article summarization

STUDENT RESOURCES

TECHNICAL WRITING

SUMMARIES

CHAPTER 15

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

CONTENTS • Summaries: page 278

• Audience and Purpose of Summaries: page 278

• Elements of Effective Summaries: page 279

• Writing Summaries Step-by-Step: page 280

• Special Types of Summaries: page 283

• Ethical Considerations in Summarizing Information: page

286

• Strategies for Summaries: page 290

• Checklist for Summaries: page 290

• Applications: page 291

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

SUMMARY

• A restatement of the main ideas in a longer document.

• Used to convey the general meaning of the original source’s ideas.

• No specific details or examples.

AUDIENCE AND PURPOSE

• Summarize long report in order to save time

• Provide a summary in the beginning of a document

• Summary should

• Describe what the original document is about

• Help readers decide what to read (whole document, part, or none)

• Give readers a framework for understanding the full document

• Examples p. 279

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

ELEMENTS OF EFFECTIVE SUMMARIES

• Accuracy

• Completeness

• Conciseness

• Nontechnical style

Accuracy

Completeness

Conciseness

Nontechnical style

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

WRITING SUMMARIES STEP-BY-STEP

1. Read the original document

2. Reread and mark essential material

3. Cut and paste key information

4. Redraft the information into your own organizational

pattern and words

5. Edit your draft

6. Compare your version with the original document

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

SPECIAL TYPES OF SUMMARIES

• Closing summaries (in the concluding section)

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

SPECIAL TYPES OF SUMMARIES

• Informative abstracts ( on a separate page after the title page)

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

SPECIAL TYPES OF SUMMARIES

• Descriptive summaries ( 1-3 sentence) (on the title page

of a report or proposal)

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

SPECIAL TYPES OF SUMMARIES

• Executive summaries (like informative abstracts, but aimed at

decision makers)

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN SUMMARIZING INFORMATION

ETHICAL PITFALLS OF SUMMARY

• Fails to communicate full complexity.

• Lacks the original author’s tone.

TECHNICAL WRITING – SUMMARIES

STRATEGIES FOR SUMMARIES

• Start the summary process by reading the original document

• Reread the original while highlighting essential information

• Save only the key information

• Rewrite the key information in your own words

• Edit your version

• Check your version against the original

• Indicate the exact source of the summarized material

• Use the appropriate types of summaries in your own formal

documents

• Remain aware of ethical considerations