Descriptive summaries depict the original text (material) rather than directly presenting the information it contains. A descriptive summary should portray, in an objective way, the texts structure and main themes.

There are three variability measures of a data set: range, standard deviation, and variance. The range is the difference between the highest and lowest values of a variable, often found by subtracting the lowest from the highest value found.

The standard deviation is the average amount by which scores differ from the mean. The standard deviation is the square root of the variance, and it is a useful measure of variability when the distribution is normal or approximately normal (see below on the normality of distributions).

How Long Should a Summary Be? The length should be tied specifically to how you see your readers using your summary. Generally, however, a summary should be about 10 percent as long as the original document.

The purpose of a summary is to quickly give the reader or listener an idea of what this material is saying. You may find it helpful to create summaries of your own work, but more often, you will create summaries of material by other authors, such as articles, plays, films, lectures, stories, or presentations.

A main point summary reads much like an article abstract, giving the most important “facts” of the text. It should identify the title, author, and main point or argument. When relevant, it can also include the text’s source (book, essay, periodical, journal, etc.).

How to write a summary in English

• Shorten the text in such a way that all facts are in the summary.
• Skim the text.
• Read the text again to understand more details.
• Make notes (use keywords).
• Form sentences with the help of your keywords.
• Connect the sentences using suitable conjunctions.
• Use Simple Present or Simple Past.

Summarizing tips use your own words. only note the most important points, using key words and phrases. read the original text multiple times, ensuring you don’t miss any critical points. ensure a summary is much shorter than the original source. include the original source in the references for a written document.

present tense

Rules: How to write a summary The summary is usually written in the present tense. But past events may be reported in the past, future events may be reported in the future.