The Analysis
The weekly analysis (submitted the first six/three weeks of internship) offers the Internship student an opportunity to reflect upon the previous week’s events and to demonstrate his or her analytical skills. The student is expected to select ONE of the preceding week’s events (or issues) and provide an in depth discussion that goes beyond mere summarization. Because of its importance in problem solving and decision making, the ability to analyze is an essential skill for any recreation professional; therefore, the quality of the Analysis section is the primary criterion for assigning a grade to the student’s weekly report.
In completing the Analysis portion of the weekly report, the student should ensure that the following components are included (headings below may be used by students if desired):
a. Identification of the event or issue:
It is not expected or required that the event or issue be of “earth shattering” magnitude or a negative event. The issue can be something positive or exciting that was witnessed or observed. It should, however, be an event/issue that is relevant to the student’s work experience or professional development. Examples include: a problem that needed to be solved; a professional issue that has implications for the agency’s service delivery; the student’s use of a specific type of leadership style, a policy, a procedure, a meeting that the student attended, etc.
b. Relevant Components and Implications:
A very important part of the analytical process involves the ability to critically think about and determine (a) the relevant components of an event or issue and (b) the implications of those components. In other words: What was positive about the event or issue and why? What was negative about the event/issue and why? How did (or might) this event/issue impact upon the agency, the student, staff members, clients, etc.? Are there any further potential consequences of this event or issue?
c. Plan of action:
An analysis should propose a plan of action based upon what the student has learned from the event/issue. This plan may be for the student to implement (now or as a future professional), or it may constitute suggestions for others. If a problem has been identified, one or more potential solutions should be proposed. If the analysis focuses on positive events, it may be possible to identify ways to continue (or repeat) these favorable events.
It is important to write and reflect upon the analysis prior to typing it for submission. In so doing, it can be examined to ensure that the above items are clearly and concisely presented. Generally, the analysis section of the weekly report will be approximately two – three typewritten (double spaced) pages, although some topics may require more or less space.
In a well written analysis, all statements are supported by data and/or observations. For example,
“the participants all had a good time” should be followed by how that was determined; “things did
not happen as anticipated” should be followed by what happened and, more importantly, why it happened.
It should be kept in mind that an analysis is more than a summary of what occurred it is an
investigation into the causes, components and outcomes (including implications) of the event/issue.
Analysis is a skill that, once mastered, will be extremely helpful in all aspects of the student’s
professional life.
Tips for completing the Weekly Analysis:
1. When writing the summary of the event, incident or policy/procedure, ensure that someone unfamiliar with your situation will be able to understand the experiences described.
2. Indicate your role in the activity that you have described.
3. When using abbreviations, initials, or acronyms, write the word(s) out the first time in each summary. Similarly, when using or referring to names of colleagues, make sure that their titles are identified early in the description.
4. More detail is better.
5. Points will be deducted if you do not use the template headers for the paper. This will help you organize your paper.
