4.+Paraphrases

Paraphrases ** Paraphrasing is a writing skill in which you “rephrase” (rewrite) information from an outside source in your own words without changing its meaning. Because you include in your rewriting all, or nearly all, of the content of the original passage, a paraphrase is almost as long. In paraphrasing, however, you must not change the meaning of the original. When paraphrasing, it is important to avoid plagiarizing; that is, writing a paraphrase that is too similar to the original. A paraphrase is unacceptable when it contains the same vocabulary and sentence structure as the original. Rewriting a text for the purpose of including it in your own writing can be done in several ways.

1. By changing the vocabulary (verbs/nouns) Example: Smith and Jones (1991) found that the circumstances had.... Smith and Jones (1991) discovered that the conditions had....

2. By changing the verb form (e.g. from active to passive: this can change the focus or emphasis). Example: Brown and White (1994) observed the problems caused by seminars.... The problems caused by seminars were observed by Brown and White (1994)....

3. By changing the word class (e.g. from verb to noun phrase). The completion of the reports in April ensured that the students had time to revise before their examination. The completion of the reports in April confirmed that the students had time for revision prior to their test.

4. By synthesis You may need to combine two or more viewpoints or pieces of information from other writers in your paraphrase. Often one reference will support another, but there may be opposing views as well. Example: a)Johns and Dudley-Evans (1980) touched on the problems created by the lectures use of colloquial words and phrases. This use of informal language was also noted by Jackson and Bilton (1994) who investigated geology lectures given in English.

b)Two direct quotations are given below relating the same topic. Paraphrase and combine them in a brief report not using direct quotation. "Terseness of note taking ... rather than mere quantity seems to be an essential ingredient of effective ... note taking" Dunkel (1988) "Several other researchers have found similar positive relationships between 'terseness' of notes and test performance ..." (Chaudron, Loschky and Cook, 1994)

According to Dunkel (1988) being brief and concise when taking notes is useful. This observation is also supported by the findings of Chaudron, Loschky and Cook (1994).

Source: eng 191 course pack for the department of commerce, finance and shipping set 2 **