module acadamic report
TRANSCRIPT
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Report writing is an important part of many professional and academic subjects. Reports playan increasingly important role in the workplace, where they are a crucial instrument in all
business processes. They are also widely used in government, technology, health care, social
services, and many other areas.
Whatisaformalreport?
A formal report is a document that is written following a fixed procedure and is used todescribe an investigation and give results and recommendations based on the investigation.
Whatisthepurposeofaformalreport?
The purpose of a formal report is to investigate a problem or a need, find workable solutions,
and make recommendations.
What
are
the
differences
between
different
types
of
reports?
Different types of reports are intended for different audiences and have different purposes.
They may deal with different kinds of topics, and therefore use different types of vocabulary.They may vary greatly in length. However, the general form of most reports is similar.
Whatarethepartsofaformalreport?
TitleSummary
IntroductionFindings and Discussion
Conclusions
Recommendations
Please continue to the next page...
Formal Report Writing
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Mini-Quiz
Aformalreportrequiresveryclear,conciseandaccurateuseoflanguagetoconveyvery
specificinformationtoitsaudience.Therefore,asapre-test,selectthemostappropriate
formalexpressionforuseinaformalreportfromtheoptionsgivenundereachitem:
1. I_________
the
inspector
to
perform
athorough
check
on
the
functioning
of
companymachineryandworkstations.
a. asked
b. talked to
c. requested
d. spoke to
2. Extensivesuppliesofspecimens__________________fortestingatthelaboratoriesfor
furtherresearch.
a. were requiredb. were wanted
c. were neededd. were booked
3. Theobjectiveoftheformalreportis______________problemsandtobringout
suitablesolutionsandrecommendations.
a. to search forb. to investigatec. to identifyd. to find
4. TheCEO___________shortlytodiscussgeneralissuesonimprovingefficiencyin
manufacturing.
a. comes,b.will sitc. will arrived.goes
5. Themotiontoreduceworkinghours_______________bythecompanyboard,dueto
thefearofadropintherequiredproductionoutput.
a. was not allowedb. was dismissedc. was passedd. was accepted
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ExampleofaReport
A report has a welldefined structure. In the following report, as in most reports, all the
parts are named. Sections and subsections are numbered.
To the left of each section is an explanation of the type of information and language used in
that section.
Begin with a specific title. The
title should convey useful
information about the content ofthe report
Survey of Overseas Students at Festina Lente
University: 19851999
This is followed by the name(s)of the author(s), along with the
date when the report was
finished.
University Marketing and Survey Committee,June 10, 2000
Number each section.
The summary is optional. To
write a summary:
1. Briefly state the aim of the
report.2. Briefly describe the
methodology followed.
3. Group the conclusions of the
investigation into categories.
1 Summary
A report on overseas students at Festina Lente
University was undertaken to determine what (if
any) problems these students face. Students
were surveyed on several matters. In general,students expressed satisfaction with the
university; however, a few areas of concern were
identified.
The following parts are found inthe introduction of a report:
What is to be investigated /
aim (A) Who requested the report (R)
When it was requested (D)
What methodology is to beused (M)
These are known as the terms ofreference of the report. (A), (R),
and (D) may appear in any order.(M) is always last. In the sample
report on the right, the order ofthe terms of reference is (R), (D),
(A), (M).
2 Introduction
This report was requested by the president of
Festina Lente University on November 5, 1999. AUniversity Marketing and Survey Committee was
formed, consisting of the president; the bursar;
the registrar; the deans of arts, science, andbusiness. The committee was asked to submit its
findings by June 15, 2000.
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Some expressions commonly
found in (A):the aim of...is to ...., will outline,
was to determine..., determine
the feasibility of ..., the purpose
of is to..., to investigate
The main purpose of the study is to explore ways
of attracting more overseas students to study atFestina Lente. An additional purpose is to help to
make the existing environment more conducive
to study for these students.
Some expressions commonlyfound in (R):
was requested by, as requested
by, was instructed, was asked,
make appropriaterecommendations, ...was asked to
submit...
Some expressions commonly
found in (D):by (date), on or before (date)
Some expressions commonly
found in (M):was collected, with discussions,
was used, obtain, carry out (atask, etc.), was undertaken,
findings, were surveyed, the
scale was used to measure...,
responses were identified,
questionnaires, tabulate, noted
Tense: Usually past. Use presenttense only to describe
aims/goals.
Our major source of information about the needsand wishes of overseas students at Festina Lente
is the students themselves. Therefore, the
committee decided to construct a questionnaire,
aimed at eliciting relevant information fromoverseas students who have studied at Festina
Lente since 1985. Copies of the questionnaireare on file with the Student Union and the
Faculty Office, and they are available for public
viewing. A total of 242 responses were received,233 of which were usable. Three hundred and
sixty nine overseas students had been enrolled
at Festina Lente during the period in question.
The responses, therefore, can be taken to reflectthe views of a significant majority of these
students. The questionnaire included 24variables, grouped into five categories:
a. Information received about Festina Lente
before the students arrival here;
b. The students reception into the country anduniversity;
c. The students courses at Festina Lente;d. Interaction with academic and administrative
staff;e. Learning resources.
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Findings are the facts that were
discovered by using the
methodology described in the
introduction. For example, if asurvey was used, the findings are
the responses to the survey. The
findings are grouped, presentedin tabular form, or reduced to
statistics for easy understanding.
An example of a finding is, Eightpercent of all respondents
considered their courses on the
whole to be unsatisfactorybecause they were unable to
understand their instructors.
3 Findings
3.1 Before arrival at Festina Lente:
Students were asked if they had received
thorough, partial or no information about the
university, their chosen program of study, localculture, and travel and visa matters. Results
suggest that insufficient information on local
culture and traditions was provided to studentsbefore they arrived here. In addition, some
departments apparently sent out flyers and
other information sheets that were insufficient,incomplete, or unclear.
Divide complex informationlogically into parts and numbereach part as shown.
3.2 Arrival at Festina Lente:
The past tense is often used in
this section of the report, and the
passive voice is common.
Using a scale of dissatisfied, satisfied, or verysatisfied, students were asked to rate five
different aspects of their arrival in the country
and at the university. Mean responses suggestthat local food and campus orientation seem to
require improvement.
This section is sometimes called
Discussion and Conclusions.
Conclusions are statements of
fact derived from the findings.
They are answers to the
question: What is the problem?An example of a conclusion is,
There are not enough
computers in the head office.Usually the present simple tense
or the present perfect tense is
used.
4 Conclusions
This survey of overseas students at FestinaLente over the last 15 years shows why Festina
Lente continues to be a soughtafter place of
study for students from many countries.
However, two main concerns have beenhighlighted by the survey:
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4.1
4.2
In some cases, inadequate or erroneous
information has been sent to overseas studentsprior to their arrival at Festina Lente.
Problems with housing and cuisine have been
noted.
Recommendations aresuggestions about how to solve
the problems. They often containthe word should. They answer
the question, What should we
do to solve the problem(s)? Anexample of a recommendation is
the following: Management
should install eight new
computers in the head office.
Verbs with should appear in theactive voice (The universityshould provide information)
or the passive voice (The Student
Union should be asked).
5
5.1
5.2
Recommendations
Based on the survey results, the committeemakes the following recommendations:
The university should provide information onlocal culture and traditions as part of the mailing
to overseas applicants.
It should identify departments whose
departmental brochures and flyers are in need ofupdating or expansion.
FormalReport
Language
Formal reports should be written using formal language. Can you replace the underlinedwords in the following short text with more appropriate business language?
On June 20th, 2004, I had to have a look at complaints about the timekeeping of the guys inthe general office. To get some information I had a chat with each of the 12 workers
concerned, and watched out for their time of arrival over a twoweek period.
(Suggested answers: investigated, punctuality, staff, obtain, conducted interviews,
employees, noted)
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PractisingWhatYouHaveLearned
Nowpractisewhatyouhavelearnedaboutreportwritingandthelanguageofformalreportsbyselectingthebestoptionfromeachsetofwordscontainedinsquarebracketsin
thefollowingshortreport.
[Notethat
this
report
does
not
have
aSummary,
so
the
numbering
begins
with
the
Introduction.]
ComplaintsaboutthePoorServiceOfferedbytheLibraryofthe
UniversityofBilgewater
The University of Bilgewater Library Committee, September 20, 1995
1 Introduction
The objective of this report was to [address, receive, answer] complaints aboutpoor service provided by the library and to make appropriate
recommendations, as [demanded, requested, recommended] by S. I.
Pennington, President, on 25 March 1995. An interview [conducted, wasconducted, held] with Mr. Vernon English, Chief Librarian, on 15 March.
Questionnaires [were distributed, distributed, sent out] to a crosssection of
staff who used the library between 15 and 20 March.
2 Findings
2.1 Interview with Chief Librarian
2.1.1 Staffing:
Mr. English has 13 fulltime assistants. Five of these [at the, work the, areemployed by the] college on Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week. They
[work, stay, duties] from 25 p.m. on those days.
2.1.2 Equipment:
A schedule of current items of equipment and their year of purchase
[examined, was examined, is examining.] No problems with this equipment
[noted, were noted, can be noted]. However, he requested purchase ofadditional equipment as follows:
1 photocopier
3 trolleys to transport books around the library
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2.2 Views of the academic staff
22 staff [asked, asking, were asked] to fill in a questionnaire, 20 responded. The
problems identified are shown below:
2.2.1 75% of the respondents thought the photocopying facilities were inadequate.
2.2.2 100% [has, reported, found] difficulty in recalling books.
2.2.3 50% reported difficulty in communicating in English with some library staff.
3 Conclusions
3.1 There [are, were, should be] not enough library assistants to cope with the day
today running of the library in the morning.
3.2 The present photocopying equipment is insufficient.
3.3 The standard of English of some library assistants is not sufficient to enable
effective communication to take place between the library staff and the academicstaff.
3.4 There [was, could be, is] no system in place for recalling books.
4 Recommendations
4.1 Five new library assistants should be [made, recruited, brought in] to work from
09001400 hours Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
4.2 A new photocopier and three new trolleys [shall be, will be, should be] bought.
4.3 The front line staff [should give, should be given, should be taken] Englishclasses wherever needed.
4.4 The Chief Librarian [should be asked, should ask, is asking] to devise and
implement a recall system.
Based on: Henry, Alex, & Roseberry, Robert L. (2001). HelpYourselftoEnglishintheBusinessSchool.
(2nded.). Ashhurst, N.Z.: One2One Training and Consultancy, by permission of the authors.