英语应用文写作教案

Part 2 Secretarial writing

Notice of meeting

The different forms of notice of meeting and examples: Notice of meeting on the blackboard or bulletin board:

Notice of meeting in memo:

Notice of meeting of an international symposium

Look at the examples on the book of page 58, compare the differences between the English version and the Chinese version in both layout and contents.

Writing of Minutes of meeting

The heading of minutes:

A meeting is usually of a particular body, e.g. Board of Directors, Department, Finance Committee etc, so the heading should indicate in some way WHAT meeting this is. The heading of minutes is like this: Minutes of the meeting of the Finance Committee held on…

MINUTES OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

--Minutes of meeting held on…

The generic structure of minutes:

The minutes of meeting include:

1 What the meeting was about(heading)

2 When and where the meeting was held(time & place)

3 Who attend the meeting(presiding, present, absent)

4 What happened at the meeting(agenda & activities)

The format of minutes of meeting:

[layout 1]

[layout 2]

Past tense and passive voice in minutes:

Past tense and passive voice are often used in minutes, for example: ◆ The Minutes of the meeting held on 21 January 1999 were agreed and

signed.

◆ The Continuing Education Schemes of Study were discussed and the

following observations were made:

◆ A letter received by Alwyn Roberts from the Welsh Funding Council

was noted.

◆ Staff member were recommended to submit as many orders as possible.

◆ The testing results were examined and found in the conformity to

the specifications stated.

◆ After some discussions, it was decided that…

Reported speech in minutes:

Reported speech is another distinct feature of minutes, it will be used

in the following examples:

noted

believed

observed/ maintained

Sb. Admitted/denied that …

Insisted that…

called attention to…

suggested/proposed/recommend… etc.

Amendments in minutes:

Making amendments is difficult in wording, following are some examples used in making amendments:

delete

should be deleted to read…

…the specific line/word delete as irrelevant/inapplicable

not applicable and should therefore deleted

Memoranda and office memos

Functions of memoranda:

Memoranda are drawn up in legal language and signed by both parties. They make specific information a matter of record. They serve as legal documents that can be referred to and used as the basis for review and action or as a source material. It is a record of joint efforts and negotiations between the two parties concerning the cooperation in manufacturing and selling of a brand product. It has the function as a Letter of Intent, which will serve as the basis for the signing of a format contract.

Functions of memos:

1 Memos record policies, decisions and action items agreed to at a meeting or conference. They provide summaries of meetings for participants as well as for those who are absent.

2 Memos serve as an effective medium of office communication. They provide an easy channel through which the executive and the stall communicate with each other. On the one hand, the executives can inform staff of policies, procedures, and actions. On the other hand, staff can report to the superior, to make proposals or to ask for comments, approval and instructions. Staff member may also use the memo to brief each other on new developments or to make comments or requests. Communicating through memos saves time and avoids lengthy conversations.

3 Memos may also be sent to individuals both inside or outside the institution to confirm the understandings reached after a telephone conversation or an interview, especially when the matter concerned is

important.

The format of memos:

Writing practice:

Write a short memo for the following purpose.

to call a meeting of your staff

to warn employees that they will be penalized for negligence of fire precaution measures

to recommend a raise in salary for an employee

to announce the retirement of 2 long-term employees

to request suggestions from employees for improving the quality of production

Classification of business reports:

Informal & analytic

An informal report contains facts. It presents a situation as it is, not as it should be. The writer does not include his own opinions, nor does he offer his conclusions or recommendation.

An analytic report contains not only facts but also analysis of the facts and the writer’s conclusions or recommendations. The analytic report is frequently the basis for an important company decision. Thus the writer shoulders great responsibility. An analytic report might call for the writer’s recommendations on how a new product could be successful marketed, on how a company’s assembly line could be speed up, or how a specific aspect or management could be improved. Informal & formal

A formal report, is often organized according to a standard format, such as having a title page, an introduction, a section of detailed discussions.

A formal report is often accompanied by a covering letter, which serves to transmit the report from the writer to the reader. It consists of a short message, almost perfunctory in nature.

The organizational pattern of business reports:

A typical business report is made up of three parts:

Introduction: stating briefly the purpose of writing and/or the

circumstances under which the report has been

prepared.

Discussion: exploring relevant issues, such as presenting

facts, analyzing statistics and data, and

discussing implications.

Conclusion: summarizing the result of the discussion and making

recommendations.

Business report in contrast with memos:

A memo is a short, covering one specific item—giving instructions, Making requests…etc.

A report, generally covers broader topics, such as plans for a new product or a study of a problem like declining sales…etc. They are different in genres and have different structure.

Business report in contrast with science/ research reports:

The form and content of a research report:

◆TITLE

◆ABSTRACT (vary from 200to 500 words, including a statement of the

purpose of the project, methods and procedures used and principle findings and conclusions)

◆INTRODUCTION( a review of other people’s findings, which will

explain your motives for undertaking the project)

◆SCOPE OF RESEARCH(which should be clearly stated and defined, whether

you are searching for or testing hypotheses, suggesting a theory, or merely reporting some observations made under clearly specific conditions.

◆METHOD AND PROCEDURES( a detailed description of the methods or

analytical frame work, the steps of research, as well as the equipment and conditions or any other factors which could effect the outcome of research)

◆FIDINGS AND OBSERVATIONS(numerical data and other statistics,

usually presented in the form of tables)

◆ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA

◆CONCLUSIONS(such as re-examining the hypothesis, to be rejected if

the data show it to be wrong; or to be accepted if supported by the research.)

◆IMPLICATIONS(a discussion of how your research may provide a better

understanding of a board are of science)

Writing practice

Based on your own experience write a report.

Layout of an itinerary:

Verbs forms in itineraries:

Details of planned activities in an itinerary are rarely given in full sentences; usually they are presented in verbs phrases. For example: Leave Beijing International Airport for San Francisco

Arrive at San Francisco International Airport

Met by Mr. T. Keith and Miss Louis Lowes and transferred to Holiday Inn Dinner at hotel

Meeting with Mr. Antonio…

Essential quality in writing itineraries:

In preparing an itinerary, you need to find out information about: a)Details of each departure, arrival, and intermediate stops,

including exact time, date and places

b)Dates and detailed schedules of talks/meetings, appointments,

functions or events if they are included in the programme.

c)Special interests of the individual/delegation, such as places to

see, or other requests.

The most important quality for an itinerary is ACCURACY, which means that all details are accurate and clear, to ensure this, you should: a)Be sure to indicate clearly the DATE and TIME of each departure and

arrival. Use the 24-hour clock for time and avoid confusion. Provide

a note as to whether the time is local time or not.

b)Name the airport or station for each departure/arrival, especially

when there is more than one in the city.

c)Indicate the type of transport used. Give the name of the airline

and flight number in air travel. Give train number if rail transport is used.

d)Give details of the hotel if service is provided, including detailed

address, telephone number, room category and number as well as information about catering service.

e)In listing planned activities, check every detail and language

expression to make sure that no confusion will arise.

Writing practice:

Write an itinerary according to the following items:

a)由当地导游接至北京饭店，客房已定

b)出席使馆招待会

c)由张先生带领观光，游览景点包括……

d)商务会谈

e)拜见（约会）公司总经理

f)与进出口部经理会谈

g)由副市长陪同参观高科技工业园

h)出席总经理在国际饭店的告别宴

i)不安排

Layout of different kinds of notes: Telephone slip:

Visitor slip:

Message slip:

Mechanics of note writing:

a)Notes are simpler in form as compared with letters. You don’t have

to use “dear” at the beginning, but you may do.

b)The date of a note is made quite clear. It may be written in

abbreviation with or without the year. It may be written in numbers,

though possible confusions may arise as 04/02/02 means something

different to the British and the American.

c)It is not necessary to include the complimentary closing, such as

“sincerely”“faithfully”at the end, but you must put your name on the note.

Stylistic features of note writing:

a)Most notes are informal in language and colloquial in tone. It is

not always necessary to use “complete” sentences when writing notes, although there are no rules about this.

b)When writing to someone of higher social status or when the relation

between the addresser and addressee suggests distance, the style may become formal.

Organization of different publicity materials:

a)company profiles

General information about S.C.

(i.e. an international bank headquartered in UK)

Introducing the bank’s scope of business

consumer banking

wholesale banking

Advertising the bank’s image & strength

Strong presence in market

Commitments to customers

Management ideal

School prospectus:

Headings of school prospectus:

Profiles( a brief history, location, size, programmes…)

Facilities ( for study, teaching & research)

Accommodation & welfare

Additional information(sport, recreation and social programmes) Contact details

Some schools may create separate sections following the headings of: History

Location

Academic curriculum

Course fees

English language support

Achievements/ key strength

Quality indicators

City surveys

Descriptions of a city usually concentrate on:

Location

Size and physical background

Climate

Population

Introduction of a city for advertising purposes may also include the city’s

Economic foundation

Developments in foreign trade

Economic indicators

Other special strengths and / or features

Useful expressions and structures:

History:

Ownership:

Location:

X is located /situated

X stands