report card sorting

1. Your Report:
card sorting activity
A report has clear sections that tell
the reader:
what you did
why and how you did it
what you found out
why that is important
In your groups, can you match the
title of the report section with the
description of what goes in it?
Next, can you decide which section
the sample paragraphs belong to?

2. Summary/Executive Summary/Abstract
• An outline of the study carried out
• A brief reference to previous research done in the
field
• A brief summary of your method
• The main findings and how they relate to the study
• A conclusion that may include a suggestion for
further research

3. Introduction
• The reasons for undertaking the study
• Definitions of any specialised terms in the report
• Assumptions or assertions which were made in the process
• The scope of the investigation (what is covered and what is not)
• A general outline of the structure of the report
• Introducing the reader to the subject area in more detail
• Presents your objectives and hypotheses
• Explains the background to the problem through a literature review

4. Methodology/Methods
• Number of participants
• Apparatus or materials used
• Step by step procedure of how you carried the research out
• State your experimental method
• Detail the kind of data you collected and how you collected it

5. Findings
• What you have read, researched, discovered
• Present an outline of what was found as a result of your study
• Use summary data
• Graphs
• Tables
• Briefly explain the results using clear headings
• Do not discuss the results in this section
• Never present raw data in this section

6. Discussion
Your interpretation of the results
Include
• How your results prove or disprove your hypothesis
• Comparison of your results with other investigations or literature
• Factors which may have influenced your results
• Implications of the results
• A summary of the main results of the study
• An interpretation of the results in relation to the aims, predictions or hypothesis
• An interpretation of the results in relation to the findings of other research in the
area

7. Conclusion
• Present the main findings from the research
• Restate the questions/problems that led to the preparation of the
report
• But don’t restate too much of the report (keep it brief)
• Link back to the purpose of the report
• Lead to recommendations (this can be a separate section):
• Actions to be taken
• Areas to explore further

8. Report Summary/Abstract:
Patenting strategies in the German mechanical engineering industry and their
relationship to company performance
(Ernst, 1995)
This paper systematically evaluates the patenting behaviour of a sample of 50 business firms
within the German mechanical engineering industry. Based on a framework of multiple patenting
indicators, four different types of patenting strategies are identified. Furthermore, the
relationship between these strategies and company performance is analysed. It is shown that
patent-active companies perform best for the economic performance variables used. Finally, the
importance of different patenting indicators is assessed. It is found that the number of
international patent applications, the rate of valid patents and highly cited patents are positively
related to economic performance. Thus, a differentiated use of patent data is advisable.
Materials and methodology
Study outline and area
Results
Concluding statement
Interpretation

9. Introduction
The use of solar water heaters is rapidly increasing in
both homes and businesses, as these heaters provide
an environmentally friendly and cost-effective source of
energy (Tian and Castillo, 2016). However, significant
improvement to heating efficiency is required before
solar water heaters can be used without a
supplementary energy source. Various factors in the
design of the water heater affect how well solar energy
is converted into heat energy, and how effectively the
heat is then transferred to the water. This experiment
investigated two factors affecting the heating efficiency
of solar water heaters: mass flow rate and collector
design. Efficiency of a flat-plate collector was
measured, and the effects of different methods of
welding water tubes to the absorber plate were
compared.
Context
Theory
Aims and objectives

10. Methods
How would the methods section look if you
were writing up your research on the
relationship between university students’
study habits and their levels of anxiety before
exams?
A copy of the adapted survey used in the current study is
available in appendix G. The survey was re-created using a
SharePoint survey form, and was hosted on the internal company
intranet, accessible by a specific URL, as this was the most
efficient way to distribute the survey to a large number of
participants. The survey took approximately five minutes to
complete per respondent (as evidenced in the pilot). The survey
was secured as ‘read-only’ so that no changes could be made by
any respondents, and was configured to prevent participants
submitted multiple responses (and potentially skewing the data).

11. Methods First pour agar into six petri dishes. Then inoculate
the plates with the bacteria. Then put the plates
into the incubator….
Six petri dishes were prepared with agar and
inoculated with the bacteria. The plates were
incubated for ten hours.
This method:
• Uses past tense
• Is clear and concise
• Mentions the materials in the methods
• Should be summary of the methods you used, written in
paragraphs
• Should be written so that others can repeat the experiment
following your method
• Always use past tense
Your methods section will vary
considerably depending on your
subject and the actual research you
are writing up.

12. Results/Findings
• Present the main data, often in graphs, figures or tables
• Use the past tense
• Use a logical order: maybe try using your objectives as a
guide
• Include calculations
• If there is an analysis of the errors or uncertainties, include
them here

13. Discussion
• Comment on the results you obtained
• Interpret what the results mean
• Identify and comment on any trends
• Compare the experimental results with any
predictions
• Suggest explanations for unexpected results
how the experiment could have been improved

14. Have another look at the paragraph from an example discussion. Can you identify where the
following are:
Suggested explanation for unexpected results
Recommendation to overcome limitations
Awareness of and explanation for limitations
Comparison of results with hypothesis or expected results
The aim of this experiment was to identify decomposition rates
of leaf breakdown to establish rates of energy transfer.

15. It was expected that the leaves would show a far higher rate of decomposition
in the shore zone, where there are more chances for sediments to rub against
them. However the two zones show no significant difference in leaf
breakdown, although these results are non-conclusive due to the limitations
of this experiment. The two zones of leaf decomposition were physically too
close, and over the incubation period reeds were observed growing close to
the limnetic zone. This may have negatively affected the accuracy of the
results by reducing the differences in habitat at these sites, as seen in other
experiments (Jones et al. 2017). The results also had large standard
deviations, possibly due to these physical constraints or human error in
weighing leaves. Further studies with more diverse zones and precise
procedures should be undertaken in order to explore leaf decomposition and
rates of energy transfer more effectively.
Comparison of results
with hypothesis or
expected results
Suggested
explanation for
unexpected
results
Awareness of
and
explanation for
limitations
Recommendation
to overcome
limitations

16. The concentration of salicylic acid in
commercially available aspirin tablets was
determined through UV spectroscopy. The
mean concentration from three different tablets
was determined to be 301.1+/-4.36 mg per
tablet, which is within commercially permitted
limits. The results for individual tablets were
found to be dependent on the accuracy of
measurements during the process, and the
purity of the other reagents. Standardised
solutions might further improve the accuracy of
the results. These findings show that analytical
chemistry techniques such as spectrometry can
be used for fast, accurate determination of
compound composition. This is important in
many industries, where consistency is crucial for
effective use of the product, or is vital to the
safety of the product.
Indicates to what extent the
aims of the experiment were achieved.
Elaborates how the aim of experiment was achieved
Summarises the main reasons for any discrepancies and
recommends improvements to overcome experimental
limitations
Briefly recaps key findings
Conclusion