activity+community+survey+&+report

** Community Project **
 * CGEA Reading and Writing II & III **
 * What is community? **

In biological terms, a community is a group of interacting organisms sharing an environment. In human communities, intent, belief, resources, preferences, needs, risks, and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness. Traditionally a "community" has been defined as a group of interacting people living in a common location. The word is thus often used to mean a group that is organised around common values within a shared geographical location. However, the definition has evolved and been enlarged to mean individuals who share characteristics, regardless of their location or type of interaction. In this sense, "community" can mean a community of interest or an ethnic group. Finally, wider meanings of the word can refer to the national community or global community. What these various meanings have in common is that they refer to the strength of the ties between the group, of whatever nature—cultural, ethnic, or moral—they may be.


 * What is a project?**

A project, as defined in the field of project management, consists of a temporary endeavour undertaken to create a unique product, service or result. More generically, the Oxford English Dictionary suggests that business and science projects involve "a collaborative enterprise, frequently involving research or design, that is carefully planned to achieve a particular aim".


 * What is a Survey?**

A questionnaire or written survey is a simple, productive tool to aid you in obtaining constructive feedback about a topic or event.


 * What is a report?**

In writing, a report is a document characterised by information or other content reflective of inquiry or investigation, which is tailored to the context of a given situation and audience. The purpose of reports is usually to inform. However, reports may include persuasive elements, such as recommendations, suggestions, or other motivating conclusions that indicate possible future actions the report reader might take. Reports can be public or private, and often address questions posed by individuals in government, business, education, and science. Reports often take the structure of scientific investigation: Introduction, Methods, Results and Discussion (IMRAD). They may sometimes follow a problem-solution structure based on the audience's questions or concerns. As for format, reports range from a simpler format with headings to indicate topics, to more complex formats including charts, tables, figures, pictures, tables of contents, abstracts, summaries, appendices, footnotes, hyperlinks, and references.

Types of reports include: scientific reports, recommendation reports, white papers, annual reports, auditor's reports, workplace reports, census reports, trip reports, progress reports, investigative reports, budget reports, policy reports, demographic reports, credit reports, appraisal reports, inspection reports, military reports, etc. How to write a survey

Step 1

Decide what information you want to gather from the survey.

Step 2

Keep the survey as short as possible, asking only those questions that will provide the information you need.

Step 3

Use a casual, conversational style, making the questions easy for almost anyone to understand.

Step 4

Structure the survey so that the questions follow a logical order and evolve from general to specific.

Step 5

Use multiple-choice questions whenever possible. This helps the respondent to better understand the purpose of your question and will reduce the time it takes to complete the questionnaire.

Step 6

Avoid leading questions that might generate false positive responses. For example, the question "How great was the service provided by our excellent waiters?" should be "How was the service provided by our waiters?"

Step 7

Use the same rating scale throughout your survey for questions requiring the respondent to rate items. For example, if the scale is from 1 to 5, with 5 being the most positive, keep that same scale for all of the questions requiring a rating.

Step 8

Test the survey on 10 to 15 people before you produce it for mass distribution. Conduct an interview with each of those respondents after he or she completes the survey to determine if your questions were easily understood and easy to answer.


 * A 10-step Plan of How to Write a Report**

1. Consider the aim of the report and who will read it. 2. Plan your investigational approach. 3. Gather information. 4. Organise the information you have gathered. 5. Analyse the material. 6. Decide your conclusions. 7. Decide your recommendations. 8. Plan your writing. 9. Write your draft. 10. Edit and prepare the final copy.

Basic Report Format

Title Page

Table of Contents

Synopsis/Executive Summary

This tells your reader what the report is about as it describes the topics or issues discussed; indicates the depth of the discussion; as well as providing a summary of the recommendations and reasons for them. It is usually one paragraph of approximately 120 words. Usually this is not included in your word count.

1. Introduction

This tells your reader what you're going to tell them in the body of your report. Your introduction gives the background to the report; why it is useful; what other objectives are; the purpose of the report; the limitations of the report…

2. Discussion

This is where you begin the discussion, outlining relevant facts and events. This is the main body of the report, and format may include headings and sub headings eg:

2.1 Headings 2.1.1 Subheadings

3. Heading

3.1 Headings 3.1.1 Subheadings

4. Conclusion

This is where you give an overview of the material presented in the discussion and an interpretation of the relevant facts and events.

5. Recommendations

These are drawn from your conclusions. Your recommendations outline the specific actions that are required. When detailing your recommendations you may also need to consider who will action them; how they will be measured; and the timeframe for the recommendations. The priority that you place on each recommendation may also be required.

References

A listing of all resources referred to in the report; assembled in author alphabetical order. These are not included in the word count. Refer to Topic 9 of this guide for more detail.

Appendices

The appendices include related materials, if appropriate. These are not included in the word count. These are optional for the reader, that is, the reader can choose whether they refer to them or not.