The Externally-Assessed Task: Investigation Report and Oral Presentation
The report as a structured argument
The externally-assessed investigation report is a formal academic document that communicates your inquiry from question to conclusion. You must understand its expected architecture: an introduction establishing context and the research question; a literature or background review situating your inquiry; a methodology section justifying design and methods; a results or findings section presenting data clearly; a discussion interpreting findings against your question and existing knowledge; a conclusion acknowledging limitations; and a reference list in a consistent citation style.
Presenting and interpreting evidence
The report is judged on how well evidence is selected, presented and interpreted. Understand the difference between description (what you found) and analysis (what it means and why). Use tables, graphs or thematic summaries appropriately, but always interpret them in prose rather than leaving them to speak for themselves. Address limitations honestly and explain how they affect the strength of your conclusions.
The oral presentation
The oral presentation assesses your ability to articulate the investigation concisely and respond to questions. Understand that it is not a reading of the report: it should synthesise the question, approach, key findings and significance, supported by clear visual aids. Prepare for questions from assessors by anticipating challenges to your methodology, evidence and conclusions.
Traps to watch
Frequent traps include: a report that narrates the process rather than arguing a case; results sections that present data without interpretation; conclusions that overreach the evidence; inconsistent or missing referencing; and oral presentations that exceed time or simply summarise the report without addressing significance. Another trap is neglecting to connect findings back to the original question.
Worked rule of thumb
Use the "question echo" rule: every major section should explicitly echo the research question, showing how that section advances the answer.