How to write a report of a session Charlotte Hanlon

Reporting what? Conference sessions Consensus meetings Expert panels / round-table discussions Public debates Departmental meetings

The big 5 Where? When? Who? What are the objectives? What has been achieved?

Learning by doing… More of an art Improve with practice Important skill Room for different styles

Some tips Try to prepare What are the specific objectives? Who / what is the report for? Names of participants (seating plan) Functioning pens, plenty of paper

More tips Difficult to ‘report’ if you are an active contributor Engage with the discussion – eye contact New point, new line Don’t delay the writing up

What to report Capture the meaning rather than verbatim ‘the message not the words’ Try to capture the tone E.g. ‘There was heated discussion…’ Be aware of your interpretation Double-check with chair and presenter

Summarising this session (on summarising a session) Practice E.g. summarising what you have read Copy other good people