Procedural writing is a challenge for many people because it often involves laying out steps for a task that we either already know, have seen a final product of, or that our brains fill in the blanks for us based on experience.
In their Critical Thinking Through Writing course, OLS Bellevue College students teamed up in small groups to complete a procedural writing challenge. They started the process by being given a mundane task many of us have completed before: making a sandwich.
While it sounds easy enough, students soon found out missing even the simplest steps can change the product or process completely. Students were informed their instructor would be completing the procedure as written by students instead of using their own experiences to fill in the gaps. However, once the instructor was going through the procedure, students were allowed to stop the process at any time to make additions or changes if they noticed they had missed something.
Students learned pretty quickly that there were more missing steps than expected which led to some hilarity in the class.
Through this exercise, students learned that being able to follow a procedure is one thing, but creating, adapting, and understanding the importance behind procedures is a skill—one that transcends the OLS program. Learning new skills in the workplace and understanding why they are presented in a certain way allows for students to better relate and be more willing to follow the procedures as well as how to advocate for accommodations that the procedure may not have taken in to account for the neurodiverse and disabled community.
Here’s what student had to say about the importance of procedures:
- “I believe that it’s important to be clear from start to finish of a task, that way you won’t be able to mess something up or misunderstand a certain direction. If people take their time to write the directions of a procedure efficiently, then others would be able to understand and get their tasks complete with little to no problems. Sometimes, following a procedure can be complicated because some people who have a neurodivergent condition like autism can have a hard time following a procedure or doing the tasks needed. To assist those who are neurodiverse, you have to provide efficient wording and visual aids in order for the person to understand the procedure or task. In conclusion, if we made directions of a procedure or task efficient, then there would be no misunderstandings, and the person can be able to finish this task with no problems.”
- “Procedure in writing is important because it provides a clear structure of the writers views to the readers eyes. When writing and having a procedure, it can help organize thoughts, making it easier for the reader to follow without being diverted from one part to another. Being clear from beginning, middle, and end when writing is mandatory. This is because it allows the reader to take in the story efficiently without the reader also feeling confusion and frustration. If writing is unclear, it can lead to misunderstandings or misinterpretations. Readers may struggle to follow what the writer is trying to convey, making the readers lose interest. Unclear writing makes it difficult for the reader to decode the writers purpose, argumentized point, and or story, which can greatly impact the message that they are trying to send to the reader.”
- “Having procedure is important as creating these steps will help you accomplish goals/tasks more easier to work on from start to finish. It’s like proper note taking on what you should have, how long it can take and provide feedback for others to share. But if making the steps feel unclear would be confusing for the reader to understand any of the basics on what you’re trying to say and how your showing them without any clues. By providing steps of movement and items you need to use with enough details to learn from. Creating procedure will provide quality rules and not having too many errors when following the steps, to help you organize successfully.”
- “Based on what I have learned from this lesson, I learned that procedure is important because it shows you all of the specific steps that you need to do to complete a task. More specifically, it is also important to be clear with those steps because they will give you the important details on how to take them. If we are being unclear with those steps, then the procedure wouldn’t be as orderly as we had intended. Being unclear with the steps can lead to miscommunication and result in the procedure being a failure, which is why we shouldn’t overlook even the smaller details of the procedure as things that everybody knows how to do.”
- “The importance of clear instructions: Especially for a beginner. Very detail procedure can be life savior for the person reading it. some people may wing it. But there are a lot of people out there who are task paralyze with the job role or task, a very overwhelming feeling that everyone can relate to. it can also be good to reduce incidents, accidents, and making it safe as possible. Consequences of unclear instructions: On any level, not having a proper instruction lay out is bad for both sides. the reader could improvise, but then what is the point of having instructions in the first place. The writer is providing an unreliable procedure that is doomed to fail at the start. and the reader would have a frustrating time to do the job properly. May not even complete it by the end of the day. an lose-lose situation.”
Watch the Video
About the OLSBC Critical Thinking Through Writing Course
Critical Thinking Through Writing is taken in the second year of the OLSBC program and is one of the many courses students take to earn their associate degree. In this course, students research, analyze, and debate current social issues using argumentative and persuasive formats.
About Occupational & Life Skills Bellevue College
Occupational & Life Skills Bellevue College (OLSBC) is an associate degree program for students with learning disabilities. In our uniquely supportive skills-based program, students apply academic knowledge through community activities, service learning and social experiences. Students identify a career pathway, gain marketable, workplace-ready competencies, develop better interpersonal skills and complete an internship in alignment with their career goals.
Learn more about our program at an upcoming Information Session, open to all prospective students, family members/guardians, educators, counselors and other service providers. Come learn why OLS Bellevue College is one of the best colleges for students with learning disabilities.
Last Updated February 20, 2025