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Please listen to my welcome recording.  Since this is our first Padlet, I have it on the screen to help you know where to focus your attention and see what is coming in the next few weeks.

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What strengths do you bring to the team experience, and what will you need to work on as a team player?

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Working together to investigate an issue.

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"Two heads are better than one." We've all heard the old adage encouraging teamwork, but what does working together really do for you? Salesmen thrive off healthy competition, but sometimes the use of teamwork in the workplace is a better answer for winning sales. Here are six ways that teamwork benefits you in the workplace.

1. Fosters Creativity and Learning

Creativity thrives when people work together on a team. Brainstorming ideas as a group prevents stale viewpoints that often come out of working solo. Combining unique perspectives from each team member creates more effective selling solutions.

What you have learned from your individual experiences is entirely different from your coworkers. Thus, teamwork also maximizes shared knowledge in the workplace and helps you learn new skills you can use for the rest of your career.

Collaborating on a project creates an enthusiasm for learning that solitary work usually lacks. Being able to share discoveries with the rest of your team excites employees and fosters both individual and team knowledge.

2. Blends Complementary Strengths

Working together lets employees build on the talents of their teammates. While your strength may be creative thinking, a coworker might shine in organization and planning. Do not hesitate to share your abilities with the team.

Often, a team works well together because team members rely on each other to bring individual talents to the table. By observing the process behind these skills, you can learn how to combine your gifts and become a stronger team.

Every time you see your coworkers utilize a different approach in sales, you have a chance to adjust or improve your methods.

3. Builds Trust

Relying on other people builds trust, and teamwork establishes strong relationships with coworkers. Despite occasional disagreements, an effective team enjoys working together and shares a strong bond. When you put your trust in a coworker, you are establishing the foundation of a relationship that can endure minor conflicts.

Trusting your teammates also provides a feeling of safety that allows ideas to emerge. It helps employees open up and encourage each other. Open communication is key when working on a team and produces effective solutions in difficult group projects.

Without trust, a team crumbles and cannot succeed on assigned projects. Great teams build each other up and strengthen individual members to create a cohesive group. By working together, employees learn that wins and losses affect everyone on the team. Teamwork necessitates confidence in each other's distinct abilities.

4. Teaches Conflict Resolution Skills

Conflicts inevitably happen when you put together a group of unique people. Employees come from varied backgrounds and have different work styles and habits. While these unique viewpoints create the most successful work, they can also generate resentment that quickly turns into conflict.

When conflict arises in teamwork situations, employees are forced to resolve the conflicts themselves instead of turning to management. Learning conflict resolution firsthand is a skill that employees can use to become efficient managers down the road.

5. Promotes a Wider Sense of Ownership

Team projects encourage employees to feel proud of their contributions. Tackling obstacles and creating notable work together makes team members feel fulfilled. Working toward achieving company goals allows employees to feel connected to the company. This builds loyalty, leading to a higher level of job satisfaction among employees.

Teamwork is not just helpful for employees. It benefits the employer in the long run as well. Employees that connect directly with their workplace are more likely to stay with the company. While employees leaving their jobs often cite a lacking salary, another common complaint is that their contributions do not seem to matter. Teamwork allows people to engage with the company and add to the bigger picture.

6. Encourages Healthy Risk-Taking

An employee working on a project alone will probably not want to stick their neck out for an off-the-wall idea. If the project fails when working solo, that employee takes the full brunt of the blame. While you may not get full credit for a successful team project, working with other people spreads out the responsibility for a failed assignment.

Working as a team allows team members to take more risks, as they have the support of the entire group to fall back on in case of failure. Conversely, sharing success as a team is a bonding experience. Once a team succeeds together, their brainstorming sessions will produce revolutionary ideas without hesitation. In many cases, the riskiest idea turns out to be the best idea. Teamwork allows employees the freedom to think outside the box.

There may be no "I" in team, but teamwork can still benefit employees on a personal level. Do not allow competitive natures to get in the way of personal growth in the workplace. Instead, understand how to resolve conflicts and trust teammates to contribute their best ideas. Learn from your team members and build on each other's skills to create more impressive results in the workplace.

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"Two heads are better than one." We've all heard the old adage encouraging teamwork, but what does working together really do for you? Salesmen thrive off healthy competition, but sometimes the use of teamwork in the workplace is a better answer for winning sales. Here are six ways that teamwork benefits you in the workplace.

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Take a look at this article on students working together for Democracy.

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The Alliance for Youth Action grows progressive people power across America by empowering local young people's organizations to strengthen our democracy, fix our economy, and correct injustices through on-the-ground organizing.

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How will this project prepare me to be a voting citizen in a Democracy?

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How will this project prepare me to be a voting citizen in a Democracy?

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Group work helps us challenge our own beliefs, acknowledge others, and contribute to the whole.

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In his farewell address as President of the United States, Barack Obama called on each American to be a better citizen. Yet Texas continually ranks among the bottom states for voter registration, voter participation, and political action in general, according to the Texas Civic Health Index published by UT-Austin's Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life.

Meredith Norris believes the solution is in civics education for young people. Norris, a native Austinite who administers the Austin location of the nonprofit Generation Citizen, says that early civic education can have a big impact on future engagement.
"The biggest lesson young people are coming out of this with is that the world of politics and government is a world they're capable of interacting with and that they have a valuable voice to contribute," Norris said.
Generation Citizen is just one nonprofit program currently serving this need in Austin-area schools. The Austin office of this national organization opened this past fall, and the semester-long program kicks off in 15 Austin-area middle and high school classrooms this month, January.

The program offers a fee-for-service model that allows schools to purchase the curriculum, which is then led by teachers and college-student volunteers in the classroom. Generation Citizen says it uses donations and other funding to make the program more affordable for schools that would struggle to pay.

The program takes students through a research and brainstorming session to inform their discussion about which local or state-level issue they want to focus on. Once they agree on an issue, they create a campaign that includes reaching out to elected officials, attending stakeholder meetings and testifying at boards.

In post-program surveys of students, Generation Citizen says it found that 90 percent of students believed that they could make a difference in their communities and that challenging injustices was important.

It not only opens their minds to politics and government, says Norris, but it also gives them tools to navigate issues as close to home as their schools. "It teaches them ways to make a difference in the causes they care about," said Norris.

A similar program administered by the YMCA, Texas Youth and Government, has been operating for 70 years. This past weekend, the program convened more than 1,150 high school students from across Texas to compete as judges, lawyers, legislators and journalists.

Andrew Wiggins, executive director of the local program, says the mission of Texas Youth and Government is to help students understand their role is a democracy. "Democracy must be learned by every generation in order to survive," he said.

The YMCA program is held as an after-school club, led by a teacher, in more than 30 high schools across Central Texas. Students break into groups depending on their interest area, and the curriculum guides them through the first semester, culminating in early-spring competitions. Participants compete in projects focused in topic areas like legislature, judicial, state affairs, advocacy and the media.

The YMCA program also accommodates any student who wishes to participate, even if he or she can't pay the fees for travel to competitions or conferences. It subsidizes those fees with donations.

"The program allows young people to learn in a different fashion, outside of the classroom setting," said Wiggins, "And they learn how to make their own argument and, just as importantly in today's environment, they learn how to be civil to people who have an alternative argument."

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Program to teach teens democracy activism government

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In his farewell address as President of the United States, Barack Obama called on each American to be a better citizen. Yet Texas continually ranks among the bottom states for voter registration, voter participation, and political action in general, according to the Texas Civic Health Index published by UT-Austin's Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life.

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How will this project prepare me for the workplace?

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How will this project prepare me for the workplace?

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It is no small task to work as a team, but together you can accomplish great things! Take a look at this quick list of qualities for effective team members.

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1. Human Resources

2. Employee Engagement

3. Ten Qualities of an Effective Team Player

By Marty Brounstein

If you were choosing team members for a business team in your organization, who would the best team players be? Assuming that people have the right technical skills for the work to be done, what other factors would you use to select your team members?

Teams need strong team players to perform well. But what defines such people? Read on. (Also, check out How to Hire the Best Brains for the Best Team for some tips on putting a team together.)

Demonstrates reliability

You can count on a reliable team member who gets work done and does his fair share to work hard and meet commitments. He or she follows through on assignments. Consistency is key. You can count on him or her to deliver good performance all the time, not just some of the time.

Communicates constructively

Teams need people who speak up and express their thoughts and ideas clearly, directly, honestly, and with respect for others and for the work of the team. That's what it means to communicate constructively. Such a team member does not shy away from making a point but makes it in the best way possible - in a positive, confident, and respectful manner.

Listens actively

Good listeners are essential for teams to function effectively. Teams need team players who can absorb, understand, and consider ideas and points of view from other people without debating and arguing every point. Such a team member also can receive criticism without reacting defensively. Most important, for effective communication and problem solving, team members need the discipline to listen first and speak second so that meaningful dialogue results.

Functions as an active participant

Good team players are active participants. They come prepared for team meetings and listen and speak up in discussions. They're fully engaged in the work of the team and do not sit passively on the sidelines.

Team members who function as active participants take the initiative to help make things happen, and they volunteer for assignments. Their whole approach is can-do: "What contribution can I make to help the team achieve success?"

Shares openly and willingly

Good team players share. They're willing to share information, knowledge, and experience. They take the initiative to keep other team members informed.

Much of the communication within teams takes place informally. Beyond discussion at organized meetings, team members need to feel comfortable talking with one another and passing along important news and information day-to-day. Good team players are active in this informal sharing. They keep other team members in the loop with information and expertise that helps get the job done and prevents surprises.

Cooperates and pitches in to help

Cooperation is the act of working with others and acting together to accomplish a job. Effective team players work this way by second nature. Good team players, despite differences they may have with other team members concerning style and perspective, figure out ways to work together to solve problems and get work done. They respond to requests for assistance and take the initiative to offer help.

Exhibits flexibility

Teams often deal with changing conditions - and often create changes themselves. Good team players roll with the punches; they adapt to ever-changing situations. They don't complain or get stressed out because something new is being tried or some new direction is being set.

In addition, a flexible team member can consider different points of views and compromise when needed. He or she doesn't hold rigidly to a point of view and argue it to death, especially when the team needs to move forward to make a decision or get something done. Strong team players are firm in their thoughts yet open to what others have to offer - flexibility at its best.

Shows commitment to the team

Strong team players care about their work, the team, and the team's work. They show up every day with this care and commitment up front. They want to give a good effort, and they want other team members to do the same.

Works as a problem-solver

Teams, of course, deal with problems. Sometimes, it appears, that's the whole reason why a team is created - to address problems. Good team players are willing to deal with all kinds of problems in a solutions-oriented manner. They're problem-solvers, not problem-dwellers, problem-blamers, or problem-avoiders. They don't simply rehash a problem the way problem-dwellers do. They don't look for others to fault, as the blamers do. And they don't put off dealing with issues, the way avoiders do.

Team players get problems out in the open for discussion and then collaborate with others to find solutions and form action plans.

Treats others in a respectful and supportive manner

Team players treat fellow team members with courtesy and consideration - not just some of the time but consistently. In addition, they show understanding and the appropriate support of other team members to help get the job done. They don't place conditions on when they'll provide assistance, when they'll choose to listen, and when they'll share information. Good team players also have a sense of humor and know how to have fun (and all teams can use a bit of both), but they don't have fun at someone else's expense. Quite simply, effective team players deal with other people in a professional manner.

Team players who show commitment don't come in any particular style or personality. They don't need to be rah-rah, cheerleader types. In fact, they may even be soft-spoken, but they aren't passive. They care about what the team is doing and they contribute to its success - without needing a push.

Team players with commitment look beyond their own piece of the work and care about the team's overall work. In the end, their commitment is about winning - not in the sports sense of beating your opponent but about seeing the team succeed and knowing they have contributed to this success. Winning as a team is one of the great motivators of employee performance. Good team players have and show this motivation.
See also: Inspiring Team Creativity for Business The Types of Workplace Teams Differences between Work Groups and Teams

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Ten Qualities of an Effective Team Player - dummies

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If you were choosing team members for a business team in your organization, who would the best team players be? Assuming that people have the right technical skills for the work to be done, what other factors would you use to select your team members? Teams need strong team players to perform well.

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After the lecture and practice on paraphrasing, you may still have questions. Purdue Owl has a great definition and instruction on paraphrasing for you to investigate.

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This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Paraphrasing is one way to use a text in your own writing without directly quoting source material. Anytime you are taking information from a source that is not your own, you need to specify where you got that information.

A paraphrase is...

Your own rendition of essential information and ideas expressed by someone else, presented in a new form.

One legitimate way (when accompanied by accurate documentation) to borrow from a source.

A more detailed restatement than a summary, which focuses concisely on a single main idea.

Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because...

It is better than quoting information from an undistinguished passage.

It helps you control the temptation to quote too much.

The mental process required for successful paraphrasing helps you to grasp the full meaning of the original.

6 Steps to Effective Paraphrasing

1. Reread the original passage until you understand its full meaning.

2. Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on a note card.

3. Jot down a few words below your paraphrase to remind you later how you envision using this material. At the top of the note card, write a key word or phrase to indicate the subject of your paraphrase.

4. Check your rendition with the original to make sure that your version accurately expresses all the essential information in a new form.

5. Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have borrowed exactly from the source.

6. Record the source (including the page) on your note card so that you can credit it easily if you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.

Some examples to compare

Note that the examples in this section use MLA style for in-text citation.

The original passage:

Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result they overuse quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D. Writing Research Papers. 2nd ed., 1976, pp. 46-47.

A legitimate paraphrase:

In research papers, students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material down to a desirable level. Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is essential to minimize the material recorded verbatim (Lester 46-47).

An acceptable summary:

Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to help minimize the amount of quoted material in a research paper (Lester 46-47).

A plagiarized version:

Students often use too many direct quotations when they take notes, resulting in too many of them in the final research paper. In fact, probably only about 10% of the final copy should consist of directly quoted material. So it is important to limit the amount of source material copied while taking notes.

A note about plagiarism: This example has been classed as plagiarism, in part, because of its failure to deploy any citation. Plagiarism is a serious offense in the academic world. However, we acknowledge that plagiarism is a difficult term to define; that its definition may be contextually sensitive; and that not all instances of plagiarism are created equal-that is, there are varying "degrees of egregiousness" for different cases of plagiarism.

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Paraphrasing - Purdue OWL® - Purdue University

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This handout is intended to help you become more comfortable with the uses of and distinctions among quotations, paraphrases, and summaries. This handout compares and contrasts the three terms, gives some pointers, and includes a short excerpt that you can use to practice these skills.

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Rather than simply listing your sources, you will write about each one.  This informs the team about your research.  Once you've combined sources, you will have a wealth of information on the topic.

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Cite your source in MLA format.

In the first paragraph, summarize the source.  Discuss the main supporting ideas, evidence, and appeals to emotion or logic.

In the second paragraph, explain how this article applies to your project.  Does it contradict or affirm your beliefs or the other information?

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Suggested Resources
Style Guide Overview MLA Guide APA Guide Chicago Guide OWL Exercises

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Summary:
This handout provides information about annotated bibliographies in MLA, APA, and CMS.

Definitions

A bibliography is a list of sources (books, journals, Web sites, periodicals, etc.) one has used for researching a topic. Bibliographies are sometimes called "References" or "Works Cited" depending on the style format you are using. A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.).

An annotation is a summary and/or evaluation. Therefore, an annotated bibliography includes a summary and/or evaluation of each of the sources. Depending on your project or the assignment, your annotations may do one or more of the following.

Summarize: Some annotations merely summarize the source. What are the main arguments? What is the point of this book or article? What topics are covered? If someone asked what this article/book is about, what would you say? The length of your annotations will determine how detailed your summary is.
For more help, see our handout on paraphrasing sources.

Assess: After summarizing a source, it may be helpful to evaluate it. Is it a useful source? How does it compare with other sources in your bibliography? Is the information reliable? Is this source biased or objective? What is the goal of this source?
For more help, see our handouts on evaluating resources.

Reflect: Once you've summarized and assessed a source, you need to ask how it fits into your research. Was this source helpful to you? How does it help you shape your argument? How can you use this source in your research project? Has it changed how you think about your topic?

Your annotated bibliography may include some of these, all of these, or even others. If you're doing this for a class, you should get specific guidelines from your instructor.

Why should I write an annotated bibliography?

To learn about your topic: Writing an annotated bibliography is excellent preparation for a research project. Just collecting sources for a bibliography is useful, but when you have to write annotations for each source, you're forced to read each source more carefully. You begin to read more critically instead of just collecting information. At the professional level, annotated bibliographies allow you to see what has been done in the literature and where your own research or scholarship can fit. To help you formulate a thesis: Every good research paper is an argument. The purpose of research is to state and support a thesis. So, a very important part of research is developing a thesis that is debatable, interesting, and current. Writing an annotated bibliography can help you gain a good perspective on what is being said about your topic. By reading and responding to a variety of sources on a topic, you'll start to see what the issues are, what people are arguing about, and you'll then be able to develop your own point of view.

To help other researchers: Extensive and scholarly annotated bibliographies are sometimes published. They provide a comprehensive overview of everything important that has been and is being said about that topic. You may not ever get your annotated bibliography published, but as a researcher, you might want to look for one that has been published about your topic.

Format

The format of an annotated bibliography can vary, so if you're doing one for a class, it's important to ask for specific guidelines.

The bibliographic information: Generally, though, the bibliographic information of the source (the title, author, publisher, date, etc.) is written in either MLA or APA format. For more help with formatting, see our MLA handout. For APA, go here: APA handout.

The annotations: The annotations for each source are written in paragraph form. The lengths of the annotations can vary significantly from a couple of sentences to a couple of pages. The length will depend on the purpose. If you're just writing summaries of your sources, the annotations may not be very long. However, if you are writing an extensive analysis of each source, you'll need more space.

You can focus your annotations for your own needs. A few sentences of general summary followed by several sentences of how you can fit the work into your larger paper or project can serve you well when you go to draft.

This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice.

Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, reproduced, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without permission. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our terms and conditions of fair use.

Summary:
This handout provides information about annotated bibliographies in MLA, APA, and CMS.

Definitions

A bibliography is a list of sources (books, journals, Web sites, periodicals, etc.) one has used for researching a topic. Bibliographies are sometimes called "References" or "Works Cited" depending on the style format you are using. A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.).

An annotation is a summary and/or evaluation. Therefore, an annotated bibliography includes a summary and/or evaluation of each of the sources. Depending on your project or the assignment, your annotations may do one or more of the following.

Summarize: Some annotations merely summarize the source. What are the main arguments? What is the point of this book or article? What topics are covered? If someone asked what this article/book is about, what would you say? The length of your annotations will determine how detailed your summary is.
For more help, see our handout on paraphrasing sources.

Assess: After summarizing a source, it may be helpful to evaluate it. Is it a useful source? How does it compare with other sources in your bibliography? Is the information reliable? Is this source biased or objective? What is the goal of this source?
For more help, see our handouts on evaluating resources.

Reflect: Once you've summarized and assessed a source, you need to ask how it fits into your research. Was this source helpful to you? How does it help you shape your argument? How can you use this source in your research project? Has it changed how you think about your topic?

Your annotated bibliography may include some of these, all of these, or even others. If you're doing this for a class, you should get specific guidelines from your instructor.

Why should I write an annotated bibliography?

To learn about your topic: Writing an annotated bibliography is excellent preparation for a research project. Just collecting sources for a bibliography is useful, but when you have to write annotations for each source, you're forced to read each source more carefully. You begin to read more critically instead of just collecting information. At the professional level, annotated bibliographies allow you to see what has been done in the literature and where your own research or scholarship can fit. To help you formulate a thesis: Every good research paper is an argument. The purpose of research is to state and support a thesis. So, a very important part of research is developing a thesis that is debatable, interesting, and current. Writing an annotated bibliography can help you gain a good perspective on what is being said about your topic. By reading and responding to a variety of sources on a topic, you'll start to see what the issues are, what people are arguing about, and you'll then be able to develop your own point of view.

To help other researchers: Extensive and scholarly annotated bibliographies are sometimes published. They provide a comprehensive overview of everything important that has been and is being said about that topic. You may not ever get your annotated bibliography published, but as a researcher, you might want to look for one that has been published about your topic.

Format

The format of an annotated bibliography can vary, so if you're doing one for a class, it's important to ask for specific guidelines.

The bibliographic information: Generally, though, the bibliographic information of the source (the title, author, publisher, date, etc.) is written in either MLA or APA format. For more help with formatting, see our MLA handout. For APA, go here: APA handout.

The annotations: The annotations for each source are written in paragraph form. The lengths of the annotations can vary significantly from a couple of sentences to a couple of pages. The length will depend on the purpose. If you're just writing summaries of your sources, the annotations may not be very long. However, if you are writing an extensive analysis of each source, you'll need more space.

You can focus your annotations for your own needs. A few sentences of general summary followed by several sentences of how you can fit the work into your larger paper or project can serve you well when you go to draft.

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Style Guide Overview MLA Guide APA Guide Chicago Guide OWL Exercises This page is brought to you by the OWL at Purdue University. When printing this page, you must include the entire legal notice. Copyright ©1995-2018 by The Writing Lab & The OWL at Purdue and Purdue University. All rights reserved.

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MLA Formatting and Style Guide - Purdue OWL® - Purdue University

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MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (9th ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.

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As a group, it's important to set up rules for everyone to follow. You may design your own or use the attached contract.

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This contract can be used by a project team to agree upon how they will work together.

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When the research is complete, your team will synthesize the information and see what new knowledge you can create.

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Use the free version of Xmind to combine research. Butcher paper and markers works too!

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Xmind is the most professional and popular mind mapping tool. Millions of people use Xmind to clarify thinking, manage complex information, brainstorming, get work organized, remote and work from home WFH.

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0:00

Owl: Welcome to Synthesizing What You Read, an instructional video on reading comprehension brought to you by the Excelsior University Online Writing Lab.

0:12

Synthesis is the process of combining two or more things to create something new.

0:19

Synthesis occurs in nature all the time.

0:21

For instance, hydrogen and oxygen combine to form water.

0:27

Synthesis also happens when you read.

0:30

Reading introduces you to new ideas.

0:33

Synthesis occurs when you combine these ideas with your own or with ideas from other texts to produce new ideas.

0:40

This process might involve comparing or contrasting ideas from different points of view to draw a conclusion or make a critical evaluation.

0:49

For instance, imagine that you are researching a topic.

0:53

You will come across a variety of sources with different information and points of view.

0:58

An experienced reader will evaluate and compare this information and draw his or her own conclusions.

1:05

This process leads to the synthesis of new ideas.

1:08

It may help to compare synthesizing to analyzing.

1:12

Whereas analyzing involves breaking down ideas into their parts, synthesizing involves combining ideas to form new ones.

1:21

Also, it's important to note that synthesis is not the same as summarizing.

1:25

Summarizing is about stating someone else's ideas in as few words as possible.

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On the other hand, synthesis is a critical and creative process in which you compare or combine the ideas you've read to form new ones.

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This process can involve summarizing ideas from other texts in order to compare them and draw a conclusion, but the result is a new idea.

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Click here for more information on how to summarize.

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Let's practice synthesizing what you read.

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For this exercise, we'll read two passages with different points of view about bike lanes.

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First, we'll summarize the authors' main ideas, and then we'll compare them and draw a conclusion.

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In the first passage, the author is in favor of bike lanes.

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Bike lanes are an essential feature of modern, urban life. Many urban residents have traded in their cars for bicycles. There are many benefits to bicycling. Bicycles don't get stuck in traffic, they don't run out of gas, and they don't break down often (and are cheap to repair when they do), they don't need insurance, they don't produce pollution, and they don't get parking tickets. Bicycles also offer an excellent way to add exercise to a busy schedule. Many cities across the nation have encouraged bicycling to cut down on traffic, accidents, and pollution. They've added bike lanes to downtown areas to provide safe and speedy thruways for bicyclists. The result is a win/win.

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We can summarize this argument by pulling out some key words: bike lanes, beneficial, urban, traffic, accidents, pollution, inexpensive, safety, and exercise.

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Putting it all together, we can summarize the author's argument with the following sentence:

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Placing bike lanes in urban areas is beneficial because bicycling cuts down on traffic, decreases accidents, lowers pollution, and offers an inexpensive, safe, and healthy way to travel.

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Now, let's look at the second passage.

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In this passage, the author is against bike lanes.

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Bike lanes take away valuable space from already crowded inner-city streets. Urban areas already suffer from traffic and pedestrian congestion. Such overcrowding is worsened by the introduction of fleets of reckless bicyclists. Many bicyclists ignore street signs, causing additional accidents with cars and people. Furthermore, parked bicycles clutter congested sidewalks, making many areas impassable. These problems far outweigh the benefits of bicycling. Those who don't want to drive can hop on a bus or subway and gain many of the benefits of bicycling without taking up valuable space on the roads.

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Some key words are: bike lanes, bad, urban, space, crowding, accidents, congested sidewalks, buses and subways.

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We can summarize the author's argument with the following statement:

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Placing bike lanes in urban areas is a bad idea because bicycles take up valuable space, create additional crowding, cause accidents, congest sidewalks, and can be replaced by better alternatives, such as buses and subways.

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Now, let's practice synthesizing by combining the two summaries and drawing a conclusion:

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In passage one, the author argues that placing bike lanes in urban areas is beneficial because bicycling cuts down on traffic, decreases accidents, lowers pollution, and offers an inexpensive, safe, and healthy way to travel.

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On the other hand, in passage two the author contends that placing bike lanes in urban areas is a bad idea because bicycles take up valuable space, create additional crowding, cause accidents, congest sidewalks, and can be replaced by better alternatives, such as buses and subways.

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These opposing points of view demonstrate that while bike lanes encourage a healthy, safe, and low-cost way to travel in cities, they also cause problems that need to be addressed through better urban planning.

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The new statement synthesizes the two passages by combining and comparing the two summaries, and then drawing a conclusion that raises a new idea about the need for better urban planning to support bicycling.

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I hope this video has helped you learn about the importance of synthesizing what you read and how to do it.

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Thanks for listening to this instructional video on Synthesizing What You Read!

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Visit the Excelsior University Online Writing Lab for more support with reading and writing skills.

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Excelsior Online Writing Lab breaks down the importance of having good synthesizing skills and the power of synthesizing what you read.