Step 1: Summarize the Source

1. OVERVIEW: Summary, Analysis, and Response Assignment
2. PURPOSE: Summary, Analysis, and Response Assignment
• Step 1: Summarize the Source [Purpose, Audience, and Context]
• Step 2: Analyze the Source
• Step 3: Respond to the Source

How to Write a Summary / Analysis / Response
ENGL101 DB1

Step 1: Summarize the Source

A source can be an advertisement, article, video, speech, cartoon, etc.  Follow the guidelines below to help you summarize your source.

Summary

A summary is telling the main ideas of the article in your own words.

For our ENGL101 Discussion Board assignment, you were asked to identify the argument in the video. 

You will write 3+ sentences to summarize the main idea of the source.  Focus on SUMMARIZING the points, do not evaluate the content yet.  In the summary section, you simply summarize the overall point.

Steps in Writing

These are the steps to writing a great summary:

Read the article (or view the video, advertisement, or listen to the speech), one paragraph [speaker or concept] at a time.

Focus on identifying the purpose, audience, and context.

What clues are present in the source to identify these items for you?  Not sure what purpose, audience, and context means?  Go back to your assigned readings for this week for clarity in these three areas.

Underline—in an article or book—or write out sentences that point toward the purpose, the audience, and the context of the source.

When you finish the article [or video], read all the underlined [or written] sentences.

In your own words, write down one sentence that conveys the main idea [purpose].  

Sample Format of Summary Starter Sentence

Start the sentence using the name of the author and title of the article (see format HERE).

Continue writing your summary [section] by writing the other underlined sentences in your own words. Remember that you need to change both the words of the sentence and the word order. For more information, see below.

Each time you move from one point to the next, remember to use TRANSITION WORDS.  Transition words help to lead the audience through your summary with clear movement from one point to the next.  If you leave out transition words, your writing will become confusing, and often, readers will become confused and/or bored.  See Kearney’s list of transition words HERE.

Make sure you include the name of the author and article and use "author tags" to let the reader know you are talking about what the author said and not your own ideas.

AUTHOR TAG Helper Pages:

Different ways to indicate who said what (and how,...

How Often Do You Mention the Author?
Sample Author-Tagged Sentence Starters

GIVE CREDIT

It is important to integrate content from the source properly.  Not only is it ‘right’ to clearly indicate what is your thought versus the original author, but it is ‘legal’. 

When you use or refer to content from an outside source, you need to give proper credit to that other person.  This is done using author tags and in-text citations. 

Remember, academic writing is writing that has a purpose to inform, persuade, and educate.  To do this, you—as the author—need to assert your views (staying in 3^rd person voice) and then provide outside sources to defend what you are saying. 

In the summary section of a writing, you are asserting the original author’s purpose, intended audience, main idea, and so on.  When you assert each concept relating to the outside source, you follow it with proof from the video, writing, or speech. 

Example 1:

Beale’s goal in the video is to persuade children to brush their teeth after each meal.  Beale states, “Bacteria and food stick to the teeth after a meal, and so it is important to brush one’s teeth within about 30 minutes of finishing eating” (“Brushing Importance”, 5:22-5:28).

Example 2:

The purpose of the video is to convince the audience that quality, high-paying jobs can be secured without a college degree.  Early in the video, Hilliard stated, “There are a lot of jobs out there that only require a high school diploma, and we shouldn’t stigmatize those” (“Is College Really Worth It?” Hilliard, 3:51-4:29). 

USE TRANSITIONS

Each time you move from one point to the next, remember to use TRANSITION WORDS.  Transition words help to lead the audience through your summary with clear movement from one point to the next.  If you leave out transition words, your writing will become confusing, and often, readers will become confused and/or bored.  See Kearney’s list of transition words HERE.

Re-read your [summary] piece.

Does it flow well?

Are there too many details?

Not enough?

Your summary should be as short and concise as possible.  Stick to simply identifying the purpose, audience, and context in this initial section of your assignment post for my ENGL101 class.

[To see Virginia Kearney’s full article about writing a response paper—without my notes and guidance for our specific assignment—you can follow THIS LINK.  ]

Content in blue boxes are the words of J. Dick.

Elaboration/corrective content by J. Dick, within Kearney’s writing, can be found in [brackets]. 

These brackets are not Kearney’s ideas. 

The bracketed content is infused by J. Dick for the edification of ENGL101 students.

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