Abstract

Report writing is often inadequate because misunderstanding arises over what the supervisor thinks he assigned and what the writer thinks he was asked to do. The responsibilities of the supervisor are examined in relation to the writing process with emphasis on directive and feedback techniques. The author cites four points at which the supervisor can bring direction to the writing process—assigning work, when the technical work is on the way to completion, before the report is written, and when the report is reviewed.