LESSON 5 – NOTE-TAKING AND SYNTHESISING (WEEKS 4 AND 5)

Lesson aims:

• Use a grid to take notes from academic texts.

• Analyse the usefulness of your notes.
• Extract key information from academic texts.
• Use a synthesis matrix to begin synthesising key information from the texts.
• Write a synthesised paragraph that directly responds to an assessment
question.

Task 1

• Why is it important to have questions about a text before you read it?

• How would you go about identifying key information within an academic text?

Below, you are going to highlight topic sentences and try to figure out whether
they will answer the given research questions below.

Task 2

Look at the example questions below about the extract called “How to organise
your work”:

1 Which type of organisations benefit from a task structure?

2 What is the difference between a task structure and a person structure?

3 What are the benefits of each structure mentioned in the reading?

4 What are the characteristics of a rigid hierarchy?

5 Is it possible to have more than one organisation structure?

6 What are the disadvantages of a large traditional hierarchy?

First, scan the extract, while identifying and writing down all the topic sentences (there
are 8) in the spaces below. Then write the number of the research question next to the
topic sentence that you think will answer the question.

Please note that some answers to the questions will be found in more than one
paragraph.
How is work organized

In the first half of the 20th century, organizations tended to be

controlled in rigid hierarchies. In this type of structure there is one
person at the top, the managing director or chief executive officer
(CEO). There might be many layers of management. Information
and orders are passed down through the layers. Typically, the
company is divided into functional areas, such as sales,
marketing, finance, etc. Each area has a manager in charge of a
group of workers. Until recently, this arrangement was often
accompanied by a division of labour at the lower levels. This
means that each job is divided into clearly defined segments which
can be carried out with little skill or training.

However, there are a number of problems with large, traditional

hierarchies. First of all, communication is often poor. Messages
have to travel down from the top, and information from the bottom
may never reach the top at all. Secondly, these systems often do
not encourage people to take responsibility for the quality of their
work or to use their initiative. Finally, companies with these
structures may find it difficult to adapt to a changing business
environment quickly.

As a result, some companies have moved towards flatter

hierarchies, as recommended by Tom Peters in his book Thriving
on Chaos (1987). In other words, they have 'delayered', getting rid
of people in the middle levels of management. In addition, many
companies have adopted a team approach, with several people
working together on a task.
However, different types of company may need different types of
organizations. For example, a traditional hierarchical structure is
particularly appropriate for large government bureaucracies,
where things need to happen according to fixed rules. This
structure also suits big transport companies where, for safety
purposes, people need to be trained to work according to strict
standards. As Charles Handy points out, in this kind of structure
everyone has a precise job description. There are routines. rules
and procedures. and clear lines of management so everyone
knows what should happen and there are no surprises.

There are other possible ways in which organizations can be

structured. For instance. according to Handy, in the 'club'
structure, one individual leads a small group of perhaps 20 people.
The leader chooses people who share her beliefs and values, and
so the organization reflects the leader's personality. It is just like a
club. The leader is like a spider at the centre of its web. There is a
high level of trust, and communication is easy and informal
because everyone knows what everyone else thinks.
Communication lines are very short so these organizations can
react quickly to change or new opportunities. However, if the
leader is weak or leaves, the organization can disintegrate. This
type of structure can be seen in new businesses or the art world
or in politics.

In the 'task' structure, several people work together as a team,

using their different skills. There is little hierarchy but a lot of
cooperation and discussion. Leadership of the teams can change
from task to task. This structure is suitable for advertising agencies
or product development, where there is a problem to solve.
However, it is less useful for simple jobs because teams can be
expensive and time consuming.

Finally, a 'person' structure can be found where there is a group

of people who are experts in their field. They usually work
individually rather than as a team. However, the experts also need
administrators to help them. The administrators - often called
secretaries or clerks -do not have any control over the
professionals, and so an organization with a person structure may
be quite difficult to manage. This type of organization - called a
practice - is often used by groups of doctors or lawyers.
 Of course, in real life, organizations rarely have just one structure. In fact,
most arc a mixture of two or more types. But a hundred years ago,
managers believed there was only one way to run all organizations, and
that is certainly no longer the case.

Text reference:

Walker, C. and Harvey, P. 2008. English for Business Studies in Higher

Education Studies. Reading: Garnet education.

In the next part, you will learn to take notes from the extract that will help you answer
this lesson’s research questions.

Task 3

Reflect and answer the following questions:

• What is the purpose of taking notes?

• Try to mention a few note-taking strategies that you may have used at school.

• Do you ever take notes in your content courses? Why?

• Have you ever studied for a test using your notes? If so, to what extent did it help?
In this lesson, you are going to scan a text for important information by keeping the
previous lesson’s research questions in mind.

You are then going to attempt to take notes of the extract, “How is work organised?”

Finally, you are going to write a summary of the mentioned extract using your notes.

Task 4

Skimming and taking notes of important information:

• Scan and highlight the topic sentences and try to figure out whether they will
answer the above research questions.
• Jot down important information within each paragraph that potentially answers
the research questions.

Look at the example questions below from the previous lesson.

1 Which type of organisations benefit from a task structure?

2 What is the difference between a task structure and a person structure?

3 What are the benefits of each structure mentioned in the reading?

4 What are the characteristics of a rigid hierarchy?

5 Is it possible to have more than one organisation structure?

6 What are the disadvantages of a large traditional hierarchy?

• How will you find this information from the previous lesson’s text based on the
research questions?
Look at each paragraph in the extract, and jot down the key words/terms that you think

Skimming and taking notes of important information:

• Jot down important information within each paragraph that potentially answers
the research questions.
• Do not write your notes in full sentences – only key words/phrases
• Use abbreviations in some cases.
will answer the above research questions.
How is work organized

In the first half of the 20th century, organizations tended to be

controlled in rigid hierarchies. In this type of structure there is one
person at the top, the managing director or chief executive officer
(CEO). There might be many layers of management. Information
and orders are passed down through the layers. Typically, the
company is divided into functional areas, such as sales,
marketing, finance, etc. Each area has a manager in charge of a
group of workers. Until recently, this arrangement was often
accompanied by a division of labour at the lower levels. This
means that each job is divided into clearly defined segments which
can be carried out with little skill or training.

However, there are a number of problems with large, traditional

hierarchies. First of all, communication is often poor. Messages
have to travel down from the top, and information from the bottom
may never reach the top at all. Secondly, these systems often do
not encourage people to take responsibility for the quality of their
work or to use their initiative. Finally, companies with these
structures may find it difficult to adapt to a changing business
environment quickly.

As a result, some companies have moved towards flatter

hierarchies, as recommended by Tom Peters in his book Thriving
on Chaos (1987). In other words, they have 'delayered', getting rid
of people in the middle levels of management. In addition, many
companies have adopted a team approach, with several people
working together on a task.

However, different types of company may need different types of

organizations. For example, a traditional hierarchical structure is
particularly appropriate for large government bureaucracies,
where things need to happen according to fixed rules. This
structure also suits big transport companies where, for safety
purposes, people need to be trained to work according to strict
standards. As Charles Handy points out, in this kind of structure
everyone has a precise job description. There are routines. rules
and procedures. and clear lines of management so everyone
knows what should happen and there are no surprises.
 There are other possible ways in which organizations can be
structured. For instance. according to Handy, in the 'club'
structure, one individual leads a small group of perhaps 20 people.
The leader chooses people who share her beliefs and values, and
so the organization reflects the leader's personality. It is just like a
club. The leader is like a spider at the centre of its web. There is a
high level of trust, and communication is easy and informal
because everyone knows what everyone else thinks.
Communication lines are very short so these organizations can
react quickly to change or new opportunities. However, if the
leader is weak or leaves, the organization can disintegrate. This
type of structure can be seen in new businesses or the art world
or in politics.

In the 'task' structure, several people work together as a team,

using their different skills. There is little hierarchy but a lot of
cooperation and discussion. Leadership of the teams can change
from task to task. This structure is suitable for advertising agencies
or product development, where there is a problem to solve.
However, it is less useful for simple jobs because teams can be
expensive and time consuming.

Finally, a 'person' structure can be found where there is a group

of people who are experts in their field. They usually work
individually rather than as a team. However, the experts also need
administrators to help them. The administrators - often called
secretaries or clerks -do not have any control over the
professionals, and so an organization with a person structure may
be quite difficult to manage. This type of organization - called a
practice - is often used by groups of doctors or lawyers.

Of course, in real life, organizations rarely have just one structure. In fact,
most arc a mixture of two or more types. But a hundred years ago,
managers believed there was only one way to run all organizations, and
that is certainly no longer the case.

Text reference:

Walker, C. and Harvey, P. 2008. English for Business Studies in Higher

Education Studies. Reading: Garnet education.
7. Reflect on your notes:

7.1 Do you think you made effective notes? In other words, did you produce notes that are
easy to understand, and did they relate to the research questions? Why do you think so?

7.2 Did you write in full sentences? If so, do you think this is a good strategy?

7.3 Do you think your notes will be useful in a month’s time?

Task 5

Using only your notes, write a short summary about the extract in the space below.
Did writing the summary in your own words allow you to understand and remember the
extract better? Why?

Is there any information in the extract that you are still unsure about? Why?
Reflection

• Why do you think notetaking and summarising a reading is important for your
studies?

Finally, we are going to summarise text from two different sources.

Task 6

Imagine that you had to write about a topic on the following question:
“Traditional hierarchy business structures improved by IT innovation. Discuss”

You have been given two texts to write your assignment, one from the previous lesson,
“How is worked organised?”, and the other, an extract taken from a business article.
You decide that you must read the texts and TAKE NOTES while reading.

Use your notes from the previous task and insert it in the grid provided.

Text reference:

Text 1: How is work organized

Walker, C. and Harvey, P. 2008. English for Business Studies in Higher Education Studies.
Reading: Garnet education.

In the first half of the 20th century, Your notes

organizations tended to be controlled in rigid
hierarchies. In this type of structure there is
one person at the top, the managing director
or chief executive officer (CEO). There might
be many layers of management. Information
and orders are passed down through the
layers. Typically, the company is divided into
functional areas, such as sales, marketing,
finance, etc. Each area has a manager in
charge of a group of workers. Until recently,
this arrangement was often accompanied by
a division of labour at the lower levels. This
means that each job is divided into clearly
defined segments which can be carried out
with little skill or training.

However, there are a number of problems

with large, traditional hierarchies. First of all,
communication is often poor. Messages
have to travel down from the top, and
information from the bottom may never reach
the top at all. Secondly, these systems often
do not encourage people to take
responsibility for the quality of their work or to
use their initiative. Finally, companies with
these structures may find it difficult to adapt
to a changing business environment quickly.

As a result, some companies have moved

towards flatter hierarchies, as recommended
by Tom Peters in his book Thriving on Chaos
(1987). In other words, they have 'delayered',
getting rid of people in the middle levels of
management. In addition, many companies
have adopted a team approach, with several
people working together on a task.

However, different types of company may

need different types of organizations. For
example, a traditional hierarchical structure
is particularly appropriate for large
government bureaucracies, where things
need to happen according to fixed rules. This
structure also suits big transport companies
where, for safety purposes, people need to
be trained to work according to strict
standards. As Charles Handy points out, in
this kind of structure everyone has a precise
job description. There are routines. rules and
procedures. and clear lines of management
so everyone knows what should happen and
there are no surprises.
There are other possible ways in which
organizations can be structured. For
instance. according to Handy, in the 'club'
structure, one individual leads a small group
of perhaps 20 people. The leader chooses
people who share her beliefs and values, and
so the organization reflects the leader's
personality. It is just like a club. The leader is
like a spider at the centre of its web. There is
a high level of trust, and communication is
easy and informal because everyone knows
what everyone else thinks. Communication
lines are very short so these organizations
can react quickly to change or new
opportunities. However, if the leader is weak
or leaves, the organization can disintegrate.
This type of structure can be seen in new
businesses or the art world or in politics.

In the 'task' structure, several people work

together as a team, using their different skills.
There is little hierarchy but a lot of
cooperation and discussion. Leadership of
the teams can change from task to task. This
structure is suitable for advertising agencies
or product development, where there is a
problem to solve. However, it is less useful
for simple jobs because teams can be
expensive and time consuming.

Finally, a 'person' structure can be found

where there is a group of people who are
experts in their field. They usually work
individually rather than as a team. However,
the experts also need administrators to help
them. The administrators - often called
secretaries or clerks -do not have any control
over the professionals, and so an
organization with a person structure may be
quite difficult to manage. This type of
organization - called a practice - is often used
by groups of doctors or lawyers.
 Of course, in real life, organizations rarely have
just one structure. In fact, most arc a mixture of
two or more types. But a hundred years ago,
managers believed there was only one way to run
all organizations, and that is certainly no longer
the case.

Summary (Do not refer back to your previous summary).

Look at your notes in the above grid:

• Does any of the key information you selected relate to the briefing? Insert the
relevant notes in the space below.
 • Write a list of questions (at least four) that you hope the next article will answer.
Remember that these questions need to support the brief.

Task 7

Now, scan through the article (Text 2) and try to highlight all the topic sentences, as
you did in the lesson, “Identifying key information”.

Now, read Text 2.

• Underline the important information in each paragraph,

• Make notes along the side of the text (don’t use full sentences!)
• Write a brief summary at the end.
Text Reference:

Text 2: Information Technology and Restructuring in Public Organizations: Does

Adoption of Information Technology Affect Organizational Structures,
Communications, and Decision Making?

Heintze, T. and Bretschneider, S. 2000. Information Technology and

Restructuring in Public Organizations: Does Adoption of Information
Technology Affect Organizational Structures. Communications and
Decision Making? Journal of Public Administration Research and
Theory.

The implementation of IT in an organization can have two

interrelated but distinct effects. First, it may reduce the
number of organizational members across the whole of
the organization, that is, reduce the size of the
organization. Alternatively, it may reduce or expand
employment at any particular organizational level, thus
significantly altering the structure of the organization. It is
the latter in which we are interested.

Early theories argued that IT would strongly affect the

nature of managerial employment and organizational
structure by removing middle management layers in
the organization and concentrating power at the top of the
hierarchy (Leavitt and Whisler 1958). Downs (1967)
theorized that IT would affect the manner in which
decisions are made and decrease the number of units
involved in the process. Although Simon (1977)
disagreed with Leavitt and Whisler, concluding that
computers would not alter the basic hierarchy of the
organization, he, too, believed that computers would
centralize decision making.

Disagreements as to the effects of IT on middle

management are mirrored in numerous more recent
studies. Some studies indicate that IT reduces the
number of middle managers (Bryn jolfsson, Malone,
and Gurbaxani 1988; Whisler 1970; Hoos 1960). Others
claim that IT increases the number of middle managers
(Pfeffer and Leblebici 1977; Blau et al. 1976; Meyer
1968; Lee 1964). However, little emphasis is placed on
explaining these outcomes in terms of the strength of the
economic and political environments surrounding these
organizations and their effect on employment in
general. Pinsonneault and Kraemer (1993) label these
contradictory results an empirical paradox. They indicate
that the paradox can be resolved not by assessing the
surrounding environment, but by considering the
interaction between the degree of centralization of both
the organization's decision-making process and its
control over IT.
Pinsonneault and Kraemer (1993 and 1997) theorize that
if the organization's decision-making process is highly
centralized, middle managers' roles emphasize
information handling and routine decision making rather
than more complex decision making and other, less
routine work. The implementation of IT can thus displace
these information-handling managers. If, however,
middle managers are more heavily involved in complex,
nonroutine decision-making, IT can replace that portion
of their work that requires information and
communication, freeing them for more involvement in
decision making. IT implementation in these less
centralized organizations will not displace middle
management. Where middle managers have more
control over the use of IT, they will select to use that
technology that reinforces their roles, rather than that
which replaces their work. The two continuums, degree
of centralization of decision making power and degree of
centralization of control over IT, interact. Pinsonneault
and Kraemer (1997) find that IT is negatively associated
with the size of middle management in organizations
that are highly
centralized (centralized on both continuums) and
positively associated in organizations that are highly
decentralized.

How can we relate this to public organizations?

Accountability is strongly emphasized within public
organizations, implying that they are likely to have more
formalized decision making processes and hierarchies.
This suggests that decision making within the
organization is more likely to be centralized. According to
the theories of Pinsonneault and Kraemer (1993 and
1997) the roles of middle managers in centralized
organizations will emphasize communication and routine
decision making, and they will thus be exposed to the
downsizing effects of IT. However, it has also been
shown that public agencies are heavily influenced by their
surrounding political environments. Therefore, even if
decision-making processes are found to be highly
centralized within the public agency, these decisions may
still be highly influenced by political forces external to
the agency. All managers must work within this political
environment, implying a need for individual judgment
on the political nature of information handled and its
relevancy, judgments that IT is perhaps unable to handle
(Appleby 1994; Katz and Kahn 1978).

It is thus unclear that middle managers' roles in public

organizations can be classified as information and
communication. Their roles will depend on both the
centralization of decision making within the organization
and the degree to which decisions and processes are
affected by the outside political environment. In addition,
the extreme rigidity of personnel systems within public
organizations implies that middle managers are less
likely to lose their jobs
because of downsizing, because dismissing
 employees for any reason is a long and formal process
(Rainey, Facer, and Bozeman 1995).

Summary

Task 8

Look at your notes for text 2:

• Is it easy to tell what the key points of the texts are?

• Is it easy to tell what the overall message of the texts is?
• Are these notes going to be useful to you in a month from now?
• Does any of the key information you selected relate to the briefing? Insert the
relevant notes in the space below.
Task 9

Now, we are going to synthesise the key information from the two texts.

Creating synthesis in writing:

To synthesise information in writing means that you need to combine several

pieces of information from different sources to help you make a point.

The key features of synthesis:

• Accurately reports information from the sources using a variety of phrases

and sentences.

• Organized in such a way that readers can immediately see where the
information from the sources overlaps.
• Makes sense of the sources and helps the reader understand them in
greater depth.

Fill in the note-taking grid below, using your notes from each text.
 22

Question: “Traditional hierarchy business structures improved by IT innovation. Discuss”

Text 1 (Walker and Harvey, 2008) Text 2 (Heintze and Bretschneider, 2000)

The disadvantages of a traditional How can IT innovation improve traditional

hierarchy (problem) hierarchies? (solution)
 23

Look at your synthesis matrix and answer the following questions:

• Did text 2 have any solutions that were posed in Text 1?

• How many solutions were there?

Task 10

Using the grid you have created, write a paragraph which had the brief:
“Traditional hierarchy business structures are improved by IT innovation.
Discuss”

And the following response:

“Traditional hierarchy business structures are improved by IT innovation”

Synthesis of the information from both texts. In other words, use relevant evidence from
both texts to support this argument. Also, remember to put the surname of the author
and the date of the publication in brackets when you refer to the information.
For example:
“Messages have to travel down from the top, and information from the bottom
may never reach the top at all” (Walker and Harvey, 2008).
OR
According to Walker and Harvey (2001), “[m]essages have to travel down from
the top, and information from the bottom may never reach the top at all”.

Topic sentence:
 24

Concluding sentence:

Task 11

Look at your paragraph and ask yourself the following questions:

• Did I properly synthesise my texts?

• Did I connect my paragraph to my topic sentence and my concluding sentence?

• Is my writing clear and easy to understand?

 25

• Is my writing accurate, or did I make many mistakes?

• Can you correct any of your mistakes?

Next time

We are going to look at how you can make your writing more cohesive using certain
strategies.
26