Writing Effective Reports

8/4/2019 Writing Effective Reports

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Reporting Food Security InformationWriting Effective Reports

Learning Objectives

At the end of this lesson you will be able to:

understand the principles for writing

introductions, conclusions and executivesummaries;

recognize techniques to organize andexplain your information;

understand techniques for writing clear andconcise sentences; and

understand how to effectively edit yourdocuments.



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Introduction

The structure and language of your report should engage yourreaders– easily and convincingly.

But how do you choose the most appropriateway to organize your information?



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Writing the introduction, conclusion and summary

Every report needs an effective introduction and conclusion.

Introduction

Main body

Conclusion

Executive summary

But what information should it contain, andhow much?

The same is true of executivesummaries, with the additional question:

Do I need one at all?



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Main body

Conclusion

Executive summary


Introduction

What are most important events that

have led to the writing of this report?

The introduction is like a “business card”.It is your first – and best – chance toengage your audience.

The main question to ask is:



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A good introduction leads the reader fromgeneral knowledge into details.

It should also do at least three specific thingsfor the reader:

Create a context shared by the readerand the writer

Clearly establish the purpose of the report

Describe the organization of the report

1

2

3

Main body

Conclusion

Executive summary

Introduction



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Main body

Conclusion

Executive summary


Introduction

The conclusion gives you one last chance tomove your reader in the direction you choose.

Create a sense of ending

Techniques for effective conclusions:

Recommend actions

Repeat the major points

Summarize the entire document

Re-emphasize the importance of the topic



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Main body

Conclusion

Executive summary


Introduction

An executive summary is a brief descriptionof a report’s most relevant contents.

The executive summary should include what you want the reader to remember.

If your report is

well written and organized, you will:

review what you’ve written,extract the most essential ideas, andinclude them into the summary.

i d S i f i



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An executive summary must answer the questions that decisionsmakers will look for on the report. Therefore, keep this list in mind:


What is the problem?

What does it need to be solved?

How should it be solved?

What are the benefits of solving it in this way?

Executive Summary

R ti F d S it I f ti



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Organization and explanation techniques

There are three common schemes (or sequences) that can help you:

How to organize and explain your information?

The inductive sequence begins with specificdetails and uses them to build up to a general

conclusion or recommendation.

The deductive pattern is the opposite of theinductive pattern.

The space/time pattern arranges informationaccording to the sequence in which you or yourreaders might encounter it in the real world.




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Organization and explanation techniques

Within the organizing schemes, there are essentially six techniquesfor explaining your information:

Example

Analogy

Definition

Categorization

Comparison and contrast

Cause and effect

An example makes a general idea concrete,by giving one or more specific instances.

An analogy is a type of example, which

compares one thing to another.

A definition uniquely identifies something.

Categorization is taking information anddividing it into distinct parts.

Comparison and contrast illustrates thesimilarities and differences, respectively.

Cause and effect explains why somethinghappened.




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Writing clear and concise sentences

Your writing style needs to be:

clear,explicit, andto move along quickly and logically.

A high level of readability can bereached by incorporating:

clarity,

economy andstraightforwardness into your writing.

(especially at the sentence level)




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To “measure” readability, ask yourself the following questions:

Will my reader be able to understand what I have juststated by reading the sentence quickly?

Will my reader be able to understand what I have just

stated without having to go back and re-read parts of it?

Will my reader run out of breath in the middle of thesentence?

Have I used a big word when a little word will suffice?

Is there more than one idea in my sentence?

Are there any words (particularly adjectives andadverbs) that I can remove?


Reporting Food Sec rit Information



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Example of a sentence:

The same sentence improved:

“The area of communication that the focal points are interested inlearning more about is along the line of technical reports used in

agriculture and government.”

“The focal points would like to learn more about technical

reports used in agriculture and government.”

Please look at the annex “Writing readable sentences” to learn about important techniquesfor improved readability.

Reporting Food Security Information

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Editing your documents

Once you have completed a draft of your report, you will need toreview it carefully.

Here are some of the elements to pay attention to:

Spelling Repetition of information

Punctuation Dense, heavy sentences

Sequencing of paragraphs/ideas Clarity of the message

Missing information Politically sensitive issues

Format Paragraph coherenceUnnecessary information Unnecessary word repetition

Logical sequence of sentences Grammatical mistakes




















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An optimal editing process has three stages:

Conceptual/structural stage

Linguistic stage

Proofreading/format stage













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In this first stage you are simply reading quickly the document.

You should only be focusing on the following elements from theprevious chart:

Conceptual/structural stage

Clarity of message

Sequencing of paragraphs/ideas

Missing information

Unnecessary information

Repetition of information




















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The linguistic editing is the time-consuming stage, since you arecarefully reading the document, word by word, and asking yourself,

“Do I like the way that I have expressed this idea?”

You will be focusing on the following elements from the chart:

Linguistic stage

Dense, heavy sentences

Clarity of the messagePolitically sensitive issuesUnnecessary word fodder and repetitionLogical sequence of sentences






















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Proofreading is simply checking for mistakes. You will be focusingon the following elements from the chart:

SpellingPunctuationGrammar

Proofreading/format stage

















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Summary

A good introduction should clearly establish the purpose of the reportand forecast the organization of the report.

Techniques for providing effective conclusions are: recommendingactions, repeating the major points, summarizing the entire document,re-emphasizing the importance of the topic.

You will use inductive, deductive and/or space/time schemes to organizeyour information and various techniques for explaining your information.

Incorporating clarity into your writing, especially at the sentence level,can help you establish a high level of readability.

An optimal editing process has three stages: conceptual/structuralstage, linguistic stage and proofreading/format stage.














