English for Academic Studies

Lecture 2
 Summarising &
Paraphrasing I

English Skills for Academic Studies

John Langan (pp.14-33, pp.86-89)

Prepared by Esther Tong

Objectives

To learn 3 methods of
borrowing information from
others when you write an
essay.
Beware of Plagiarism!
If you do not document specialized
information or ideas that are not
your own, you will be plagiarizing --
stealing, in other words!
You must tell your
readers the sources!
I.Knowing HOW to make Reference

3 methods of borrowing
information from source
material are:
Paraphrasing - Use your own words to
tell what someone else wrote without
changing original meaning or details
Quoting - Use author’s exact words
in your writing
I.Knowing HOW to make Reference

Summarising - Use your own words

to reduce a text to its main points
A summary is a reduction of a large
quantity of information to the most
important points.
It is similar to an outline. However, a
summary is a passage which does not use
numbered points such as (A), (1), (a) to
indicate the relationships among parts.
Test your Judgment:
Examples of Borrowing Information-1
Original: Version 1: Is this an
Kowloon citizens are example of paraphrasing,
complaining loudly about summarizing, quoting, or
the problems and plagiarizing?
inefficiency of the Because there have been
transportation system traffic jams at the Cross
because there have been Harbor Tunnel Crossing
delays at the Cross during the previous two
Harbor Tunnel Crossing Fridays’ evening rush hour
which didn’t stop until past
during the past two 9:00pm, citizens of Kowloon
Fridays’ evening rush hour are criticizing a lot about
which lasted until after the faults and slow speed of
9:00pm. the transportation system.
(From an article called “Tunnel traffic angers citizens”
written by Kiwi Wong on page 12 of the SCMP on August 15,
2005)
Test your Judgment
The writer’s version above is an example of
PLAGIARISM because:
The writer has only changed around a few words and
phrases, or changed the order of the original’s
sentences.
The writer has failed to cite a source for any of the
ideas or facts.
 If you do either or both of these things, you
are plagiarising!
 Remember! A citation is a short reference
included within your writing that shows the
source of borrowed information.
Examples of Borrowing Information-2
Original:
Kowloon citizens are
complaining loudly about the
problems and inefficiency of
the transportation system
because there have been
delays at the Cross Harbor
Tunnel Crossing during the
past two Fridays’ evening rush
hour which lasted until after
9:00pm.
Version 2 - Is this an
example of paraphrasing,
summarizing, quoting, or
plagiarizing?
In her article “Tunnel Traffic
Angers Citizens” (South China
Morning Post, August 15, 2005),
Wong states that getting around
the city has been a problem for
the people of Kowloon. They are
unhappy about traffic jams that
are slowing down their evening
commute. For example, traffic at
the Cross Harbor Tunnel Crossing
did not flow freely until past

r ap rase
9:00pm for the last two Fridays.
h
Pa
(From an article called “Tunnel traffic angers citizens”
written by Kiwi Wong on page 12 of the SCMP on August 15,
2005)
 Examples of Borrowing Information-2
Original:
Kowloon citizens are
complaining loudly about the
problems and inefficiency of
the transportation system
because there have been
delays at the Cross Harbor
Tunnel Crossing during the
past two Fridays’ evening rush
hour which lasted until after
9:00pm.
Version 2 - Is this an
example of paraphrasing,
summarizing, quoting, or
plagiarizing?
In her article “Tunnel Traffic
Angers Citizens” (South China
Morning Post, August 15, 2005),
Wong states that getting around
the city has been a problem for
the people of Kowloon. They are
unhappy about traffic jams that
are slowing down their evening
commute. For example, traffic at
the Cross Harbor Tunnel Crossing
did not flow freely until past
9:00pm for the last two Fridays.

(From an article called “Tunnel traffic angers citizens”

written by Kiwi Wong on page 12 of the SCMP on August 15,
2005)
Paraphrasing: Use Your Own Words
Use synonyms but DON’T simply
substitute synonyms into the original
work.
Remember that you must alter
sentence structure as well.
Examples of borrowing information - 3
Original:
Kowloon citizens are
complaining loudly about the
problems and inefficiency of
the transportation system
because there have been
delays at the Cross Harbor
Tunnel Crossing during the
past two Fridays’ evening rush
hour which lasted until after
9:00pm.
Version 3 - Is this an
example of paraphrasing,
summarizing, quoting, or
plagiarizing?
Wong notes in her article “Tunnel
Traffic Angers Citizens” (South
China Morning Post, August 15,
2005), that traffic jams are
causing the people of Kowloon to
become dissatisfied with the
transportation system.

m a ry
Sum
(From an article called “Tunnel traffic angers citizens” written by
Kiwi Wong on page 12 of the SCMP on August 15, 2005)
How to Summarise
Include only the most important/
main points
Omit unnecessary details
Use synonyms
Use new sentence structures
(different lengths)
Why should we summarise?
Summarizing is helpful because it requires
that you thoroughly understand the
material you are reading.

What is the suitable length of a summary?

It depends on your purpose in summarising.
- title summary
- one-sentence/paragraph summary
- essay-length summary
Practice in Summarising

Do Selection A of Activity 1
(p.15 of textbook)
Do Selection A of Activity 2
(p.18 of textbook)
Examples of borrowing information - 4
Original: Version 4 - Is this an
Kowloon citizens are example of paraphrasing,
complaining loudly about the summarizing, quoting, or
problems and inefficiency of
the transportation system
plagiarizing?
because there have been People living on the Kowloon
delays at the Cross Harbor side of Hong Kong are
Tunnel Crossing during the “complaining loudly about the
past two Fridays’ evening rush problems and inefficiency of
hour which lasted until after the transportation system”
9:00pm. (Wong, C9) due to a couple of
traffic delays that took place
on the last two Fridays whichon
t at i
lasted until after uo
Q9:00pm.
(From an article called “Tunnel traffic angers citizens” written
by Kiwi Wong on page 12 of the SCMP on August 15, 2005)
Important Reminders:

Only about 10% of your paper

should be direct quotation
Most information that you borrow
should be paraphrased or
summarized.
Important Reminders:

You should consider using direct

quotation when :
you think the author’s exact wording is
special, adds value or interest
the author of the source is an authority that
would add credibility to your idea
the wording of the source is open to more
than one interpretation
Important Reminders:

Whether you quote,

paraphrase or summarise
an idea, make sure you
acknowledge your source!
Activity: Is it too close to
the original?

Read the passage (Set 3) on p.88

of the textbook. Discuss with your
partner and identify the acceptable
note. Give reasons to support your
answer.