TEACHING REPORT WRITING TO SKILL AND TECHNOLOGY STUDENTSIN MALAYSIAN COMMUNITY COLLEGES USING THE PROCESS APPROACHByKAMAL BAKSHIR BIN MOHD KASSIMKOLEJ KOMUNITI TELUK INTAN

Table of ContentsTitle pageAcknowledgments ( i )Table of Contents ( ii )PART A: THEORY AND PRINCIPLES1. Introduction1.a. Purposes Of Materials1.b. Scope and Limitations2.2. Theories and Principle of Process Writing2.3. The Writing Process3.4. Conclusion7.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------PART B: THE MATERIALS1. Notes #1 : Report Writing 8.2. Handout #1 : Pre - Writing Exercise10.3. Notes #2 : Planning12.4. Notes #3 : Writing the Report14.5. Handout #2 : Evaluation Exercise 20.6. Conclusion 21.7. Bibliography

INTRODUCTION : PART APURPOSE OF MATERIALSThis paper aims to provide ideas on teaching final semester students in Skills and Technology at Malaysian Community Colleges to write reports in their own situations, using the process approach writing. We need to equip these students with the skills and knowledge will also enable students to cope with their academics needs, such as writing report for their assignments in their subject areas. The specific skills outlined by the Malaysian Ministry of Education are :i. write effective reportii. use appropriate report format and layoutiii. organize information into appropriate report sectionsiv. do drafting, editing and revising for the report.(Malaysian Ministry of Education, 1992)

The paper begins with a discussion of theories and principles of the process approach. These theories and principles are then illustrated in an actual lesson that will be taught to the final semester students. To make lesson more focused,it is targeted only to business students. The estimated time of the lesson is six hours.

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONSThe scope of our discussion on report writing here is quite limited in the senses that it teaches only one type of report. It is hoped that students will be able to apply the knowledge and skills taught here to writing of other types of reports and more broadly to the other writing tasks.

THEORIES AND PRINCIPLE OF PROCESS WRITINGWriting involves the use of graphic symbols, that is, letters or combination of letters which relates to the sounds we make when we speak. But writing is much more than the production of graphic symbols, just as speech is more than the production of sounds. The symbols have to be arranged, according to certain conventions, to form word, and words have to arrange to form sentences, and sentences have to be arranged to form texts.Not a great deal is known about individual methods of composing a text, but most people would agree that it is usually neither an easy nor a spontaneous activity. Sometimes writing comes easily, if we are in the right mood or have a clear and perhaps pressing need to express something, but as a rule, it requires some conscious mental effort : we think out our sentences and consider various ways of combining and arranging them. We reread what we have written as a stimulus to further writing (Bryne, 1988)The reason for this is what we are writing for a reader. Writing involves the encoding of a message of some kind. That is we translate our thoughts into language. Reading involves the decoding or interpretation of this message. Most of the time, the reader is someone who is not physically present.DEFINITIONA report is a written document produced as a result of procedures undertaken to reveal information specifically requested by its intended readers (Darbyshire, 1970).The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language defines report writing as an account or announcement that is prepared, presented or delivered, usually in formal or organized form. It is also described as a formal, detailed account of the proceedings or transactions of a group.

THE WRITING PROCESSBased on research on how experts writers construct texts, the following phases of the writing process have been discerned. These steps are recursive, i.e. various steps may reoccur in various orders.

a) Pre WritingPre writing activities involve generating ideas. Actually getting started is one of the most difficult and inhibiting steps in writing. Idea generating is particularly important during this initiating process.

To assist in generating ideas at this initial stage, there are two main kinds of discovery technique : guided and unguided. Guided techniques are those in which a range of prompts usually questions is provided to enable writers to discover ideas. Unguided techniques are those in which writers do not rely on external prompts, but generate ideas themselves. For the discussions here,we will look into two unguided techniques, brainstorming and cluster diagramming.( White and Arndt, 1991 )

i. BrainstormingBrainstorming is a widely used and effective way of getting ideas flowing. Carried out individually, or better still, among a group of people, brainstorming involves thinking quickly and without inhibition so as to procedure as many ideas as possible in a given area or a given topic or problem.If students are completely unfamiliar with the techniques, either a demonstration by the teacher or the provision of statement prompts to start them off may be useful before they embark upon the procedure.Procedure :Before the lesson, make a list of several topics and write these on board. Alternatively, ask the class to nominate several topics for you to choose from and write these on the board.

1. Brainstorm aloud asyou choose a topic,giving reasons and associations which influence the choice you make.2. Brainstorm aloud ideas for the topic you have finally selected, writing the ideas quickly on an OHT or the board. Explain to students what each idea means to you.3. Invite students to make suggestion as well,and add them to those on the board.ii.Cluster DiagrammingCluster diagramming is similar to drawing your thoughts, using circles, lines arrows and word. It is another technique aimed at pulling as many different related thoughts out of your mind as possible. On any given subject, each persons cluster diagram will be as different as the knowledge and experiences in each writers brain. For example, if the given topic was computers, the writer would write the word computer in the centre of the page. Then using the other lines and circles and arrows, he / she would write down word representing thoughts, idea, feelings, objects, actions anything and everything their brain associates with the central topic mapping these ideas and the relationships between them. Here is an example:sciencebrain Word processsystemkeywordlogicprintingcommunication COMPUTER

COMPUTER

b) Writing the first draftAfter gathering ideas and words by means of the pre-writing activities, students should be ready write the first draft. As the pre writing activities, students need to pay attention to spelling, grammar and punctuation at this stage as will only affects the flow of ideas.Often when there is no enough time, some writers write more than one rough draft until they feel their writing is good enough (Watkins Goffman and Berkowitz, 1990)

c) RevisingAfter writing the first draft of a composition, writers rethink and rewrite the first draft, forming the second draft. This rethinking may take the form of reorganizing what has been written in the first draft; for instant, sometimes ideas are added or omitted, so that are clearer, more coherent draft is formed. In revising draft, careful reading plays in important part. One way to see the work more objectively is to read the rough draft to someone in the class. Ask the listener which ideas are interesting, and which are unclear or inappropriate. This is one of many ways of facilitating peer feedback.d)Editing Editing is the final step of revising, with special attention to grammar, punctuation and spelling. At the editing step, it is often helpful to notice the differences between the written forms and structures of LI and those of English, since each language is different and has its own set rules.CONCLUSIONIt is important that the principle of writing of a genre using a certain approach be comprehended clearly before going on teaching it. With this foundation, the teacher will have a better understanding and the students also can follow the discussion and activities with ease.

TOPIC : REPORT WRITING ( PART B )NOTES # 1 : REPORT WRITING (Doherty, Knapp and swift, 1987 )

A. REPORTS There are many different types of reports. A report may be a simple memo that is highly specific. Or it may take the form of a letter to a superior with attachments giving certain information requested. A report may also be made on a standard form supplied by the requesting agency, such as a federal or city government. In each of these cases, the format is pre determined. Sometimes, however, the writer must determine the content and format of the report. For example, a superior may direct a subordinate to prepare a Report on the Communication Skills of the Employees. We will discuss this type of report as a case study.

a) Generating ideas

Writing of report is relatively easy. The difficult part is the information: the facts. These must be gathered, sorted out and organized. There are three topics to think about carefully beforehand :i.Why does this report have to be produced?ii.Who is going to read the report?iii.What information (based on the answer to the two previous question ) is required ?

The first topic is the aim. This should be written down and kept in front of the writer during the process, because any information which is not related to the aim should be discarded. Defining the aim also helps the writer of a report to formulate the subject headings and title.The second topic is the readerships. This influences both information content and writing style. Answer for topics i. and ii. Determine what information is required for topic iii.

HANDOUT #1 : PRE WRITING EXERCISESITUATION :Your Personnel Manager needs to make a report on Communication Skills of the Employees to be submitted to the General Manager. He delegates the work to his subordinates, including you.STEPS :1.Divide into groups and brainstorm the answer, taking down a notes as you talk. (Dont worry about how correct or accurate the words are, just write them down so that you can remember them.)

Example :Topic : Communication Skills of the Employees.

Main Points :- need to be fluent in at least two languages, BM and English- Situations where communication skills are needed.etc.2.You can also consider making a cluster diagram. Its purposes would be to develop ideas about central theme in order to help you write the first draft.

Example :giving instructions

memosletterswriting

speaking

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

socializingreadinglistening

memosto instructions

NOTES # 2 : PLANNINGAfter ideas have been generated, they needed to be selected, expanded and grouped. Once we have all the information needed to satisfy the aim and readers, the body of the report could be addressed. It is the backbone of the report, without the introductions, conclusions and recommendations. The body have three important topic to consider :1.existing situation2.weaknesses and advantages3.steps of overcome problemsIn information gathering, these three sections will be the natural outcome. The relevant facts need to be selected from the mass materials gathered and then grouped under these three headings. To keep the report clear, it should have sub groups. For example, in the case of Existing Situation, intra office and inter office communication have to be considered. Also, socializing among staff needs to be considered. In total, there are three sub headings under Existing Situation:1.Intra office2.Inter office3.Socializing As most readers will look only at the summary, the summary is placed before the introduction. It summarises the four major parts of the report : the introduction, body, conclusion and recommendations.

ACTIVITY : EXPANDING AND GROUPING IDEASTASK :Group the ideas and information from the first exercises for the body into headings and sub heading. An example for the first one was given in the notes earlier.Select, expand and group the information for the rest of the headings and sub headings (refer to the notes for the other two headings of the body).

NOTES # 3 : WRITING THE REPORTi. Report parts / structureThe structure of a report will vary according to its type, content and intended use. Most formal reports follow a substantially similar pattern, although the number of parts and their names vary slightly. One common form is as follows:1. Title page2. Table of Contents3. Summary4. Introduction5. Body6. Conclusions7. Recommendations8. Appendixii. Writing the first draft After making a decision on the topic outline, the next steps is the easy part : writing the first draft. It is easy only if the thinking and planning stages have been dealt with thoroughly.There are no rules for stating and every writer adopts his own method. However, all business writers must adopt a style and tone appropriate for business purposes.a) Title pageThe first page, that is the Title Page. Gives the first impressions to the readers of what will come from the report. It should be well balances, informing the reader on :1. the title2. who the report prepared for3. who produced the report4. the date (of publication or release)

EXAMPLE :A reportOnThe Communication Skills of the Employees of CompanySubmitted toMr. A.B CharlesGeneral ManagerABC HoldingByKamal BakshirPersonnel Manager15 Feb 2009

The next stages is the Table of Contents.b) Table of ContentsThere are no rules on how this should be organized but, the most commonly used form is shown here. This page gives an indication to the reader of the emphasis and organization of the facts and also the format adopted. Please note that if the sections are in capital letters in the report, then they should be in the Table of Contents. The amount of indentation for a sub sub- section should also be reflected onthis page. It is numbered in small number ii.The next page is the List of Illustrations. It includes title and page numbers of graphs, drawing and tables. The Tables are referred as tables. Any other visual representations of facts are called figures. Each should have a caption and a page number. They are numbered with a small roman numeral Any definitions or symbols which require explanation should be dealt with on the next page. The report now can be presented,numbering each section and page.

Example :Table of ContensTitle PageTable of Contents ( i )List of Illustrations( ii )1.Summary 1.2.Introduction 2.3.Existing communication skills of employees of the company 3.a. Intra officeb. Inter officec. Handling social communications4.Weakness and advantages 15.5. Steps taken to overcome weaknesses 17.a.i.ii.b.i.ii.6. Conclusion7. Recommendations

d) RevisingIn revising, it is useful to have two checklist: one to check the language, the other to evaluate the effectiveness of the report.i.Ten Linguistic Guidelines:1. Limit a sentence to a single statement of fact or one idea. This will produce simple or compound sentences rather than complex ones, in which there may be problems of handling support clauses.2. The optimum sentence length is approximately 20 words. However, in order to prevent your report from becoming too monotonous, occasionally introduce shorter and longer sentences.3. Ensure that your sentences are properly linked.4. Check your pronouns. Make sure that the identity of the noun to which the pronoun relates is immediately clear.5. Make a conscious choice between using active or passive sentences. For example, there are important differences between:- the trainee damaged the machine- the machine was damaged by the trainee- the machine was damage6. If you are not fully satisfied with a sentence, it may be better to rewrite it completely rather than try to alter parts of the original.7. Reread everything you write, with the aim of removing ambiguities. Make sure that words and sentences can only have one possible meaning the meaning which you intend.8. Learn to identify and avoid excess words, jargon, circumlocution, cliches and slang.9. Check the word order of your sentences.10. Check all tenses, preposition and subject verb agreements, spelling and punctuation.ii. Ten Evaluation Questions 1. Does the report / memo relate to the aim ? 2. Does the reader receive sufficientinformation ? 3. Is the information necessary for the reader ? 4. Is the heading appropriate ? 5. can the reader get the important details quickly and easily ? 6. Can your reader follow the development of your ideas ? 7. Is your tone suitable to your reader and your aim ? 8. Is your layout correct and consistent ? 9. Are any of the words or expressions superfluous ? 10. Is your style suitable ? ( formal / informal, personal / impersonal, vocabulary, grammar ) HANDOUT # 2 : EVALUATION EXERCISETASK : Study the following texts and using your checklist, identify weakness.Text 1 .TO :Maintenance ManagerREF: MTA34 / 85FROM :Maintenance Technician (Offices)DATE :9.8.85SUBJECT :Coolair temp. controllers replacement by a different modelWith reference to the above mentioned subject, some suggestions regarding different models have been received from Technomach of Singapore. The Coolair models currently in use are ineffective, and their poor performance has led to many complaints. A study of each alternative model has revealed the following results : With the aid of Costing and Planning Section, the required instruments have been cost estimated at $2000. ( This estimation is based on the latest unit price of the Dualflow model.) Nearly all these models do not meet our requirements, eg their scale is in F, while our system is in C and covers the required range, ie 5 60 Centigrade, but the other models do not. A memo should be issued to the Finance Department, explaining the necessity of replacing the obsolete Coolair model. This model was withdrawn from our suppliers stock several months ago.After Finance Department has given its approval, the necessary changes should be made. On the other hand, it might be possible to modify the Coolair models.

CONCLUSIONIn this lesson, the major principles of effective written communication for producing and evaluating reports have been consolidated.The following flowchart gives a systematic breakdown of the report writing process and the specific skills and techniques involved.The plan of the reportIdentify the readershipSpecify the aim of the reportThe first draftThe final reportReviseIs the style suitable ?Is the language accurate ? Is the information in proper focus ?Select and order the information Is the linking of information successfulIs the tone appropriate ?Formulate a subject heading

Decide upon the techniques of pre

BIBLIOGRAPHYByrne, Donn. Teaching writing skills. London : Longman Darbyshire, A. E. 1970. Report writing. Plymouth,England : Latimer Trend.Doherty, M., Knapp, L., and Swift, S. 1987. Write for business. Essex, England : Longman.Malaysian Ministry of Education. 1992. English for commercial purposes :Technical and Vocational Division,Malaysian Ministry of Education.Mansell, Thomas. 1981. How to write business letters and reports. Victoria, Australia : Pitman.Watkins Goffman,L., and Berkowitz, D. G. 1990. Thinking to write. New York : Maxwell Macmillan.White, R. and Arndt, V. 1991. Process writing. Essex, England : Longman.Withrow, Jean. 1987. Effective writing. Cambridge : Cambridge University