THE BASICS OF REPORT WRITING LECTURE

THE BASICS OF REPORT WRITING - LECTURE NOTES:

WRITING A REPORT:

• Intended audience?
• Why is the report needed?
• What do the audience want to find out?
• What sections does your report need?
• How long should the report be?
• When is the deadline?
• What is the word count?

WRITING STYLES:

• Factual Writing - states the facts of the case exactly as they are
• Descriptive Writing - a detailed account of the characteristics of things
• Explanatory Writing - makes things clear and gives the reasons for them
• Discursive Writing - examines complex things to discover how they work

Try to avoid phrases that add nothing to your meaning or could be replaces by one word, e.g:

• Due to the fact that = because 
• On a daily basis = daily 
• Of a complex nature = complex
• In a fashion studio situation = in the studio

VOICE:

• Use passive or active words to avoid using the first person - that is: 'We' or 'I'
• Passive ("a concept was selected") or active ("we selected a concept") 'An experiment was conducted' not 'I conducted an experiment'
• Pick whichever sounds more natural and be consistent 

TENSE:

These are the conventions for when you should use different tenses. The general rules are:

• When you are reporting your findings, use the past tense (you are reporting on something that has happened or, describing what you did or found out). For example, 'we built and tested a fashion runway'.
• When you are reporting other people's research, use the present tense (you are relating something that is established knowledge or, describing things that were known before your project). For example, 'summer clothes are multi-coloured'.
• When you are discussing your findings, use the present tense.

OTHER ISSUES TO CONSIDER:

• Diversity 
• Ethics
• Sustainability 
• Social media
• Influencer marketing