iAcademy iAcademy Academic Report Writing 1 Academic English for Undergraduate Study Lecture 16 How to write the key parts of a report This lecture and its associated materials have been produced by Mr. Kelvin Ng (MBA, Cambridge) of iAcademy for the purposes of lecturing on the above described subject and the material should be viewed in this context. The work does not constitute professional advice and no warranties are made regarding the information presented. The Author and iAcademy do not accept any liability for the consequences of any action taken as a result of the work or any recommendations made or inferred. Permission to use any of these materials must be first granted by iAcademy.
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Academic Report Writing 1
Academic English for Undergraduate StudyLecture 16
How to write the key parts of a report
This lecture and its associated materials have been produced by Mr. Kelvin Ng (MBA, Cambridge) of iAcademy for the purposes of lecturing on the above described subject and the material should be viewed in this context. The work does not constitute professional advice and no warranties are made regarding the information presented. The Author and iAcademy do not accept any liability for the consequences of any action taken as a result of the work or any recommendations made or inferred. Permission to use any of these materials must be first granted by iAcademy.
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• Lets look some 5 tips to continually improve your academic writing. Play Video– 5 tips to improve your writing
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Agenda• Review of Lecture 15• Week 16 Lecture Coverage– Essential English Skills Review 9 – Homonyms– Essential English Skills Review 10 – Capital Letters– Essential English Skills Review 11 – Parallelism– Overcoming Writers’ Block– Writing an Introduction– Writing a Conclusion
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Review of Lecture 15• Add the necessary punctuation marks:
France paid al-Qaeda 25m euros for four hostages read a headline in the Times newspaper this week
The French government has categorically denied that any public money was used to secure the release of the four French nationals kidnapped in 2010 at a uranium plant in Niger and held by jihadist bandits linked to the regional franchise of al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb (Aqim)
We don't play that game said the French foreign minister when asked if his government had paid for their release
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-24764316
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Review of Lecture 15• Add the necessary punctuation marks:
“France paid al-Qaeda 25m euros for four hostages,” read a headline in the Times newspaper this week.
The French government has categorically denied that any public money was used to secure the release of the four French nationals kidnapped in 2010 at a uranium plant in Niger and held by jihadist bandits linked to the regional franchise of al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb (Aqim).
“We don't play that game,” said the French foreign minister when asked if his government had paid for their release.
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-24764316
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Review of Lecture 15• Provide some examples of how academic
writing is different from general writing.• Name the components in an academic report.• What information should the title page contain?• What should you not do when writing
acknowledgements?• What are the differences between an abstract
and an executive summary?• What are the key chapters in an academic
report?
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Any Questions?
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Let’s get started with Lecture 16
Academic Report Writing 1
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Lets continue to build up our English writing skills.
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Essential English Grammar and Sentence Construction Skills 9
Homonyms
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Homonyms• Homonyms are words that have the same sound
but different spellings and meanings.• Common Homonyms:
Its it’stheir there, they’reto too, twoyour you’rebrake breakhear here
hole wholeknow noright writewhose Who’s
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Exercise – Homonyms• Identify the homonyms and replace them with
the correct word.– Who’s job is it too clean the floor today?– Your the write man for the job.– The breaks on there car didn’t work in time to
prevent the collision.– I here the plain had to make a cash landing.– Whose in charge of the piece march this Saturday?– I have been commissioned to right the hole story of
the courageous rescue.
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Exercise – Homonyms• Identify the homonyms and replace them with
the correct word.– Whose job is it to clean the floor today?– You’re the right man for the job.– The brakes on their car didn’t work in time to
prevent the collision.– I hear the plane had to make a crash landing.– Who’s in charge of the peace march this Saturday?– I have been commissioned to write the whole story
of the courageous rescue.
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Essential English Grammar and Sentence Construction Skills 10
Capital Letters
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Capital Letters• There are 6 main uses of capital letters.• 1) The first word in a sentence or direct
quotation.– E.g. The dog chased after the cat.– E.g. The policeman shouted, “Hands up!”
• 2) The word “I” and the names of people– E.g. I was first in the queue for the Lady Gaga
concert.– E.g. My favorite singer is Kelly Clarkson. I love her
powerful and soulful voice.
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Capital Letters• 3) Names of specific places, institutions, and
languages.– E.g. The United Nations has it’s headquarters in the
United States.– E.g. The University of Cambridge in the United
Kingdom is regarded as one of the top universities globally.
– E.g. The signs inside the airport were written in English, French and Spanish.
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Capital Letters• 4) Product Names– Capitalize the brand name of
the product, but not what the product is.
– E.g. Everyday, I brush my teeth with an Oral-B toothbrush using a Colgate toothpaste.
– E.g. Famous Amos chocolate chip cookies are the best in the world.
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Capital Letters• 5) Calendar Items– Capitalize the names of days of the week, months
and holidays.– E.g. Next Monday is Christmas day.– E.g. There are 31 days in January.
• 6) Titles– Capitalize the titles of books, TV shows, songs,
magazines, movies, articles, poems, stories, papers…– E.g. The recent movie, Spiderman, was awesome!– E.g. Pitbull's song, Give Me Everything, got me
moving my feet to its addictive beat.
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Capital Letters
TYPING IN CAPITAL LETTERS INDICATES SHOUTING,
WHICH IS CONSIDERED RUDE ONLINE IF THE MESSAGE IS
NOT CONSIDERED IMPORTANT!
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Capital LettersNote:
The words the, of, a, an, an, and, and other little unstressed words are not capitalized when they appear in the middle of a title.
E.g. I enjoyed the recent movie about Superman, Man of Steel, which stared Henry Cavill.
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Exercise - Capital Letters• Identify where capital letters should be used in
the following sentences:– i love to eat candy bars, especially snickers.– i love the city of london and plan to visit in
december.– my friend is always asking me to visit and say, “come
anytime.”– i am glad that the new year falls on a friday this year.– to prepare for my holiday trip to thailand, I decided
to learn some basic thai.
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Exercise - Capital Letters• Identify where capital letters should be used in
the following sentences:– I love to eat candy bars, especially Snickers.– I love the city of London and plan to visit in
December.– My friend is always asking me to visit and say,
“Come anytime.”– I am glad that the New Year falls on a Friday this
year.– To prepare for my holiday trip to Thailand, I decided
to learn some basic Thai.
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Essential English Grammar and Sentence Construction Skills 11
Parallelism
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Parallelism• Two or more equal ideas should be expressed in
parallel, or matching, form.• Parallelism helps your words flow smoothly and
clearly.• Which sentence do you prefer?– 1) The new restaurant has fresh food, reasonable
prices and service that is fast.– 2) The new restaurant has fresh food, reasonable
prices and fast service.
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Parallelism• Two or more equal ideas should be expressed in
parallel, or matching, form.• Parallelism helps your words flow smoothly and
clearly.• Which sentence do you prefer?– 1) The new restaurant has fresh food, reasonable
prices and service that is fast.– 2) The new restaurant has fresh food, reasonable
prices and fast service.2) In each case, a descriptive word is then followed by the word being described.
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Exercise - Parallelism• Rewrite the following sentences, applying
parallelism.– The children were arguing in the lobby, talked during
the movie, and complained on the ride home.– Our neighbors spend a lot of time shopping online,
visiting friends, and they go to the movies.– My uncle is selfish, impatient, and he is not a kind
person.– Every morning I have to feed the dog and washing
the dishes.
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Exercise - Parallelism• Rewrite the following sentences, applying
parallelism.– The children argued in the lobby, talked during the
movie, and complained on the ride home.– Our neighbors spend a lot of time shopping online,
visiting friends, and going to the movies.– My uncle is selfish, impatient, and unkind.– Every morning I have to feed the dog and wash the
dishes.
All the verbs and adjectives used in the sentence must be expressed in a similar form.
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Exercise - Parallelism• Identify and correct the errors in parallelism.
In spite of her difficult schedule, Jasmin is smiling, focused and she stays positive. She keeps her goals in mind. Those goals are to do well in college and getting admitted to law school. She wants to earn her law degree, become a judge, and working to help the Latino community. “I see so many people around me get in trouble, go to jail, and giving up on themselves,” she says, “As a judge, I’ll be in a position to see that people get the help they need.”Jasmin is grateful for the support of her family as she works to achieve her dreams. “My mum and my aunts are my best friends. And Grandma is terrific. She’d like to see me settling down, get married, and having kids, but if going to school is what makes me happy, she respects that, too.”
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Exercise - Parallelism• Identify and correct the errors in parallelism.
In spite of her difficult schedule, Jasmin is smiling, focused, and positive. She keeps her goals in mind. Those goals are to do well in college and get admitted to law school. She wants to earn her law degree, become a judge, and work to help the Latino community. “I see so many people around me get in trouble, go to jail, and give up on themselves,” she says, “As a judge, I’ll be in a position to see that people get the help they need.”Jasmin is grateful for the support of her family as she works to achieve her dreams. “My mum and my aunts are my best friends. And Grandma is terrific. She’d like to see me settling down, getting married, and having kids, but if going to school is what makes me happy, she respects that, too.”
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Any Questions?
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Are you struggling to come up with ideas to write your assessment 3?
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Writers’ Block• A common mental
condition that prevents people from writing.
• There are various types of writers’ block. Here are 5 common ones and how to overcome them.
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Writers’ Block• Reason 1) No ideas, don’t know how to start
writing.– Don’t try to give yourself pressure to write
something immediately. Knowledge takes time to attach itself within our minds.
– Read the report/essay instructions and requirements again in detail.
– Read related articles about the topic to get ideas and inspiration.
– Talk about your ideas with someone. It helps you to organize your ideas.
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Writers’ Block• Reason 2) Too many ideas, cannot decide which
one to use.– Are any of your ideas similar? Is it possible to
combine some of your ideas together?– List down the ideas on a sheet of paper to help you
decide which one is best.– Eliminate the least attractive ideas quickly to reduce
the number of choices you have.
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Writers’ Block• Reason 3) You cannot think of the words to
express your ideas.– Use a dictionary or thesaurus online to check out
the meaning of words and their substitutes to get ideas.
– Type the key phrases into Google and see how other articles are using them.
Tip: Highlight a word and use Shift+F7 in MS Word to bring up the Thesaurus.
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Writers’ Block• Reason 4) Half way through your report/essay,
you don’t know what to write anymore.– This is usually a result of bad planning and
organization.– Always brainstorm and organize your ideas before
starting to write a report/essay.– Read the report/essay instructions and requirements
again in detail.
Tip: Avoid repetition of key points. Focus on the purpose of the report/essay.
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Writers’ Block• Reason 5) You keep thinking that the report is
really bad and you are going to get a bad grade.
It’s ok to have high expectations and a desire to get a good mark.
Seek out your lecturer to get feedback on your work before submission.
If you work hard, we will work hard with you because we want you to succeed.
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Writers’ Block• Lets see some other
causes of Writers’ Block and tips to overcome it. Play Video.– What Is Writer's Block and
How to Get Rid of It
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Any Questions?
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Writing the Introduction• The introduction is usually the first thing people
read and the 1st chapter in any report. • A poorly written introduction that does not tell
readers what they need to know will frustrate them even if other parts of your report are well written.
Tip: Write a good introduction and your markers will look favorably at other parts of
your report.
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Writing the Introduction• A good introduction should do the following:• 1) Capture the reader’s attention.• 2) State the purpose of the report.• 3) Show the reader how you are interpreting,
approaching the report topic and defining the scope of the report.
• 4) Describe how the report is organized so as to act as a navigation guide to the reader.
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Writing the Introduction• 1) Capture the reader’s attention.– Like an essay, the introduction of a report needs to
capture the readers’ attention.– Generally, the best way to start an introduction for a
report is to state an important fact or story that explains why the report topic is important.
E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”With a market value of USD 241B, Microsoft now lags behind rivals Apple (USD 378B) and Google (USD 259B) (The Telegraph, 2013). Although no longer the largest technology company in the world, Microsoft is still a leader in the field of IT, with most personal computers around the world using the Windows software.
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Writing the Introduction• 2) State the purpose of the report.– To write about the purpose of the report, ask
yourself these important questions:
Why is this report important?What will the readers learn after reading the report?
E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”This report seeks to provide an overview of the products and services offered by Microsoft and how the company’s activities have transformed the lives of people and organizations around the world.
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Writing the Introduction• 3) Show the reader how you are interpreting,
approaching the report topic and defining the scope of the report.– Explain any key words or phrases in the topic that
might be confusing or may be misunderstood.– Decide what are the key areas of interest that your
report will be cover.E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”It is understood that society means a group of people with shared relationships. Thus, this report will seek to discuss the influence of Microsoft among 3 major groups of people in society, teachers and students, parents and children, and white-collar employees.
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Writing the Introduction• 4) Describe how the report is organized so as to
act as a navigation guide to the reader.– Describe what are the key points that will be
discussed in each chapter of the report.E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”The 1st chapter provides an introduction to the report as well as to the company and its products, services, and business activities. The 2nd chapter would identify the influence of the company on 3 major groups in society, providing both positive and negative examples. Lastly, the 3rd chapter would conclude with the group’s evaluation on whether the company has been good or bad for society and recommendations on how the company could continue contributing to us all in future.
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Writing the Introduction• The introduction is not an essay. It can contain
sub chapters and headings.E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”
Chapter 1 – Introduction to Microsoft• Chapter 1.1 – Introduction to the Report• Chapter 1.2 – How the report is organized• Chapter 1.3 – History of Microsoft• Chapter 1.4 – Business activities of Microsoft• Chapter 1.5 – Notable products and services of Microsoft
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Even if there is a lot to write, an introduction
should not be too long and generally should not exceed 15-20% of the report length.
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Any Questions?
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Writing the Conclusion• The purpose of a conclusion is to integrate all
the information written in the previous chapters of the report and write insightful comments.
• The conclusion should:– Not be only a summary of the previous chapters.– Not focus on the minor points in the report.– Not contain any new information.
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Writing the Conclusion• A good conclusion should do the following:• 1) Provide an overview of the report is about• 2) Restate the purpose of the report.• 3) Summarize the key research findings.• 4) Provide the significance and implications of
the research findings.• 5) Limitations of the report.• 6) Recommendations for further work on the
report.• 7) Recommendations regarding the report
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Writing the Conclusion• 1) Provide an overview of the report is about– This is the opening sentence that starts the chapter
on conclusion.– Give a summary about what the report is about to
remind readers about the big picture and not get too focused on the details in the report..
E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”
This report has provided an overview of Microsoft, the company, its products and services, and its business activities and their influence among 3 major groups of people in society, teachers and students, parents and children, and white-collar employees.
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Writing the Conclusion• 2) Restate the purpose of the report.– This enables the readers to link what was written in
the 1st chapter with the last chapter.– Improves understanding of the readers when they
read the significance and implications of the research findings
E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”
This purpose of this report is to better understand how Microsoft has influenced the lives of people and organizations around the world.
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Writing the Conclusion• 3) Summarize the key research findings.– Only provide the most important points.– Leave out the details and examples. You should not
be repeating everything that was in the earlier chapters of the report.
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Writing the Conclusion• 4) Provide the significance and implications of
the research findings.– Explain why the findings are useful, meaningful and
important.– Who would benefit from reading the report, how
would they benefit?– E.g. Improves understanding of a certain topic
E.g. If you are writing about “Microsoft and its impact on society”The report provides students with interesting and useful ideas and examples on how to effectively utilize Microsoft Office software to help them write academic reports.
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Writing the Conclusion• 5) Limitations of the report.– OPTIONAL – Not all reports need this section.– Reduces the chance of others criticising or
disagreeing with your findings. – Limitations can include the following:• Research Methods• Research Sources and Data• Lack of Resources such as technical equipment, time,
money… etc.
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Writing the Conclusion• 5) Limitations of the report.– Use quantifiers to express the limitations of your
report.
Source: http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/general/academic/2.2.xml
Quantity Frequency Probability
All Few Always Certainly
Every A few Usually Definitely
Most Not many Sometimes Clearly
A lot of Hardly any Occasionally Likely
Many None On occasion Possibly
Several Rarely Perhaps
Some Never Unlikely
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Writing the Conclusion• 5) Limitations of the report.
Examples:
Whilst the findings of the study could be applied in most instances, there were some important exceptions. In particular, it was found that people with food allergies did not benefit from the changes to their diet, and in fact in some cases experienced negative reactions.
The argument that sport is good for your health is hard to dispute, with the exception of instances when it leads to serious injury. For the majority of participants adventure sports like rock-climbing are very beneficial; however, for an unlucky minority such sports result in permanent injury or even death.
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Writing the Conclusion• 5) Limitations of the report.
Examples:
A limitation of the study was the relatively small sample size. For this reason, these findings cannot be generalized to the broader community based on this study alone.
Source: http://www.monash.edu.au/lls/llonline/writing/general/academic/2.2.xml
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Writing the Conclusion• 6) Recommendations for further work on the
report.– OPTIONAL – Not all reports need this section.– To improve the report, what actions should be taken– E.g. to reduce some of the limitations stated.– E.g. to improve the research methods.– E.g. to increase the number of people surveyed.– E.g. to further investigate some interesting findings.
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Writing the Conclusion• 7) Recommendations regarding the report– Based on the significance and implications of the
research findings, what actions should be taken that would make best use of the report?
Report writing skills are used not only to get marks and pass assignments.
You are mastering the skills to influence the way people think and act in the future!
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• Play Video.– The Power of Words - A very inspirational video
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Any Questions?
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Summary: Week 16 Lecture• Avoiding Homonyms and potential
misunderstandings in writing.• Using Capital Letters correctly.• Using Parallelism in writing to write smooth and
beautiful sentences.• Causes of Writers’ Block and the steps to
address it.• Features and the structure of an Introduction• Features and the structure of a Conclusion
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What to Expect: Week 16 Tutorial• Assignment 3 Check point 1:– Select and form Groups– Agree on the topic of the report with your lecturer
• Students will research information about the report topic and fill in the activity worksheet that will guide them in writing out the introduction chapter of their assignment.
• At the end of the week, students are expected to submit a draft of their assignment 3 chapter 1 to the lecturer for feedback.
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