Formal Academic Summary Directions
WR 122 Handout -  Fall 2005 - Prof. Cora Agatucci 

Deadlines:  See WR 122 Course Plan.
Grading Weight:  See WR 122 Syllabus.

Length:  No longer than 1 word-processed and double spaced page using standard margins, fonts & point sizes recommended for academic papers: 

• i.e. Times New Roman 12 point or Arial 10 point.

NOTE:  Grade penalty will be exacted if Formal Academic Summary exceeds 1-page limit.

Topic Choice:  Write your Formal Academic Summary on one of the following AofA argument essays:

•  Rachels’ “The End of Life” (pp. 115-119)
•  Pugh’s “Legalizing Euthanasia: A Means to a More Comfortable Dying Process” (pp. 133-141)
•  Spidel’s “Who Should Have the Right to Marry?” (pp. 222-225)
•  Miller’s “When Will Race Lose the Race?” (pp. 263-265)
•  Grellhesl’s “Mediating the Speech Code Controversy (pp. 301-303)

Genre and Manuscript Form Requirements:  Follow model provided by Handout: Cora’s example Formal Academic Summary of Rogers’ essay, including these features:  

• MLA Style Header (may be single spaced)
• MLA-style bibliographical entry (must be double spaced & correctly formatted!)
• Summary itself must be double spaced and formatted as one single paragraph
• First sentence/s should formally reintroduce the author’s full name and the article’s full title; present the topic focus and identify thesis/case claim of the argument essay being summarized.
• Integrate occasional author tags and use appropriate active verbs – examples:

According to Rachels, In Rachels’ opinion, For Rachels, . . .
Pugh states, asserts, asks, observes, notes, maintains, explains . . . 
Spidel believes, emphasizes, supports, argues, affirms, denies . . .
Miller objects, counters, contends, contends, concedes, rejoins . . .
Grellhesl points out, compares, contrasts, confirms, calls for . . .

·          Do not refer to an author by first name only in formal academic writing:
instead, refer to author by full name, last name only, title + last name, appropriate synonym.

Content & Coherence Requirements: 

• Represent Thesis/Case Claim and ONLY major supporting points – do NOT include minor points, details, specific examples;
  remember the 1-page limit!
• Be accurate – do NOT misrepresent an author’s main points, purpose, emphases;
• Be objective – do NOT give your own opinions on the ideas; do NOT analyze or evaluate the writing quality (that is, stick to representing the main content points of the argument in your Formal Academic Summary, and save your analysis & evaluation for your Critical Response Essay!)
• Be concise but clear  – do NOT be wordy, repeat points unnecessarily, or quote extensively; BUT do NOT sacrifice clarity for conciseness;
• Make your summary organized & coherent –do NOT slavishly follow author’s order of presentation; use appropriate transitions to indicate relationships among author’s main points that you represent in your Formal Academic Summary.

GRADING NOTE: Ability to adhere to conventions of standard written English (e.g. grammar, punctuation, mechanics) will also be considered in grading both Formal Academic Summary and Critical Response Essay!

See also Formal Academic Summary Evaluation Checklist

Go to: Critical Response Essay Directions

WR 122 Fall 2005 Syllabus | Course Plan | WR 122 Course Home Page

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URL of this webpage: http://web.cocc.edu/cagatucci/classes/wr122/FormalAcademicSummaryDir.htm
Last Updated: 09 January 2006

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Humanities Department, Central Oregon Community College
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