ABSTRACT
An abstract is a
short summary of your (published or unpublished) research paper, usually about
a paragraph (c. 6-7 sentences, 150-250 words) long.
A well-written
abstract serves multiple purposes:
·
an abstract lets readers get the gist or essence of your
paper or article quickly, in order to decide whether to read the full paper;
·
an abstract prepares readers to follow the detailed
information, analyses, and arguments in your full paper;
·
and, later, an abstract helps readers remember key
points from your paper.
It’s also worth
remembering that search engines and bibliographic databases use abstracts, as
well as the title, to identify key terms for indexing your published paper. So
what you include in your abstract and in your title are crucial for helping
other researchers find your paper or article.
If you are writing an
abstract for a course paper, your professor may give you specific guidelines
for what to include and how to organize your abstract. Similarly, academic
journals often have specific requirements for abstracts. So in addition to
following the advice on this page, you should be sure to look for and follow
any guidelines from the course or journal you’re writing for.
https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/assignments/writing-an-abstract-for-your-research-paper/
SUMMARY
noun, plural
a comprehensive and
usually brief abstract, recapitulation, or compendium of previously stated
facts or statements.
adjective
brief and comprehensive; concise.
direct and prompt; unceremoniously fast:
to treat someone with summary dispatch.
(of legal proceedings, jurisdiction, etc.) conducted without, or exempt
from, the various steps and delays of a formal trial.
How to Write a Summary
A "stand-alone" summary is a summary
produced to show a teacher that you have read and understood something. It is
common in many 100 and 200 level classes to get assignments that ask you to
read a certain number of articles and summarize them. This is also a very
common type of writing assignment in graduate school.
How to produce a summary:
1.Read the article to be summarized and be sure
you understand it.
2.Outline the article. Note the major points.
3.Write a first draft of the summary without
looking at the article.
4.Always use paraphrase when writing a summary.
If you do copy a phrase from the original be sure it is a very important phrase
that is necessary and cannot be paraphrased. In this case put "quotation
marks" around the phrase.
5.Target your first draft for approximately 1/4
the length of the original.
The features of a summary:
1.Start your summary with a clear
identification of the type of work, title, author, and main point in the
present tense.
Example: In the feature article "Four
Kinds of Reading," the author, Donald Hall, explains his opinion about
different types of reading.
2.Check with your outline and your original to
make sure you have covered the important points.
3.Never put any of your own ideas, opinions, or
interpretations into the summary. This means you have to be very careful of
your word choice.
4. Write using "summarizing
language." Periodically remind your reader that this is a summary by using
phrases such as the article claims, the author suggests, etc.
4.Write a complete bibliographic citation at
the beginning of your summary. A complete bibliographic citation includes as a
minimum, the title of the work, the author, the source. Use APA format.
https://public.wsu.edu/~mejia/Summary.htm
How to Write a Summary
Proficient students understand that summarizing, identifying
what is most important and restating the text (or other media) in your own
words, is an important tool for college success.
After all, if you really know a subject, you
will be able to summarize it. If you cannot summarize a subject, even if you
have memorized all the facts about it, you can be absolutely sure that you have
not learned it. And, if you truly learn the subject, you will still be able to
summarize it months or years from now.
Proficient students may monitor their
understanding of a text by summarizing as they read. They understand that if
they can write a one- or two-sentence summary of each paragraph after reading
it, then that is a good sign that they have correctly understood it. If they
can not summarize the main idea of the paragraph, they know that comprehension
has broken down and they need to use fix-up strategies to repair understanding.
Summary Writing Format
·
When
writing a summary, remember that it should be in the form of a paragraph.
·
A
summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text’s
title, author and main point of the text as you see it.
·
A
summary is written in your own words.
·
A
summary contains only the ideas of the original text. Do not
insert any of your own opinions, interpretations, deductions or
comments into a summary.
·
Identify
in order the significant sub-claims the author uses to defend the main point.
·
Copy
word-for-word three separate passages from the essay that you think support
and/or defend the main point of the essay as you see it.
·
Cite
each passage by first signaling the work and the author, put
“quotation marks” around the passage you chose, and put the number of the
paragraph where the passages can be found immediately after the passage.
·
Using
source material from the essay is important. Why? Because defending claims with
source material is what you will be asked to do when writing papers for your
college professors.
·
Write
a last sentence that “wraps” up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the
main point.
Example Summary Writing Format
In the essay Santa Ana, author Joan
Didion’s main point is (state main point). According to Didion “…passage
1…” (para.3). Didion also writes “…passage 2…” (para.8). Finally,
she states “…passage 3…” (para. 12) Write a last sentence that “wraps”
up your summary; often a simple rephrasing of the main point.
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/englishcomp1v2xmaster/chapter/how-to-write-a-summary/
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