Birmingham City University

Report structure

Title page
This should normally include the title, your name and the name of the tutor to whom it is being
submitted, date of submission, your course/department, and if applicable, the name of the person
and/or organisation who has commissioned the report.

University of Central England

BA (Honours) Media and Communication
Module 3 Assignment 2

TITLE

Submitted by : Colin Milburn (Student Number: 98765439)

Submitted to: Prof. Eric Hollies
Date of submission: 2 May 2003

Table of Contents page (always included in reports of 4+ pages)

A clear, well-formatted list of all the sections and sub-sections of the report. Don’t forget to put the
page numbers! If applicable, there should be a separate list of tables, figures, illustrations and/or
appendices after the main index.
Make sure that the headings in this list correspond exactly with those in your main body. It is best to
do your list of contents right at the end.

Research Method /Procedure

How your research was carried out; how the information was gathered.

Summary (usually included in longer reports; may be called Executive Summary, Abstract or
Synopsis)
This is a very brief outline of the report to give the potential reader a general idea of what it’s
about. A statement of:

overall aims and specific objectives (unless included in terms of reference)

method/procedure used (unless included in separate section)
key findings
main conclusions and recommendations

Introduction (always included)

This should show that you have fully understood the task/brief and that you are going to cover
everything required. Indicate the basic structure of the report.
You should include just a little background/context and indicate the reasons for writing the report.
You may include your terms of reference and procedure/research methods if not covered
elsewhere.
Your introduction will often give an indication of the conclusion to the report.

Main body/findings (always included)

This is the substance of your report. The structure will vary according to the nature of the material
being presented, with headings and sub-headings used to clearly indicate the different sections
(unlike an essay). A "situation>problem>solution>evaluation" approach may be appropriate.
It is not sufficient to simply describe a situation. Your tutor will be looking for analysis and for a
critical approach, when appropriate.
Charts, diagrams and tables can be used to reinforce your arguments, although sometimes it may be
better to include these as an appendix (particularly if they are long or complicated).
Do not include opinions, conclusions or recommendations in this section.
Conclusion (always included)
Your conclusion should draw out the implications of your findings, with deductions based on the
facts described in your main body. Don’t include any new material here.A good conclusion should
NOT:

include completely new ideas. If they're important, include them in your main text.
be apologetic! Be confident with what you say: avoid phrases such as: "I may not be an expert .."
or "At least this is my opinion"
focus on minor points.
qualify the impact of any previous points.

Appendices (sometimes included)

An appendix (plural=appendices) is detailed documentation of points you outline in your findings,
for example, technical data, questionnaires, letters sent, tables, sketches, charts, leaflets etc. It is
supplementary information which you consider to be too long or complicated or not quite relevant
enough to include in your main body, but which still should be of interest to your reader.
Each appendix should be referred to in your text. You should not include something as an appendix
if it is not discussed in the main body.

References (always included)

This is a list giving the full details of all the sources to which you have made reference within your
text

Glossary (occasionally included)

Include a glossary if the report includes a lot of specialised vocabulary or acronyms which may not
be familiar to the reader

Writing introductions
Your introduction is the first impression your readers will have of your writing. A good introduction
will show them that you know what you're talking about and that you're going to complete the task
in question. It will also make them want to carry on reading and feel well disposed to what is to
come. A bad introduction will have the opposite effect and might even prejudice the reader against
the rest of the writing, even if it does improve.

The most common mistakes made by students are:

not to include an introduction at all

to include an introduction, but one which is unrecognizable as such
to include too much background/historical information in the introduction
to make the introduction too long

A good introduction will:

show that you are going to answer the question or complete the task
show that you understand the issues and their implications
show how you are going to do this by indicating the structure of your answer and making clear the
main areas that you are going to write about (your plan).
show evidence that you have carried out some research by making a reference to one of your
sources
be totally relevant
be concise: 8-9% of the total number of words is usually recommended (eg 120 words in a 1500
word assignment).

You want your tutors to say to themselves "Good! This student has understood the question, has
done some research and is going to answer the question set, not another one. Let's read on!"

So more specifically, how do you do this?

include a "topic sentence" which indicates the main thrust of your answer. For example:

This essay deals with the economic and political decline in Britain's world role.

This assignment will examine Britain's peculiar unwritten constitution.

Four major features of the influence of human behaviour on planning are considered in this report.

This report will analyse the relative advantages and disadvantages of the different operating
systems.

This essay will first describe the recent changes in the tax system and will then go on to argue that
these changes are unfair and impracticable.

use the same, or very similar, wording as in the question. If part of the question is "Discuss recent
developments in communication technology" then in your introduction say something like "This essay
will consider recent developments in the field of communication technology and will ... ". Don't
leave any room for doubt.

use words and expressions which clearly show the plan behind your writing, for example:

The essay is divided into four main sections.

It will first consider ...

It will then go on to describe ...

The third part compares ...

Finally, some conclusions will be drawn as to ...

The importance of introductions (and conclusions) cannot be stressed too much.

General presentation
The presentation of your written work is important: first impressions do count, and poorly
presented work might lead your tutor to think that the work has been rushed or that you do not
really care about it.

It is important to note, however, that no matter how professionally your assignment is presented, it
will not hide mediocre content. A poorly presented assignment with excellent content is always
preferable to excellent presentation with poor content, although you should of course always aim
for a combination of the two.

Particular faculties or courses may have their own guidelines for different aspects of presentation,
so always check your own course documentation or with course tutors. What follows is general
advice on the presentation of courses assignments which is usually, but not always, appropriate.

Paper
Always use A4 size paper, and print or write on one side only.

Word processing
You will almost always now be expected to word process your work. If you need help or practice
with this, ask in your learning/resource centre, or in the library.

Title page
Although you will always have to hand in your work with a faculty cover sheet, it is usually a good
idea to include a title page at the beginning of your assignment, although this may not be necessary
for very short pieces of work. (See Guide 1.25)

Contents page
A contents page is usually included with longer reports. (See Guide 1.26)

Covers
You may want to protect your work with a plastic sleeve or cover. There are usually no rules on this,
but probably the longer the piece of work, the more important it is. Dissertations and theses will
need to be bound. Don’t put individual pages into plastic sleeves.

Fonts
Always use standard fonts, the type you would see in a book or journal; for example, Times/ Times
New Roman, Ariel, Palatino etc. Don’t use Comic Sans!

The size for the majority of you text should normally be 10, 11 or 12, depending on the individual
font (Times, for example, is small). The most important thing is that your text is clear and easy to
read. Don’t forget that your tutor’s eyesight might not be what it was!

For headings and titles use a slightly larger size, but don’t make them to big.

Formatting
Avoid overuse of formatting such as bold, italic and underlining.
Bold is probably best used just for headings and titles and italics just for names or specialist words
(instead of using inverted commas). Don’t use italics for quotes incorporated into your text,
although they can be used for longer quotes which are indented and separate from the rest of the
text (See Guide 1.14). However, even in this case normal text is preferable.
Underlining is best avoided, as is the use of coloured fonts.

Line spacing
It is generally recommended that your text is 1.5 or double spaced, depending on the size of the
actual font. In Word, go to Format and then Paragraph, where you will see the Spacing option.
The reasons for doing this are so that your tutor will be able to make comments and corrections
easily, and also to avoid making your page a dense block of text with perhaps 500 or 600 words,
which can be off-putting to the reader.

Margins
Always have left and right margins of around 2.5 cm (1”). This again allows for comments to be
made, and also ensures that when the pages are stapled or bound, no text is lost.

Page numbers
Always include page numbers: they can go at the top or bottom, usually to the right.

Referencing
See Guides 1.13 and 1.14 and also check your course documentation. There are different ways of
doing this, and variations within each system; make sure that you are consistent.

Dissertations and theses

These will have stricter guidelines on how they should be presented. Check with your
tutor/supervisor and if possible consult a model piece of work.

Copies
Always keep a copy of what you hand in, and remember to regularly back your work up

Style

Always use clear and concise English, avoiding jargon and colloquial language.
Write in fairly short sentences.
Make sure you develop each paragraph sufficiently (usually a minimum of 5/6 sentences).
Most of your report should be impersonal, although it may be appropriate in your conclusion or
recommendations to include more personal language.
Be extra careful with verb tenses.

Check everything carefully

Careful checking of your report before you print off the final version can make a big difference.

Check:
General layout
Text organisation
Coherence
Grammar, spelling and punctuation
Referencing
Style

And finally overall, does the report fulfil its purpose? Does it do what you’re being asked to do and
what you say you’re going to do in your introduction? Are you pleased with it? If you can’t
confidently answer “yes” to these questions, then you may need to do some major editing and
rewriting.
Proofreading and editing
Language and structural mistakes in your writing create a bad impression. They can impede
understanding and result in a lower mark or even failure of an assignment. It is very important,
therefore, that you check your work very carefully for:

General layout

Text organisation

Coherence

Grammar, spelling and punctuation

Referencing

Style

Overall impression

It is up to you to develop your own strategies for doing this effectively. Here are a few general tips:

Try reading your work out loud, either to yourself or to a friend. This is particularly effective for
checking punctuation, grammar and general coherence. It's usually much easier to find mistakes in
someone else's writing.

Read through fairly quickly, simply underlining or highlighting any words that don't look right or
where you think there might be a grammar problem. Then when you've finished check these in a
dictionary or grammar book. In this way, you'll also get an idea of the overall structure and flow.

Make a list of the type of mistakes you make, and pay particular attention to these when you're
checking your writing.

Don't forget to use the computer spellchecker, but don't rely on it entirely. It won't recognize
errors such as "Their are many arguments ..."

Don't use the grammar checker, however. They are very inaccurate.

Check early on in your department on the preferred referencing system and on general guidelines
on layout and structure.

Get some help if you do have problems with your grammar.

Give yourself plenty of time to do this: you may realise that you have a lot of changes to make.

Editing checklist
General layout

Is the title page (if applicable) clear, accurate and complete?

Is the contents page (if applicable) clearly laid out and accurate?
Do you have a margin of about 1"/2.5cm (especially on the left)?
Are your lines double-spaced?
Are all pages numbered, if necessary?
Have you avoided unnecessary use of bold, italic and colour type?
Have you used a standard font (Times, Arial etc)? Is it large enough?
Text organisation

Does the introduction show understanding of the question?

Does the introduction indicate the structure of the answer?
Are all the sentences complete?
Are all the paragraphs adequately developed?
Do all the sections (if appropriate) have clear headings?
Are tables and figures properly integrated into the text?
Are all tables and figures titled, with source if necessary.
Is there a clear and adequate conclusion or summary?

Coherence

Does it all make sense? (especially to another person)

Do sentences, paragraphs and sections run together smoothly?
Is everything relevant?
Is your language as concise as possible?

Grammar, spelling & punctuation

Have you carefully checked for the type of grammar mistakes you tend to make?
Have you used verb tenses consistently?
Have you used the spellchecker?
Have you checked the spelling yourself?
Does your punctuation make your writing easier to read?
Have you checked your use of commas?

Referencing

Are all your sources always acknowledged?

Is your referencing accurate and consistent?
Is your list of references complete and in the correct format?
Do all your references appear in your bibliography/list of references?
Are the beginning and the end of quotes clearly indicated?
Are all the quotes integrated into your main text?

Style

Have you avoided colloquial language?

Have you avoided personal language where necessary?
Is your language as clear and as concise as possible?
Is your vocabulary varied, but always appropriate?

Overall

Have you answered the question/fulfilled the task?

Is everything relevant?
Do you understand everything you've written?
Are you pleased with it?
Presentation skills
The material of your presentation should be concise, to the point and tell an interesting story. In
addition to the obvious things like content and visual aids, the following are just as important as the
audience will be subconsciously taking them in:

• Your voice - how you say it is as important as what you say

• Body language - a subject in its own right and something about which much has been written and
said. In essence, your body movements express what your attitudes and thoughts really are.

• Appearance - first impressions influence the audience's attitudes to you. Dress appropriately for
the occasion.

As with most personal skills oral communication cannot be taught. Instructors can only point the
way. So as always, practice is essential, both to improve your skills generally and also to make the
best of each individual presentation you make.

Preparation
Prepare the structure of the talk carefully and logically, just as you would for a written report.
What are:

• the objectives of the talk?

• the main points you want to make?

Make a list of these two things as your starting point.

Write out the presentation in rough, just like a first draft of a written report. Review the draft. You
will find things that are irrelevant or superfluous - delete them. Check the story is consistent and
flows smoothly. If there are things you cannot easily express, possibly because of doubt about your
understanding, it is better to leave them unsaid.

Never read from a script. It is also unwise to have the talk written out in detail as a prompt sheet -
the chances are you will not locate the thing you want to say amongst all the other text. You should
know most of what you want to say - if you don't then you should not be giving the talk! So prepare
cue cards which have key words and phrases (and possibly sketches) on them. Postcards are ideal
for this. Don't forget to number the cards in case you drop them.

Remember to mark on your cards the visual aids that go with them so that the right OHP or slide is
shown at the right time

Rehearse your presentation - to yourself at first and then in front of some colleagues. The initial
rehearsal should consider how the words and the sequence of visual aids go together. How will you
make effective use of your visual aids?

Making the presentation

Greet the audience (for example, 'Good morning, ladies and gentlemen'), and tell them who you
are. Good presentations then follow this formula:

• tell the audience what you are going to tell them,

• then tell them,
• at the end tell them what you have told them.
Keep to the time allowed. If you can, keep it short. It's better to under-run than over-run. As a rule
of thumb, allow 2 minutes for each general overhead transparency or Powerpoint slide you use, but
longer for any that you want to use for developing specific points. 35mm slides are generally used
more sparingly and stay on the screen longer. However, the audience will get bored with something
on the screen for more than 5 minutes, especially if you are not actively talking about it. So switch
the display off, or replace the slide with some form of 'wallpaper' such as a company logo.

Stick to the plan for the presentation, don't be tempted to digress - you will eat up time and could
end up in a dead-end with no escape!

Unless explicitly told not to, leave time for discussion - 5 minutes is sufficient to allow clarification
of points. The session chairman may extend this if the questioning becomes interesting.

At the end of your presentation ask if there are any questions - avoid being terse when you do this
as the audience may find it intimidating (ie it may come across as any questions? - if there are, it
shows you were not paying attention). If questions are slow in coming, you can start things off by
asking a question of the audience - so have one prepared.

Delivery
Speak clearly. Don't shout or whisper - judge the acoustics of the room.

Don't rush, or talk deliberately slowly. Be natural - although not conversational.

Deliberately pause at key points - this has the effect of emphasising the importance of a particular
point you are making.

Avoid jokes - always disastrous unless you are a natural expert.

To make the presentation interesting, change your delivery, but not to obviously, eg:
• speed
• pitch of voice

Use your hands to emphasise points but don't indulge in to much hand waving. People can, over
time, develop irritating habits. Ask colleagues occasionally what they think of your style.

Look at the audience as much as possible, but don't fix on an individual - it can be intimidating.
Pitch your presentation towards the back of the audience, especially in larger rooms.

Don't face the display screen behind you and talk to it. Other annoying habits include:

• Standing in a position where you obscure the screen. In fact, positively check for anyone in the
audience who may be disadvantaged and try to accommodate them.
• Muttering over a transparency on the OHP projector plate an not realising that you are blocking
the projection of the image. It is preferable to point to the screen than the foil on the OHP (apart
from the fact that you will probably dazzle yourself with the brightness of the projector)

Avoid moving about too much. Pacing up and down can unnerve the audience, although some
animation is desirable.
Keep an eye on the audience's body language. Know when to stop and also when to cut out a piece
of the presentation.

Visual Aids
Visual aids significantly improve the interest of a presentation. However, they must be relevant to
what you want to say. A careless design or use of a slide can simply get in the way of the
presentation. What you use depends on the type of talk you are giving. Here are some possibilities:
• Overhead projection transparencies (OHPs)
• 35mm slides
• Computer projection (Powerpoint, applications such as Excel, etc)
• Video, and film,
• Real objects - either handled from the speaker's bench or passed around
• Flip~chart or blackboard - possibly used as a 'scratch-pad' to expand on a point

Keep it simple though - a complex set of hardware can result in confusion for speaker and audience.
Make sure you know in advance how to operate equipment and also when you want particular
displays to appear. Sometimes a technician will operate the equipment. Arrange beforehand what is
to happen and when and what signals you will use. Edit your slides as carefully as your talk - if a
slide is superfluous then leave it out. If you need to use a slide twice, duplicate it.

Slides and OHPs should contain the minimum information necessary. To do otherwise risks making
the slide unreadable or will divert your audience's attention so that they spend time reading the
slide rather than listening to you.

Try to limit words per slide to a maximum of 10. Use a reasonable size font and a typeface which
will enlarge well.

Typically use a minimum 18pt Times Roman on OHPs, and preferably larger. A guideline is: if you can
read the OHP from a distance of 2 metres (without projection) then it's probably OK

Avoid using a diagram prepared for a technical report in your talk. It will be too detailed and
difficult to read.

Use colour on your slides but avoid orange and yellow which do not show up very well when
projected. For text only, white or yellow on blue is pleasant to look at and easy to read. Books on
presentation techniques often have quite detailed advice on the design of slides. If possible consult
an expert such as the Audio Visual Centre.

Avoid adding to OHPs with a pen during the talk - it's messy and the audience will be fascinated by
your shaking hand! On this point, this is another good reason for pointing to the screen when
explaining a slide rather than pointing to the OHP transparency.

Room lighting should be considered. Too much light near the screen will make it difficult to see the
detail. On the other hand, a completely darkened room can send the audience to sleep. Try to avoid
having to keep switching lights on and off, but if you do have to do this, know where the light
switches are and how to use them.

Finally ...,

enjoy yourself. The audience will be on your side and want to hear what you have to say!

(Adapted from : http://lorien.ncl.ac.uk/ming/Dept/Tips/present/comms.htm)