Sample - IT Report - Structure - Research & Learning Online PDF

11/12/2018 IT report: structure - Research & Learning Online
RESEARCH AND LEARNING ONLINE (HTTPS://WWW.MONASH.EDU/RLO)
IT report: structure
This tutorial focuses on the common elements of IT reports. While there are several varieties of reports to suit
specific purposes, most reports have a similar structure. The major components are:
Introduction
Body
Conclusion.
You need to develop the skills to produce a clear, concise, and professionally presented report to succeed
both at university and in your future career. At university, reports are read by lecturers and tutors to assess
your mastery of the subjects and your ability to apply your knowledge to a practical task. In the workplace
reports will be read by managers, clients and other stakeholders.
While reports vary in the type of information they present (for example, original research, the results of an
investigative study or the solution to a design problem), all share similar features and are based on a similar
structure.
Some key features of reports include:
Aims: for quick and easy communication of information

Design: for selective reading
Structure: sections with numbered headings and subheadings
Illustrations: figures and diagrams to convey data
Language: formal and objective.
Most reports have a similar structure:
https://www.monash.edu/rlo/assignment-samples/information-technology/it-report-structure 1/20
Title page
Summary
Table of contents
Introduction
Body of report
Conclusion
Reference list
Appendices
We will use authentic student report samples to illustrate each section.
Title page
A title page is presented on a separate page and should include:
subject name and code

assignment number
title of the report
due date
student’s name and ID#
tutor’s name
course name and number
department and university
date of submission.
The title of the report should indicate exactly what the report is about. The reader should know not only the
general topic, but also the aspects of the topic contained in the report. Therefore, a report title needs to be
specific to the topic. For example, “Reasons for IT to lose its grip on large data” is a better report title than
“Large data in IT”, if the report is focused on why IT loses its grip on large data.
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Summary
Some key points about a Summary:
A Summary, sometimes called an Executive Summary or an Abstract, is usually 100-200 words long for
a short report or a page long for a longer report.
It provides a brief overview of the report by stating the purpose, defining the topic, summarising the
main sections of the report, and stating the conclusion or outcomes.
Most people don’t write an Abstract until they finish writing the report.
It is NOT an introduction to the topic.
Remember that a Summary needs to be concise. A busy manager who might not have time to read the
full report should be able to get the gist of the whole report by reading the Summary.
To be included in a Summary:
topic of the report

outline of the approach to the task if applicable
most important findings of research or key aspects of design
main outcomes or conclusions.
NOT to be included in a Summary:
general background information

in-text citations
reference to later diagrams or references.
A sample of a report Summary and tutor’s feedback is provided here. Note that this is NOT a perfect
example. The sample Summary is from a report entitled "Privacy issues in IT".
Sample of a report Summary
This report is an overview of a peer reviewed journal "The effect of online privacy policy on
consumer privacy concern and trust" by Kuang Wen Wu, Shaio Yan Huang, David C. Yen,
and Irina Popova. The report summarises and analyses these resources.
View the video for feedback
RLO FIT report writing feedback on abstract
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Table of Contents
A table of Contents lists the sections of the report, providing readers with an overview of how the report is
organised. Your choice of headings and subheadings communicates your interpretation of the topics to the
reader. It is presented on a separate page and should include:
section headings
the number of the first page of each section.
The Contents page sets out the sections and subsections of the report and their corresponding page
numbers. It should clearly show the structural relationship between these sections and subsections. A reader
looking for specific information should be able to locate the appropriate section easily from the table of
contents. It is worth noting that few reports are written to be read from start to finish. This why clear structure,
headings and subheadings are so important.
Example:
There are conventions for section and page numbering:
Number the sections by the decimal point numbering system.

Number all the preliminary pages in lowercase Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, iv, ...).
Preliminary pages are any which come before the introduction, including the summary and, where
applicable, acknowledgements.
Section and subsection numbering should not exceed two decimal points.
You don't have to place the number i on the title page. Just count it and put ii on the second page of
your report.
Number all the remaining pages of your report with Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, ...). Thus the report
proper begins on page 1 with your Introduction, which is usually Section 1.
Provide a title in your table of contents to describe the contents of each appendix (Note: one appendix,
two or more appendices). Don't just call them Appendix 1 or Appendix 2.
Activity
Two table of contents samples
Table A Table B
Table A Table B
Which one is the better table of contents?
 Table of contents A 


 Table of contents B 


 Check
View video for feedback
RLO FIT report writing feedback on table of content
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Introduction
An Introduction section provides the background information needed for the rest of your report to be
understood. It is usually around ten percent of the total report length. The Introduction includes:
the background to the topic of your report to set your work in its broad context
a clear statement of the purpose of the report, usually to present the results of your research,
investigation or design
a clear statement of the aims of the project
technical background necessary to understand the report; e.g. theory or assumptions
a brief outline of the structure of the report.
Look at the sample Introduction below. Note that this is not a perfect example. The sample Introduction is
from a report entitled "Keeping employees education level updated with the changing world”. Which aspects
of an ideal Introduction do you find missing?
Sample of an Introduction
The topic we chose for our project is ‘Keeping employees education level updated with the
changing world’. We chose this topic because as we know that the world is changing so fast,
especially the world of information technology which is changing so rapidly that it is hard
to focus on a single thing. From different gadgets to a small piece of software everything is
changing in a small span of time. Things which are new now will become obsolete in two
years. So it is very important for Information Technology professionals to keep themselves
updated with the changing needs because they are the people who are making these
changes possible. If they do not keep themselves up to date with the changing needs they
will be easily replaced by other new professionals who know the current trends. The peer
reviewed journal article that I choose to explore is ‘Keeping up-to-date with information
technology: Testing a model of technological knowledge renewal effectiveness for IT
professionals’ by Guang Rong and Varun Grover.
View the video for feedback
RLO FIT report writing feedback on introduction
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Body of the report

This is the main part of your report, where you present your work. There are some points about the body of a
report which are worth consideration:
It should consist of information which is supported by examples and evidence obtained from your
research.
The information should be presented under appropriate headings and subheadings and should be
ordered in a logical manner to facilitate the reader’s understanding.
In principle, the body of the report:
presents the information from your research, both real world and theoretical, or your design
organises information logically under appropriate headings
conveys information in the most effective way for communication:
Uses figures and tables.
Can use bulleted or numbered lists, but the bulk should be paragraphs made up of full
sentences.
Can use formatting to break up large slabs of text.
You will need to choose concise but informative headings and subheadings so that the reader knows exactly
what type of information to expect in each section. These headings need to be:
Informative
Section headings should tell the reader exactly what type of information is contained in the section. They
should be specific and content-focused rather than just labels. Devising informative headings as
opposed to label headings right from the planning stage will help you to clarify exactly what you want to
achieve in each section and subsection.
In the example below for an article review report, there are comparisons between informative and
uninformative headings.
Informative headings Uninformative headings
Reasons for inclusion Reasoning
Other complementary sources Other sources
Strengths and weaknesses of article Article analysis
Relevance to the audience Audience
Consistent and parallel in structure.
This means that headings should follow a similar grammatical form. In the following example, each
heading is structured differently:
The company structure [noun phrase]
Do the communication channels work? [question]
Participating in groups [gerund phrase]
How to develop an effective management style [instruction phrase]
Usually, it is not difficult to convert such headings to a common form. In this example, all have been
changed to noun phrases. This is the most commonly used format for section headings in an
informational report.
Example: Consistent headings
Company structure
Communication channels
Group participation
Development of an effective management style.
There are conventions for using figures and tables in a report:
Incorporating figures, tables and equations
There are conventions for using figures and tables in a report. Usually only these two categories are
used; anything other than tables (maps, charts, diagrams, drawings, graphs) is called a figure. Figures
and tables should be placed as close as possible to the point where they are referred to in the text.
Give all figures and tables a number and title.
Example
Table 1. Internet subscribers by type of access connection, for ISPs with more than
1,000 subscribers
Refer to each figure and table in the text of the report.
Example
The Internet subscribers by type of access connection, for ISPs with more than 1,000
subscribers are shown in Table 1.
The title of a table goes above the table, while the title of a figure goes below the figure.
Example
Table 1. Internet subscribers by type of access connection, for ISPs with more than
1,000 subscribers (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2016)
Figures that are copied from someone else's work, published or unpublished, must be correctly
referenced. Give the source of the diagram or the data if you have taken them from published sources.
The citation should be placed in brackets after the figure or table title, and the source included in the
References list.
Example
Figure 1 The DGI data governance framework (The Data Governance Institute, 2016)
Equations
You will often have to include equations in your reports. The conventional style for presenting equations
is as follows:
Centre the equation on the page

Place the equation number in round brackets at the right-hand margin
In the text of your report, refer to the equations as either Eq. (1) or equation (1). Use whichever
format you choose consistently throughout your report.
The relationship of the speed of propagation and the volumetric tissue fraction is given
by:
(1)
We can see from Eq. (1) that...
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Conclusion
The Conclusion section provides an effective ending to your report; thus it needs to be written in a concise
manner. The content should relate directly to the aims of the project as stated in the Introduction, and sum up
the essential features of your work.
In brief, the Conclusion section needs to:
summarise the main ideas that have been established in the body of the report
recap key findings
finish the narrative of the report
state to what extent you have achieved your aims
give a brief summary of the key findings or information in your report
highlight the major outcomes of your investigation and their significance.
Therefore, the Conclusion section must not:
include any new information or ideas

simply indicate whether you have achieved your aims.
The following example is the Conclusion of an article review report.
"There has been rapid development and changes in information technology platform, so
the IT professionals must keep themselves updated with the changes so that they can
prosper in their career. Many other researches also shows that knowledge renewal has
become critical issue for the professionals as well as the businesses. The resource chosen is
not very current but they still do justice to the topic by providing important and relevant
information about the issue, which is an important aspect for everybody who are related to
this industry."
Activity
The conclusion above fulfils its function in an article review report
 True  False
 Check
RLO FIT report writing feedback on conclusion
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Reference list
Citing and referencing

You need to reference all source materials referred to in the report using the APA 6th referencing style as
required by FIT. The two parts to referencing are:
citations in the text of the report

references in the reference list.
A citation shows that information comes from another source. The reference list gives the details of these
sources. You need to use in-text citations and provide details in the references section when:
you incorporate information from other sources, e.g.:

factual material
graphs and tables of data
pictures and diagrams
you quote word-for-word from another work (when you do this the page number must be given in the
in-text citation).
Monash FIT students please make sure you check the FIT Style Guide (http://www.monash.edu/it/current-stu
dents/resources-and-support/style-guide) to ensure your citing and referencing are accurate. You will always
be assessed on how well you do this.
Activity
Which of these resources is incorrectly formatted to APA 6th style?
Choose Example A or B to answer the above question
 Example A
 Example B
 Check
Find out more about these incorrect and correct references.
Click 'Turn' to reveal an explanation of the errors in these

references
 Turn
Card 1 of 3 
View the video for feedback and to view the completed and correct reference list
RLO FIT report writing feedback on referencing
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Appendices
An appendix (appendices in the plural) consists of any supporting evidence which is not possible to include in
the body of the report, for example raw data, detailed drawings, coding or calculations. The conventions for
appendices are as follows:
each appendix must be given a number (or letter) and title;

each appendix must be referred to by number (or letter) at the relevant point in the text.
Example:
In text:
The data obtained on perception of social media are summarised below. The detailed data
are given in Appendix 1.
Title of the appendix on the actual appendix page:
Appendix 1. Detailed data obtained on perception of social media.
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11/12/2018 IT report: structure - Research & Learning Online

RESEARCH AND LEARNING ONLINE (HTTPS://WWW.MONASH.EDU/RLO)

Some key features of reports include:

Aims: for quick and easy communication of information

Most reports have a similar structure:

We will use authentic student report samples to illustrate each section.

subject name and code

Some key points about a Summary:

topic of the report

NOT to be included in a Summary:

general background information

Sample of a report Summary

View the video for feedback

RLO FIT report writing feedback on abstract

There are conventions for section and page numbering:

Number the sections by the decimal point numbering system.

Two table of contents samples

Which one is the better table of contents?

View video for feedback

RLO FIT report writing feedback on table of content

View the video for feedback

RLO FIT report writing feedback on introduction

Body of the report

In principle, the body of the report:

Informative headings Uninformative headings

Reasons for inclusion Reasoning

Other complementary sources Other sources

Strengths and weaknesses of article Article analysis

Relevance to the audience Audience

Consistent and parallel in structure.

The company structure [noun phrase]

Do the communication channels work? [question]

Participating in groups [gerund phrase]

How to develop an effective management style [instruction phrase]

Example: Consistent headings

There are conventions for using figures and tables in a report:

Incorporating figures, tables and equations

Give all figures and tables a number and title.

Refer to each figure and table in the text of the report.

Centre the equation on the page

We can see from Eq. (1) that...

In brief, the Conclusion section needs to:

Therefore, the Conclusion section must not:

include any new information or ideas

The following example is the Conclusion of an article review report.

The conclusion above fulfils its function in an article review report

View video for feedback

RLO FIT report writing feedback on conclusion

Citing and referencing

citations in the text of the report

you incorporate information from other sources, e.g.:

Which of these resources is incorrectly formatted to APA 6th style?

Choose Example A or B to answer the above question

Find out more about these incorrect and correct references.

Click 'Turn' to reveal an explanation of the errors in these

View video for feedback

RLO FIT report writing feedback on referencing

each appendix must be given a number (or letter) and title;

Title of the appendix on the actual appendix page:

Appendix 1. Detailed data obtained on perception of social media.

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