer to operate in highly formalized organizations. As a student of civil engineering, I am very interested in how this discipline is shaped by its writing, as most of my interactions with this discipline during my degree program will be through the written word.

Genres of Civil Engineering

Civil engineering utilizes at least five different genres of writing. The first genre is codifications (Hansen & Zenobia, 2011). Codifications are used by civil engineers to understand minimal standards. Another genre used by this discipline is the reference text. Textbooks provide insights into practices and procedures that are common for the different tasks completed by professions in this industry. The third genre is the empirical article. Empirical articles are used by civil engineers to identify best practices and to identify emerging technology, design trends, and technique. The fourth genre of this discipline is the trade article. Trade articles are used to make civil engineers aware of issues, products, and trends that are impacting civil engineers generally. These articles also tend to focus more on administrative and management issues, than technical issues. The final genre used by civil engineers is the website and/or blog. Engineering blogs are very useful for learning about trends, dialoguing with peers, and keeping up-to-date with the latest technology, administrative, and management issues associated with the discipline. The genre that will be most useful in this course will be civil engineering websites and blogs. The one that was selected for further investigation was the American Society of Engineers' online magazine, Civil Engineering.

Analysis of Civil Engineering

The online version of Civil Engineering presents both content found in the printed version, as well as web exclusive information. The benefits of using a digital format to supplement a printed subscription to a trade magazine is that it encourages discourse community members to spend more time reading the materials produced by the organization, and more time interfacing with the organization. In the case of Civil Engineering, the sponsoring producer of the publication is the American Society of Civil Engineers. The ASCE uses the publication and its digital supplement to shape the discipline of civil engineering and to shape the knowledge, expectations, and values of emerging professions in this discipline.

Authors

The digital version of Civil Engineering utilizes the contributions of multiple authors. Authors submit their stories to the story editor who evaluates the stories and decides which ones to publish in the print version, which ones to print in the online version, and which ones to reject. To qualify as an author for this publication, some level of achievement in the profession is required. For example, many of the contributors have an advanced degree, however, the ASCE does not indicated what degree contributors have. This makes it difficult to verify the authority of the writers.

Purpose

The purpose of this publication is to inform discourse community members about the latest happenings in the discipline. The articles presented in the online publication highlight the completion of important projects, such as the conversion of an art deco garage into a luxury hotel, and it also highlights important advances in processes, such as wastewater liners (ASCE, 2015). It is apparent that this online publication seeks to inform because it does not argue a position, but rather presents a story as a matter of interest for civil engineers.

Audience

The intended audience for this online publication is civil engineers of all levels of experience. This trade magazine is an effective tool for creating an contemporary understanding of the field and its processes. The audience is approached as equals and colleagues in a shared discipline.

Context

Civil Engineering is published in both a print form and an online version. The print form is mailed to subscribers. The online version has content that is both exclusive for subscribers and available without a subscription. This allows readers to test out the articles and content to see what writing tone and style is used for free. The objective is to get more people to pay for a subscription so that they can access the exclusive content. Advertisements are placed throughout the publication, highlighting the nature of the publication, which is more informal in tone.

Sources

References used to create articles are not cited directly, as they would in a peer reviewed journal article. Instead, they are referred to in the body of the text by name. Occasionally an embedded link is used as a reference to the source.

Content Level

The content that is covered in the articles is industry-specific. This means that all of the topics covered related to civil engineering or to issues that impact the civil engineering discipline.

Format

The format of the articles are single column, no abstract, and no reference section.

Language

The tone and writing style used in this publication is informal and casual. The articles are written as if the writing is having a discussion with the reader. Sentence lengths vary, but longer sentences seem to be preferred to shorter sentences. Figurative language is kept to a minimum.

Visuals

The online publication uses photographs liberally to illustrate articles, blogs, and other content. Usually the photographs are inset in a box with a description posted below it in a colored box. Advertisement graphics are only posted on directory and main pages, and they are omitted on article pages.

Conclusion

References

American Society of Civil Engineers. (2015). Civil engineering. Retrieved from http://www.asce.org/cemagazine/

Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2015). Civil engineering. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/ooh/architecture-and-engineering/civil-engineers.htm

Hansen, K., & Zenobia, K. (2011). Civil engineer's handbook of professional practice. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.