Writing the Polling Report

By now you have completed your graphs/polls. It is now time to begin writing about them.

Section #1:

1. State the problem
2. Explain why it is a problem

This is the paragraph in which you explain the who, what, where, when, and why.

Section #2

This is the paragraph that you begin to discuss the results of your polls. I do not want you to explain them yet, however. Just tell me what the results are for the most important graphs. Be sure not to give both percentages, though. Only give the percentage that expresses the point of view that you wish to communicate.

Section #3

This is the paragraph that you begin to analyze the data. In the last paragraph you discussed the data, here you begin to interpret the data.

Section #4

Here, you begin to use the open-ended questions from your survey. Go through your surveys and find the most interesting/important comments. These comments should have something to do with a possible solution to your research problem.

Section #5

The closing: In this section you will recap your findings in a short, concise manner (don't forget the who, what, where, when, why and how).

Basically, you need to recap each paragraph in one sentence. Use the following list to help:

1. state the problem/why it is a problem
2. the most important finding
3. explain that finding
4. offer a possible solution to the problem

Here is an example of my polling report:

At Intermediate School 93 in Ridgewood, New York, students are in possession of a personal laptop. These laptops are considered their own while on school property; however, students are not allowed to take these laptops home. This is frustrating to some of the students because many believe that the laptops would have a greater benefit on their education if they were to be taken home.

I surveyed 100 students from grades 6,7, and 8 on the week of April 12th, 2007. Of those surveyed, 95% believe that students should be allowed to take their laptops home. Furthermore, the data shows that 98% of those surveyed say they would use the laptops to complete school work while at home. 78% say there was not enough time to finish class work and 56% say they have problems transferring files between their home/library and school. This result is important because even while 55% of students have a computer at home, if a student cannot access their school files, those computers are essentially worthless.

With that said, many students do not have a computer at home (45%), if students were allowed to take the laptops home, this would give them a means to complete their schoolwork. Likewise, if the students were allowed to take the laptops home, many say this will make them more responsible as a student (60%). In this manner, students will be able to have the responsibility of taking care of the laptops and will, as a consequence, allow teachers to trust students more.

Of the 100 people surveyed, many offered possible solutions to this problem. One respondent said that “Students could be allowed to take the laptops home for a trial period. At the end of the trial period, an assessment should be given. If the laptops are in good condition and it seems that students are being responsible, a decision could be made to allow students to take home the laptops on a more permanent basis.” This might prove as an efficient way to see of students are serious about this commitment.

Many believe that in not allowing students to take their laptops home, their academics are being adversely affected. 95% of the students surveyed feel that they should be allowed to take their laptops home. Likewise, most students believe that being allowed to take the laptops home will, in turn, make them more responsible. A possible solution to this problem is to give students their laptops on a trial basis. Give the students the chance to prove themselves.

The Polling Report

Alongside the use of bar graphs and pie charts, you will be required to verbally explain the data. Here is a list of some information that will help you to do just that!

Features of a polling report:

• Usually quite brief


• General introduction with brief explanation of survey process, most interesting/important results at the beginning, followed by other results grouped by topic


• The tone is generally neutral, though occasionally writers note inconsistencies and/or raise new questions
  
  
  1. What to Include. What is important to report? What is significant?
  2. How to Begin. What will be most interesting/important to the audience?
  3. How to Organize. Which pieces of information connect with which other pieces of information? What is the most logical part?
  4. How to Use the Open-Ended Responses. Which comments would add to the readers’ understanding of the information? Which comments are most interesting? Which ones might be used at the beginning, to hook the readers’ attention? Which would be most useful at the end, to give the reader a sense of completion.

Checklist:

1. ___I presented the major findings of my poll of people’s opinions about this issue.



2. ___I included an introduction that told my reader what issue I was exploring, who I surveyed, and how I collected my data.



3. ___I organized the results of my poll so that they are presented logically and clearly for my reader.



4. ___I included at least one graph to dramatize public opinion.



5. ___I explained the significance of my graphs within the text of my paper.



6. ___I included some of the responses to my open-ended questions as well as those from forced-choice and rank-order questions.

Bar Graphs and Pie Charts

Task: For each forced-choice question within your survey, you will be constructing a bar graph or pie chart within a new document entitled "polling report."


Microsoft Word:
Insert - Picture - Chart

Spring Break Homework

Overview: Over the break you are required to read a book and complete a reader response on that book. On top of that, you are going to have to give a 2-3minute presentation in which you describe your book and discuss how your "artistic representation" relates to that book. See the task below for more information on the reader's response and the oral presentation.

Reader Response.

TASK: Complete a reader response for the book you read over break. It must include the following:

Information about the book:

• Title, author, genre and number of pages

A summary of the text which includes the conflict and enough infomration to demonstrate you understood what you have read. It should not give away the ending of the story.

• For nonfiction, your summary should demonstrate that you know what the text was about. You may choose two or three interesting things tha tyou learned and tell why they were important.

A response to the text that answers one or more of the following:

• What do you like/dislike about the way the text was written?
• How did the text make you feel?
• What do you remember most about the text?
• What does the text remind you of?

For nonfiction, your response might include what made the text interesting. It could also include how the author put the information together that made it easy or difficult for you to understand.

A recommendation that tells who else should consider reading this book

In order to receive a grade of "Exceeds Expectations," you must include a quote or excerpt from the text. It might do one of the following:

• Reflect a significant part of the text
• Contain an example of interesting language use by the author

ORAL PRESENTATION

When you come back from break, along with your reader response, you will be required to give an oral presentation on one of the following:

Draw or illustrate two or more of the following story elements:
· Main characters – choose any one or group of characters
· Settings
· An important event
· Parts of plot – beginning, climax, end

Design a poster that will advertise or “sell” your book

Using pictures from magazines, newspapers, etc., design a collage that represents an important aspect of your book

Write a poem about the book

Create and illustrate a timeline of your book

Executive Summary: A Sample Interview With Mr. Wright

Q-1: Have many students, parents, and teachers asked you to allow students to take laptops home? What are some of the common reasons you hear?

• Response to Q-1

Q-2: What do you mean by "out-of-the-box?"

• Response to Q-2

Q-3: What are some of the reasons that students cannot take home the laptops?

• Response to Q-3

Q-4: Is there a possibility that sometime in the future laptops will be allowed to leave the building?

• Response to Q-4

Q-5: Some laptops have left the building? I didn't know that. What would have to take place in order for more classes to have this privilege?

• Response to Q-5

Q-6: Many students are unable to quickly complete their work for classes because their work is on their laptops. What suggestions can you give these students for completing their work more quickly?

• Response to Q-6

Q-7: Are you saying that teachers should avoid assigning work that requires programs that students may not have at home?

• Response to Q-7

Close-Ended, Open-Ended and Probing Questions

Over the past week or so we have been discussing the use of close-ended, open-ended and probing questions. So lets recap:

Close-ended questions: These questions are questions that can be answered with only one word. That is not to say that they have to answered in one word, only that the interviewee can answer it in one word and have that answer make sense. For example, if I were to ask someone if they liked the Yankees, they could respond with one word: yes. I did not ask them to elaborate at all.

Open-ended questions: These questions, unlike close-ended questions, ask the interviewee to elaborate (and you cannot answer them with only one word). After you ask the person if they like the Yankees, you might follow that with: Why do you like the Yankees? Instead of a yes or no response, the interviewer has to explain why.

Probing questions: These are the kind of questions that you cannot make before an interview. Probing questions, like open-ended questions, ask the interviewee to elaborate on something they previously said. Say, for example, the interviewee said in answer to the previous open-ended question, that they really like the Yankees work ethic. A probing question might then be something like: What do you mean by work ethic?

Probing questions make the interviewee explain their opinions. Remember, you need to get as much information from this interview as possible and probing questions will help to make that possible.

The basic setup for an interview is as follows:

Close-ended question
Open-ended question
Probe

Close-ended question
Open-ended question
Probe

Close-ended question
Open-ended question
Probe

You might not be able to probe every response, just as you might not start with a close-ended question, so you need to stay flexible and “role with the punches.”

Reading an interview is like eavesdropping though print, allowing us not only to hear the answers to a series of questions but to get a sense of a person as well. For this reason, interviews are one of the most popular forms of general reading. For writers, they hold yet another appeal: They provide easy access to lots of information.

Interview skills are research skills. In order to prepare for an interview, writers must explore a topic enough to establish their own credibility and identify the information needed. They must then identify useful information and formulate questions that will inspire them to reveal what they know.

Interview skills are formal conversation skills.

For young writers, interviews are opportunities to interact with people whom they might not normally meet and to explore a more formal use of oral language than conversations with peers.

In this part of the executive summary genre study, you will read interviews, look at the structures of questions, use your writing skills to draft a series of questions about your issue, review your note-taking skills, and transcribe the interview so that others learn more about community issues and people.

Some examples of popular culture interviews with:

• J.K. Rowling


• Sean Paul


• Mary J. Blidge