ReportsYour Next Assignment and You

Today’s AgendaProposal Overviews

Memos – Where we’re going next…

Empirical Research Reports

Writing Assignment

ProposalsPoint of View

Formality

Projects

Fleshing Out Projects

Point of View3rd person to maintain objectivity

1st person with known peers and known audience

Remain in one Point of View

Formality3rd person maintains objectivity

“I” and “We” vs. “The team”

Remember your audience

ProjectsSolvable problems

Make motion towards doing a project

Scalability

Fleshing OutResearch Needed to Be Done

Questions that arise from the project

Answering those questions

Details, details, details

Memo Directions If you haven’t already, send a copy of your

memo to your partner.

If you don’t have a partner, find someone in the class who will be your partner. Then send your memo to that person.

Yes, you do need a partner. That’s kind of the point of the next assignment.

The Report Using the memo your partner sent you, you will

conduct research into your partner’s proposed project.

You will gather the information your partner needs and present that information in a report to your partner.

You may use the bibliography your partner produced a few weeks ago in order to do this assignment.

Come see me during the writing assignment time if your partner did not do a memo, proposal, both, or cannot possibly find a partner because of a lack of members of the class.

ReportsYou will come into situations where you have to

report information to someone else on a subject you did not necessarily choose.

What do reports look like?

Writing SituationsHelping people make practical decisions

Extending human knowledge

Practical DecisionsDetermining how to proceed in a project

Making decisions

Goal is to do an action

KnowledgeExpand on a belief

Presenting research

Features To Help YouDoes the report aim to support a practical

decision, extend knowledge, or both? Readers will want similar information

Conventions appear in report writing

Develop the superstructure of the report

Questions Readers AskWhy is your research important to us?

What were you trying to find out?

Was your research method sound?

What results did your research produce?

How do you interpret those results?

What is the significance of those results?

What do you think we should do?

Why Your Research?Practical problems will want to know what

problems you will address.

Extending human knowledge want to know what your research contributes

What Were You Trying?What questions were you trying to answer in

your report?

Readers want to know these questions

Was Your Method Sound?Gives readers faith in your project

Need to know your questions

Need to know your research methods

ResultsThis one should be obvious

What exactly did you find out from your research?

Interpretation Interpret the results in a way that is meaningful

for your readers

Show readers what they should take away from your research

SignificanceHow do the results relate to the problems you

were trying to solve?

What will the results of your research mean for expanding knowledge or for your readers?

Next StepsPractical problems with practical solutions

What should your reader do after reading your report?

Expanding knowledge should lead to future research

Superstructure Introduction

Objectives

Method

Results

Discussion

Conclusions

Recommendations

IntroductionWhy is your research important to the reader?

What questions will be answered for the reader?

ObjectivesWhat were you trying to find out?

What will your research accomplish?

MethodWas your research method sound?

By what means did you study the information?

DiscussionHow do you interpret these results?

What do you think of them?

ConclusionsWhat is the significance of those results?

How have you achieved the goals of your work?

RecommendationsWhat do you think the reader should do based

upon your report?

Preparing ReportsDefine your report’s objectives

Conducting Research

Planning

Drafting and Revising

Defining ObjectivesReaders read to learn ideas of value or interest.

Develop objectives based upon the readers’ needs.

Usability objective – present information clearly

Persuasive objective – persuade readers the information is valid

Conducting ResearchUnderstand Context

Define questions precisely

Use credible methods

Analyze credibly

Understanding ContextUnderstand why your readers are coming to

your report

Gain a sense of the problem

Know what is already known about the project

Defining QuestionsConcrete questions

Solvable questions

Non-rhetorical questions

Helps produce interesting results

Use Credible MethodsSurveys

Interviews

Running an experiment

Testing

Researching a topic

Choose a method based upon reader expectations

Analyze CrediblyPick the right kind of statistical tool

Use sound logic

Show your logic

Again, based upon reader expectations

PlanningDevelop an organization for the report

Adopt a superstructure that makes sense

Develop a table of contents

Check with your organization before choosing a superstructure

DraftingPossible to draft before all of the research is

conducted

Sharpen your sense of what you need to find by drafting

Allows revision before the deadline

Crafting - IntroductionAnnouncing the Topic

Include it as a key phrase in your opening sentence

Crafting - IntroductionExplaining the Importance of the Research

Relevance to organizational goals.

Crafting - ObjectivesReaders want to know your goals

State hypotheses tested

Cite sources

Overall goals > Specific goals

Crafting - MethodsWrite to specific details

Information depends on nature of the research

Discuss every decision made planning research

Discuss questions on method

Limitations caused by method

Procedures other researchers would need to understand your work

Crafting - ResultsAny and all data obtained

Tables and graphs

Sentences woven between data and interpretation of data.

Crafting - DiscussionMust link interpretations with results

May break these in separate sections

Refer to data and comment on it

By presenting results as prose only, can weave into your discussion by beginning paragraphs with general statements that serve to interpret data.

Crafting - ConclusionsExplain what results mean in relation to the

questions asked in the beginning of the report

Corresponds to objectives stated

Identify the objective, then state the conclusion.

Discussion of other findings by other authors, if necessary.

Discuss flaws and limitations

Crafting - RecommendationReader wants to know what the next steps are

Convey ideas about future research

Adjustments that should be made to conduct better research

Writing AssignmentWhat questions will you need to answer in each

section of your report?

Write 5 objectives to be reached with your reports.

In your paper, discuss what methods you will use for your research. Internet research, surveys, etc.

Write these in paragraph form. At least three paragraphs total.