Task type: A Report

Writing Paper: Part 2
Task type: A Report
QuestionYou have recently attended a training course and as part of the evaluation of it all participants have been asked to write a report giving their views:

Please give us your feedback to help us monitor the success of our training courses and to help us determine what changes we could make in the future. We would appreciate your views on any aspect of the course which you liked or didn't like, including these points: - suitability of training course objectives - presenter's knowledge and presentation style - recommendations to improve the course

Write the report for the training manager. (around 280 - 320 words)
What you need to include to passClick here for our checklist first to understand what the examiner is looking for in a good answer.
Ideas for writingAsk yourself the following questions to help you get started:

• What type of training course was it? You can write from your own experience, or otherwise invent the details, as in the example below:
  - 2 day course on First Aid; objective: to learn skills for emergency first aid in the workplace
• Think about the 'suitability of the course objectives'. What feedback could you give on them? Here are some ideas:
  - Too ambitious - not enough time to cover all options
  - Just right
  - Not suitable - didn't relate to the needs of the participants
• What comment are you going to make about the presenter? Remember, you will have to be diplomatic if you have some major criticisms:
  Example:
  Although the presenter was very well-informed about the topic I felt his teaching style to be a little abrasive....
• You should finish your report by making one or two recommendations to improve the course. Again, this should be done tactfully!

Drafting and proofreading your work
You should look at your first draft of the task and decide:

• Have you answered the question fully?
• Is the layout and organisation appropriate?
• Is the language accurate with a good range of structures?
• Is the style appropriate and consistent for your report?
• Will it be genuinely informative to the reader as well as not causing offence?

If the answer is 'no' to any of these questions then you will need to do some more drafting!

 

 

Writing Paper: Part 2
Task type: A Report

Content Should include an evaluation of a training course, with reference to the points asked for: i.e. objectives, presenter and suggestions/recommendations.

Communicative achievementShould be on the formal side as there is a danger that colloquial language could be misinterpreted. Great care should be taken (through the use of polite, or 'distancing' forms) not to give offence to the reader. The training manager would be informed about the good and bad points of the course and would seriously consider the writer's suggestions for improving the course.

OrganisationThe report must be divided into clear paragraphs and could possibly have paragraph headings to divide each section. The aim of the report should be clearly stated in the first paragraph.

Language Language of description, evaluation and recommendation. Topic vocabulary relating to training may be included. (e.g. 'syllabus', 'meeting + objectives', 'training manual') Polite forms of language should be used. Does not have to be completely accurate but any errors should be minimal.

 

 

Model answer

Evaluation of First Aid course AP500

{1}Between 1 and 2 July I attended one of your Emergency First Aid courses (course code: AP500). This brief report gives my feedback on the course in question and makes a small number of suggestions about how the course could be improved for future participants.

{2}The objective of the course was to equip us with the skills needed to cope in most emergency situations. The syllabus, with its coverage of adult CPR, choking, the control of bleeding, burns, and dealing with shock, was comprehensive enough for a two-day course.

I enjoyed the learning methods very much. The presenter used ice-breakers at the start of each session to put us rather nervous participants at ease. Another refreshing aspect of the course was the absence of medical jargon. Instead, we used practical involvement and repetition of various emergency procedures, like CPR and bandaging, to help us learn. The use of easy-to-remember acronyms, like ABC (airway, breathing, circulation), will facilitate recall in future situations.

If I had one complaint about {3} the presenter it would be that many of the examples he gave of emergency situations were based on his own experiences of leading expeditions. Whilst these stories were absorbing I would have preferred to hear those that related more closely to my own profession. (I work in the kitchen of a busy restaurant, so many of the situations I am likely to face involve burns and scalds, which were not dealt with very fully on the course. I appreciate that on a two-day course, however, there is much to cover and people are bound to be disappointed.)

My suggestion to improve the course further still would be to include more follow-up reading or recommendations for study. The presenter was kind enough to give us a list of useful websites, but perhaps it would be a good idea to have a training manual for participants to take away. I would also recommend tailor-made courses for specific industries, e.g. First Aid for Catering Staff.

All in all, I would like to thank your training department for a high-quality course. I have come away from this feeling more confident than before that I could deal with an emergency situation.{4}