Report Writing
- 1. A report is a statement of the results of an investigation or of any matter on which definite information is required. (Oxford English Dictionary)
- 2. REPORT IS A PIECE OF FACTUAL WRITING BASED ON EVIDENCE CONTAINING ORGANIZED INFORMATION ON A PARTICULAR TOPIC.
- 3. FEATURES (WHAT TO WRITE AND HOW TO WRITE) A good report is: Precise and brief – precision gives unity and coherence to report Factual- based on facts and not assumptions - inaccurate facts may lead to disastrous decisions Unambiguous and accurate- use simple unambiguous language; -Should be free from poetic embellishments; -Grammatically accurate; clarity & brevity Relevant- no relevant fact is excluded and irrelevant fact included
- 4. Reader oriented- audience analysis Objective and homogeneous- impartial & objective. Recommendations should come as logical conclusion to investigation and analysis (uniformed structure) Detailed and documented- use special format according to the set standard; one topic at a time
- 5. OBJECTIVES OF WRITING A REPORT MAY VARY: TYPES OF REPORTS To present a record of accomplished work – Project report To record an experiment- laboratory report To record research findings or technical specifications –Primary Research report To document schedules, timetables, and milestones – Long Term Plan report. To document current status – Inspection report To record and clarify complex information for future reference – Report on Policies and Procedures To present information to a large number of people- Annual report To recommend actions that can be considered in solving certain problems – Recommendatory report
- 6. IMPORTANCE- IT IS THE BASIC TOOL USED IN DECISION MAKING A Report is the only tangible product of a professional (efficiency in which they carry out assignments) enables decision making and problem solving in organizations Helps the authorities in planning new ventures and in evaluating men and material Is an important means of information dissemination within and outside the organization (many routine and annual reports transmit information across & outside the organization)
- 7. Serves as a measure of the growth, progress or success of an organization Serves as a valuable repository of information (various reports are preserved for future reference) Reveals gap in thinking (the recipient comes to know whether the writer had thought & proceeded logically) Develop certain skills in the writer (ability to organise, to evaluate and to communicate with greater accuracy)
- 8. Reports vary in their purpose, but all of them will require a formal structure and careful planning, presenting the material in a logical manner using clear and concise language. The following stages are involved in writing a report: • clarifying your terms of reference • planning your work • collecting your information • organising and structuring your information • writing the first draft • checking and re-drafting
- 9. Terms of reference/ Purpose It is a guiding statement used to define the scope of your investigation. The writer must be clear from the start what he is being asked to do. Why has he been asked to write it ? Knowing the purpose will help to communicate information more clearly and will help him to be more selective when collecting the information. PLANNING THE REPORT Careful planning will help to write a clear, concise and effective report, giving adequate time to each of the developmental stages prior to submission. • Consider the report as a whole • Break down the task of writing the report into various parts. •
- 10. • How much time do you have to write the report? • How can this be divided up into the various planning stages? • Set yourself deadlines for the various stages. Draw up an outline structure for your report and set the work within a sensible time scale for completion by the given deadline. Some of the most time-consuming parts of the process are collecting and selecting your information, and checking and revising your report.
- 11. Collecting information There are a number of questions you need to ask yourself at this stage :- • What is the information you need ? • Where do you find it ? • How much do you need ? • How shall you collect it ? • In what order will you arrange it ? You may have much of the information you need already such as: results from a laboratory experiment or descriptions of your methods of data collection.
- 12. However, there may be other material which is needed such as background information on other research studies, or literature surveys. You may need to carry out some interviews or make a visit to the university library to collect all the information you need. • Make a list of what information you need. • Make an action plan stating how you are going to gather this.
- 13. STRUCTURE OF THE REPORT Reports are a highly structured form of writing often following conventions that have been laid down to produce a common format. 2. MAIN TEXT 3. SUPPLEMENTARY PARTS 1. PREFATORY PARTS Parts/elements are determined keeping in mind the following parameters 1. Usefulness- need for including a particular element 2. Terms of reference- if measures for improving situation are to be suggested 3. Existing practice- in the organization
- 14. PREFATORY PARTS A REPORT ON Controlling Indoor Air Pollution SUBMITTED TO Centre of Mining Environment Indian School of Mines SUBMITTED BY Anita Prasad Research Scholar, ISM, Dhanbad DATE September 29, 2016 COVER PAGE 1. Gives elegant appearance and protects from damage. 2. Arouse the curiosity of the reader by superimposing some illustrations/ photographs/drawings/diagrams, etc. 3. If less than 10 pages or bound with a transparent sheet at the top & bottom, no need of cover page
- 15. TITLE PAGE - First right hand page of the report More or less similar to cover page except the following additional information: Name and designation of the intended audience Name and designation of the approving authority, if any. SUBTITLE (OPTIONAL) COPY RIGHT- In case of publishing, notice of copy right to be printed on the inner side of the title page
- 16. LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL A brief covering letter addressed to the receiving authority. It is only a formal statement of the submission of the report. Also called an introductory/formal letter. It tells the scope and limitations of the work. PREFACE (OPTIONAL) Repeats some of the information given in letter of transmittal CERTIFICATE Certain reports such as project report, research report, etc. require a certificate vouching the original contribution of the writer. This certificate contains the statement testifying the original work, place, data and signature of the project supervisor/guide.
- 17. ACKOWLEDGEMENT It is just a ‘thank you note’ There would be a list of people who the writer would like to thank for their advice, support or assistance. Also state why to thank to the person TABLE OF CONTENTS- known as frozen outline with page no. Helps reader locate a specific topic easily and quickly. Report less than 10 pages need not include it Helpful to readers who wish to read selected topics
- 18. Prepared in the end Prefatory parts are numbered in small Roman numerals Main text and Supplementary parts are numbered in Arabic numerals If there are charts, diagrams or tables included in your report, these should be listed separately under a title such as ‘List of Illustrations’ together with the page numbers on which they appear.
- 20. ABSTRACT, EXECUTIVE SUMMARY & SYNOPSIS- Gives the essence of the report ABSTRACT- is a condensed form of the report. Tells objectives, main findings and significance of the report More appropriate in specialist to specialist communication Length of the abstract is generally 5% of the report. Less than 10 pgs report – no abstract SUMMARY- is the entire report in a nutshell. Has a beginning stating the purpose, a middle giving the important features, and an end giving conclusions and recommendations Has to be presented logically SYNOPSIS- gives the reader a quick grasp of the substance of the report. Although given before the main body, it can not be written until the report is completely drafted
- 21. INTRODUCTION To the main text A good introduction must furnish the readers with sufficient material concerning investigation of the problem. It gives the general view of the report MAIN BODY/TEXT DISCUSSION/DESCRIPTION/ANALYSIS Most voluminous part Headings/sub headings CONCLUSIONS Basic function is to close the discussion This section draws together the main issues. It should be expressed clearly and should not present any new information. You may list recommendations in separate section or include them with the conclusions.
- 22. RECOMMENDATIONS Actions to be taken as the result of the report Supported by conclusions Presented at the end/ given first especially in recommendatory reports. Do not offer recommendations if not asked APPENDICES Includes material that can could not be added in the main discussion but is relevant. If many appendices- Appendix A, Appendix B Also give an appropriate title REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY/FOOTNOTES REFERENCES It is important that you give precise details of all the work by other authors which has been referred to within the report..
- 23. Details should include : • author’s name and initials • date of publication • title of the book, paper or journal • publisher • place of publication • page numbers • details of the journal volume in which the article has appeared. References should be listed in alphabetical order of the authors' names. Make sure that your references are accurate and comprehensive
- 24. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bibliography (from Greek bibliographia, literally "book writing"), is a list of the sources you used to get information for your report. It is included at the end of your report, on the last page (or last few pages). It is also known as bibliology. Author (last name first). Title of the book. City: Publisher, Date of publication Dahl, Roald. The BFG. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1982.
- 25. FOOTNOTES or ENDNOTES A note placed at the bottom of a page of a book or manuscript that comments on or cites a reference for a designated part of the text. Footnotes are used to give the source of facts or opinions have been obtained from outside sources. To specify where the original information can be found. Necessary as the reader may want to consult the same text or document, for whatever reason. At times if some doesn't quite fit in with your outline, it can be included as a textual footnote.
- 26. GLOSSARY- Also known as a vocabulary, or clavis, is an alphabetical list of terms in a particular domain of knowledge with the definitions for those terms. Traditionally, appears at the end and includes terms within that book that are either newly introduced, uncommon, or specialized. While glossaries are most-commonly associated with non-fiction books, in some cases, fiction novels may come with a glossary for unfamiliar terms.
- 27. A bilingual glossary is a list of terms in one language defined in a second language or glossed by synonyms (or at least near-synonyms) in another language. In a general sense, a glossary contains explanations of concepts relevant to a certain field of study or action. In this sense, the term is related to the notion of ontology. INDEX- an alphabetical list of names, subjects, etc. with reference to the pages on which they are mentioned
- 28. TYPES OF REPORTS Reports are classified by criteria such as source, frequency, target audience, length and intent. Voluntary or Authorise Reports Routine Or Special Reports Internal Or External Reports Short Or Long Reports Informational Or Analytical Reports
- 29. VOLUNTARY OR AUTHORISED REPORTS Reports are classified on the basis of their sources i.e. who initiates them. Reports prepared on one’s own initiative are known as Voluntary reports which often require more detail than Authorised reports which are prepared at the request of someone.
- 30. ROUTINE OR SPECIAL REPORTS Routine or Periodic Reports are submitted either weekly, monthly, quarterly or annually. Routine or Periodic Reports like sales and financial are prepared on the routine activities of the organisations. The future policies of organisation are also included. Generally such reports are used to inform the share holders, directors or members of the organisation. Special reports are the formal reports submitted by certain individuals or committees to present the result of specific one-time studies or investigations. The special reports are not only statements of facts but they include the opinion of the writer. The writer also gets conclusion at the end.
- 31. The format of the special report is as follows a) Title Of The Report b) Terms Of Reference c) Introduction d) The Procedure - Meetings Etc. e) Findings Of The Reports f) Conclusion - recommendation
- 32. INTERNAL OR EXTERNAL REPORTS Reports are classified by criteria such as target audience i.e. where they are being sent. Reports which are designed for use within the organisation are known as Internal Reports. Memorandum is the kind of report that circulates within and among various departments of a company or an office. It may be known as Inter office communication. Reports sent to people outside the organisation are known External reports which are generally more formal than Internal reports. These external reports maybe in letter format or manuscript format.
- 33. SHORT OR LONG REPORTS Reports are classified as short or long on the basis of the details they contain. A short report discusses one point of the problem while a long report takes into consideration a problem in detail. Long reports are prepared after extensive and formal research. It takes a good lot of time in its preparation whereas short reports are concise and prepared in short span of time without any formal research.
- 34. Informational and Analytical reports Reports can be informational and analytical according to their function. Informational reports intend to present data without analyses on recommendation whereas an analytical reports aim at solving a problem by evaluation, interpretation and analysis of data. On the basis of analysis of data the reporter arrives at a conclusion and provides certain recommendations for action. Like the Informational report , an analytical report also contains facts but its focus is on recommendations. .
- 35. There are four formats of reports. The decision about format should be made keeping in view the nature and function of the report. The need of audience should always be principally considered. These four options are:
- 36. PRE-PRINTED FORM This format is used for fill in the blanks reports which are relatively short and deal with routine information. This format is generally used for the routine reports such as the monthly status report where there is less scope for flexibility. The person filling these pre-printed forms is required to tick against the listed terms.
- 37. LETTER FORMAT The letter format is used for reports that are short and external (directed to outsiders). Letter format can be used for informational as well as analytical reports. It includes all the normal parts of a letter including a title or a subject line that clearly states the subject of the document. Besides, the letter format reports may have headings, footnotes, tables and figures.
- 38. MEMO Memorandum format is used for short reports that circulate within the company or an office. The day- to- day operation of a company depends on memos. A memo is actually a brief report. It, therefore, is called a Miniature Report. Periodic reports are usually written in memo format and they are generally brief. But like longer reports, they have headings and a subject line. Brevity and conciseness are its essential features.
- 39. MANUSCRIPT FORMAT This format is used for formal reports that are usually long. Such reports require more elements before the text i.e. the prefatory part and the supplementary part. They should include the elements like • Title Page, • Preface, • Letter Of Transmittal, • Table Of Contents, • List Of Illustrations, • Abstracts, • Introduction, • Methodology Analysis • Conclusion, • Recommendation, • Appendices, • References And Bibliography