What is a “Trend Analysis”?
Question What is a “Trend Analysis”? A Trend Analysis is a genre typically associated with marketing or business, but it can be used in any number of professions and discourse communities. “Trends” are emerging patterns of behaviour that reveal change over time. An analysis seeks to understand the causes and effects of such change.Why am I doing this? The ability to analyze trends prepares you for meeting, and responding to, the ever-changing patterns of the contemporary workforce, in this case in your specific vocation or profession. This assignment also gives you an opportunity to work and write collaboratively on communication activities that reflect the social and technological connectivity of contemporary workplaces.What do I have to do and when do I have to do it? Working in groups of three, you and your team will agree upon a current trend related to your career pathway(s). You will collaborate on a formal report of approximately 1000 words (plus/minus100 words). This is a research-based assignment requiring a minimum of three secondary sources, and it must be multi-modal (which means you include at least one image, drawing, chart, or graph that provides visual information, i.e. not ornamental). These are your due dates:Draft One: upload a draft to your MS Teams group folder by the beginning of Seminar 10 for peer reviewPlease upload only one draft per group, but make sure the names of all groups members are listedYou DO NOT need to include a title page, letter of transmittal, or table of contents for your first draftDraft Two: uploaded to the D2L dropbox in week 11 for faculty reviewAgain, the focus is on the body of the report, so DO NOT include a title page, letter of transmittal, or table of contents for your second draft.Final draft: uploaded to the D2L dropbox in week 13Please submit only ONE final report per group to the report dropboxHow will I be graded? You will receive three stages of feedback on your drafts. The first draft is worth 2% and the second draft is worth 3% for a total of 5%. The final submission is worth 15%.Specific Requirements Length: 1000 words (plus/minus 100 words)At least three secondary sources cited according to APA-your report must include at least one citation (in theform of a quotation or paraphrase) from each source; the final draft should feature a mix of quotation andparaphrasing from your sourcesSources do not need to be academic, but they do need to be credibleAt least one image, chart, graph, etc., cited according to APAFormal Report Components: Title pageLetter of TransmittalTable of ContentsSummary IntroductionFindings and Analysis: – Trend Identification – Causes and Effects – Looking AheadConclusionsReferences Writing the Trend Analysis: A Step-by-Step Guide Plan Plan Group assignments require careful planning before you begin to write. The following steps will help you work efficiently as a group, setting you up for success:Exchange contact information: Create a contact list and establish how you will communicate as a group (e.g.email threads, in-person meetings, MS Teams chat).Review the assignment outline: Ensure that all group members are clear on the purpose and requirements ofthe assignment.Pick a trend: This should be a current trend that is related to your career pathway. Your instructor will have alist of trends identified by program coordinators here at Fleming. You may choose from this list of trends, or you can identify another trend in consultation with your instructor.Establish a timeline: Review the external deadlines for the project. Working backward from the final duedate established by your professor, determine your internal deadlines. Set deadlines for each stage of the process to keep everyone on track. Start early and leave ample time for integrating all the sections into asingle cohesive report.Create a contract: Ensure that each group member commits to fulfilling their responsibilities on time.Creating a group contract is one way you can establish your expectations as a group from the start to avoid conflicts.Research Remember, you need a minimum of three secondary sources. Here are some guidelines to get you started:Use the library. The librarians at Fleming can be a great help in finding information or showing you the fastest way to get it.Access information online. Remember, sources do not need to be academic but must be credible.Look for inside sources. Trends are often so current that it can be helpful to hear from those who are seeing and experiencing them firsthand. Consider consulting with, or interviewing, an industry expert.Check the reliability of the information. Each item you find and use in your report must be evaluated todetermine its quality and credibility to best support your research.Draft Write collaboratively, NOT cooperatively. This means you should work together through the writing process and resist the temptation to immediately divide the report into sections and have each person be responsible for one portion. Although it initially may seem more difficult, working together on all parts of the report increases overall productivity. This approach allows writers to build on the ideas of others and use each other’s perspectives to create a more well-rounded and cohesive paper with a single, unified voice.MS Teams is a platform that allows multiple users to write and edit a live document online, even simultaneously.Communicate In addition to your regular researching and writing strategies, we recommend that you…Maintain constant group communication: Be in touch with your group members and read each other’s rough work to keep the project progressing smoothly. If you know what your group members are working on, you will be more likely to produce a cohesive document.Ask questions: When in doubt about anything related to the report, consult with other members. Do this via email and copy all members on the communication so as to maintain and encourage transparency and open communication.Submit One group member should upload the final version of your formal report to the dropbox in D2L in week 13What goes in each section of the body of the report? Summary (not included in 1000 words of report) A summary for a formal report—often called an executive summary—is really a condensation of the most important points. The summary for a formal report is put on a separate page with a heading. It’s not an introduction to the report, but a synopsis—the report condensed. It is a convenience for the reader and may be the only part that senior management reads, but the report can make sense without it. For this reason, it’s best to write the summary after you have completed the body of the report. A summary is typically 1/3 to 1/4 the length of the original (so in this case, your summary should be about 250 words).Introduction (approximately 20% of total word count) Your introduction should include your report’s background, purpose, scope, and method. The background briefly describes conditions that have led to the trend, and why the study of the trend is useful or necessary. As in an informal report, a onesentence explanation may be enough for your purpose. Then briefly introduce the trend and set the scope by indicating the community within which the trend is taking place. If there are constraints or difficulties that limit your report in some way, say what they are. By doing so, you will help forestall criticisms that you didn’t cover the area properly. Finally, describe the key secondary sources and outline your research method.Findings and Analysis (approximately 60% of word count) This section should have three subheadings: “Trend Identification,” “Causes and Effects, and “Looking Ahead.” This section is particularly ideal for the inclusion of multi-modal content (images, pictures, charts, and/or graphs).Trend IdentificationDescribe the trend in detail and use research to demonstrate that the trend is, in fact, occurring within the vocation or profession.Causes and EffectsIdentify and describe the causes and effects of the trend. Wherever possible, use research to support yourclaims.Looking AheadDescribe and analyze the steps that can be taken to best prepare for entry into the workforce where the trend isoccurring.Conclusion (approximately 20% of total word count) This is where a conclusion summarizes the report as a whole, drawing inferences from the findings and analysis. With a good conclusion, you can pull all the threads of the report details together and relate them to the initial purpose for writing the report. In other words, the conclusion should confirm for the reader that the report’s purpose has been achieved.Checklist for Final Draft of Formal Report __Title Page, including… title of the report, in bold type or in capital lettersinstructor’s namefirst and last names of all group membersdate of submission__Letter of transmittal, including… an opening statement, “transmitting” the report to the reader and stating its title or purpose (for example, “Here is the report you requested on . . .”)a brief description of the major conclusionsstatements of thanks for any special help receiveda goodwill closing__Table of Contents __Report, including SummaryIntroductionFindings and Analysis, with subheadings: Trend Identification, Causes and Effects, Looking AheadConclusion__References Minimum of three secondary sources usedDirect quotation or paraphrase from each sourceMultimodal content, cited (images, pictures, charts, and/or graphs)Balanced mix of quotation and paraphrasingIn-text citations and complete references list according to APA__One copy of final report submitted to “Formal Report” D2L dropbox on behalf of group Note: Draft #2 of this assignment will be submitted to the Turnitin.com reference database for textual similarity review when it is uploaded to the dropbox. More information on the use of Turnitin.com can be found on the official course outline.(this link opens in a new window/tab)Last Edited May 18, 2021 Health Science Science Nursing COMM 202 Share QuestionEmailCopy link Comments (0)
