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Effective Summarizing Techniques for Technical Communication

This chapter provides strategies for writing effective summaries in technical communication. It discusses the importance of summaries in helping users decide what to read and offers steps for writing a summary. The chapter also explores different forms of summarizing information and ethical considerations when creating a summary.

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Effective Summarizing Techniques for Technical Communication

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  1. Chapter 14 Summaries Strategies for Technical Communication in the Workplace Laura J. Gurak John M. Lannon

  2. Summaries A summary: • Shows what a document is about • Helps users decide how much to read • Gives users a framework for understanding the body of the document

  3. Steps for Writing a Summary • Read the original document. • Reread and mark essential material. • Cut and paste the key information. • Redraft the information in your own organizational pattern and words. • Edit your draft. • Compare your version with the original document.

  4. Accuracy Completeness Readability Conciseness Nontechnical style What to Expect From a Summary

  5. Forms of SummarizedInformation

  6. Placement of Summarized Information • Place a descriptive abstract preceding the full document, usually on its title page. • Place an informative abstract just after the title page. • Place the closing summary at the beginning of a Conclusion section or at the end of a report’s Body section.

  7. Closing Summaries • A closing summary appear in the concluding section of a formal report or proposal. • The closing summary helps readers review and remember the major findings that have preceded it.

  8. Informative Abstracts • An informative abstract is a capsule version of a formal report or proposal that appears on a separate page, just after the document’s title page. • Informative abstracts provide readers with a snapshot of a long document. • Some readers may read the informative abstract to get just the gist without having to read the full document.

  9. Descriptive Abstracts • Descriptive abstracts are usually only one to three sentences long and appear on the title page or a report or a proposal. They are more compressed than an informative abstract.

  10. Executive Summaries • An executive summary not only summarizes a long document but also tells readers what they should think about it. • Executive summaries are placed on a separate page just after a long document’s title page. • Executive summaries are aimed at decision-makers.

  11. Ethical Considerations • A superficial treatment of a complex issue may be useful, but it can never tell the whole story. • When deciding what information to include or not include, what to emphasize or ignore, original messages can be distorted. • Do not distort the original writer’s intent.

  12. Any Questions? For additional help reviewing this chapter, please visit the Companion Website for your text at http://www.pearsonhighered.com/gurak.

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