how to summarize

Part of one of your weekly assignments is to summarize (and then reflect on) the material you’ve studied.  The weekly material is mainly print (from the textbook and online articles) and I also try to include video and audio offerings.  It would be easy for you to see the title of an article, assume that it is on X topic, and write 100 words based on your current opinion of X topic.  But where is the learning in that?  I would like to see evidence that you have carefully read the material presented.

*How do you summarize well? Read the material thoroughly and think about it.  What stands out in your memory?  Imagine you just read an article and someone asks you, “What was that about?”  How would you quickly sum up the article?  Without looking back at the article, write down your thoughts.  Make sure you cover the main points, then include anything interesting that piqued your interest.

*How do you summarize poorly? Poor summaries can take many forms – from not getting the author’s point, to badly paraphrased, to blatant plagiarism.  Most people realize that when you copy another person’s writing and do not properly credit them, that is plagiarism.  I recommend writing your summary without looking at the original text because it then becomes too easy to use the author’s words.  Without looking, you may use some of the same words; but unless you have a photographic memory, you will not recall them in the same order.

Paraphrasing is taking what the original author said and trying to put it in your own words.  This can be a slippery slope to plagiarism, especially if you are looking at the original work.  Copying the writing but changing a few words here and there is still copying.

Summary vs. reflection I would like you to label your work “summary” and “reflection” as a reminder that these are separate tasks.  I do want to know what you thought of the work, what you learned from it, how it may challenged some of your beliefs/assumptions.  Keep your personal opinions and reactions in the reflection area, don’t allow it to creep into your summary.

Tips

• Write your summary soon after reading each article, when it’s fresh in your mind.  You can always edit it later.
• If you take any of the text word for word, you must quote it (enclose in quotation marks) to properly credit the original author.
• Direct quotations should be kept to a minimum.  I want to read your take on the work – I already know what the original work says.

From the syllabus:

Academic honesty is expected of all students. Evidence of plagiarism or other forms of cheating will result in failing the entire course and may be be subject to further disciplinary action.  Make sure you have read [this page] and also the plagiarism handout in Blackboard.

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