How to Write a Synthesis

What is a synthesis? • Combining the ideas from more than one source with your own. • Reporting information from difference sources using reformulation. • Organising the different sources ideas in a structured way. • Analysing the sources and help the reader understand them in greater depth.

The first steps • Begin by summarizing briefly the points, themes, or traits that the texts have in common. • Explore different ways to organize the information depending on what you find or what you want to demonstrate.

How to write your Synthesis
Your synthesis should be organized so that readers can understand the sources and evaluate your comprehension of them and your presentation of specific data, themes, ideas and opinions.

The structure of your synthesis

A. The introduction:

Present the theme(s) of the articles and show how the subject(s) relate to your main topic. Present the sources and authors, the publications and dates, and characterize the value of the sources. (Write a one-sentence statement that sums up the focus, the main topic of your synthesis).

Introduce the texts to be synthesized • Give the title of each source • Provide the name of each author for each source • Provide relevant background information about the authors, about the texts to be summarized, and about the general topic from which the texts are drawn

State the general idea addressed in the different sources.
Give the outline of your synthesis. (In the first part/section…, In an introductory section…, Iin a second part..., Finally…), etc.

How to present the topic of the articles/sources and characterise the value of the sources?

Example

In an article about assimilating minorities in UK university education, you might talk about an article you found like this:
In her article, “Some students are more equal than others”, published in the Guardian Unlimited, on 16 January 2003, Polly Curtis