Synthesis

“Synthesizing is like putting a puzzle together.  You have to sort out your thinking and put it in the right place.”

                                                            -Clay-

Information Organization: An overview

•      Step 5 of the research process (Big 6) involves organization.

•      Many elements contribute to effective organization of information

The importance of effective Organization of Information

•      Information must be organized logically to communicate the intended message effectively.

•      Effectively organized information allows people to understood

•      Well organized information in professional reports and presentations will contribute to the success of organization.

•      Material that is organized in a logical and meaningful fashion is more readily used and applied than disorganized data/information/document

•      By organizing information systematically, people will maximize the opportunity for audience to receive an accurate message.

Organizational Strategies

•      Organization by Category or Concept

Ø  Separate ideas combine to produce a concept  must be understood individually before their synthesis makes sense.

Ø  Organization by concept  also is effective when constructinga case to support premise.

Ø  A variation on organization by concept is to begin with a major concept and break it down into the elements that form the central idea.

Ø  Organization by concept uses analysis of a concept by breaking it down into its respective parts. 

•      Chronological Organization

Ø     Organization according to time, called chronological organization.

Ø      is used when the sequence of events influences an outcome.

Ø     Chronological organization of information is necessary for a sequence of events to make sense and explain an outcome.

Ø      Certain information that is organized chronologically involves transition from one phase to the next.  

•      Hierarchical Organization

Ø   is used when information is best conveyed in a specific order.

Ø   from most to least important or from least complex to most complex.

•      Alphabetical Organization

Ø  Example : Dictionaries and telephone dictionaries

Ø  Glossaries and directories- alphabetical organization is effective and appropriate.

Ø  Presenting the information alphabetically is a method of organization that does not imply any type of order based on any attribute and characteristics.

Organizing Graphic for Presentation

Graphics- figures, tables, charts- must be appropriate to the content of your document or presentation and accurately convey the message you sending.

•      The reader can easily understand the graphic.

•      The graphic elaborates on the information in the documents.

•      The image is selected for its ability to convey an accurate.

•      A table, chart, or graphic is able to stand alone.

•      A table or chart simplifies information.

•      An effective graphic is as simple as possible.

•      Data are presented in relationship to a context.

•      Pictures or cartoons illustrate ideas in the text.

Summarizing vs. Synthesizing

•         Summarizing is identifying key points and organizing thoughts, a listing of the parts. Summarizing usually occurs at the end.

•         Synthesizing is the creation of a whole.  It goes on throughout the process of reading—not just at the end.  It is bringing together different ideas and facts and weaving them together into a tapestry, something much larger than all the threads.

                                                                                                                                      Ellin Keene