Summarizing

1
Summarizing

• Good learners note main ideas
• to clarify meaning.

2
What is in a summary essay?

• The introduction features a thesis statement to
  sum up the sources main point.
• It indicates the sources title.
• It provides the name of the author of the source
  text.
• It has background textual information.
• It should not offer your opinions of the text.

• The body includes important data but omits minor
  points.
• It includes some of the author's examples to
  bring the summary to life.
• It skips your own ideas, illustrations,
  metaphors, or even interpretations.
• You repeat what the text in fewer words and in
  your own words.
• Using your own words does not mean that you
  include your own ideas.

3
What is a written summary?

• A summary is a brief, clear restatement of the
  most important points of a paragraph or passage.
• It is usually no more than one-third as long as
  the original passage.
• It is not copied word-for-word from the original.
• A good summary is reworded using synonyms.

4
Why Summarize Readings?

• Good learners summarize longer reading passages
  to provide an overview of their learning.
• Since its in their own words, it represents a
  synthesis of the original passage.

Is the Grim Reaper satisfied with the womans
summary?
5
Summaries depend on notes.

• Effective readers annotate, or mark their text
  during reading.
• These notes represent the key points in the text
  itself.
• Later, they refer to their text notes in order to
  create reading summaries.

Does it look like Bob wrote any summaries?
6
What can we summarize from the original?

• Despite genetic differences between the two, a
  key element in the sociological perspective to
  explain the differences is social context. Josh
  and Brent are both "socially imbedded" in the
  family. They operate as human beings interacting
  with and being influenced by others. How do they
  interpret their environment? How does their
  environment shape their choices or the range of
  their choices? What roles have they decided to
  play within this family? Questions on the
  development of roles and behavior can be
  understood in part through the psychology of
  Alfred Adler, which since the early part of the
  20th century has undergone much application in
  child rearing and school settings and has spawned
  a large amount of research.

7
First, whats the main idea?

• Despite genetic differences between the two, a
  key element in the sociological perspective to
  explain the differences is social context. Josh
  and Brent are both "socially imbedded" in the
  family. They operate as human beings interacting
  with and being influenced by others. How do they
  interpret their environment? How does their
  environment shape their choices or the range of
  their choices? What roles have they decided to
  play within this family? Questions on the
  development of roles and behavior can be
  understood in part through the psychology of
  Alfred Adler, which since the early part of the
  20th century has undergone much application in
  child rearing and school settings and has spawned
  a large amount of research.

8
Next, paraphrase the main idea.

• Original Text
• Despite genetic differences between Josh and
  Brent, a key element in the sociological
  perspective to explain the differences is social
  context.

• Paraphrase
• Beyond simple genetics, the complex family
  relationship between the two brothers helps to
  explain their differences.

9
What do we summarize here?

• It is important to remember that the calorie and
  Calorie are units of energy. These names are
  historical carryovers from the early idea that
  heat was an invisible fluid called caloric, a
  view that persisted into the nineteenth century.
  We now know that heat is a form of energy, and so
  doesnt need its own unit. Someday the calorie
  may give way to the SI unit, the joule, as the
  common unit for measuring heat. (The relationship
  between calories and joules is 1calorie 4.184
  joules.)

10
Whats the main idea?

• It is important to remember that both the calorie
  and Calorie are units of energy. These names are
  historical carryovers from the early idea that
  heat was an invisible fluid called caloric, a
  view that persisted into the nineteenth century.
  We now know that heat is a form of energy, and so
  doesnt need its own unit. Someday the calorie
  may give way to the SI unit, the joule, as the
  common unit for measuring heat. (The relationship
  between calories and joules is 1 calorie 4.184
  joules.)

What is the man worried about?
11
Then, paraphrase the main idea.

• Original Text
• It is important to remember that both the
  calorie and Calorie are units of energy.

• Paraphrase
• Energy units emphasized include the common
  calorie and the more specific Calorie.

12
What should be summarized?

• If you are looking for a way to finance a new
  home or automobile, you should beware of
  predatory lenders. A "predatory lender" talks
  consumers into borrowing money under unfair and
  even abusive terms. Authors warn of the ruin
  predatory lenders can cause. They liken these
  lenders to old-fashioned loan sharks, gangsters
  who loan money at exorbitant interest rates.
  Predatory lenders often grant loans they know the
  borrower cannot repay so that they can repossess
  the property pledged as collateral for the loan.
  They target elderly, low-income groups, and
  people with bad credit. They take advantage of
  circumstances or lack of knowledge to hurt them
  with high interest rates, huge fees, and
  harassing collection tactics.

13
What is the main idea?

• If you are looking for a way to finance a new
  home or automobile, you should beware of
  predatory lenders. A "predatory lender" talks
  consumers into borrowing money under unfair and
  even abusive terms. Authors warn of the ruin
  predatory lenders can cause. They liken these
  lenders to old-fashioned loan sharks, gangsters
  who loan money at exorbitant interest rates.
  Predatory lenders often grant loans they know the
  borrower cannot repay so that they can repossess
  the property pledged as collateral for the loan.
  They target elderly, low-income groups, and
  people with bad credit. They take advantage of
  circumstances or lack of knowledge to hurt them
  with high interest rates, huge fees, and
  harassing collection tactics.

14
Then, paraphrase the main idea.

• Original Text
• A "predatory lender" talks consumers into
  borrowing money under unfair and even abusive
  terms.

• Paraphrase
• Lenders that force the weak into terrible
  borrowing plans are considered to be predators.

15
Can you find the summary?

• Raw honey has high nutritional value and
  medicinal remedies. It contains vitamins and
  minerals and is a natural and powerful medicine,
  both internally and externally. The list of
  honey's beneficial functions is a long one. Honey
  increases calcium absorption fights colds and
  respiratory infections of all kinds can help to
  boost gastrointestinal ulcer healing aids
  obesity and supplies instant energy without the
  insulin surge caused by sugar. At night it can
  help with insomnia. As an antiseptic, honey is
  also a drawing agent for poisons from bites or
  stings or infected wounds, and has outperformed
  antibiotics in treatments for stomach
  ulcerations, gangrene, surgical wound infections,
  surgical incisions and the protection of skin
  grafts, corneas, blood vessels and bones during
  storage.

• Raw honey has high nutritional value and
  medicinal remedies.
• It contains vitamins and minerals and is a
  natural and powerful medicine, both internally
  and externally.
• The list of honey's beneficial functions is a
  long one.
• Honey increases calcium absorption fights colds
  and respiratory infections of all kinds can help
  to boost gastrointestinal ulcer healing.
• At night it can help with insomnia.

16
Can you find the summary?

• Raw honey has high nutritional value and
  medicinal remedies. It contains vitamins and
  minerals and is a natural and powerful medicine,
  both internally and externally. The list of
  honey's beneficial functions is a long one. Honey
  increases calcium absorption fights colds and
  respiratory infections of all kinds can help to
  boost gastrointestinal ulcer healing aids
  obesity and supplies instant energy without the
  insulin surge caused by sugar. At night it can
  help with insomnia. As an antiseptic, honey is
  also a drawing agent for poisons from bites or
  stings or infected wounds, and has outperformed
  antibiotics in treatments for stomach
  ulcerations, gangrene, surgical wound infections,
  surgical incisions and the protection of skin
  grafts, corneas, blood vessels and bones during
  storage.

• Raw honey has high nutritional value and
  medicinal remedies.
• It contains vitamins and minerals and is a
  natural and powerful medicine, both internally
  and externally.
• The list of honey's beneficial functions is a
  long one.
• Honey increases calcium absorption fights colds
  and respiratory infections of all kinds can help
  to boost gastrointestinal ulcer healing.
• At night it can help with insomnia.

17
Can you find the summary?

• In recent years, American police forces have
  called out SWAT teams 40,000 times annually. SWAT
  teams serve routine warrants to people who pose
  no danger, according to Radley Balko's "Overkill
  The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America"
• SWAT teams with special weapons and tactics were
  once used only for hostages held by armed
  criminals.
• SWAT teams often forcefully enter the wrong
  address, resulting in death, injury, and trauma
  to perfectly innocent people. Occasionally,
  highly keyed-up police kill one another in the
  confusion caused by their stun grenades.
• Today local police have helicopters, machine
  guns, grenade launchers, battering rams,
  explosives, chemical sprays, body armor, night
  vision, rappelling gear, and armored vehicles.
  Some even have tanks!

• In recent years, American police forces have
  called out SWAT teams 40,000 times annually.
• SWAT teams serve routine warrants to people who
  pose no danger, according to Radley Balko's
  "Overkill The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids
  in America
• SWAT teams with special weapons and tactics were
  once used only for hostages held by armed
  criminals.
• SWAT teams often forcefully enter the wrong
  address, resulting in death, injury, and trauma
  to perfectly innocent people. Occasionally,
  highly keyed-up police kill one another in the
  confusion caused by their stun grenades.

18
Can you find the summary?

• In recent years, American police forces have
  called out SWAT teams 40,000 times annually. SWAT
  teams serve routine warrants to people who pose
  no danger, according to Radley Balko's "Overkill
  The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids in America"
• SWAT teams with special weapons and tactics were
  once used only for hostages held by armed
  criminals.
• SWAT teams often forcefully enter the wrong
  address, resulting in death, injury, and trauma
  to perfectly innocent people. Occasionally,
  highly keyed-up police kill one another in the
  confusion caused by their stun grenades.
• Today local police have helicopters, machine
  guns, grenade launchers, battering rams,
  explosives, chemical sprays, body armor, night
  vision, rappelling gear, and armored vehicles.
  Some even have tanks!

• In recent years, American police forces have
  called out SWAT teams 40,000 times annually.
• SWAT teams serve routine warrants to people who
  pose no danger, according to Radley Balko's
  "Overkill The Rise of Paramilitary Police Raids
  in America.
• SWAT teams with special weapons and tactics were
  once used only for hostages held by armed
  criminals.
• SWAT teams often forcefully enter the wrong
  address, resulting in death, injury, and trauma
  to perfectly innocent people. Occasionally,
  highly keyed-up police kill one another in the
  confusion caused by their stun grenades.

19
Is this summary accurate?

• Doctors hated reporters who backed quacks, eager
  scientists, and country doctors with an herb for
  cancer or surgery to rejuvenate the aged.
  Suspicion of even medical journals explains early
  skepticism about insulin in countries like
  Britain the Americans cure anything this week
  it's diabetes. Even in Canada and the US it was
  months before the unlikely news from Toronto
  convinced skeptical doctors and editors that
  insulin was, indeed, real.

• Doctors hated reporters that believed every eager
  scientist or naive country doctor who thought he
  had a cure for something. Newspapers often
  over-played legitimate news, and got facts
  wrong,. Doctors became deeply suspicious of what
  they read in the newspapers and less-carefully
  edited medical journals, therefore were skeptical
  about insulin in countries like Britain because
  it seemed the Americans were always curing
  everything.

Is the summary on the right accurate about the
original on the left?
20
No, it is plagiarized!

• Doctors hated reporters who backed quacks, eager
  scientists, and country doctors with an herb for
  cancer or surgery to rejuvenate the aged.
  Suspicion of even medical journals explains early
  skepticism about insulin in countries like
  Britain the Americans cure anything this week
  it's diabetes. Even in Canada and the US it was
  months before the unlikely news from Toronto
  convinced skeptical doctors and editors that
  insulin was, indeed, real.

• Doctors hated reporters that believed every eager
  scientist or naive country doctor who thought he
  had a cure for something. Newspapers often
  over-played legitimate news, and got facts
  wrong,. Doctors became deeply suspicious of what
  they read in the newspapers and less-carefully
  edited medical journals, therefore were skeptical
  about insulin in countries like Britain because
  it seemed the Americans were always curing
  everything.

The words in red are wrongly repeated from the
original.
21
How about this summary?

• Doctors hated reporters who backed quacks, eager
  scientists, and country doctors with an herb for
  cancer or surgery to rejuvenate the aged.
  Suspicion of even medical journals explains early
  skepticism about insulin in countries like
  Britain the Americans cure anything this week
  it's diabetes. Even in Canada and the US it was
  months before the unlikely news from Toronto
  convinced skeptical doctors and editors that
  insulin was, indeed, real.

• Insulin treatment for diabetes was not widely
  accepted for months because doctors had become
  skeptical about the legitimacy of medical
  discoveries as reported both by newspapers and by
  less professional medical journals.
• Does this summary represent the heart of the
  matter without repeating key phrases?

Should a summary be shorter than the original?
22
This summary is valid

• Doctors hated reporters who backed quacks, eager
  scientists, and country doctors with an herb for
  cancer or surgery to rejuvenate the aged.
  Suspicion of even medical journals explains early
  skepticism about insulin in countries like
  Britain the Americans cure anything this week
  it's diabetes. Even in Canada and the US it was
  months before the unlikely news from Toronto
  convinced skeptical doctors and editors that
  insulin was, indeed, real.

• Insulin treatment for diabetes was not widely
  accepted for months because doctors had become
  skeptical about the legitimacy of medical
  discoveries as reported both by newspapers and by
  less professional medical journals.
• This summary does represent the heart of the
  matter without repeating key phrases.

Yes, a summary should be shorter than the
original.
23
Remember that summaries are

• Brief, clear restatement of the most important
  points of a passage.
• No more than one-third as long as the original
  passage.
• Not copied word-for-word from the original.
• Reworded using synonyms.