Unit 4
illustrations
Illustrations are often an important way of conveying information. However good your description in words may be, it is sometimes difficult for the reader to visualise what you described. An illustration can save you a lot of time and effort trying to explain or interpret something. It can also make your report look more interesting.
Tables
One of the most commonly used forms of illustration is a table of figures like Table 1 below. This table shows the readership of UK daily newspapers in 1999 classified by sex and age group.
Reading of national newspapers: by sex and age, 1999
Great Britain
|
Percentage of adults reading each paper in 1999 |
Percentage of each age group reading each paper in 1999 |
Readership millions |
|
|
Males |
Females |
All adults |
15-24 |
25-44 |
45-64 |
65 and over |
1999 |
|
Daily Newspapers |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Sun |
26 |
22 |
24 |
31 |
25 |
22 |
17 |
10.8 |
|
Daily Mirror |
22 |
17 |
20 |
21 |
18 |
23 |
19 |
8.8 |
|
Daily Mail |
10 |
9 |
10 |
8 |
9 |
11 |
10 |
4.3 |
|
Daily Express |
9 |
8 |
9 |
7 |
7 |
11 |
10 |
3.9 |
|
Daily Star |
7 |
4 |
6 |
8 |
7 |
5 |
3 |
2.7 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Daily Telegraph |
6 |
5 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
8 |
7 |
2.5 |
|
The Guardian |
4 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
4 |
3 |
1 |
1.3 |
|
Today |
5 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
5 |
3 |
2 |
1.8 |
|
The Times |
3 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1.1 |
|
The Independent |
3 |
2 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
1.2 |
|
Financial Times |
2 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
2 |
2 |
- |
0.7 |
|
|
Source: Social Trends 21, 1999 |
Table 1
Devising tables
Here are some tips to help you devise tables that are easy to read and understand:
- If possible, keep the table the same way up as the text.
- Avoid spreading tables across two pages.
- Avoid too many rules - they make reading tables harder, not easier. Usually the only rules needed are those marking off the headings from the data, and the table from the text.
- Align text on the left.
- Align figures on the right, or on the decimal point.
- Number tables serially - Table 1, Table 2, etc. - and collate them with the text.
- Add a caption where necessary.
- State units of measurement being used, e.g. millions.
- Give the source of the table, if relevant, e.g. Social Trends 21, 1999.
Charts
Reading tables can be tedious, because you cannot see at a glance the difference or similiarities between them.
However you can often make “figures” clearer and simpler for the reader to grasp if you use a chart. Commonly used charts include graphs, pie charts and bar charts. You will find a line graph or staff attendance patterns at the end of our sample report in Appendix A. |
