This blog is meant to guide you with preparations for creating a proposal for your Formal Report.
Before reading this blog please be sure to read the assigned pages on The Research Process.
Below you will find:
- A brief discussion on asking the right questions & pursuing a balanced view
- A brief discussion on primary sources for research
- Procedures for preparing your proposal
Asking the right question: after reading the chapters on the research process and Formal Reports you need to consider your experiences in one of these environments: the workplace, as a volunteer, a parent, a student, a concerned citizen, and identify a system or procedure that is problematic in some way: inefficient, not-profitable, environmentally dangerous, unhealthy, or some other similar category relevant to the situation you choose. You begin with a problem that needs a solution.
- What questions do you need to ask in order to investigate the causes and history of the problem?
- What questions do you need to ask for an analysis on the best ways to solve the problem?
While you are brainstorming be sure to consider your audience right from the beginning – who is your reader? The most common error in proposals is omitting this most important element. Your reader(s) needs to be someone (or an organization) who has the authority and ability to follow your recommendations for solving the problem or improving the situation.
Always consider your readers needs first! And, always consider your reader(s) to be busy people.
So, First question I will have, as the reader of your proposal is: What is the problem?
The second question I will have as the reader of your proposal is: Who has the power or authority to fix the problem? In other words, who will be the reader(s) of your Formal Report.
The purpose of the proposal for a Formal Report to your instructor is to clearly indicate your ideas and intentions for approval before you begin researching and drafting your report.
The ultimate purpose of your Final Formal Report (due at the end of term) is to make a list of detailed recommendations based on an analysis of primary data that you collect (surveys, observations, interviews) to a reader with the authority to act on those recommendations.
NOTE: Give particular attention to the example of a letter of transmission in the textbook. For the Final Report assignment, you will need to address your report to specific readers; not to your instructor. Remember your definition assignment and take into careful consideration your reader.
Follow the example of a proposal on page 538 – 539 in the textbook.
Take a look at the example of a conclusion for a formal report on pages 510 – 511 in the textbook and you will see that the final goal of a Formal Report is to provide a list of recommendations for fixing the problem.
Primary sources for research: carefully review the sections in our text that discuss primary sources (140) and consider what types of data gathering you can use for the topics you are brainstorming. You will need to schedule yourselves accordingly; gathering data via interviews and surveys is time consuming and designing your interview questions and/or surveys will become a priority once you have settled on your topic for of investigation and your proposal has been approved.
** Be sure to check the comment box of your Proposal page to see my approval or suggestions for improvements.
Surveys, Interviews and observations are your primary research methods. Collecting these data is time consuming so you will want to schedule yourselves accordingly – now. Please carefully review the requirements for surveys and interviews.
When you create your survey, research ethics require an introduction to the survey/ interview that
1] In the case of surveys – assure your participants confidentiality and autonomy
2] Clearly states the purpose of the survey and that participation is voluntary
3] Describes the amount of time required to complete the survey
4] Thank your participants
Procedures for preparing your report: The list of steps for researching the analytical report (p. 150) is an excellent way to begin. I encourage you to use this list when you organize your report.
As always, please feel free to ask any questions or alert me to any confusions via our CHAT or personal email message. Thank you and enjoy.
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