How to write a report in a few simple steps (or at least what works for me)

We had our NZQA external evaluation and review the other day. I’m still feeling exhausted. I think it went OK, but following comments from the reviewers, one of the things I need to do is update the report writing aspect of my course.

I’ve been putting this off as it’s all going to change shortly because of the NZQA’s targeted review of qualifications. Anyway, I’ve been working on a couple of new resources for our workshop delivery which includes a brief look at how to write a report.

This is important because the first assessment in our course requires candidates to… you guessed it: Write a report.

So here’s what I’ve got. My one is pretty comprehensive, but you have to remember I’m working with tutors doing a level 5 professional development qualification. I wouldn’t use something this detailed with lower level learners.

I’ve updated the template that we use for the writing frame. It looks like this now:

How to write your Task 1 report - NCALNE (Voc) Assessment 1 Report Structure

And then I’ve updated and simplified what I see as the basic writing process which now looks like this:

How to write your Task 1 report - Plan, Compose, Revise, Edit, Submit

These are contextualised for the course that we deliver. However, there’s still a basic underlying format here which is something like this:

  1. Use a visual guide or writing frame that is appropriate for the audience and content.
  2. Give people sentence starters to get them going.
  3. Supply a model.
  4. Teach a simple approach to writing that people can use and reuse.

What do you think?

Author: Graeme Smith

Education, technology, design. Also making cool stuff...

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