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A GUIDE TO REPORT AND ESSAY WRITING:Interpreting assignment
instructions and structuring your work
Introduction
The purpose of this guide is to provide you with information
on how to structure a report or an essay. It is important
to emphasise, for coursework purposes, that lecturers may
place special emphasis on certain elements of the report or
essay content. Please therefore take particular note of any
specific instructions that you are given by a lecturer.
It is recommended that you refer to this guide each time
before you begin work on a new coursework assignment.
Separate guidance will be provided on the more detailed requirements
for writing a dissertation.
Planning your work
As stated by Cameron (1997), there are a number of activities
within this initial stage.
Clarifying requirements
The first planning activity is to ensure that you have clearly
understood the requirements of the coursework assignment,
the concepts and resources that you are supposed to draw on
in your work, how it is intended that the work be presented
and the submission date.
The following table summarises the interpretation of typical
instructions issued for assignments.
Typical instructions for an assignment
Analyse Break a question or issue into its component parts
and explain how they relate to one another.
Assess Estimate the importance or value of something.
Compare Examine similarities and differences.
Contrast Concentrate on differences.
Criticise Point out the faults, limitations and usefulness
of the subject in question.
Define Explain the precise meaning of something
Describe Give a detailed account of a topic.
Discuss Explain the meaning of something and present a logical
argument exploring it.
Evaluate Weigh up the importance, success or value of something,
using evidence to support your view.
Examine Give a detailed account of something, questioning
and exploring relevant issues.
Explain Give a precise account of something, with reasons
for why or how it is as it is.
Illustrate Use examples from a range of sources to demonstrate
the subject of the assignment.
Justify or prove Make a case for a particular perspective.
Establish the truth of something through supporting evidence
or logical reasoning.
Review Examine how a topic has been studied and comment on
the value and limitations of its treatment.
Review literature Survey the literature written on a subject,
outlining key themes, points of discussion and gaps.
State Write the main points relating to the subject.
Summarise Give the main points of something.
To what extent? Similar to evaluate: explore and test the
case for and against a claim.
(Adapted from Drew and Bingham 1997 p. 57)
If you are at all unclear regarding the instructions issued
to you, please do not hesitate to contact the member of staff
who set the assignment for further information.
Noting relevant themes
Having clarified the objectives of your assignment, you should
then write down all the factors you can think of that might
be relevant. A useful technique is to construct a mind map
(Buzan 1989). Start in the centre of the page with a word
or phrase indicating your main idea or central theme and then
branch out with each sub-theme taking a separate branch. These
branches divide further into sub-themes. See Appendix A for
an example of an assignment mind map.
Defining an outline structure
Once you have completed your brainstorming, you need to start
looking for groupings within these factors. This may be according
to problem areas, by chronology, according to factors such
as geography or department involved, or organisational level.
Your structure could also relate to the explicitly stated
parts of your assignment or to conceptual frameworks covered
within your module.
Cameron (1997 p.231) also suggests another framework for
defining your report structure known as the 'Universal Management
Paradigm' :
· describe the situation, including relevant elements of
context and why it presents problems;
· analyse the problem using module concepts;
· decide on measures of effectiveness: includes criteria for
an effective solution and any constraints;
· describe the range of possible solutions;
· analyse the costs and benefits in terms of the measures
of effectiveness;
· recommend, with arguments to support your recommendations,
your preferred solutions.
At the planning stage, you will not have gathered the evidence
to support your relevant themes. However, having an outline
structure can help you be more selective at the information-gathering
stage. This outline structure should be regarded as a working
tool that may have to be amended in light of the evidence
you collect.
3.0 Structure of the Coursework
Although different organisations may have their own house
style, the basic structure is always broadly similar. The
use of a standard and logical structure will help the reader
find their way around your work. For a management report,
this normally includes a title page, an executive summary,
a table of contents, a list of tables and figures, an introduction,
the main body, conclusions, recommendations, a list of references,
bibliography (where applicable) and appendices. Each of these
areas will be discussed in turn.
An essay will follow a similar format, but without the executive
summary, table of contents and list of tables and figures.
Sections within an essay are not normally numbered and sub-headings
are not usually required, although the latter may be beneficial
in a longer essay (Cameron 2005). If in doubt, please consult
the person who set the assignment.
The following sections provide an overview of what is required
for each part of your report or essay.
Title page
As this heading implies, you must specify a title for your
report or essay, which should be as descriptive as possible.
On the title page you should also indicate who has written
the work (or provide your student ID number if the work is
to be submitted anonymously) and to whom it is addressed.
In certain circumstances, you may also be required to state
why it has been prepared.
Executive summary (reports only)
This can only be produced after the report has been completed.
The executive summary is an abbreviated version of your report.
It should be no more than one side of A4 and briefly cover
the purpose of your report, why it was done, what was done,
how it was done, and key findings. The emphasis of the executive
summary should be on the key findings of your report and as
such it should be able to 'stand alone' as a document. Avoid
including information that is not mentioned in the report
itself. Insert an executive summary at the front of your report,
before the table of contents. The function of an executive
summary is to orientate the reader as to the main arguments
or evidence that have led to your conclusions (Cameron 1997).
Once you have written your executive summary it is useful
to reflect on whether a) it does clearly and succinctly identify
the key findings of the report and b) whether these key issues
are suitably detailed in the body of your report.
Table of contents (reports only)
This should show the page numbers of the main headings and
subheadings used in the report. It is also essential to number
the headings and subheadings (see body of report below). If
your report includes appendices, their titles should be listed
but no page numbers given. The contents page should not include
any reference to the title page or the executive summary,
since these precede the contents page.
List of tables and figures (reports only)
Use a separate page to list the titles of any tables/figures
used and their page numbers.
Introduction
Your first paragraph should always be the introduction (numbered
"1.0 Introduction", in a report). This section introduces
your work by telling the reader why it was required, what
you set out to do (includes aim and objectives) and how the
findings have been achieved.
You can choose to follow the format suggested by Hague and
Roberts (1994 p. 35) and divide your introduction into three
subsections: background, objectives and methods.
Background
This part of the introduction is simply a summary of your
interpretation of the assignment brief and is commonly referred
to as 'explaining the terms of reference'. Also define any
terms that may be new to the reader.
Aims and objectives
This section provides information on the overall purpose (aim)
of your work and the areas to be covered (objectives) within
it. For the latter you could use the following: "This
report comprises five main parts. It will begin with.... and
then......... Next it will.......Conclusions will then be
drawn and six recommendations offered" (Robb 1997 p.
15).
Methods (reports only)
This part describes the methods by which the information was
obtained. You should highlight briefly the range of information
used from the available literature (secondary research). You
may also be asked to undertake field work as part of your
coursework assignment (primary research). Here it would be
appropriate to summarise briefly the research methods used,
such as face-to-face interviews, self-completion questionnaires,
and give details of the size of your research sample.
Body of report or essay
A report should be clearly sectionalised, with the use of
appropriate headings and subheadings. An essay should also
follow a logical sequence, but usually without headings and
subheadings.
As mentioned by Robb (1997), in a report, you should number
the headings and subheadings with decimal numerical form.
For example, if your main theme is 3.0, and there are four
main sub-themes, these would be numbered 3.1, 3.2, 3.3 and
3.4. If there were two themes for 3.2, these would be numbered
3.2.1 and 3.2.2. Try to limit decimal places to four because
beyond this it can get too complicated for the reader to follow.
If you have a list of five reasons for the point 3.2.2. these
can be indicated as i) ii) iii) iv) v) or you can use bullet
points but if the text is more than just a list it is preferable
to use the decimal numbering to another level.
Throughout the main body of your work you should be aiming
to develop arguments based on evidence which build up to your
conclusions (Cameron 1997). One way to check this is to see
if you can summarise each section in these terms. If you are
not able to do so, it may be that you have included evidence
that does not contribute to your argument or it may be that
part of your argument is not substantiated by the evidence.
Conclusions
The conclusions should draw together the arguments developed
in the main body of the work so that the implications can
be spelled out (Cameron 1997). Remember to restate your aim
at the start of your conclusions. The conclusions should not
incorporate any new material but should summarise the key
arguments discussed in the main body. If you find it difficult
to distinguish between conclusions and recommendations, it
may be helpful to think of conclusions as being more to do
with logic while the recommendations deal with the implementation
of these conclusions (Cameron 1997).
Recommendations
If your assignment asks for recommendations, use a separate
paragraph for each recommendation. Try to avoid weak suggestions
such as "line managers should communicate more....".
Keep your recommendations specific and practical to implement.
Your recommendations should be clearly prioritised and the
priorities justified. For example, the recommendations may
be presented under headings of 'immediate' or 'long term',
'strategic' or 'operational'. Ensure that all recommendations
are included here, even if you have referred to them earlier
in the body of the work. Also, no recommendation may be made
that has not already been fully substantiated in the main
body. Again no new ideas or material should appear at this
point.
References and bibliography
Include a list of references (sources which are actually cited
in the report or essay itself) and a bibliography (sources
which you consulted but which are not mentioned in the report
or essay itself) (Johns 1996). Detailed guidance is provided
in another of the guides in this series.
Appendices (reports only)
Appendices are used to include supporting evidence for those
who may wish more detail, such as a copy of a questionnaire,
an interview schedule, detailed statistical tabulations, etc.
Appendices can also be very effective if they present published
data, such as a table from a case study, in a new light, or
generate new data based on published information. It is also
good practice to offer an interpretation of data provided
in the appendices rather than leaving the reader to reach
their own conclusions. Always refer to material in your appendices
at an appropriate point in the main body of your report. Do
not include material as an appendix if it has not been mentioned
in the main body of the report and avoid using appendices
as a way of getting around the word limit. If the material
is essential to your argument it should be included in the
main body of your report. Appendices should be used for tactical
reasons not as 'bins' for material that looks good but is
largely irrelevant.
Conclusion
The aim of this guide was to provide you with essential information
to help you to write an effective report or essay. To help
you get started on your coursework assignment you need to
spend time clarifying the requirements, noting the relevant
themes, and drafting an outline structure. The layout of your
report should follow an accepted, professional standard, which
will enable you to present your findings in the best possible
way and help the reader find their way around the report.
In a report, this includes a title page, an executive summary,
a table of contents, a list of tables and figures, a clear
introduction, a main body with the use of appropriate headings
and subheadings, conclusions, recommendations, a list of references
and appendices, where appropriate.
Reflect carefully on all the above points and your work should
impress your lecturers and attract a good grade.
References
BUZAN, T., 1989. Use your head. London: BBC Publications.
CAMERON, S. 1997. MBA handbook, study skills for managers.
London: Financial Times.
DREW, S. & BINGHAM, R., 1997. The student skills guide.
Aldershot: Gower.
HAGUE, P. & ROBERTS, K., 1994. Presentations and report
writing. London: Kogan Page.
JOHNS, T., 1996. A guide on report and proposal writing.
London: IPD.
The Robert Gordon University Library, 2006. How to cite references
using the Harvard Style. [online], Aberdeen: RGU, available
from http://www.rgu.ac.uk/files/ACF1580.pdf [Accessed on 19th
June 2006]
Bibliography
BOWDEN, J., 1994. How to write a report: a step by step guide
to effective report writing, 2nd Edition. Plymouth: How to
Books Ltd.
CAMERON, S., 1999. The business student's handbook, developing
transferable skills. London: Financial Times Management.
INMAN, C., 1993. Financial times style guide. London: Financial
Times.
PAYNE, E. & WHITTAKER, L., 2000. Developing essential
study skills. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
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