AS 2

Week 16
REPORTS
A report is written document that presents findings of the study or experiment
conducted by an individual. This document requires format depending upon the
institution or company wherein someone works. This document sometimes appears in
different manes and purposes.

PROPOSAL
A proposal is a document that contains a proposed project used in internal and
external purposes. Internal refers to proposal used inside the company where one
works, while external is the proposal used outside the company to persuade clients
and customers to buy their products.
Proposals have different degree of formality. The range is from casual, one-page
memorandums to hundreds of pages long. Despite the differences, these documents
have one common purpose: to offer a solution or action to a problem in a specific way
that goes with a work plan and compensation.

HOW TO WRITE A PROPOSAL

Proposals share a general document structure which consist of four namely
introduction, technical approach, management requirements, and work plan.

Front Matter. This part of proposal contains the letter of transmittal, title page,
summary, table of contents, and list of figures included in the documents.

Body. It is where the proposal is introduced with explanation of identified problem and
where the technical issues are discussed. Objectives of the proposal are also stated
here.

Technical Approach. This is the section of a proposal document where the theory or
approach is discussed as basic in achieving the objectives of the project. Also
explained as part of the technical approach, is the data which will be acquired and the
methods to be used in data analysis.

Management Requirements. The proposed project must be explained clearly

reflecting your capability and confidence to bring a project to completion. Also, a
timetable chart, materials and equipment, and personnel with resumes must be
included.
Work Plan. Project Plan must be presented in this part as well as the feasibility and
recommendation reports.

Conclusions. This part persuades the reader to contact you and to set a meeting with
you to discuss and review your proposal, and to possibly allow your team or firm to
work on your proposed project.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A PROPOSAL
As an essential document in business field, it is important to take note of the
following characteristics of a proposal:
1. It deals with a future.
2. It convinces the reader that there is a problem that needs to be solved.
3. It tells the reader that the best person to solve the problem is the writer of the
proposal.
4. It does not require specific length and has a different degree of formality.
5. It is always a legal offer.

PROGRESS REPORT
Progress report is a document on technical works that are still under the process
of development. It provides an accounting of the work that is done and the future work
that the communicator foresees to be done. This document is required by a company
or a person who wants to get updates on the outgoing project.
Progress report primarily has evaluative purposes. This is essential in identifying
the division of duties and in gathering information that would help to formulate a
managing plan. This also provides the readers a clear representation of what is
already done and what are still to work on. Through this, communicators are able to
focus on the things they need to do and to be able to finish them within the time frame.
For as long as the work is not yet done, all the other reports about a single project are
called progress reports.

There is no fixed format of a progress report because it could be written in a form

of a letter or a memo, if brief enough, or in a report of several pages. It has parts called
transitional introduction which relates to the previous report, prophetic conclusion
which anticipates the future work to done, and the body which contains the
development of the work scribbled in a detailed manner.

HOW TO WRITE A PROGRESS REPORT

Written below is the common form of a progress report.

Introduction. It describes the purpose of the report and talks about the previous work
which includes a summary of the content of the document.
Discussion of Past and Future Works. It includes accounting of the work completed
which tells whether he work goes as planned, accounting of the complexities
encountered with incomplete works, managing plans in problematic areas, and the
assessment and evaluation of the progress to date.

Conclusions and Recommendations. It discusses the plans on how to the tasks are
to be completed.

Week 17
FIELD REPORT

Field Report is a document that describes the findings of an individual in an

assigned agency, company, or institution. This type of writing requires both theory and
analysis with observation and practice.
There are rules that need to be observed in writing field reports:
record in detail the various situations that may arise in actual observation;
analyze your observation constantly to find meanings to your observation;
stay focused on your goals while in the middle of observation; and
observe, record and analyze what you perceive in terms of theoretical
frameworks.

Each institution and agency provides different format of field reports and the
following parts are the common ones that are always present and considered by
experts as the main content:
Main Content Guide Questions
Content of the mission Why did we go?
Calendar of the mission When did we go?
Itinerary followed Where did we go?
Activities done What did we do?
People encountered Who did we meet?
Difficulties encountered Problems?
Mission Findings What did we find?
Infractions observed What illegalities were made?

HOW TO WRITE A FIELD REPORT

Introduction. It is a description of your activities (what), your location (where), your

schedule of observation and immersion (when), and other information needed to
describe the task assigned to you.

Methodology. It is the part that explains how you carried out and measured the
parameters of the experiments.
Results or Data Presentation. It is where the results are described based on the
presented data.

Interpretation and Analyses. The part of the field report where the target the
measurement is defined and the object of interest is elucidated as to how the
presented data are to be utilized.

Summary and Conclusion. It is the summary of the findings of ones experiment and
not a repetition of the abstract.

References. List of references used to support your claims in the report.

SCIENTIFIC REPORT

A scientific report is a document that explains the process, progress, and results
of scientific research that includes conclusions and recommendations to problem
studies based on its results.
This part explains the systematic format of experimental research commonly used
in scientific disciplines, the IMRAD style: Introduction, Methods, and Discussions.
Details vary depending on the type of experiment one is working on although the
main heading is always in standard form. Also, one must take note that the use of
IMRAD format exceptions.

HOW TO WRITE A SCIENTIFIC REPORT

Title. This is a part where the contents are described clearly to allow the readers to
decide whether to continue reading the article or not.

Abstract. It contains the main objectives, methods, results, and the conclusions and
significance of the study. Its length may vary from 50 to 300 words and includes only
the key points from each section.

Introduction. It describes the problem investigated and summarized relevant studies

to provide concepts and key terms so the readers would understand and experiment.
This part is essential for it provides the rationale and relevant reviews needed to
understand the existing problem and how it will be resolved through the experiment.
Also, it presents the brief description of the experiment including the hypotheses and
research questions, the design and method used, and the justification of alternative
method if there is any.

Method section. This part explains the scientific procedure used in the experiment
and the materials used such as chemicals, experimental animals, among others and
the reason of utilizing them. Other tips to be noted are:
a. write the procedures chronologically;
 b. use past tense to describe the procedure;

c. provide details for replication; and

d. quantify if necessary.

Results section. This section contains the description of methods stated in a

sentence or two supported by most common representative and the best example of
the exception. In writing this part, make sure to include the results logically from simple
to complex; organ by organ or chemical class. Remember not to repeat the table data
and not to mix results with procedures done in the experiment.

Discussion section. At the beginning of this part, it is necessary to summarize the

findings of the experiment. Also, relate the result to expectations and to literature cited
in the introduction part of the report. Present the results describing their relationship
with the patterns and principles of the experiment ad explain the agreements and
contradictions encountered during the course of the study.

References. It pertains to a list of all the sources referred to and must conform to the
conventions of the system used in writing the sources. It is written on separate pages
with the heading REFERENCES.

GUIDE TO WRITING A SCIENTIFIC PAPER

Writing an academic text, particularly scientific report is not easy. You need to
apply some techniques to be able to produce a good one. Dividing the parts of a report
and taking it step-by-step is one of the strategies a writer may do to accomplish this
writing task. Take note of the following steps to do in formulating your own paper:
1. As your starting point, summarize the goal of the study and the state how you
accomplished that goal in one to two paragraphs.

2. In not more than four findings, elucidate them one by one. Each finding must be
summarized and must explain whether it confirms or not what is described in the
related literature.

3. The next part must deal with the outcomes of the study. From the least to the most
important result, explain how significant they are in the field of science. Make sure
to include proper citations in case you will base your explanation to any published
article.
4. Add other important details gained in the study to make the argument of the paper
stronger. These other details serve as evidences that will support the findings you
discussed in the field state it in this part.

Wrap-up the paper through stating the conclusion with a phrase on the major finding of
your study and the benefit or contribution it could give to the future studies and/or to
mankind.

Week 18
QUESTIONNAIRE

A questionnaire is a set of questions used to gather information from individuals.

These questionnaires could be conducted in the form of hand-outs, telephone, or
personal interview. It must be well-designed for a researcher to get valid response. It
could be used in evaluation when resources are limited and in case you need data
from several participants when gathering intangible data such as knowledge, beliefs,
attitudes and behaviors, and when protecting the privacy of selected people. The
following are two main objectives of designing a questionnaire:
1. To maximize the response rate of the participants and
2. To obtain accurate and relevant information for the survey.

Considering the way questionnaires will be administered, establishing rapport,

explaining the purpose of the survey, and making follow-ups to those who have not yet
responded will help maximize the response rate. Aside from what have been
mentioned, the appropriate length of the questionnaire must also be taken into
consideration to get sufficient response from the subjects. AccurPate relevant
information will only be gained if the purpose will be discussed and if the questions
included are written and arranged in the most understandable way.

HOW TO DEVELOP A QUESTIONNAIRE

To become successful in all things, you must carefully plan so you know the
course of action you will take to get into the goals you set. Same in applied in designing
a questionnaire; you start with a thorough planning. This is the part where you have to
consider three things:
1. Defining objectives:
2. Selecting the number and type of participants for the questionnaire: and
3. Developing questions that clearly communicate what you want to know.

In defining objectives, you have to know how you are going to use the
information that you will get in answering the evaluation questions. This part is
considered the most critical part of planning for questionnaires but taking time to study
your goals will reduce the possibility of getting invalid information.
 Select the number of participants for the questionnaires means defining your
objectives. As such, the topic dictates who will be the participants and how many
possible participants will be needed in the course of the study. For an instance, you
happen to be working on a thesis ad your topic concerns teachers. Naturally, you will
be targeting educators as your participants. By choosing the right persons, it assures
you that you will get the right information you need in your paper.

A good questionnaire communicates what you want to know when it is

developed clearly and carefully studied. It has to be written in simple words avoiding
abbreviations, jargons, and colloquial phrases.

WHAT IS QUESTION APPRAISAL SYSTEM?

The Question Appraisal System (QAS-99) is a method used to identify and to fix
communication issues in a questionnaire before using it in formal administration. In
other words, it is a preliminary test of the questionnaire to check if the intended
subjects understand and respond to it appropriately.
The following is a brief overview of questionnaires which answers questions such
as when to use it, how to plan and develop it, and what are its advantages and
disadvantages:

Include demographic questions.

Demographic questions such as sex, education, and where the subject lives
are usually included in questionnaires. Take note that the demographic
questions must only be limited to what you need in your survey.

Place questions in a logical arrangement.

Questions must start with general to particular, factual to abstract, or easy to

difficult. Arrange questions in a way that will make sense to the chosen
subjects.

Do the pilot testing of the questionnaire.

Before administering the questionnaire, it must be tested first to find out if the
subjects will understand the questions, if it will provide the data you need for
your paper and if it will be accomplishes within the allotted time using the same
number of participant you intend to conduct the questionnaire. It means your
 questionnaire will get the appropriate response you need in your actual pilot
testing.

Know when to use closed-ended versus open-ended questions.

In designing a questionnaire, you have to decide what kind of questions to use

in order to survey the information you need. Closed-ended questions include
list of answers in which the participant can choose from while open-ended
questions give the participants the liberty to write answers in their own words.

Questionnaires must be designed carefully to get sufficient response needed in

the study. As you develop it, make sure to give attention to individual questions to
make sure its relevance to the topic, to the arrangement of the questions, and to the
general layout of the questionnaire. Personalized cover letter will also help to
communicate the message of the study. Never forget to have pilot testing for the
questionnaire to be evaluated before employing to the actual survey.