Paraphrase the Thought!

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Paraphrasing is a very important skill to perfect, whether it's academic, business, or just everyday English. If somebody asks you to explain a movie, you don't pull out the film text and recite from it! You give them a brief summary of the film in an organized fashion. If, in a classroom setting, the professor asks you to summarize the reading, you must be able to compress it all into a small space, in your own words, within a short period of time.

In your own words. This means paraphrasing.
Keep your voice natural and light, and try not to sound like you are reading or being forced to do a paraphrase because your teacher told you it was homework. Act interested in what you are saying.

With speaking, is it OK for a student to write down a summary then read it? I would say no; this is the antithesis of what the student should be doing.

Now, let's look at what to do on a cognitive level and a metacognitive level:
Paraphrase the thought!
Cognitive level

Read the passage, or listen to the video, and write down the main information (Topic, subtopics, examples, support, etc). As you prepare, think about how you will present your summary. Pretend you are speaking to somebody who knows nothing about the subject. This way you will use words that the other person can understand rather then the possible complicated jargon in the text or video!

You can certainly use quotes from the text or video, but make sure you only quote once or twice, and that you make a reference to the text.

Metacognitive level

Prepare: pull the information together in your head and get ready to speak. Do you or the listeners have any experience with what you are going to relate?

Monitor: Are you using the correct synonyms? Are you simply quoting form the text, or are you restating what the text says?

Evaluate: Do you feel that you summarized efficiently? Did the professor (and the other students) understand you (organization and pronunciation)?




In conclusion,


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