Chapter 6: Designing and Writing Reports

PRESENTED BY:
CINDY HERNANDEZ JOSE JIMENEZ KELLY KNOWLES LAUREN O'LEARY EVELYN OLIVAS

Outline
y Chapter Objectives y Technical Reports y Purpose of Reports y Reports v Proposals y Overview of Reports y Types of Technical Reports y Analysis Reports y Progress Reports y Conclusion y Works Cited

Chapter Objective

y Describe the process of creating a document that

reports on past actions

y Provide examples of how to analyze websites and

results from user tests of instructions

y Use these analyses to create reports

Technical Reports

y Aim to document

actions that are largely past oriented

y Specific to the authors

point of view

Purpose of Reports
y Summarizes the activities of the project y Discusses methodologies used during the project y Discusses the finding or results of the activities

performed
y Can detail the money spent on the project if

necessary

Reports v Proposals
Reports
y Mainly focus on actions

Proposals
y Mainly focus on

that have already occurred

documenting actions that will occur in the future

y Can give advice or

recommendations for the future

y Create a blueprint for

future action
y If successful, may initiate

y If successful, may

produce proposals for future work

reports

Overview of Reports
y Address to the audience:
    

What was done Why it was done How it was done What was learned The significance of what was learned Recommendations for future actions

Types of Technical Reports

Analysis Report Progress Report
y Describes reviews and y Critiques a project on a

changes of a project
y Describes what remains

variety of categories
y Makes recommendations

to be completed
y Predicts progress and

for change forecasts completion

Analysis Reports
y Analysis Report Features:
   

Overview Analysis Summary of Analysis Recommendations

y Example


Web Analysis Report (page 75-76)

Progress Reports
y Progress Report Features:
     

Summary of User Usability Results and Discussion of User Usability Test Summary of Revision Checklist Feedback Revisions of Recommendations Semester Forecast Conclusion Appendices

y Example


Instructional Progress Report (page 78-81)

Conclusion
y Reports are past oriented and address:
   

What, why and how it was done What was learned The significance of what was learned Recommendations for the future

y Proposals are future oriented y Types of Reports include:

 

Analysis report Progress report

Works Cited
y Salinas, C. (2010). A Rhetorical Approach to

Designing and Writing Technical Documents. United States of America: Kendall Hunt Publishing Company.