Compare your report to the assignment requirements to ensure it meets expectations.

Learning Goal: I’m working on a english exercise and need an explanation and answer to help me learn.Students are assigned to write a report, it can seem like an intimidating process.Fortunately, if you pay close attention to the report prompt, and give yourself plenty of time toresearch your topic, you might actually find that it is not so bad. After you gather yourresearch and organize it into an outline, all which is left is to write out your paragraphsand proofread your paper before you hand it in!Part1Part1 The Topic1Read the report prompt carefully.If your professor gave you guidelines for your report, makesure you read them thoroughly to make sure you understand the assignment. The prompt givesyou information, that your report should be informative, who your audience should be, and anyissues your report should address.The guidelines will also tell you the requirements for the structure and format of yourreport.If you have any questions about the assignment, speak up as soon as possible. That way,you do not start working on the report, only to find out you have to start over becauseyou misunderstood the report prompt.2The topic should be as specific as possible.If you write about too broad of a topic, your reportwill seem disorganized, since you will be trying to cover too much information all at once.However, your topic should not be so narrow that you cannot find anything to write about. Try tofind one aspect of the topic that has many supporting details, and then narrow it down as youstart researching.For instance, if you wanted to do your report on World Fairs, then you realize that thereare way too many of them to talk about, you might choose one specific world fair, suchas the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, to focus on.However, you would not necessarily want to narrow it down to something too specific,like “Food at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition,” since it could be hard tofind sources on the subject without just listing a lot of recipes Include a variety ofreputable sourcesin your paper.If the report guidelines give you anumber of sources to use, or a limit on how many of a specific type of source you can use, besure to follow those guidelines carefully. No matter how good your writing is if you do notsource your report properly, you will not get good feedback. Any sources you need should beauthoritative, like books, newspapers, or scholarly articles written on the subject.If you do not have guidelines on how many sources to use, try to find 1-2 reputablesources for each page of the report.Sources can be divided into primary sources, like original written works, court records,and interviews, and secondary sources, like reference books and reviews.Databases, abstracts, and indexes are considered tertiary sources, and can be used to helpyou find primary and secondary sources for your report. If you’re writing a business report, you may be given some supplementary materials,such as market research or sales reports, or you may need to compile this informationyourself. (This is considered Tertiary sources, which will not be used in thisassignment).2Visit the school’s library online first if you are writing a report for school.Even if you areallowed to use online sources, the best place to start doing research is the library. Visit yourschool’s library or a public library in your area. Search the library’s database to gain access tobooks, scholarly journals, periodicals, and other sources that might not be available online.Librarians are an excellent resource when you are working on a report. They can help youfind books, articles, and other credible sources.Often, an instructor will limit how many online sources you can use. If you find most ofthe information you need in the library, you can then use your online sources fordetails that you could not find anywhere else.Tip:Writing a report can take longer than you think!Do not put off your research until thelast minute, or it will be obvious that you did not put much effort into the assignment.3Use only scholarly sources if you do online research.Since anyone can write something andput it online, it can be hard sometimes to sift through all of the material on the internet to findauthoritative sources. To ensure you are getting high-level sources, start by using an academicsearch engine, like Google Scholar, Lexis Nexis, or your school’s recommended search engine,which may require a username and password.Examples of authoritative online sources include government websites, articles written byknown experts, and publications in peer-reviewed journals that have been publishedonline.4Cross-reference your sources to find new material.Often, if you come across an article on thesubject you’re researching, you can use the sources that the author used to help you with yourown report. For instance, if you are reading an article that mentions a previous publication on thesame subject, see if you can find that one as well. You might find some new information that willhelp you have a better understanding of your subject.If you are using a book as one of your sources, check the very back few pages. That isoften where an author will list the sources they used for their book.5Keep thorough notes as you research, including citation information.If you find somethinghelpful in a book, article, or another source, write down everything you might want to rememberfor your report. Then, write down all of the information you can find on the source, including theauthor, the date of the publication, the page number, and the publisher. This will help you easilycreate your bibliography later, since the citation information will be listed right in your notes.Remember to number each page of your notes, so you don’t get confused later about whatinformation came from which source!Remember, you will need to cite any information that you use in your report; however,exactly how you do this will depend on the format that was assigned to you.6Use your research to help you craft athesis statement.As you are researching your paper,you should notice a main theme emerging in your notes. Use this theme to write a strong thesisstatement for your report. Your thesis statement should summarize what you want to prove inyour report for your reader, and all of the body paragraphs should tie back to this idea.For most reports, your thesis statement should not contain your own opinions. However,if you are writing a persuasive report, the thesis should contain an argument that youwill have to prove in the body of the essay.An example of a straightforward report thesis (Thesis 1) would be: “The three main hallsof the Panama-Pacific International Exposition were filled with modern creations ofthe day and were an excellent representation of the innovative spirit of the Progressiveera.”A thesis for a persuasive report (Thesis 2) might say: “The Panama-Pacific InternationalExposition was intended as a celebration of the Progressive spirit, but actuallyharbored a deep racism and principle of white supremacy that most visitors chose toignore or celebrate.”7Organize your notes into an outline.Once you’ve decided on the thesis statement for yourreport, it’s time to start organizing your notes into the main structure you’ll use for your report.Begin with your thesis statement, then pick 3 or 4 major ideas related to your thesis statementthat you will want to cover in your essay. Write down details from your notes that support eachof those main ideas. The purpose of an outline is to help you to visualize how your essay willlook. You can create a straightforward outline list.Try to organize the information from your notes so it flows together logically. Forinstance, it can be helpful to try to group together related items, like important eventsfrom a person’s childhood, education, and career, if you’re writing a biographicalreport.Example main ideas for Thesis 1: Exhibits at the Court of the Universe, Exhibits at theCourt of the Four Seasons, Exhibits at the Court of Abundance.Tip:It can help to create your outline on a computer in case you change your mind as you’removing information around.3Writing the First Draft1Format the report according to the guidelines you were given.It can be helpful to format thefont, margins, and spacing of your report before you start writing it, rather than trying to gothrough and set it all up at the end. Then, as you are writing out paragraphs, go ahead and put ina citation every time you include information from one of your sources. That way, you do notforget to do it after you are finished.]Try to follow any formatting instructions to the letter. If there are not any, opt forsomething classic, like 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced lines, and 1in(2.5cm) margins all around. You will usually need to include a Works Cited page atthe end of the report that lists any sources you used.2State your thesis in the introduction.Your introduction is where you introduce your topic andstate your thesis. Your introductory paragraph should be engaging, since you want the reader tobe interested in reading the rest of your report. You should provide some backgroundinformation on your topic, and then state your thesis (in the last few sentences) so that thereader knows what the report is going to be about.Example Intro for Thesis 1: “The Panama-Pacific International Exposition (PPIE) of1915 was intended to celebrate both the creation of the Panama Canal, and thetechnological advancements achieved at the turn of the century. The three main hallsof the PPIE were filled with modern creations of the day and were an excellentrepresentation of the innovative spirit of the Progressive era.”3Start each paragraph in the body of the report with a topic sentence.The body paragraphsare where you state the evidence that supports your thesis. Each body paragraph consists of atopic sentence and evidence supporting the topic sentence. The topic sentence introduces themain idea of the body paragraph and links the paragraph back to the thesis. Typically, youshould present the most important or compelling information last to leave a lastingimpression.Example topic sentence for Thesis 1: At the PPIE, the Court of the Universe was theheart of the exposition and represented the greatest achievements of man, as well asthe meeting of the East and the West.Tip:Assume that your reader knows little to nothing about the subject. Support your facts withplenty of details and include definitions if you use technical terms or jargon in the paper.4Support each topic sentence with evidence from your research.After you write your topicsentence in the body paragraph, provide evidence found in your research that supports your topicsentence. Incorporate this research using a mixture of paraphrases and direct quotes. By linkingthe text of each body paragraph to the topic sentence, you will keep your report well-organized,and it will flow better.Paraphrasing means restating the original author’s ideas in your own words, with theauthor cited. On the other hand, a direct quote means using the exact words from theoriginal source in quotation marks, with the author cited.For the topic sentence listed above about the Court of the Universe, the body paragraphshould go on to list the different exhibits found at the exhibit, as well as proving howthe Court represented the meeting of the East and West.Use your sources to support your topic, but do not plagiarize. Always restate theinformation in your own words. In most cases, you will get in serious trouble if youjust copy from your sources word-for-word. Also, be sure to cite each source as youuse it, according to the formatting guidelines you were given (paraphrases and directquotes).5Follow your evidence with commentary explaining why it links to yourthesis.Commentaries are your own ideas and/or examples about your topic and the evidence(remember to write in 3rd person). Analyze the evidence to explain how it supports the ideaspresented in your topic sentence, and then clearly link it back to your thesis. This helps thereader follow your train of thought, which makes your argument stronger.Your commentaries need to be at least 1-2 sentences long. For a longer report, you maywrite more sentences for each piece of commentary.6Summarize your research in the conclusion paragraph.This paragraph both summarizes yourthesis again and provides your final thoughts on your topic. It should reiterate to the reader whatthey should be taking away from your report, and should reinforce the significance of theinformation you have presented.]Avoid presenting any new information in the conclusion. You do not want this to be a“Gotcha!” moment. Instead, it should be a strong summary of everything you havealready told the reader.Part4Revising Your Report1Scan the report to make sure everything is included and makes sense.Read the report frombeginning to end, trying to imagine that you are a reader that has never heard this informationbefore. Pay attention to whether the report is easy to follow, and whether the point you aremaking comes across clearly. Also, look for whether your evidence supports your thesis.A good question to ask yourself is, “If I were someone reading this report for the firsttime, would I feel like I understood the topic after I finished reading?Tip:If you have time before the deadline,set the report aside for a few days. Then, come backand read it again. This can help you catch errors you might otherwise have missed.2Check carefully for proofreading errors.No matter how good your information is your reportwill seem amateur and messy if it is full of spelling, grammar, or punctuation errors. Writingyour report in a word processor with a built-in spell checker can help you catch mistakes as youare writing, but there is no substitution for thorough proofreading.Try reading the report to yourself out loud. Hearing the words can help you catchawkward language or run-on sentences you might not catch by reading it silently.3Read each sentence from the end to the beginning.No matter how carefully you think youhave read through your report, sometimes you can accidentally skim over text that you havealready read several times. After you have finished proofreading your report, try reading it again,but this time, read it backward. Start with the last sentence of the report, then the one before that,and so on.This is a great trick to find spelling errors or grammatical mistakes that your eye wouldotherwise just scan over.4Have someone else proofread it for you.Having a second pair of eyes can be helpful when youare proofreading, especially after you have already read the report several times. If you can findsomeone willing to proofread the report for you, ask them to point out any spelling mistakes,grammatical errors, and awkward language, as well as whether your point is clear. Ask yourhelper questions like, “Do you understand what I am saying in my report?” “Is there anythingyou think I should take out or add?” And “Is there anything you would change?”5Compare your report to the assignment requirements to ensure it meets expectations.All ofyour hard work deserves to be rewarded; so, do not risk losing points because you did not dothe assignment correctly. Go through the assignment checklist or rubric to make sure yourpaper meets the requirements for full credit.If you have any questions about the assignment requirements, ask your instructor. It isimportant to know how he or she will be grading your assignment.******************************************************************************Report Essay #2 Instructions:Carefully read Chapter 12 in the textbook, which provides in detail guidelines for writing areport essay. In addition, carefully read the report essay example in Chapter 63 titled “Homelesson Campus” by Eleanor J. Bader. The writing prompt for this assignment is #5 on page 769.Finally, carefully read all related material posted on D2L, including the instructions above.Remember:1) Use the format provided in the supplements “Critical Reading” and “Essay Structure”2) Write 2 – 3 pages using MLA format. Use descriptions and examples to support your points;this will help you meet the page requirement3) Essay must include a minimum of one source (one source must be from the assigned reading)and a Works Cited page4) Proofread each paragraph for any errors and correct those errors.5) Follow Essay #2 Grading RubricRequirements: 2-3 Full Pages Times New Roman Size 12 Font Double-Spaced MLA Format Excluding the Works Cited Page | .doc filePlease be sure to include an introduction with a clear thesis statement along with a conclusionPlease be sure to carefully follow the instructionsNo plagiarism & No Course Hero & No Chegg. My professor will be submitting the paper to TurnitinInclude at least one in-text citation for each paragraph along with page numbers corresponding to the information that you are discussing
Requirements: 2-3 Full Pages Times New Roman Size 12 Font Double-Spaced MLA Format Excluding the Works Cited Page