Collect a wide range of reading material from academic

text ;

Classify academic texts based on their relevance to

various professions ;

OBJECTIVES:
Determine the topic of an abstract from a journal ;
Our agenda this morning
Use various techniques in summarizing a variety of
academic text ;

Write a prècis, abstract or summary of texts in various

discipline.
WHAT IS A
TOPIC?

The topic is the general subject of a paragraph or

essay. Topics are simple and are described with just
a word or a phrase. Main Idea. The main idea is a
complete sentence; it includes the topic and what
the author wants to say about it.
BIG IDEAS:

The title, repeated words, and ideas

emphasized throughout the passage
may help you identify the topic of the
selection.
 WHAT IS A MAIN
IDEA?
A general statement about the paragraph (or reading
selection). The main idea is a sentence that provides the
subject for discussion; it is the topic sentence. It is usually
supported by a list of details. If you can tell what the
supporting details have in common, you can discover the main
idea.
IDENTIFYING THE
MAIN IDEA
You must identify the supporting detail, too.
The implied main idea is determined by
knowing the essential point of passage.
2 types of main 2 types of main
idea idea
— IMPLIED — STATED.
An implied main idea requires The point the writer wants to
you to look make about the subject is
at the specific statements in
clearlyidentifiable in a
the paragraph
sentence.
and consider what idea they
suggest.
STATED Stated Main Ideas
• Stated main ideas will be in the topic
sentence.

MAIN •Topic sentences may be at the beginning,

middle, or end of the paragraph, but are
usually at the beginning..

IDEA:
oThe focus of the paragraph.

oA general statement that covers all of the

details in the paragraph.
IMPLIED
• Inferred from information in the paragraph:

oKey words/ideas.
oRepeated words.

MAIN The point the writer wants to make about the

subject is notclearly identifiable in a sentence.
The reader must dig for it.

IDEA: Implied
oKey terms
oRepeated words or phrases
oStructure of the paragraph
oTopic
SOME WRITERS DO
NOT EXPLICITLY
STATE THE MAIN
IDEA OF THEIR
ARTICLES.
Why do you think they do this?
RESOURCE https://www.imperial.edu/do
cs/divisions/arts-letters-
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https://www.merriam-
webster.com/dictionary/top
ic