Argument against Separate Writing Courses for Engineers

Abstract

Separate writing courses offered by language specialists without the benefit of collaboration from their engineering colleagues can do little to improve the ability of engineers to express themselves in writing. The most effective way of dealing with issues of human communication in engineering curriculums is to consciously and deliberately integrate these processes into ongoing engineering courses in collaboration with language specialists. Doing so virtually eliminates the universal timetabling problem of trying to find a slot for yet another course. Putting a focus on human communication in engineering classrooms promotes multidisciplinary interaction among people of diverse backgrounds with various kinds of knowledge and experience, a major objective of the new engineering curriculums.