Summary Writing in Action

Provide students time to read the original and revised summaries. Ask volunteers to point out the differences between the two summaries. For further enrichment, either (1) ask students to evaluate and improve a previous draft of a summary they have written, or (2) share examples of summaries in newspaper and magazine articles, textbooks, or research abstracts. Have students discuss the purpose and usefulness of the summaries and propose revisions to improve them.

Writing a Paraphrase

Paraphrasing is a key skill for research, but also for learning in general. A student who can put a concept into his or her own words understands the concept.

Educate students about the differences between summarizing and paraphrasing. Both skills involve rewording source material, often in more-accessible language. However, while a summary always attempts to capture only the main idea and key supporting details of another source, a paraphrase may focus on the entire source or just a single detail that directly relates to a research topic. In that way, paraphrasing is a more flexible move than summarizing. Remind students that any summarized or paraphrased material in a research project must include a citation to the original work. 

Next, lead your students through the guidelines for paraphrasing. For practice, have students work individually to paraphrase a key idea from a common source or the source as a whole. One possible source could be a public speech or document. (Possible authors include Susan B. Anthony, Frederick Douglass, Malcolm X, Patrick Henry, Abraham Lincoln, or Tecumseh.) Afterward, ask for volunteers to share their paraphrases. Note how different responses to the same source exemplify original thinking.

Using Quoted Material

Your students may be wondering when it is appropriate to quote a source word for word instead of paraphrasing or summarizing it. In general, students should quote material when . . .

• the specificity of the source's words is necessary to understanding the idea; 
• a specific word, phrase, or passage is particularly striking or has a heightened sense of importance in relation to the research topic; or
• the author of the quoted material is a noted authority whose name will lend credence to the paper's argument or investigation.

After sharing this information, lead students through the formatting and punctuation guidelines for quoted material. To see quoted material in action, have students seek short quotations in the sample MLA research paper on pages 327–334. For a long quotation, see the bottom of page 338.