HOW TO WRITE A REPORT
WRITING IN PERSPECTIVE Writing is done throughout life. It is a means of communication and in most careers and professions writing as a daily necessity. Understandably, people who can communicate well through writing have more and better opportunities available to them. An inability to write well is a severe disability causing individuals to loose jobs they have planned for and would otherwise have been qualified.
Consider how a poorly written resume is evaluated by an employer. Such a resume does not give him the information he needs so that he may understand you are qualified for the position. Even worse, it does inform him your work is incomplete, disorganized, and messy. Furthermore, if you do not care enough about your own future to make a good effort to write a satisfactory resume, you will care even less for his company. You will not be hired.
During your college career there will be numerous opportunities for you to practice writing and develop writing skills. Often, students are tempted to complete writing assignments with the least effort not recognizing in so doing they forfeit an opportunity to improve themselves. Overcome whatever may deter you from putting in your best effort on any assignment. All assignments are designed to help you acquire factual information and develop skills to utilize that information productively.
STEP 1: HOW TO WRITE A REPORT - INFORMATION Gather information related to the topic. Sources include the textbook, lecture notes, the INTERNET, and additional sources in the library. Additional textbooks have been put on reserve in the library for your use. Always include the source of your information. As you gather information, study the topic so that the information is meaningful to you. You know when this step is complete when you are no longer able to find information you do not already have. Until then, keep looking. However, as you develop your report, keep an eye open for new sources.
STEP 2: HOW TO WRITE A REPORT - OUTLINE You cannot write an outline if you do not understand the topic. You must study the topic sufficiently so that the factual information you have collected is meaningful to you. If it isn't, you are not ready to develop an outline; study the topic further.
When you begin an outline, your information will be in the form of disorganized facts. The purpose of the outline is to organize these facts. This is a critical step.
Try to discern the main categories your information can be distributed among. You may have historical information, personal information, or information about several concepts that can be separated. There may be information about cultural impact, political consequences, or the effect on scientific thought. All of these categories form the primary level at which information is organized. The specific categories for each report will be determined by the information gathered. The main categories are then listed in an order that represents the sequence of
information as it will be presented in the report. Each main category will become one or two paragraphs in the report.
Now distribute all your information among the main categories. For example, if you have a main category on historical perspective, put all your history facts there. Do this with all your information. It may be possible that the information within a single main category can be divided further among several secondary categories. Look for this. If you see a way to organize information within a main category into secondary categories do so. This will lead to a much better report. Your outline might look like the following example: I. Main Category 1 A. B. C. II. Fact 1 Fact 2 Fact 3
Main Category 2 A. Secondary Category 1 1. 2. 3. B. Fact 1 Fact 2 Fact 3
Secondary Category 2 1. 2. 3. Fact 1 Fact 2 Fact 3
C.
Secondary Category 3 1. 2. 3. Fact 1 Fact 2 Fact 3
III.
Main Category 3 A. B. C. Fact 1 Fact 2 Fact 3
Facts should be sequenced so that their order is logical. As you move down the outline, each fact should be understandable in terms of the facts that preceded it. You will know this step is complete when all your information has been placed into the outline, all secondary categories have been identified and created, and the logical sequence of facts is correct.
STEP 3: HOW TO WRITE A REPORT - DRAFT A draft is sometimes called a sloppy copy. The finalized outline is turned into a report by rendering each main category as one or more paragraphs. The sequence of information in the draft should be the same as that in the outline, follow that sequence. Express the facts in your own words using complete sentences. All the sentences within a paragraph are related. When you begin something that is not related, you begin a new paragraph. New paragraphs will begin each time you begin a new main or secondary category but there may be additional paragraph breaks.
Add an introduction. An introduction is an opening paragraph that gives the reader a brief, simple overview of the topic. It should interest the reader to make him want to read the entire report. If in your report you are making a point or establishing a thesis, you should present your thesis here in the introduction.
Add a conclusion. A conclusion is a closing paragraph that briefly summarizes and affirms the most important facts and conclusions you have drawn based on those facts. The conclusion brings the report to a close and leaves the reader contemplating those facts and concepts that are most important. Never introduce new material in a conclusion. At this point your draft should consist of a single paragraph introduction, a multi-paragraph body, and a single paragraph conclusion.
The initial draft is your first attempt to put your information in report form. You may write several draft revisions each time improving your report. The final revision has no spelling errors and no grammatical errors. It is easy to read and understandable.
STEP 4: HOW TO WRITE A REPORT - FINAL COPY The final copy is a perfected draft, error free, written with a word processor and printed with a quality printer on good paper. Dot matrix printers are old technology and should not be used unless there is nothing else available. Print using a 12-point font like Times New Roman, in black, and double spaced. Margins of one inch should also be used. However, always follow whatever formatting instructions are given by your instructor.
Do not plagiarize. Plagiarism is copying or stealing someone else's work. Everything must be expressed in your own words and intellectual recognition must be given to original sources of information in the form of footnotes and bibliographies.
The reports and essays you will write for the Physics Department are not exercises in "creative writing." These documents should not be highly stylized or embellished with colorful words. Write in the ordinary way you would talk to someone to whom you were explaining something you understood very well and wanted him too also.
Use technical terms whenever appropriate but first explain what they mean. For example, if writing about Newton's laws of motion, you should use the term inertia but explain that inertia is a property of matter, measured as mass, that is manifested as a resistance to a change in motion.
IT'S ALL ABOUT WRITING How did you like my essay on how to write a report? Can you find the introduction, the body and the conclusion? In the introduction I presented good reasons why reading further would be important to you. It got you interested. In the body of my essay facts were laid out in logical, sequential order. You saw the importance of learning about your topic, constructing a wellplanned outline and using that outline to compose a rough draft. Then you learned how the final copy was prepared and some guidelines to follow. Keep in mind the comments made in the introduction about the importance of writing and you will soon agree that every time you write, you are working for yourself and investing in your own future.