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What is a report?
Different types of reports
Structure of a report
General tips about writing reports
Example of a report
Report Checklist
What is a report?
A report is a text that originated in the business world in order to analyse and present
information in a structured way. Reports are divided into key sections and must be
presented using headings and sub-headings. Some key differences between reports
and essays are described in table 1.0.
Table 1.0
Reports
Essays
Are usually written in paragraph form Must be written in paragraph form with full
with full sentences, but may include sentences.
bullet points to list items.
Have headings and sub-headings for Generally do not have headings other than
sections which are numbered
the title of the essay (unless advised
otherwise in your Course Profile or by your
tutor)
May include material such as tables Do not contain tables or figures
and figures. If the tables/figures are
not too large (less than 1/2 of a page)
they can be included in the
Discussion/Main Body section of the
report. Alternatively if large, include in
the appendices at the end of the
report.
Both reports and essays must be clearly referenced in-text to indicate the sources of
information. They must also include a Reference List with full publication details.
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Executive
Report
Technical
Report
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Structure of a report
When writing a report, the structure will depend on the instructions you are given in your
course profile and/or by your tutor. The following is an overview of the key sections that
are generally included in a business report.
It may not be necessary to include all of these sections in your report - check with
your tutor about the requirements of all sections marked as requested.
Reports can generally be seen to include three key sections as outlined in table 3.
Please note that the following terms refer to sections of the report- they are
not to be used as headings!
Body of Report
Supplementary
material
PRELIMINARY SECTION
This is a brief, formal letter from the person who wrote the report (you) to the person(s)
receiving it. The letter of transmittal should clearly state when the report was written,
who requested it and the purpose of the report.
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This is an ordered list of the different sections and subsections of your report. It must
include numbered section headings and subheadings, with their relevant pages. This
indicates to your reader where various sections of your discussion can be found. Use
MS Word to automatically generate the Table of Contents.
Note: Table of contents should also be on a separate page.
Like the table of contents, the list of tables and figures provides the reader with a guide
to finding information that is presented in the form of diagrams and tables. It should
include the table/figure numbers, titles and page location of each table and figure. Note
if the report does not include any tables/figures then obviously this list is not necessary.
Note: List of Tables and Figures should also be on a separate page.
Acknowledgements are used to draw attention to, thank or recognise significant input of
other people. It is not the reference list. This section should be used as required and
note that its position can also vary. Please confirm this with your tutor.
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Please be aware that sometimes course profiles/tutors may use different formatting for
the introduction. The model introduction shown on p. 12 uses sub-headings for these
sections but your tutor may prefer it to be presented as one paragraph (depending on
the length of the assignment). Always check with your tutor if uncertain.
This section outlines any assumptions (beliefs) regarding the situation upon which you
are basing the report, its analysis and any recommendations.
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This section is where information relevant to the topic is presented. It is similar to the
body section of an essay.
resources to support ideas. It should be organised logically, using topic headings, subheadings and minor subheadings to break it into sections and sub-sections based on
the ideas being discussed. All headings must be numbered sequentially. (See
examples on p. 12-13).
Consider the key questions and objectives set out in the introduction - what are
the answers/conclusions you came to?
Consider each of the key sections of your report - what was the main point made
in each section?
Often when writing a report specific recommendations for future actions are requested.
These can be included as a separate section before or after the conclusion or even as a
part of the conclusion (using a sub-heading).
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Supplementary Material
This list includes the full publication details of all books, articles, websites and other
sources referred to in the report.
Appendices
This is where other information which has been referred to in the main part of your
report is attached. This information is relevant but not necessarily essential and
larger than 1/2 of a page. The main body of a report can include text, figures/tables
and some calculations.
You are advised to consider the Great Guide to University Study regarding
general advice on planning and preparation of assignments.
NEVER attempt to write a report without conducting the necessary research and
planning first. Always brainstorm (concept map), research then develop a
plan. Your plan should reflect the key headings and sub-headings that you
intend to use to organise your discussion. Work out what you plan to discuss and
when - this will allow you to then focus more carefully on expression.
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Make sure your writing flows. Even though it is acceptable to use headings,
reports should still follow a logical order. Once you have written a draft of the
report, check that headings and paragraphs are ordered in a logical way so that
the reader can follow the discussion.
Always write in the third person. Do not use personal pronouns such as I,
my, you, your, we or our.
Use the present tense when you are writing about other peoples work. E.g.
Johnson (2001) points out that or Studies indicate that.
Do not start paragraphs with quotations. Write your own topic sentences and use
quotations as supporting evidences.
Begin numbering your pages from the introduction. Pages with preliminary or
supplementary information are usually numbered using a different system to
clearly tell them apart, such as i, ii, iii, iv..
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Example of a report
1. Title Page
Title:
Course code:
Course Name:
Lecturer:
Assignment number:
Due Date:
Weighting:
Student Name:
Student Number:
Title
Your name
Student ID
Course title & code
Your lecturer/tutors
name
Due Date
2. Letter of Transmittal
2. Letter of Transmittal
John Smith
Manager, Learning Skills Unit
XYZ University
589 Exhibition St
Brisbane, QLD 4000
4 January, 2004
Authors
details
Date
Details of the person
requesting the report.
Anne Jones
Dean, Faculty of Business and Law
XYZ University
589 Exhibition St,
Brisbane, QLD 4000
Dear Ms Jones,
Opening statement
As requested, the Manager of the Learning Skills Unit has prepared a report examining the effectiveness of
web-based material within the language classroom. The purpose of this report is to present the findings of
the research and to provide recommendations for the future use of online teaching tools in the classroom.
Closing statement
The findings of the report show that web-based material can serve as a valuable teaching tool; however it is
recommended that elements of some sites need to be adapted to an Australian context.
3. Executive summary
Yours sincerely
John Smith
Manager, Learning Skills Unit
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4. Executive Summary
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The second
paragraph comes
from the body. It is a
summary of the key
findings or situational
analysis.
Page 10 of 16
5. Table of Contents
Preliminary
section- page
numbers in Roman
numerals
Headings, sub-headings
and minor sub-headings
should all be numbered
sequentially
Heading
Sub-heading
Minor
Sub-heading
Table of Contents
Title Page
Letter of Transmittal
Executive Summary
Table of Contents
List of Tables and Figures
i
ii
iii
iv
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background
1.2 Aim
1.3 Scope
2.0 Historical Background
2.1 The Internet
3.0 Methodology
4.0 Content
4.1 Learning Objectives
4.2 Learning Activities
4.2.1
Listening
4.2.2
Speaking
4.3 Macro-Skills
4.4 Authentic Discourse
4.5 Natural Discourse
5.0 Pedagogical Approach
5.1 Target Learner
6.0 Conclusions
7.0 Recommendations
1
1
1
1
1
2
3
3
4
4
4
4
5
5
6
7
9
10
10
Reference List
Appendices
Appendix A ESL Questionnaire
Appendix B Alternative Listening Activities
12
15
16
Tables
Table 1:
Table 2:
Figures
Figure 1:
Figure 2:
7. Main Body
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6. Main Body
The main body should
begin with the
introduction.
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background
In recent years, the Internet has become a teaching tool as useful
and as viable as textbooks, chalkboards and in many cases
teachers themselves. However, as is the case with any medium,
online resources have a range of advantages and disadvantages.
As such it is necessary to carefully examine and evaluate webbased resources before choosing to use them.
1.2 Aims
The purpose of this report is to evaluate the effectiveness of webbased material within the context of a language classroom. It
focuses on the www.rong-chang.com site in order to determine
the educational value and cost effectiveness of using online
Once the
introduction is
complete, begin
your discussion
making sure you
continue to use
appropriately
numbered headings
and sub-headings.
As always,
remember to
reference!
Remember you
must include a
page number!
Page 12 of 16
Remember, all
tables and figures
must be labelled
(with a number and
title)
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Table 1.0:
Where to find
Journals/Magazines
academic/popular
Conference
Proceedings
Web sites (URLs)
Remember to also
add the reference
below any
table/figure you use.
Government
documents
Legislation &
Case law
Standards
Statistics
NOTE
If you modify the
table/figure, indicate
this by using the
term Adapted
from
Dictionaries,
Encyclopaedias &
Handbooks etc.
Newspapers
Search the Library Catalogue to find what books are held in the CQU
Library: From the Library homepage (http://www.library.cqu.edu.au) select
CQU Library Catalogue
Search the Library Catalogue to find what journals are held in the CQU
Library. There is also a list of electronic journals available via the CQU
Library:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/db/ejournals/index.htm
Search Databases to find references to individual journal articles:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/elecres.htm (refer to Databases & Resources
by Subject to know what databases could be relevant to your research topic)
For information about the different types of journals available refer to What
are the Different Types of Journals:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/compass/jnltypes/jnltypes.htm
These can be found by searching library catalogue, databases as well as on the
web e.g. professional association web sites
Refer to Use the Internet for a list of useful search engines, subject
directories and meta-search engines:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/internet/index.htm
The best starting point for government documents is government web sites.
Refer to Government Information for a list of Australian and International
government web sites: http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/gov.htm
Refer to Law Resources for a guide to finding legal information:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/faculty/business/law.htm
Refer to Standards for a list of standards available through the CQU Library,
as well as a list of relevant web sites:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/standards.htm
Refer to Statistics for a list of the types and sources of statistics:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/stats.htm
Most dictionaries, encyclopaedias and handbooks are kept in the Reference
Collection of a library. You can search the Library Catalogue or browse the
shelves to find what is available in your subject area. Many of these are also
freely available online:
Dictionaries: http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/dict.htm
Encyclopaedias: http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/encyc.htm
Refer to Finding Newspaper Resources at CQU Library for a guide to find
newspapers by title or topic, as well as a list of major Australian &
International newspapers:
http://www.library.cqu.edu.au/vrd/news.htm
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6.0 Conclusion
The conclusion
should be a summary
of your findings. It
should attempt to
provide a response to
key questions you
posed in the
introduction.
Remember NO NEW
INFORMATION!
This section
recommends specific
action that
should/could be taken
based on your
conclusions.
NOTE:
It could be done using
a bullet-point list.
10
Page 14 of 16
8. Reference List
Remember to list all
sources you refer to
in-text in the
reference list.
DO NOT number or
use bullet points.
Simply place all
sources in
alphabetical order
according to the
authors family
name.
Reference List
Central Queensland University (CQU) 2004, Guide for students, 5th edn,
Central Queensland University, Rockhampton.
Li, R-C, 2004, English as a second language, viewed 4 January 2004,
http://www.rong-chang.com
Summers, J & Brett, B 2003 Communication skills handbook: how to
succeed in written and oral communication, rev edn, John Wiley & Sons,
Brisbane.
8. Appendices
All appendices
must be
numbered and
labelled.
Appendices present
additional material
that the reader may
need to see to
understand your
discussion. These
are materials that
are too large or
disruptive to place
within the body of
the report.
Make sure you
place each
appendix on a
separate page.
Each should have a
title
Appendix 1
REFERENCING QUESTIONNAIRE
Please complete the following questions and provide detailed answers.
1.
What is referencing?
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
2.
3.
4.
5.
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Report Checklist
1. Structure
Executive summary/abstract/synopsis
Body:
Conclusion:
Does the conclusion summarise the major findings and provide a final answer to
questions posed in the introduction?
Are recommendations clear and direct and are they supported by your analysis?
2. Content
Have you used the correct referencing format (Harvard style/ Footnotes)?
Have you provided correct in-text references for all DIRECT and INDIRECT
quotes?
3. Layout/
Grammar/
Presentation
Size 12 font
1.5 spacing
3cm margins
Page numbers, Name and Student ID number on each page
Assignment coversheet
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