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Home / Study Skills / Improving Your Study Techniques / How to make a summary

How to make a summary

This animation explains how you can make a summary using the Topic Comment method.
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Making a summary Struggling with making summaries?
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[Student highlighting almost entire study text] [Student sleeping] This is too passive [Student hand-writing a too-long summary] This is too passive [Student thinks evrything is important] It’s my summary, so I will remember it. [This is a false sense of security] You have highlighted or written, but did you learn? Research shows there is a better way!
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[Example of concise example: lists 3 pro and 2 con arguments] [This is the Topic Comment Method] Use of keywords Restructure
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Use of keywords [Shows text with only keywords highlighted] Restructure [Keywords are now restructured into advantages and disadvantages] Using keywords is brain-friendly
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The Topic Comment Method: Use of keywords Restructure Integrate all information
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[Additional information is added to summary] [Page numbers are added to summary]
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Be as concise as possible
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[Too detailed summary vs clear summary] [Student working on summary] This is active Topic Comment = brain-friendly

While studying, it’s good to develop the habit of taking notes: that way you are not only consuming, but actively processing all the information. This animation shows you an effective and creative way of how to make a summary, the so-called Topic Comment method.

Note: If you’re studying research articles rather than study books, check the downloads for specific information about studying and summarising articles.

What aspects of the Topic Comment method could be useful for you?

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This content is taken from University of Groningen online course
Improving Your Study Techniques
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Improving Your Study Techniques

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