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Report Writing
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DEFINITION OF A REPORT
• A report:
• gives information• puts forth ideas• gives survey findings• recommends actions• oral/written• Formal/informal
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Formal Report Format Preliminary Cover/title page Letter or memo of transmittal Table of contents List of illustrations Abstract Introduction
Body Discussion sections [Appendices – appear after text but support Body section]
Conclusion Conclusions Recommendations
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You need to: • a. Know Your Reader• • b. Know Your Purpose• - inform/narrate• - instruct/explain• - convince/persuade• • c. Know Your Category• Is your report informational or analytical?• • d. Have a Planned Approach• • e. Know Your Rules • Be accurate, brief and clear!• The easier it is to read your report, the more effective it will be.• The standard font to use is Times New Roman, 12 points.
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Stages of Report Writing
e-Learning Task 1 What actions do you have to do for each stage?STAGE ACTIONPlanning Think about subject matter
Think about readers and purpose
Selecting information
Reject irrelevant information Consider collected facts and data Group facts under headings and
subheadings
Drafting Write introduction Write main text Write conclusion and
recommendations
Revising Examine draft Check for errors
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SECTIONS OF A REPORT
SECTIONPART FUNCTION
PRELIMINARY
Title Page Identifies the report title, the reader’s name and title, the writer’s name, title and date.
Acknowledgements Lists the names of persons and institutions that assisted in the report.
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SECTIONS OF A REPORT
PRELIMINARY Table of Contents Records the name of each part of the report and the name of each first and second order heading within the body and the page on which each occurs.
Page numbering starts from this page. Page numbers on this page and up to the Abstract page use Roman numerals: i, ii, iii, iv, etc.
All page numbers from the Introduction page onward are written using Arabic numerals: 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.
List of Illustrations Records the page number of tables, illustrations and diagrams.
Abstract Mentions briefly the report’s purpose, findings, conclusions and recommendations. It gives the starting point and direction of the report.
Introduction Defines the research task and problem and includes
– the purpose statement
– background information
– scope, aims and limits of the report
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SECTIONS OF A REPORT
REPORT PROPER
Body/Findings/
Discussion
Presents factual, objective information. Findings are analyzed and discussed, and evidence presented. Heads and a numbering system are used to signal to the reader when new ideas are to be introduced and developed.
Conclusion Summarizes the report findings and evaluates the main facts.
Recommendations Offers solutions or course of action.
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SECTIONS OF A REPORT
Bibliography
References include the information quoted in the text. Lists in the bibliography recommended reading material on the subjects covered or other related areas.
SUPPLEMENTARY
Appendices Presents additional material such as questionnaires that are relevant but may distract from the main flow of the report.
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ABSTRACT
• It is a concise, self-contained piece of writing which readers should be able to understand without recourse to the original report. Begin on a new page.
• Although the abstract comes before the main body of the report, it should be written last, that is, after the whole report is completed.
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Introduction
Think Through This Provide a short explanation for each of the following subheadings.SUBHEADING EXPLANATIONAim/Objective/Purpose
This statement tells the reader what you want to accomplish in the report.
Background (Historical)
This explains why you are writing the report.
Background (Technical)
This is to explain certain terms/concepts your reader should know to understand the report.
Scope of the investigation
This is a brief explanation of what the report will focus/cover (or what it does not include and why).
Method of inquiry
This explains how you got your data for the report.
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BodyThe Body has text + illustrations, charts,
tables/diagrams as reference and support for statements in text.
Presenting important findings – past tense
As a group, divorced mothers spent over twice as much time in employment as married mothers.
Locating results – present tense Figure 2 shows the production of the film
industry in 2013. Commenting on results – present tense,
modal auxiliaries or tentative verbs The results may be explained by the
influence of the very hot weather.
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Conclusion
The conclusion is a summary of the report findings and evaluation of the main facts discussed in the report.
Points in the conclusion should follow a descending order of importance.
The conclusion is usually short; about half to one page.
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RecommendationsRecommendations solve the problem or
provide answers to questions asked in the report.
Have recommended course of action based on your conclusions. All suggestions must be in line with them.
Each recommendation is separate point/paragraph.
Recommendations should follow a descending order of importance, arrangement as in conclusion.
The tenses of verbs in the Conclusion and Recommendations sections vary depending on whether you are writing about completed actions, general principles or possible explanations.
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Tenses in Conclusion/RecommendationsThe test showed that the original strength of the
support was high. The copper reacts with the acid which produces a
gas. It is likely that vibrations from the construction
affected the readings obtained. The determination of calcium carbonate by
volumetric analysis is not a reliable method. It is recommended that more research be done
on how to make use of the by-product, red mud. It is advisable to consult the data sheets provided
by various suppliers to determine the specific properties of the various variations of Nylon 7.
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Think Through This. Body Structures.
SURVEY REPORT 1. Introduction 1.1 Purpose 1.2 Background/Problem 1.3 Scope 1.4 Method of inquiry 2. Problem area/Background information on (topic) 3. Survey findings – Presentation of findings – Analysis of results 4. Conclusion 5. Recommendations
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Think Through This. Body Structures.
RESEARCH ANALYSIS REPORT 1. Introduction 1.1 Purpose 1.2 Background/Problem 1.3 Scope 1.4 Method of inquiry 2. History of (topic) 3. Current developments 4. Future developments 5. Conclusion 6. Recommendations
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Think Through This. Body Structures.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT REPORT 1. Introduction 1.1 Purpose 1.2 Background/Problem 1.3 Scope 1.4 Method of inquiry 2. Problem and specifications 3. Design 4. Construction 4.1 Process of construction 4.2 Problems encountered 4.3 Solutions implemented 5. Tests – Presentation of test results – Analysis of results 6. Conclusion 7. Recommendations
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Think Through This. Body Structures.
SOFTWARE DEVELOPMENT REPORT 1. Introduction
1.1 Purpose 1.2 Background/Problem 1.3 Scope 1.4 Method of inquiry
2. Problem and specifications 3. Concept 4. Development
4.1 Process of development 4.2 Problems encountered 4.3 Solutions implemented
5. Tests – Presentation of test results – Analysis of results 6. Conclusion 7. Recommendations
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Writing a Report
Heads and subheads: All heads and subheads must be parallel.
Numbering and indentation.Business writing style Tone: Be professional,
impersonal, formal and objective.Professional look: Times New
Roman, 12 points.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
A bibliography is a list of books and other printed materials referred to by the writer of a report.
The bibliography is arranged in alphabetical order by authors’ surnames.
Hard-copy (Books):Yu, Alice. The Applied Theory of
Price. 3rd ed. Hong Kong: Macmillan, 1997.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
• Hard-copy (Articles):• Singh, P.N. "No Go for Leonardo."
8 Days, 3 July 2000, p. 4.
• Web• Peter J. Bryant, "The Age of
Mammals," Biodiversity and Conservation, April 1999, <http://darwin.bio.uci.edu/~sustain/bio65/index.html> (21 July 2000)
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Think Through This. Bibliography.
1. How many types of sources are there in a bibliography? What are they? Two: Hard-copy and Web sources.
2. How many types of hard-copy sources are there? What are they?
Two: Books and articles.
3. You have referred to a book with two authors when writing your report. How do you list it in your bibliography?
For a book with two authors, place the first author’s name first:
Surname, First name, and First name Surname of second author. Book title in italics. Edition (if available). City that book was published in: Publisher name, Year that book was published.
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Think Through This. Bibliography.
4. You have referred to a magazine article without an author when writing your report. How do you list it in your bibliography?For an article with a known author:“Article title in double quotation
marks.” Magazine title in italics, Date that article appeared, page number (p. 4) or page range (pp. 9-15) for the article.
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Think Through This. Bibliography.
5. What are the items that need to be listed when documenting a Web source (in order)?
Author’s nameTitle of document in double quotation
marksTitle of complete work (if relevant) in
italics or underlinedDate of publication or last revisionFull URL in angled bracketsDate of access in parentheses
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Appendix/AppendicesSupplementary materials, which, if placed in the
main report, disrupt or delay the reading process. Contains reference materials: surveys or
questionnaires used in research, statistics, graphs, charts or maps, and extracts from newspapers or journals.
Placed at the end of the report, usually after bibliography.
Each appendix should start on new page.Each appendix should have a label (letters of
alphabet or Roman numerals) and a title associated with it.
Each appendix should be referenced somewhere in the body of the report.
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Activity (Optional)(1) Improve the following sentences for
parallelism:
1. The policy affected all those who sell, suppliers and consultants.
The policy affected all sellers, suppliers and consultants.
2. Good managers analyse a problem, collect data and alternatives are evaluated.
Good managers analyse a problem, collect data and evaluate alternatives.
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Activity3. Administrative employees must be able to
communicate swiftly, concisely and be flexible in handling various responsibilities.
Administrative employees must be able to communicate swiftly, concisely and handle various responsibilities flexibly.
4. The company’s objectives for this year are to match last year’s production, higher sales and improving customer relationship.
The company’s objectives for this year are to match last year’s production, achieve higher sales and improve customer relationship.
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Activity5. The director advocated the development
of a corporate strategy, writing a resource allocation plan and to evaluate investments.
The director advocated developing a corporate strategy, writing a resource allocation plan and evaluating investments.
6. The questionnaire asked for information such as how many employees, our union status and remuneration scale.
The questionnaire asked for information such as the number of employees, our union status and remuneration scale.
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Activity 7. Betty’s choice of working for the
company is based on three reasons: its product line, its international sales organisation and because it is a leader in the cosmetic industry.
Betty’s choice of working for the company is based on three reasons: its product line, its international sales organisation and its leadership in the cosmetic industry.
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Match the following objectives of a report
to the appropriate conclusions.OBJECTIVES
1. To design and assemble modular fixtures for six different workpieces.
2. To illustrate point and non-point sources of pollution of groundwater resources and the effect of urbanisation on flood peaks.
3. To study the kinematic and dynamic fundamentals of epicyclic gear drives.
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Match the following objectives of a report
to the appropriate conclusions. CONCLUSIONS
a. From this experiment, it is obvious that the velocity ratio of the gear train depends on the number of teeth of the first and last gear of the train.
b. This project helps to provide a better understanding of the modular fixture system and the concept of location.
c. This experiment gives a clear perspective of the hydrological cycle, point and non-point sources of pollution and the importance and usefulness of hydrographs.
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Match the following objectives of a report
to the appropriate conclusions.Objectives Conclusions1=b2=c3=a
ICA 1 Creative Thinking and Report Presentation (Team Work) : 50 marks Individual written proposal 10m (Week 2) + Gp presentation 30m (Week 6/7) + Individual written reflections 10m (Week 6/7) 1. Project Task Each group to do one of the following tasks/projects: A. Identify a discovery/invention in a particular field (e.g.
design and construction, consumer goods and services) and show what its impact has been on society/ world. Suggest how your discovery/ invention could be adapted to meet a need in your community.
B. Choose a retail shop/restaurant which has room for improvement to increase customer traffic and boost sales. Present your findings and recommendations. You can look into areas related to your course of study such as shop design, merchandise display, point-of-sale design, corporate/brand identity and marketing etc.
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2. Individual Preliminary Project Proposal (10 marks – individually graded)…Submit in wk 2.
Before tutor forms different project groups, each individual student has to first choose one of the above tasks and draw up some preliminary ideas for a project proposal. The students’ submission of preliminary ideas will be individually graded (individual ideas are and how much thought they have put into project.) The proposal should be about 400 words and include these headings:
Choice of topic and reasons for their choiceProject task objectives Ideas for meeting task objectives
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3. Group Information and Idea Generation: Choosing the Group Project
After submission of the individual project proposal, tutor will form project groups of 4 or 5 members. Each member in the group share and discuss his/her own project proposal within the group. Students are required to gather information from appropriate sources (primary sources such as through interviews and surveys, or/and secondary sources) to generate and substantiate ideas/suggestions and findings.
Finally, all members in each group must choose from the members’ various project ideas and unanimously agree on one to work on together. 36
4. Research and Oral Presentation (30 marks: Individual grades based on both group and individual work)…Presentation in wk 6/7
Group to discuss and research on project in greater depth.
Each group delivers a formal presentation on project. Each member is to speak for about 5 minutes. If the group size is 4, maximum of 20 minutes given to the group to present. The presentation structure can be as follows:
Project Title; Members Project Objectives Introduction: Current Situation/ Background Information Body: Description; Findings; Strengths vs Weaknesses;
Survey/ Interview results; Feasibility; Manageability etc. Recommendation Conclusion Students can use presentation aids such as PowerPoint
slides, posters, photographs, objects or video clips 37
5. Q & A
At the end of each team presentation, each member will individually answer one question posed either by the tutor or audience.
The question can refer to the whole project presentation or only to the area which the member has presented.
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6. Individual Reflections (10 marks)….Submit in wk 6/7
On the day of the oral presentation, each student must submit a written reflection of about 250 words on their experience in completing this assignment. Among other things, they may elaborate on:
Challenges faced by them/the team such as issues related to team dynamics (refer to what they have learnt on characteristics of an effective team, decision making styles, team roles etc.), time management, members’ knowledge and expertise etc..
Lessons learnt/ positive impact/ what could have been done better by them/ team.
Please go to http://dn2627.wikispaces.com for uploads.
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