Academic Summary and Response Essay

Type: Essay

Subject: any academic article except the nursing shortage

Subject area: Nursing

Education Level: Undergraduate

Length: 3 pages

Referencing style: APA

Preferred English: US English

Spacing Option: Double

Essay 2: Academic Summary and Response Essay

Length: [3–4 pp. + Cover page + Reference page] Points: 150

Due: Consult the syllabus

Overview: This essay asks you to summarize and respond to an academic article. This assignment will ask you to choose an academic article that is not your PowerPoint Presentation one from the academic library databases. 

Purpose: Your purpose for writing this essay will be to accurately represent the ideas of the text, to critically examine and analyze the text, and to thoughtfully respond to the text. Choose a text to examine critically, summarize accurately and objectively, and respond to with a thoughtful analysis.

Text for the paper:

•  Any academic article accessible on the databases published within the last five years of your choosing. 

Audience: Your audience for this assignment is your instructor and your classmates. We are not familiar with the article so you should thoroughly represent its main ideas and key points, and provide accurate textual evidence throughout.

Requirements:  Your summary should accurately and objectively represent the authors’ purpose and main ideas. 

To achieve your purpose with your audience, use the following strategies in your summary:

• Introduce the text in the beginning of your summary so your readers know which text you are summarizing. Include the author (or authors’) names, the date of publication, and the publication title within the first few sentences;
• Focus on the writer (or writers’) arguments by reporting the text’s thesis and supporting ideas. Show that you understand the “big picture”—the writer’s (or writers’) purpose and how he or she supports it;
• Give examples and evidence that are specific when needed to back up your claims.
• Use citations so that your reader understands that you are reporting authors’ ideas;
• Use an objective tone and paraphrased source material.

Your response should be should answer the following question:  Was the author(s) successful at reaching their purpose with their intended audience? Your response should answer this question by including a thesis, reasons to support your thesis, and evidence to support your reasoning.  Critically respond to the text’s effectiveness by analyzing one or more of the following rhetorical features.  Focus on these aspects in your response:

• Purpose: Are the text’s aims clear?
• Audience/Reader:  Will the intended audience accept the author’s claim?
• Occasion/Genre/Context: Does the author effectively respond to the occasion?
• Thesis/Main Ideas:  Do the main ideas support the thesis?
• Organization & Evidence: Did the author support their contentions in a logical order?
• Language & Style: Did the tone and style support the author’s purpose? 

Overall Strategies:

• Begin your essay with a summary of the article and then lead into your response with an effective transition from an objective academic summary to an analytical response that is well-supported with textual examples. 

• To improve credibility with your audience, avoid spelling and grammar mistakes.

• Do not use “you” “we” or “I” -- keep an academic tone

• Use APA style.

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Also Read: Nursing Essay Writing Help

Summary and Response Essay Rubric 

Thesis and content (60)

• The thesis statement includes both a summary and response to reflect the rest of the essay
• The thesis statement includes claims and if the article was successful or not
• The content supports the thesis statement.
• The writer clearly helps the audience understand not only what the article is about, but analyzes the article in the response portion. 
• The writer has a clear summary and then goes into the response portion afterwards.
• Has at least 2 pages of content. 

Organization (20)

• The body paragraphs support the thesis statement and directly connect to it.
• Each paragraph contains just one main idea.
• The writer uses transitional words and phrases to move between paragraphs.
• The body paragraphs have topic sentences.

Introduction and conclusion (20)

• The introduction hooks the audience and makes the audience want to read more.
• The introduction includes the thesis statement (last sentence).
• After reading the introduction, the audience understands what’s to come in the essay.
• The conclusion recaps the essay.
• The conclusion paraphrases the thesis statement.
• The conclusion does not include any new ideas.

APA style (40)

• The writer includes a proper APA style cover page.
• The writer only has 1 direct quote per page.
• The writer cites all direct quotes and paraphrases in APA. 
• There is a reference page with 1 article on it

Grammar and style (10)

• The essay is free of grammatical errors (complete sentences, etc.).
• The writer uses formal and academic style.
• The essay is free of all personal pronouns (you, I, we, our, us)