An important part of being a university student is understanding, summarizing and citing the work of others. The summary assignment is designed to introduce you to these scholarly practices. Students will be required to write an individual summary chosen from the four available essay readings from the course (click here for a list of readings). Students choose one reading.
Your paper should demonstrate an ability to understand and summarize the article, as well as, to cite properly using ASA referencing. In a summary assignment you do not give your opinion or provide a critique of the author’s work. It should be approximately 3 pages (4 max), double spaced, one inch margins, 12 point font Times New Roman.
It is due for electronic submission by 11:59 pm on June 6. Make sure to upload the document in the valid file type/format Word (DOC, DOCX) or Acrobat PDF to the Written Assignment tab on the course site (Assignments —- Written Assignment). Do not submit the assignment through the turnitin.com website. Late submissions, as well as those in incorrect file types or submitted to an incorrect website, will be assigned a late penalty (see Late Submissions on syllabus). Always keep a copy of your work.
Note: Please do not submit electronic copies of late assignments without first contacting the course coordinator.
The summary assignment will be assessed in the following way:
Summary Assignment
Points
Writing- sentence composition (syntax/grammar)*, proper citation++
10
Content of summary**- how well you capture the key ideas/points of the essay
10
Total
20
*Grammar and the Mechanics of Writing: Grammar and related concerns (syntax) are very important and ensure that your written work is clearly communicated to your reader. The quality of your writing will affect your grade. The following are important:
Restate the ideas of the article in your own words as much as possible. Be sure to use any quotations effectively, but sparingly.
Use transitional words effectively for a smooth and logical flow of ideas (e.g. furthermore, moreover, consequently, however etc.) You can find an information sheet on transition words and phrases here.
Avoid submitting the first draft of your work. Edit and re-write your work.
Check your grammar, syntax, punctuation and spelling! Click here for the most common sentence structure problems.
++Proper Citation: Please begin the summary by citing the article using ASA style at the top of page one. You are not required to do a reference page. You can find a link here for ASA referencing.
A summary begins with an introductory sentence that states the text’s title, author and main thesis (or main point of the essay) or subject.
A summary is written in your own words. It contains few or no quotes. To avoid plagiarism and show you’ve understood the article, it’s essential to properly paraphrase the author’s ideas. See here for how to avoid plagiarism.
A summary is always shorter than the original text, often about 1/3 as long as the original (for our purposes, about 3 pages (4 max), double spaced, 12 font Times New Roman). It is the ultimate “fat-free” writing. An article or paper may be summarized in a few sentences or a couple of paragraphs. A book may be summarized in an article or a short paper. A very large book may be summarized in a smaller book.
A summary should contain all the major points of the original text, but should ignore most of the fine details, examples, illustrations or explanations.
The backbone of any summary is formed by critical information (key names, dates, places, ideas, events, words and numbers). A summary must not rely on vague generalities.
If you quote anything from the original text, even an unusual word or a catchy phrase, you need to put whatever you quote in quotation marks (“”).
A summary must contain only the ideas of the original text. Do not insert any of your own opinions, interpretations, deductions or comments into a summary.
A summary, like any other writing, has to have a specific audience and purpose, and you must carefully write it to serve that audience and fulfill that specific purpose.
** Please look up the American Sociological Association for quick tips for ASA style)
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