Being able to understand and summarize the academic work of others is a critical first step in learning how to engage in a fair, accurate and balanced dialogue. Put simply, the more clearly you are able to understand what someone else is saying and articulate it in your own words, the more effective and convincing your own argument will be, regardless of whether you agree, disagree, or feel ambivalent about what they are saying.
For this assignment you will individually research a specific topic (make sure that you review the Library Research Tutorial videos first!), choose one article that seems particularly compelling, well-written, or otherwise catches your interest. You will then write a 600 to 700 word summary of the article, concentrating on the skills of summary and paraphrase rather than direct quotation. Make sure that you rephrase your source in vocabulary and structure to avoid unintentional plagiarism.
Task 1: Use the library databases to locate recent, scholarly, peer-reviewed article(s) on a specific topic. Choose a minimum of three articles to review.
Task 2: Review the ‘edges’ of each article (the abstract, the introduction, and the conclusion) to assess their relevance to your topic, and how compelling you find them: you’ll have an easier time of this if you pick something you actually find interesting!
Task 3: After selecting a single article, scan the headings for different sections of the article to get an overview of the organization and content of the article. Then skim each section to get more delicate understanding of the main ideas and arguments developed in each section. Generate reading notes or share an annotated copy of the article.
Task 4: Use your notes to compose a summary that accurately reflects the purpose of the article, the main argument(s) it makes, as well as its most important/significant sub-points, relevant methodological/theoretical approaches (if any), main findings and the implications/significance (if any) of the area,
Sample Solution
