Read the text. Distinguish the types of paragraphs (fact and opinion, descriptive and process, contrast and comparison, problem and solution).

Write out keywords which help to sum up each paragraph.

Circle the connectors used in the text and make up a table of helpful connectors.

Finally sum up the whole text.

 

 

II.	Common instructions on writing summaries and introductions

How to write a summary

The goal of writing asummary or an article, a chapter, or a book is to offer as accurately as possible the full sense of the original, but in a more condensed form. A summary restates the author’s main point, purpose, intent, and supporting details in your own words.

• The process of summarizing enables you to better grasp the original, and the result shows the reader that you understand it as well. In addition, the knowledge gained allows you to better analyze and critique the original.

• First, try to find the main idea in the reading; it's usually in the first paragraph. Next, skim through the article, glancing at any headings and graphics. Then, read the conclusion. The intent here is both to give yourself a review of the work and t o effectively engage yourself with it.

• Now go back and read the original text carefully, jotting down notes on or highlighting the important points. Write the central idea and the author's reasons (purpose and intent) for holding this viewpoint. Note the supporting elements the author uses to explain or back up her/his main information or claim.

• Make an outline that includes the main idea and the supporting details. Arrange your information in a logical order, for example, most to least important or chronological. Your order need not be the same as that in the original, but keep related supporting points together. The way you organize the outline may serve as a model for how you divide and write the essay.

• Write the summary, making sure to state the author's name in the first sentence. Present the main idea, followed by the supporting points. The remainder of your summary should focus on how the author supports, defines, and/or illustrates that main idea. Remember, unless otherwise stated by your instructor, a summary should contain only the author’s views, so try to be as objective as possible.

• As you revise and edit your summary, compare it to the original and ask yourself questions such as: Have I rephrased the author’s words without changing their meaning? Have I restated the main idea and the supporting points accurately and in my own words?

• If you are asked to write a critical summary or to include a critique, you may want to ask yourself questions such as: Does the author succeed? How and why or why not? What are the strengths, weaknesses? Why? What did the author do well? Not well? Why?

 

How to start a proposal

Your proposal should begin with two introductory paragraphs that serve mainly to get the reader into the paper.

The first paragraph states the purpose of the proposed study and the general methodological approach. The second paragraph outlines the organization of the proposal.

Here is an example:

This paper describes a proposed study that will examine the relationships between corporate culture and logistics outsourcing using primarily depth interviews from about thirty participants in three companies. Based on the interpretation of the data obtained from the interviews, models will be developed to provide frameworks for understanding the role of cultural orientations in influencing logistics outsourcing in the participating companies.

The proposal includes four sections: introduction to the study (1), review of the literature (2), methodology (3), summary of the results anticipated (4).

Each section or chapter should be also opened with an introductory sentence. Study some examples:

The first part of the proposal introduces the background of the study, states the problem, indicates the professional significance, determines the scope of the research and present the definitions of the key terms.

The second part chapter provides an overview of the literature on corporate culture and logistic outsourcing which form a basis for the present study.

The third part chapter explains the methods that will be used in carrying out the study. The following part of the proposal reports on the results which are likely to be obtained with the methods used.

WRITING PRACTICE

1. Read the text below, which is the abstract from a PHD dissertation. Identify the purpose and the general methodological approach of the research conducted and write an introductory paragraph (in no more than 70 words) for an imaginary proposal.

 

Title: The social capital and corporate leaders.

The concept of social capital has been linked to a variety of individual outcomes but a review of social capital and leadership literature reveals that there is no body of empirical research that links social capital to leadership. The general thesis of this research is that the social capital of leaders can be a significant source of their ability to influence others and that the nature of the relationship between social capital and leadership influence is moderated by the leader's level of authority. I argue that social capital is a source for leaders in much the same way that human capital is considered a resource. For example, types of social capital might serve as cues for the cognitive processes that people use to perceive and evaluate leadership. This observation, while applicable at all levels of leadership, is moderated by the organizational level at which leadership is exercised. In order to analyze this relationship, I collected survey data on social networks of approximately two hundred corporate leaders while collecting leadership ratings on these leaders from more than one thousand of their co-workers. The subsequent analysis provided insights of interest into the amount and type of social capital of different sets of corporate leaders. This dissertation sought to identify and examine possible theoretical linkages between the two previously unrelated concepts of social capital and leadership. Although this research did not identify any significant support for the hypothesized relationships, it provided support for many earlier findings in the field of social capital and leadership. This research also developed theoretical insights into the contingent nature of the relationship between these two concepts. The results of this analysis suggest that there is a need for relevant network measures based on the nature of contacts in individual social networks for the study of social capital and leadership. A further exploration of the role that social capital plays in the exercise of leadership could provide a more multidimentional perspective to a range of issues that are of importance to the field of strategic management.

 

2. Analyze the following titles of research projects and formulate possible introductory paragraphs for research papers:

 

1. Advertising: increasing consumer choice, or brainwashing.

2. Class ethnicity and education achievement.

3. Problems of Vocational education in modern Russia.

4. Modern threats to family life.

5. "Class matters": human and social capital in the entrepreneurial process.