1. Writing a Report and Referencing your Resources
EIT, Author Gay Robertson, 2017

2. What is a Report?
A report is a statement of the results of an investigation of any matter from which definite information is required (Oxford English Dictionary)
A report is written for a clear purpose and to a particular audience
Specific information and evidence are presented, analysed and applied to a particular problem or issue
The information is presented in a clearly structured format making use of sections and headings so that the information is easy to locate and follow and is professional in its presentation
Report writing is an essential skill for professionals in almost every field

3. So, why do we write reports?
To present findings and results
To keep records
To tell about failures and successes
To tell the progress of the project/research
What is a good report?
One that meets the needs of the readers
One that answers the questions
One that is at the right level for readers
One that has a clear and logical structure

4. Report Brief
When you are asked to write a report you will usually be given a report brief which provides you with instructions and guidelines
The report brief may outline the purpose, audience and problem or issue that your report must address, together with any specific requirements for format or structure

5. Purpose Reports often have 3 main aims:
To give a straightforward, clearly-structured account of an issue
To answer a question
To offer solutions to a problem or recommendations for action

6. Milestones
A brief may include milestones that must be reached before progress can be made on the report
This is an example of a report requiring milestones to be met

7. Referencing
When you are writing a piece of work and use someone else's words or ideas you must reference them
You must acknowledge the source of any information to avoid plagiarism
This means that you need to include detailed information on all sources consulted, both within your text (in-text citations) and at the end of your work (URLs, reference list or bibliography)
To validate what you are writing, by referring to documented evidence – a published work for instance can be used to support your argument and add credibility to your findings
Another way to understand referencing is to think of an analogy - when you buy designer clothes there is usually a label attached to say who made them; this brand identity is like an author of a book

8. What is plagiarism?
Plagiarism is the taking of another person's ideas, writings or inventions and using them as your own; put bluntly it is referred to as 'academic theft’
This is a serious offence and should not be taken lightly
Re-wording / paraphrasing another person's work without citing the source is also considered plagiarism

9. Okay, let’s go use the workbook