ProfBTV: The Summary/Response Essay

Summary

This video explains how to write a summary/response essay, a common assignment in college. It breaks the essay into two parts: a concise summary of the assigned reading and a thoughtful response to it. The summary should capture the main ideas and supporting details of the text without including personal opinions. The response portion allows for personal reactions, where students can agree or disagree with the author’s viewpoints. Tips for success include using quotes sparingly, writing critically, and maintaining a respectful tone, while also sharing personal anecdotes to enhance the response.

Takeaways

• 😀 Summary/response essays are common in college and involve summarizing an assigned text and providing a personal response to it.
• 😀 These essays serve two main purposes: proving you've read the material and demonstrating that you've thought critically about it.
• 😀 A summary/response essay consists of two distinct parts: a summary (usually a single paragraph) and a response (at least three paragraphs).
• 😀 The summary part should rewrite the main ideas of the reading in your own words, without including personal opinions.
• 😀 A good summary includes the main idea, supporting ideas, and always identifies the author’s name and title of the text.
• 😀 One effective strategy for writing a summary is to start with a sentence that includes the author's name, title, and main argument.
• 😀 The response portion allows you to agree or disagree with the author's ideas, and it's encouraged to offer both agreement and disagreement.
• 😀 The response can be structured in two ways: the Agreement/Disagreement Approach (where you focus on agreeing or disagreeing in multiple paragraphs) or the Supporting Idea Approach (where you respond to specific points from the reading).
• 😀 Critical thinking is key in the response part of the essay, and it’s acceptable to disagree with the author as long as the tone remains respectful.
• 😀 In the response, it's helpful to use personal anecdotes or stories to illustrate your points and maintain engagement with the text.

Q & A

What is a summary/response essay?

A summary/response essay is an assignment based on an assigned reading in which the writer summarizes the author’s ideas in one paragraph and then responds to those ideas in several additional paragraphs.

Why do professors frequently assign summary/response essays?

They assign them to confirm that students have read the material and to evaluate whether students have thought critically about the text and connected it to their own experiences or viewpoints.

What are the two main parts of a summary/response essay?

The essay contains a summary paragraph that restates the author’s ideas concisely and a response section that offers the writer’s reactions, agreements, disagreements, and personal connections.

What are the key characteristics of a strong summary?

A strong summary excludes personal opinions, captures the main and supporting ideas, includes all essential information, and clearly identifies the author by first and last name.

What is the purpose of the suggested fill-in-the-blank sentence frame?

It ensures that the summary begins with the author’s name, the article title, and the main idea, helping writers include essential summary components.

How long should the summary portion of the essay be?

It should typically be one paragraph, regardless of the length of the assigned reading.

What are the two recommended approaches for organizing the response section?

The Agreement/Disagreement Approach, which focuses on where the writer agrees or disagrees with the author, and the Supporting Idea Approach, which responds to specific ideas, paragraphs, or statements from the text.

Is it acceptable to use first-person pronouns in the response portion?

Yes. First-person pronouns are encouraged in the response section because students must express their own viewpoints and may relate the reading to personal experiences.

What guidelines are provided regarding the use of quotes?

Writers should use quotes sparingly—less than 10% of the essay—and only to support their analysis or commentary on the author’s ideas.

What tone should writers maintain when criticizing the author?

Criticism should be calm, scholarly, respectful, and specific, focusing on the ideas presented rather than attacking the author personally.

Why is including personal anecdotes encouraged in the response section?

Anecdotes help illustrate how the writer relates to the reading and demonstrate deeper engagement with the text.

What process does the video recommend for drafting a strong summary?

First read the entire text, then reread and analyze its structure, take notes or outline, write a summary-opening sentence using the template, and create one sentence per section or paragraph of the reading.