I find that a lot of folks never get past some kind of numbered list of steps for How to Write (tm), which yes works for instructional purposes, but really isn't the way good writing happens as such.
Like for example when a full grown adult, a teacher even, on this committee I'm on was trying to edit a letter and insisted that you can never ever ever start two sentences in a piece of writing the same way, that you always always have to vary every single line. Which, you know, no. Not really. They teach that rule in school so you don't make *everything* the same. But it's not really a hard and fast rule, once you know how to actually write. /soapbox
Anyhow, my reason for saying the above follows from that, in that, simply paraphrasing on a micro level is not enough for a cohesive summary most of the time. You have to synthesize the information into understandable chunks in its abbreviated form and actually mediate with the reader, explaining why the information is significant and to whom.
This is true. But even if you're ruling out higher level thinking, what they are asking for in this case (one main point and one supporting detail from the text) is not in any way a summary.
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no subject
Date: 2010-03-04 12:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-04 12:28 am (UTC)Like for example when a full grown adult, a teacher even, on this committee I'm on was trying to edit a letter and insisted that you can never ever ever start two sentences in a piece of writing the same way, that you always always have to vary every single line. Which, you know, no. Not really. They teach that rule in school so you don't make *everything* the same. But it's not really a hard and fast rule, once you know how to actually write. /soapbox
Anyhow, my reason for saying the above follows from that, in that, simply paraphrasing on a micro level is not enough for a cohesive summary most of the time. You have to synthesize the information into understandable chunks in its abbreviated form and actually mediate with the reader, explaining why the information is significant and to whom.
I know you knew all this, just ranting. :-D
no subject
Date: 2010-03-04 12:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-04 04:59 am (UTC)AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH
no subject
Date: 2010-03-04 07:03 am (UTC)