11

English for Academic and

Professional Purposes
Quarter 3 - Module 2:
Uses Various Techniques in
Summarizing a Variety of Academic
Texts

i
ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL PURPOSES
Self- Learning Modules
QUARTER 3: Module 2: Summarizing

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English for Academic and
Professional Purposes
Quarter 3 - Module 2:
Uses Various Techniques in
Summarizing a Variety of Academic
Texts

iii
What This Module is About

Anchored on the mission of leaving no learners behind in the “new normal” of

education, this learning material will help you enhance your competencies in English for
Academic and Professional Purposes through variety of purposeful discussion and activities
designed for distance learning.
Integrated with learning tasks that are contextualized and differentiated, this module
will cater to the varied needs of learners and provide them with worthwhile learning
opportunities despite being on a distance-learning setting.

For the facilitator:

This module is designed for self-paced learning. As a facilitator of learning however,
you have an important role to play. You are the learners’ most reliable reference, and you
know where and when to scaffold and provide further assistance to them. By frequently
monitoring the learners’ progress, you can provide the needed intervention.

For the learner:

Be sure to honestly and independently do the activities in this module. They are
intended to help you master the competency at your own pace. Answer keys are provided at
the end to help you self-check your own answers. Should you find that your answer is wrong,
think carefully and review. By doing so, your mistakes are not wasted because you will learn
from them. If you have other concerns, do not hesitate to ask help from your teacher. You
can also use other references to further enhance your learning. Moreover, do not forget to
have fun while learning.

For Parents/Guardians:
Your main role is to make sure your child has a conducive place and enough time to
work on this module at home. To maximize learning, you can also help your child if he/she
encounters some difficulties but make sure it is really your child who does all the required
tasks. Finally, just feel free to contact your child’s English for Academic and Professional
Purposes teacher if needed.

This module has the following parts and corresponding icons:

What I Need to Know This part contains learning objectives that
are set for you to learn as you go along the
module each day/lesson.

What I Know This is a pretest assessment as to your

level of knowledge to the subject matter at
hand, meant specifically to gauge prior
related knowledge.

What’s New This is an introduction of the new lesson

through various activities, before it will be
presented to you.

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What is It These are discussions of the activities as a
way to deepen your discovery and
understanding of the concept.

What’s More These are follow-up activities that are

intended for you to practice further in order
to master the competencies.

What I Have Learned These are activities designed to process

what you have learned from the lesson

What I Can Do These are tasks that are designed to

showcase your skills and knowledge
gained, and applied into real-life concerns
and situations.

Assessment These are tasks which aims to evaluate

your level of mastery in achieving the
learning competency.

Additional Activities In this portion, another activities will be

given to you to enrich your knowledge or
skill of the lesson learned. This also tends
retention of learned concepts.

Answer Key This contains answers to all activities in

the module.

References This is a list of all sources used in

developing this module.

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 What I Need to Know

Some people have trouble reading long, complicated paragraphs. Others do

not have enough time listening to winding stories, and prefer hearing the gist instead.
This is why the skill of summarizing is important, and this module is exclusively
prepared for you to help you master the language used in academic text from
various disciplines. The exercises and assessments are carefully made to suit your
level of understanding. The scope of this module permits it to be used in many
different learning situations. The language used recognizes your diverse vocabulary
level.

Independently, you will go through this module following its proper sequence.
There will be a pre-test, activities, and a post-test that you will have to accomplish to
complete this module. Although you are going to do it alone, this self-guided module
is designed for your convenience.

At the end of this module, you are expected to achieve the following
objectives:

A. Define summary and summarizing;

B. Identify the different techniques in summarizing; and

C. Summarize various academic texts.

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 What I Know

Are you ready to begin your journey through this topic?

Let’s start with this warm-up activity.

Pre-Test

I. Identification

Directions: Write TRUE if the statement is true, and FALSE if the statement is false.

1. The main purpose of summarizing is to give feedback to the idea or story.

2. Summaries are longer than the original texts.
3. When summarizing, you should only state the essential ideas from the original
text.
4. Opinions can be included in summaries.
5. Copying the first and last sentences is a good technique of summarizing.

Congratulations on completing the first

task! You are now moving onwards to
the lesson proper.

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SUMMARIZING

What’s New!

Do you remember any bedtime story that you have heard when you
were younger? What’s your favorite story? Can you retell the whole story
in just 1-3 sentences?

My Favorite Bedtime Story

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What is it?

Summarizing is stating the essential ideas together in fewer words. This may
be in a sentence, sometimes a paragraph without including your opinion, attitudes
and judgments. Summarizing is condensing or shortening the main ideas of other
people. Paragraphs are shortened into one, two, or three sentences. Usually, the
summary cuts the selection to at least 3 times the length of the original text.

From dictionaries, it is defined as taking a lot of information and creating a

condensed version that covers the main points; and to express the most important
facts or ideas about something or someone in a short and clear form.

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What are the different techniques in summarizing a variety of academic texts?

1. Before you start with the summary, read and understand the original text first.
2. To make things easier, you can identify the main points and supporting
details of the original text using graphic organizers, outlines or infographics.
3. Organize all the essential ideas into short, coherent statements.
4. If you find words that you think are complicated, you may change them into
your own words in the summary.
5. You may use paraphrasing in your summary, keeping in mind that you retain
the ideas of the original text.
6. If you use these techniques as your guide, summarizing will surely be a
piece of cake for you!

Here is an example of a paragraph that needs to be summarized:

“Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result

they overuse quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10%
of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore,
you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials
while taking notes” (Lester, 1976).

Can you create your own summary of this paragraph? Just follow the
techniques stated above and you’re all set.

Here is one of the ways the paragraph can be summarized:

Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to
help minimize the amount of quoted material in a research paper (Lester,
1976).

SUMMARIAnother 5 Easy Techniques in Summarizing Various Academic Texts

Technique 1: Somebody Wanted But So Then

“Somebody Wanted But So Then” is an excellent summarizing strategy for

stories.

Each word represents a key question related to the story's essential elements:

• Somebody: Who is the story about?

• Wanted: What does the main charter want?
• But: Identify a problem that the main character encountered.
• So: How does the main character solve the problem?
• Then: Tell how the story ends.

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Here is an example of this strategy in action:

• Somebody: Little Red Riding Hood

• Wanted: She wanted to take cookies to her sick grandmother.
• But: She encountered a wolf pretending to be her grandmother.
• So: She ran away, crying for help.
• Then: A woodsman heard her and saved her from the
wolf. After answering the questions, combine the
answers to form a summary:

Little Red Riding Hood wanted to take cookies to her sick grandmother, but
she encountered a wolf. He got to her grandmother’s house first and pretended to be
the old woman. He was going to eat Little Red Riding Hood, but she realized what he
was doing and ran away, crying for help. A woodsman heard the girl’s cries and
saved her from the wolf.

Technique 2: SAAC Method

The SAAC method is another useful technique for summarizing any kind of
text (story, article, speech, etc). SAAC is an acronym for "State, Assign, Action,
Complete." Each word in the acronym refers to a specific element that should be
included in the summary.

• State: name of the article, book, or story

• Assign: the name of the author
• Action: what the author is doing (example: tells, explains)
• Complete: complete the sentence or summary with keywords
and important details.

This method is particularly helpful for students who are learning the format of
a summary and need reminders to include the title and author's name. However,
SAAC does not include clear guidance about which details to include, which some
students might find tricky. If you use SAAC with your students, remind them of the
types of details that belong in a summary before instructing them to work
independently. Here is an example of SAAC in action:

• State: The Boy Who Cried Wolf

• Assign: Aesop (a Greek storyteller)
• Action: tells
• Complete: what happens when a shepherd boy repeatedly lies to
the villagers about seeing a wolf

Use the four SAAC cues to write out a summary of "The Boy Who Cried
Wolf" in complete sentences:

The Boy Who Cried Wolf, by Aesop (a Greek storyteller), tells what happens
when a shepherd boy repeatedly lies to the villagers about seeing a wolf. After a

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while, they ignore his false cries. Then, when a wolf really does attack, they don’t
come to help him.

Technique 3: 5 W's, 1 H

The 5 W's, 1 H strategy relies on six crucial questions: who, what, when,
where, why, and how. These questions make it easy to identify the main character,
the important details, and the main idea.

• Who is the story about?

• What did they do?
• When did the action take place?
• Where did the story happen?
• Why did the main character do what he/she did?
• How did the main character do what he/she did?

Try this technique with a familiar fable such as "The Tortoise and the Hare."

• Who? The tortoise

• What? He raced a quick, boastful hare and won.
• When? When isn’t specified in this story, so it’s not important in this
case.
• Where? An old country road
• Why? The tortoise was tired of hearing the hare boast about his speed.
• How? The tortoise kept up his slow but steady pace.

Then, use the answers to the 5 W's and 1 H to write a summary of incomplete
sentences.
Tortoise got tired of listening to Hare boast about how fast he was, so
he challenged Hare to a race. Even though he was slower than Hare, Tortoise
won by keeping up his slow and steady pace when Hare stopped to take a nap.

Technique 4: First, Then, Finally

The "First Then Finally" technique helps students summarize events in

chronological order. The three words represent the beginning, main action, and
conclusion of a story, respectively:

• First. What happened first? Include the main character and

main event/action.

• Then. What key details took place during the event/action?

• Finally. What were the results of the event/action?

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 Here is an example using "Goldilocks and the Three Bears."

First, Goldilocks entered the bears' home while they were gone. Then, she ate
their food, sat in their chairs, and slept in their beds. Finally, she woke up to find the
bears watching her, so she jumped up and ran away.

Technique 5: Give Me the Gist

When someone asks for "the gist" of a story, they want to know what the story
is about. In other words, they want a summary—not a retelling of every detail. To
introduce the gist method, explain that summarizing is just like giving a friend the gist
of a story, and have your students tell each other about their favorite books or
movies in 15 seconds or less. You can use the gist method as a fun, quick way to
practice summarizing on a regular basis.

Do you now understand how to create good

summaries? Great! Let’s practice your
learnings.

SUMMARIZING
What’s More

Activity 1: Give Me the Gist

Directions: Write a summary of the following paragraphs.

1. When one hears the term “reality” applied to a television show, one might
expect that the events occurred naturally or, at the least, were not scripted, but
this is not always the case. Many reality shows occur in unreal environments,
like rented mansions occupied by film crews. These living environments do not
reflect what most people understand to be “reality.” Worse, there have been
accusations that events not captured on film were later restaged by producers.
Worse still, some involved in the production of “reality” television claim that the
participants were urged to act out story lines premeditated by producers. With
such accusations floating around, it’s no wonder many people take reality TV to
be about as real as a sitcom.
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 _______________________________________________________________

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2. There are many types of lethal venom in the animal kingdom, but perhaps no
stranger carrier than the platypus. The platypus is one of few venomous
mammals. Males carry a venom cocktail in their ankle spurs that paralyzes
victims with excruciating pain. Stranger still, the platypus is the only mammal
that uses electroreception. What this means is that the platypus uses its bill to
sense the electricity produced by the muscular movements of its prey. The
platypus neither sees, hears, nor smells its prey while hunting but, rather,
pursues it through electroreception. Perhaps most odd, the platypus is the only
mammal that lays eggs rather than giving birth to live young. The platypus is an
odd creature indeed.

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Activity 2: Who? What? Where?

Directions: Using the 5W’s and 1H technique, write a summary of the following
paragraphs.

1. Opera refers to a dramatic art form, originating in Europe, in which the

emotional content is conveyed to the audience as much through music, both
vocal and instrumental, as it is through the lyrics. By contrast, in musical
theater an actor's dramatic performance is primary, and the music plays a
lesser role. The drama in opera is presented using the primary elements of
theater such as scenery, costumes, and acting. However, the words of the
opera, or libretto, are sung rather than spoken. The singers are accompanied
by a musical ensemble ranging from a small instrumental ensemble to a full
symphonic orchestra.

Who:
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What:
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 When:
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Where:
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Why:
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How:
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2. For the walls, Jenny thought she would use a bright yellow paint. She would
pick a border that had mostly bright red and green colors, and maybe a little
bit of blue. She already had found some curtains that were sky blue with
streaks of red, blue and yellow that she thought would go great with the walls.
And finally, she had picked a carpet that was mostly blue with specks of red
and yellow. Jenny couldn't wait till she was done decorating her room. It was
really going to look awesome.

Who:
____________________________________________________________

What:
___________________________________________________________

When:
___________________________________________________________

Where:
__________________________________________________________

Why:
____________________________________________________________

How: ____________________________________________________________

What I Have Learned

Using what you have learned from this module, write a summary of your
learnings.

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 ______________________________________________________________________

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SUMMARIZING
What I Can Do

Activity 1

Directions: Read the article below, then summarize it using the indicated
techniques.

A Narrative Essay On The Effects Of The Enhanced Community-Quarantine

In this article, we are going to share perspectives on the enhanced community

quarantine in the Philippines.

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 As the Philippines faced the coronavirus pandemic, several countermeasures
were imposed to curve its spread. As such, President Duterte imposed an enhanced
community quarantine on Luzon.

However, the spread of the virus brought to light some of the worst traits of
the Filipino people. Instead of helping out, people began panic buying. Worse, they
tried to profit off of their fellow countrymen by hoarding important supplies such as
alcohol and face masks.

Furthermore, the inconsistencies and incompetence of some politicians and

public servants were highlighted. Clearly, some were not prepared to handle the
spread of the virus. This caused a debate online regarding what to do amid the
pandemic and the quarantine in the Philippines. Many argued that criticizing the
government would do no help, however, many would disagree.

Because of the outcries of netizens online, thousands of people have been

helped by the government and got aid. Moreover, several politicians have listened to
the masses and provided the desperate needs of the people.

But hope still remains. The Filipino people is resilient and brave. In light of this
global health crisis, and the community quarantine, the hope is that we would all
learn from this.

The majority of the people would want “things to get back to normal”.
However, the normal that we had before was a culture of being apologetic on behalf
of politicians and normalizing hate.

After this quarantine, when the dust has settled and the world begins to
rebuild from their losses, let us look back on the pandemic as a reminder that we
should move forward for the better.

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SUMMARIZING
Write the summary using the SAAC technique.

Write the summary using the First, Then, Finally technique.

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 Assessment

Directions: Identify the main point and supporting details of the text below. Then,
write a summary based on the essential ideas you have selected.

Crime and punishment are two categories that are almost always
associated with one another. They have become subjects of numerous scientific
research studies and literary works. Numerous philosophers have reflected on
the relationship and proportionality of crime and punishment. These two
categories can be compared as two bowls of the same scale. It is fine when they
complement each other, but if they are skewed, it causes negative
consequences. Among all possible punishments, the death penalty is the most
extreme, and likely, the most ineffective and unfair type of punishment for any
crime. However, there are many proponents with opposing viewpoints. First, the
death penalty is more costly than other less severe types of punishments;
second, it is against humanity’s moral code as it is still a form of murder; and
finally, justice may not be ensured if the jury holds biases against convicts.

Main Point:

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SUMMARIZING

Supporting Details:

Summary:

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SUMMARIZING

Answer Key
1. FALSE
1.
2. FALSE
FALSE
2. FALSE
3.Answers
TRUE may vary
Additional Activities
3.
4. TRUE
FALSE
4.
5. FALSE
Answers may vary
FALSE
5. FALSE

Pre-Test

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SUMMARIZING

References

A. Books

Valdez, P. N. M. (2016). English for the globalized classroom series: English

for
Academic and Professional Purposes. Quezon City: The Phoenix
Publishing House.

Saqueton, G. and Uychoco, M.T. 2016. English for Academic and

Professional Purposes. Quezon City: Rex Printing Company, Inc.

B. Electronic Files

Department of Education. Curriculum and Instruction Strand. K to 12

Most Essential Learning Competencies with Corresponding CG Codes.
Department of Education.

English for Academic and Professional Purposes. (2016). Teacher’s

Guide. First Edition.

Department of Education. English for Academic and

Professional Purposes. (2016). Reader. First Edition.

C. Online Sources
https://philnews.ph/2020/04/06/narrative-essay-on-enhanced-
community-quarantine-due-to-covid-19/
https://www.thoughtco.com/summarizing-strategies-for-students-
4582332

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