REPORT WRITING

REPORT WRITING

A report is the exposition of a research project. It is the end product of a research study activity. Thus writing of report is the last step in a research study and requires a set of skills. A report is also defined as “a statement of results, events, conditions, progress or interpretation of information”.

Purpose of report:

            The report serves the following purpose.

i)                    To convey to the interested persons the whole result of the study in detail.

ii)                  To enable the reader to comprehend the data and to determine the validity of the conclusions.

Essential of a good report:

            A good report should possess the following characteristics.

1. The text of the report should convey the intended message.
2. The text of the report should be unambiguous.
3. The style and presentation of the report should cater to the needs of the targeted readers.
4. The content of the report should fully reveal the scope of the research in a crisp and clear manner.
5. The report should be organized in hierarchical form with chapters, main-sections and sub sections.
6. There should be continuity and consistency in the between chapter and sections that follow.
7. The conclusion of the report should give clear picture of the report to the readers.

LAY OUT OF A RESEARCH REPORT:

            A comprehensive layout of the research report should contain three parts namely

1. The Preliminary pages

2. The Main text (or) Body of the report

3. The Reference material

FORMAT:

1. The preliminary section:

a.       Title page

2. Declaration
3. Certificate
4. Acknowledgement
5. Abstract
6. Table of contents
7. List of tables
8. List of figures / illustrations / maps
9. List of abbreviations

2. The Main Body of the report:

 a) Introduction and Description of the study

1. Introduction
2. Statement of the problem
3. Significance of the study
4. Scope of the study
5. Definition of important terms used in the study
6. Objectives
7. Hypothesis
8. Period of study
9. Geographical area of the study
10. Limitations of the study
11. Chapterisation

b) Review of literature

            critical analysis of the previous research

c) Design of the study

1. Procedure used
2. Methods of gathering data
3. Description of data

d) Presentation and Analysis of data

1. Text
2. Tables
3. Figures
4. Analyses
5. Results

            Inferences

e) Findings and Suggestions

1. Brief restatement of the study
2. Description of procedure used
3. Main findings and suggestions
4. Recommendations for further research

3. The reference section

1. Bibliography
2. Appendix or Appendices
3. Index, if any

RESEARCH REPORT IN DETAIL

            The content of a report, whether it be called a dissertation or a thesis, should contain three parts namely, the preliminary pages, the body of the report and the reference materials. The contents of these three parts are explained for a better understanding.

I. The preliminary section:

            This section contains the title page, declaration, certificate, acknowledgement, abstract, table of contents, list of tables, list of figures and list of abbreviations.

i)                    Title page: The first page of a dissertation or a thesis  is the title page. It gives the exact title of the research, department, subject and university to which the dissertation or thesis is submitted, degree for which it is submitted, name of the researcher and the supervisor, emblem, name and address of the university or institutional or organizational to which it is submitted along with month and year of submission.

ii)                  Declaration: This contains the declaration of the research about the research work carried out by him on the specific topic in fulfillment of the partial requirement of a degree.

iii)                Certificate: This contains the certificate of the guide and supervisor regarding the research work carried out by a scholar on a specific topic under his guidance for the award of the degree. And the research supervisor has to  certify that it is a record of independent research work done by the candidate also certificates it has not been already submitted a similar title / degree etc..

iv)                Acknowledgement: Under this heading the  researcher may thank all those who helped him in the preparation of dissertation or thesis.

v)                  Abstract: An abstract  is a concise statement of the research report. It should be as brief as possible and run about one or two pages so that a reader can get a quick overview of the report.

vi)                Table of contents: Table of contents is the index of the thesis. It contains a list of the chapters and their sub-titles with page numbers. It facilitates to locate various pieces of information in the thesis.

vii)              List of tables: In research reports, the data and results are presented in the form of tables for analysis. If tables are included in this report, a separate page for list of tables should be included after the table of contents.

viii)            List of figures: In research report, the results are presented in the form of figures for better understanding and comparisons. If figures are included in this report a separate page for list of figures should be included after the list of tables.

ix)                List of abbreviations: The study may contain and include different variables and abbreviations in different chapters of the research report. All these variables and abbreviations must be defined and expanded under the heading ‘List of Abbrevations’.