STC IDL SIG

Q2 / 2016

From the Editor

by Crista Mohammed

Hello dear readership. We have another exciting installment of IDeaL: Design for Learning. Hope you enjoy.

In this issue, Robert Hershenow—in the co-manager’s column; and Jayme Sagan—in a session review of Summit 2016, confirm that I am a dope for having missed the 63^rd STC summit! Well, no excuses for those of us who missed Summit 2016, we have a whole year to plan for Summit 2017, destined for Washington, DC (May 7-10, 2017).

Robert focuses on the meetings and networking needed for running and managing the dynamic and driven organization that is the STC. Read more

Jayme reviews some of the sessions that were particularly useful and enjoyable. Read more

Jayme makes a second contribution to this issue: She advocates for using progression sessions as a way for building confidence and honing your presentation skills. Arguing that full-length presentations may be intimidating to the uninitiated, Jayme shares her personal experiences with the shorter progression format, and how they have helped her grow from a self-conscious first-timer to a confident veteran. Read more

Mellissa Ruryk shares useful insights on a shared frustration—Word™. Mellissa gives us many, many useful tips for fixing your document layout in Word, many of them new to me. Guess you can teach an old dog some new tricks. Whether these features are known to you or not, Mellissa has described them in a neat, fun-to-read package. I certainly will be sharing her column with my students…with the expectation that I will have better formatted papers to read! Read more

Following on the heels of Virginia Butler who, in our last issue, made a heartfelt plea to mentor in the STC Mentorship Programme, I am issuing a call to volunteer for our SIG and the STC at large. I share lessons learnt from over twenty years of volunteering. Read more.

Finally, “big tings a gwaan” (as Jamaicans say, meaning “big things are happening”) with our student outreach efforts. The IDL SIG recognizes the need to support Instructional Designers in training, as part of strengthening and professionalizing ID practice through formal education. Since SIGs can no longer offer scholarships, the IDL SIG has rolled out a new student support scheme: starting September 2016, students can win free STC and IDL SIG membership for original articles chosen for publication in this very newsletter. Isn’t that simply brilliant? We will encourage budding scholars to share their work with others in the community; and in turn, they will earn membership to a thriving community of practice—the STC. Wow! Read Sylvia Miller’s contribution in this issue to Read more.

From your Co-Manager

by Robert Hershenow, Co-manager

I’m just going to come out and say it: Summit 63 was the best one yet. Besides the educational sessions and programs, the networking and socializing opportunities, the food and beverage surprises (citrus ceviche, anyone?), there were many chances to connect face-to-face with STC leadership to learn and influence where the Society and Communities are headed. And it’s always a treat to stay in a nice hotel (the Marriott has the best pillows) and to explore another city’s restaurants and night life, bowling alleys and ballparks. AND we were right next to Disneyland.

But wait—there’s more! When I reviewed the schedule, I found an enticing session in every single time slot. Not just one that looked OK, but usually several that I wanted to attend. And each one lived up to its promise. Designing and delivering a riveting, dynamic presentation is not easy, but most of them were over before I thought about what time it was. Big thanks to the presenters for rising so enthusiastically to the challenge, and to Todd DeLuca and the Conference Committee for building an outstanding program.

Also impressive was the easy-to-use mobile app, which let me build and display a custom schedule on my cellphone. This was much more convenient on-the-go than pulling out the program booklet or notes on paper, and a month later I’m still consulting it for reference.

For many attendees, the greatest value of the Summit is seeing friends and colleagues with whom we interact only virtually during the rest of the year. Leadership Day (open to everyone this year, not just leaders—what a great idea): the Communities and Honors Receptions, SIG-hosted business meetings and events, and social outings offered by the host Chapter all helped to bring us together, and many impromptu gatherings happened as well. IDL SIG leaders met over dinner at a local restaurant and charted strategy for the year ahead. We also hosted a table at the Communities Reception; and two at the Business Meeting Breakfast, where we reconnected with each other, met new members, talked about what we do, and successfully recruited for open leadership positions in the SIG.

One morning at breakfast, SIG leaders met with STC leaders to discuss the past year’s developments and strategies going forward. STC Executive Director Chris Lyons explained that he envisions SIGs working more transparently within the Society, as providers of accessible content rather than silos of proprietary information. Historically, the challenge has lain in finding ways to share our insights without threatening the confidential nature of our discussions. Chris has proposed that each SIG add a Content Curator, a person whose work will be to “coalesce the discussion into useful content” for everyone. This is an exciting idea because, as Chris explained, as a virtual organization our strength is in tying all of our online presences together for increased Search Engine Optimization (SEO), better analytics, ease of access and maintenance, and savings in cost and time. If you’re interested in helping the IDL SIG manage our content please get in touch; there are many opportunities to contribute. Please join the discussion.

My top Summit souvenir is a new copy of Technical Communication Today, the text upon which the STC’s Tech Comm Certification is based. I’m studying for the exam in the Fall. For more info on certification see http://www.stc.org/certification.

If you attended the Summit you are already registered for Summit Playback (on-demand access to all the recorded sessions online, through March 2017). If you didn’t, STC members can sign up before 31 August for $199; that price increases to $249 starting September 1st. For details see:  http://www.stc.org/education/technical-communications-summit/summit-playback .

Finally, check out the Summit highlights video online at http://summit.stc.org/. There’s a nice shot of IDL Co-Manager Mellissa Ruryk at 0:26; the back of my head appears momentarily at 0:35; and our own Kim Lindsey gets airtime at 1:40. Wow! Don’t miss it.

About IDeaL: Design for Learning

Publication Policy: We invite letters, articles, book reviews, and other items for publication. Articles may contain up to 1,000 words. Picture formats: JPG, GIF, PNG; Text format: Word, RTF, or ASCII. Send items to Crista Mohammed at newsletter@stcidlsig.org

Advertising Policy and Rates: We encourage advertising as long as it follows STC guidelines and promotes services of interest to IDL SIG members.

Ad sizes and rates:

Half page (7.5×4.5): $75 (1 issue); $225 (4 issues)

Business Card (3.5×2): $25 (1 issue); $100 (4 issues)

Please submit electronic copy only in .TIF, .GIF, or .PNG format. Send ads to Crista Mohammed at newsletter@stcidlsig.org. Make checks payable to Society for Technical Communication and send to: Robert Hershenow, STC IDL SIG, 616 Colusa Ave, Berkeley CA 94707.

Copyright Statement: This newsletter invites technical communicators in the field of instructional design to submit articles for publication. The authors implicitly grant a license to this newsletter to run the submission, and for other STC publications to reprint it without permission. Copyright is held by the author. Let the editor know in your cover letter if the article has run elsewhere, and if it has been submitted for consideration to other publications. Design and layout of this newsletter are copyright STC, 2005‐2016.

IDL SIG Website: http://www.stcidlsig.org

SIG Newsletter Archives: http://www.stcidlsig.org/wp/newsletter/

 

 

By Crista Mohammed

Volunteers do what very, very few people are willing to do: Now that is a startling truth, and perhaps a cynical observation. But, therein lies the beauty of volunteering: Opportunities that are cast-off are yours for the taking. In this first instalment in a series of articles on volunteering, I share personal insights on how my entire career, spanning twenty and some years, has been shaped fundamentally by volunteering. I dedicate this article to all the fine folks who staff the IDL SIG and make the SIG a wonderful voluntary group to belong to; and by extension all to those volunteers who make the STC run (and you thought the world runs on Dunkin’!).

When I was a mere 17 years old, I was urged to join a community-based organization. At the first meeting, folks by far more worldly than me readily took up various posts—PRO; Vice Chair. But no one wanted to be the secretary. Seizing upon my ignorance and inexperience, I was thrust into the role. And so began a long history of doing what few want to do—taking minutes and writing correspondence (those were the days of typed letters with carbon copies). I was willing: I learnt things that no formal classroom could teach me. My career went from strength to strength and has, since then, involved always a great deal of writing.

It is impossible to itemize all the ways in which volunteering has informed my career, but these are the most significant ways in which volunteering rescued me from a muddied vision of myself:

• Volunteering put me in touch with my strengths. Outside of my voluntary work, I was uncertain about what I had to offer to the marketplace. Being asked to write—correspondence; project proposals; reports—revealed my writing ability. Above all, I came to realize that I really enjoy writing. Volunteering also taught me a great deal about my weaknesses. Voluntary work gave me a safe place to learn about things I needed to improve, in preparation for the world of work and life in general.

As it relates to the IDL SIG, I continue to write and my writing is in an entirely different context from my workplace writing. Writing for IDeaL: Instructional Design for Learning is a more relaxed, personal experience. It hones my writing skills, but in way that is not tied to the routine of 9 to 5.

• Volunteering made me a team-player. In contrast to the classroom, where individual effort is encouraged and rewarded, as a volunteer I learnt that successful organizations thrive on shared decision-making and concerted effort. Teamwork requires a sublimation of personal wants and needs; a cultivated and abiding understanding of difference; and openness to others. These are some of the personal attributes that employers look for.

Being a team-player requires even more interpersonal skills, when that community is a virtual one, like the IDL SIG. In a virtual community, you need to work double-time to make sure that communication is clear; to create bonding moments; and to build trust.

• Volunteering taught me the value of networking. Jobs, influence and opportunities circulate within networks of people. Volunteering inserts you in the first instance into a single network—that of the voluntary organization. But that network mushrooms into many, many more, when you consider that each member of the organization belongs to many other networks. With charisma, a strong work ethic and a reputation for dependability and trustworthiness, you could tap into large and varied networks. When given a choice among a field of competent candidates, employers will choose the known and familiar—that person could be you.

When asked to volunteer for the SIG, I jumped at the opportunity. Volunteering for the SIG allows me to belong to a network that I would not ordinarily have access to. There are no STC chapters where I live and there are few local TC or IDL practitioners. In this instance, volunteering has provided me with a network that defies geographical boundaries.

• Volunteering stretches and tests you in ways that you ordinarily will not be. When you are hired, you are hired with a pre-determined set of competencies to fill a post with a fixed job description, and are given a set of resources to get your job done. Voluntary organizations have no such luxury.

• Generally speaking, voluntary organizations can make very little demands regarding the skill-sets that the volunteer is bringing. So, volunteers will have to learn very quickly skill-sets that they may not have prior to volunteering.

• They often have very fluid terms of reference for members, so you may find yourself doing things that have nothing to do with being a secretary, for instance. Therefore, volunteers will have to give of themselves in many unanticipated ways.

• They work in under-resourced circumstances. Hey, if they could pay folks, you wouldn’t be volunteering! And so, volunteers will have to be very creative to overcome resourcing deficits.

In short, volunteering tests your mettle. You would never have known that you are this tough!

And how has the IDL SIG tested my mettle? Well in many, many, many ways. But perhaps the most telling is the requirement to use WordPress—software that I would not ordinarily use. And believe me, it has been testing, but in a good way! I expect that as I work longer with the SIG and STC, there will always be opportunities and the need to learn new things…more testing of my mettle!

So while my sharing has been about volunteering in general, I do hope that you are convinced to volunteer for the IDL SIG and STC specifically! Your professional goals and personal aspirations can be met in our one stop shop. For more information on volunteering opportunities with the IDL SIG please see: http://www.stcidlsig.org/about-idl-sig/volunteer-opportunities/

By Sylvia Miller, with Mellissa Ruryk

You might be wondering what happened to our IDL SIG scholarships. STC has determined that SIGs can no longer offer scholarships. The IDL SIG is proud to say that we awarded, from 2006 through 2015, $10,250.00 in scholarships to very deserving applicants. We know we helped their careers along, even with awards of a few hundred dollars. Your SIG leaders put on their thinking caps to consider how we could still offer much needed support to students of instructional design, and we came up with an exciting new program.

Starting in September of 2016, the IDL SIG will invite college and university students to submit original articles on an instructional design topic to the IDL SIG to be considered for publication in IDeaL: Design for Learning, our SIG’s newsletter. If an article is selected for publication, the student will receive a complimentary STC student membership, with membership in our SIG.

Purpose of the program

The purpose of the Student Outreach Program is to encourage students to earn and enjoy STC and IDL SIG memberships at no cost. We, and the Society at large, hope that first-hand experience of STC membership will convince students to continue Society membership while they complete their study programs and into their careers.

The reward

Students whose articles are accepted for publication in our newsletter will receive a complimentary one-year STC membership, which will include a one-year membership in the IDL SIG.

Further, with the winning students’ permission, these published articles then will be submitted for inclusion in the Technical Communication Body of Knowledge (TC BOK). If an article is deemed suitable for inclusion in the TC BOK, the IDL SIG will grant an additional year of complimentary STC/IDL SIG membership. Persons who no longer qualify for a student membership will receive a $75 credit towards any level of membership. The award is a credit towards membership only; there is no cash equivalent.

Criteria for entry

Students must be enrolled in an accredited, post-secondary degree or certificate program. Students will be given a list of instructional design-related topics to choose from, or they may apply for pre-approval of a topic of their own choosing.

Application details

Students are invited to submit articles of no more than 4 typewritten pages, single-spaced. A panel of IDL SIG members determines if student’s article:

• Is pertinent to instructional design

• Is original and not plagiarized

• Is more than a regurgitation of IDL facts, such as a description of the 5 parts of ADDIE

• Would be interesting or appropriate for our SIG members to read about in our newsletter

• Meets length criterion and is well-written

Students may submit articles that they’ve received credit for in a college-level course.

Frequency and timing of article requests; number of awards

The SIG will run the Student Outreach promotion:

• Every March through May during STC’s Member-Get-a-Member program.

• Every September through November.

In every offering, more than one student can win a membership, to a maximum of ten winners.

Value proposition

The program described above offers a win-win-win for ID students, the STC and the TC BOK:

• Students can be published before completing their degree or certificate. They can add this to their LinkedIn profiles with a link to the article on our website (newsletter), and they can include the award in their résumé.

• STC will gain new student members. If students see the value in remaining an STC member after degree or certificate completion, they will become full members.

• The TC BoK editorial panel will have new articles to consider for inclusion.

Stay tuned!

Watch your email for further details about the launch of this new program, and tell your college and university friends that a cool opportunity for them to be published before graduating is coming soon!

By Mellissa Ruryk

I know, we all love to hate Word™. I get it! There are many times when we have no choice and need to dash something off, so we crack open a new doc. and bang it out. But then we apply some styles here (never using inline styling, right??) and then decide that this section there would look better if it were a numbered list. Then gee – wouldn’t it be better if that section of the document were printed landscape? All of a sudden you’re fighting a real battle!

We all know we could look up a YouTube video and find an answer – but will it be the right answer? Who has time to search through all the videos? Here a few quick tips that might come in handy when you’re pressed for time and need to crack the Wordwhip. I’m going to start off with some of the settings I have in my copy of Word that I rely on to tell me what Word thinks it is doing:

1. Get used to working with all non-printing characters showing. I know: it’s ugly and annoying – but this is only to start with. Once you get used to seeing those little critters, you really don’t notice them (like an El train right outside your window) but they sure come in handy when you’re trying to figure out what Word™ is doing and why. Knowing if you are trying to underline spaces or tabs – finding out that you’ve copied in a table from the web; seeing big gaps after your paragraphs and suddenly realizing that there is a ‘space before’ paragraph setting that is the reason for double spaces: all these and more will become crystal clear if you keep your hidden characters showing. Trust me.

2. If you are working in a version prior to Word 2010, look in File>Options>Advanced and check the tick box off for ‘show text margins.’ This is another visual cue that can help you sort out table sizes, column widths, automatic word wrapping and the like. The ability to see text boundaries is not a feature in Word™; it was turned on by a developer seeking to troubleshoot and they forgot to turn it off. A hue and cry was raised when it changed in Word 2010. In post-2010 Word, it makes a grey box around every line of text – too distracting for me. So I use ‘Show crop marks’ instead and it’s almost as good at telling me where my margins are and why I might be having issues with layout.

3. Turn your rulers on! This is in the View menu – check the tick box so that you can see the horizontal and vertical rulers. (I laugh at myself as I have been at this for a long time and I still have to imagine a horizon off in the distance to remember the difference between horizontal and vertical. Spatially challenged or what?) Rulers help you visualize how much space has been given to headers and footers by Word’s default settings and allows you to change them by clicking and dragging. Much easier than figuring out inches (or god forbid, millimeters!  I told you, I’m old!) And, setting tabs is a breeze when you have the horizontal rules visible. Tabs will be the topic of my next column in the September newsletter. I have some cool tips that will save hours of your formatting time and probably, much of your hair.

4. Use Field shading. Word uses fields for numbering, caption numbering, some links, and other tricks. Make sure you don’t disturb these time savers by mistake by having field shading always on. When you see text with a grey background, you will realize (even if you ignored my advice in #1) that these are fields and should be altered with care. To turn field shading on, click File>Options>Advanced and scroll down to Show Document Content (I think it used to be called Display). Use the drop down list beside Field Shading to Always.

5. Minimize the ribbon if real estate is tight on your monitor. All the info is still there when you wave your cursor around at the top of the window. There is a small caret mark (^) to click on that will minimize it; when minimized, the caret mark is upside down and indicates you can drop the ribbon down with a click. (By the way, if you have two monitors, consider turning one of them 45˚ so that it is “portrait” rather than “landscape”. It is wonderful to be able to see headers and footers at the same time without scrolling… I’ve caught so many outdated references hiding in footers since I did this.)

6. Customize your status bar (the thin section at the bottom) of your Word window. Put your cursor on the status bar (you might have to play a bit if you have your taskbar set to auto-hide – keep trying) and right click. On the context menu, you can select or deselect a number of options.  Choose to see at the minimum:  page, section, word count, caps lock, overtype mode, zoom, and language. I find the word count the most useful as I’m often writing to a certain number of desired words (such as fewer than 1,000 for an IDeaL newsletter article!).

So stay tuned next issue as I will continue to share these little tips and tricks and hope that you will find them useful and the creator of many “AHA!” moments when you realize you are learning how to think like Word. Oh, behave! Indeed.