3.5 Summary Sources

Outline of this lesson:

• Locate the most important information in a source necessary for a summary
• indentify the sections of an academic paper
• identify what kind of information should be included in a well-developed summary
• Write a short summary (-5 sentence) for a standard scholarly article using 1-2 sentences to match corresponding sections of the paper (IMRD: Intro-Method-Results-Discussion)
• Write a short summary (-5 sentences) for non-academic articles or other electronic sources by following per-delineated sections or identifying main ideas in their absence
• Recognize and avoid common pitfalls of summaries (e.g. plagiarizing, misrepresenting the source in content, scope, purpose, or improper balance of specificity and generality)
• Write concisely by eliminating wordiness and maximizing the amount of information in a sentence (e.g. sentence linking, word trimming)

Part ONE: Summaries of research articles

A.  Identifying sections of an academic paper: IMRD

Handout 1: Summary Questions 

PowerPoint: How to write an academic summary

Handout 2: How to write an academic summary


B. Helpful Checklist

Handout 3: Summary Checklist 


Part TWO: Summaries of other sources (non-academic) 

C. Summary process

PowerPoint: non-academic summaries 
Handout 4: Money wasted on water project in Africa (Key)


D. Homework:

1. Based on what we've learned, please write an annotated bibliography for the 5 sources you choose. For each source, include 4 parts: APA reference, summary, relevancy, and reliability.

2. First draft due before class (by 5pm) this Wednesday 04/06 on Compass 2g.

In class this Wednesday, you will do peer perception with each other, and provide helpful comments and feedback. 


Part THREE: Writing concisely

PowerPoint: Writing concisely 
Handout 5:  Writing concisely activity (key)

0406 In-class Peer Perception:

 Peer perception worksheet