Paper 2 Question 2 Skills: Summarising (AQA GCSE English Language)
Revision Note
Written by: Nick Redgrove
Reviewed by: Kate Lee
Paper 2 Question 2 Skills: Summarising
Paper 2 Question 2 is the summary question. This question assesses your ability to write a summary by synthesising and interpreting evidence from both sources, according to a given focus. Question 2 will ask you to comment on the source text in Section A and Section B. The texts will always be non-fiction texts from either the 19th, 20th or 21st century. You will be asked to provide a summary on some aspect of both sources. Question 2 assesses you on AO1 only:
AO1 Identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas Select and synthesise evidence from different texts |
Overview of summarising
Question 2 requires you to interpret information and infer meaning using the ideas in the text. In addition, you are also expected to synthesise the ideas and information, interpreting the differences (and any similarities) between the texts.
This section will help you to understand how to summarise a text. You must identify and interpret explicit and implicit information and ideas, and select and synthesise this evidence from Source A and Source B.
Here is an example of the type of question you will be asked:
Explicit information and ideas
Explicit information and ideas refers to the information and points that are directly stated or clearly presented within the text. These could be facts, examples, arguments and opinions that the writer has clearly written in an obvious manner. Explicit information is typically evident on the surface of the text and does not require any additional interpretation or inference to understand its meaning.
When you are asked to interpret explicit information and ideas from a non-fiction text, you are expected to identify and comprehend directly stated pieces of information
This involves reading the text carefully, understanding the main points and supporting details and recognising the writer’s central arguments or viewpoints without having to read between the lines
Explicit information is quite straightforward and it does not require you to offer any additional reasoning or speculation to grasp its meaning
This skill demonstrates your overall understanding and comprehension of the texts which you have read
Here is a short extract from a 20th century text called “A Hanging” by George Orwell. We will explore the explicit ideas that the writer has presented in this text.
Extract | Explicit ideas within the extract |
|---|---|
“It was in Burma, a sodden morning of the rains. A sickly light, like yellow tinfoil, was slanting over the high walls into the jail yard. We were waiting outside the condemned cells, a row of sheds fronted with double bars, like small animal cages.” | In this extract, Orwell sets the scene in Burma on a rainy morning outside a jail where prisoners are held. He describes the atmosphere, the lighting and the physical structure of the jail cells. |
As you can see from the above example, understanding explicit ideas is a relatively straightforward skill. It is a skill which will enable you to clearly understand the ideas the writer is presenting within the text.
We will next explore how explicit information and ideas are presented in another extract from this text.
Explicit information and ideas |
|---|
Example |
It was still dark. We had at least three hours of darkness to go before daybreak and, as always, I had the sunrise shift. The ocean had continued to build, with an ever-increasing wind that was gusting at 40 knots. The swell had grown, and conditions were becoming increasingly frenzied. I began to feel vulnerable again. If we can just make it to daybreak, I thought, it will be easier to read the waves and prepare for the breakers. |
Below are some explicit ideas based on this extract.
What ideas and information are explicitly stated in the extract? | Evidence | What ideas and information can be interpreted from this? |
|---|---|---|
The time | “It was still dark” | It explicitly states the time, which is during the night |
The speaker is working a shift | “I had the sunrise shift” | The speaker has the responsibility of being on duty up until daybreak |
The weather conditions | “The ocean had continued to build, with an ever-increasing wind that was gusting at 40 knots. The swell had grown, and conditions were becoming increasingly frenzied” | It explicitly describes the worsening weather conditions, with strong winds gusting at 40 knots and the ocean swell growing, leading to frenzied conditions |
The speaker's vulnerability | “I began to feel vulnerable again” | The speaker feels vulnerable in the challenging and potentially dangerous conditions |
The speaker hopes for daybreak | “If we can just make it to daybreak, I thought, it will be easier to reаd the waves and prepare for the breakers” | The speaker expresses the hope that daybreak will bring better visibility and allow them to assess the waves and prepare for potential dangers |
All of the above points provide explicit information that can be easily understood from the text, without the need for additional interpretation or inference.
We will now explore what is meant by implicit readings of a text and what this skill involves.
Implicit information and ideas
Implicit information and ideas refers to the underlying messages, meanings or conclusions that are not directly stated in a text, but can be inferred or understood through careful reading, critical thinking, and analysis of the text's content, context and underlying assumptions. In contrast to explicit information, which is directly presented and easily understood on the surface of the text, implicit information requires you to read between the lines and draw connections or conclusions based on the hints, clues or implications provided by the writer.
Implicit information is implied or suggested by the writer rather than being directly stated
You must infer or deduce these meanings by examining the relationships between different aspects of the text
You must be able to engage in critical thinking and analyse the text carefully to identify implicit information
Implicit information often adds depth and nuance to the text
It allows writers to convey complex ideas, emotions or messages indirectly, enabling you to engage actively with the text
Implicit information can also be interpreted differently by different readers:
You might interpret information and ideas differently than other readers of the same text
Here is the same short extract from “A Hanging” by George Orwell. We will now explore and compare the explicit and implicit ideas within this text.
Extract | Explicit ideas within the extract | Implicit ideas within the extract |
|---|---|---|
“It was in Burma, a sodden morning of the rains. A sickly light, like yellow tinfoil, was slanting over the high walls into the jail yard. We were waiting outside the condemned cells, a row of sheds fronted with double bars, like small animal cages.” | In this extract, Orwell sets the scene in Burma on a rainy morning outside a jail where condemned prisoners are held. He describes the atmosphere, the lighting and the physical structure of the jail cells. | Orwell describes the light as “sickly” and compares it to “yellow tinfoil” which creates an atmosphere of discomfort and unease. The mention of “small animal cages” in relation to the jail cells implies a dehumanising environment and a loss of dignity for the prisoners. |
As evidenced from the above example, implicit ideas requires careful analysis of the text. You must actively engage with the text and read between the lines to uncover these underlying concepts and go beyond the surface level meaning of the text.
We will next explore how implicit information and ideas are presented using the same extended extract from the past paper above.
Implicit information and ideas |
|---|
Example |
It was still dark. We had at least three hours of darkness to go before daybreak and, as always, I had the sunrise shift. The ocean had continued to build, with an ever-increasing wind that was gusting at 40 knots. The swell had grown and conditions were becoming increasingly frenzied. I began to feel vulnerable again. If we can just make it to daybreak, I thought, it will be easier to read the waves and prepare for the breakers. |
Using the same extract, we will explore what implicit information and ideas you could interpret from this extract.
What ideas and information are implicitly stated in the extract? | Evidence | What ideas and information can be interpreted from this? |
|---|---|---|
The speaker's occupation | “sunrise shift”, “we” and “prepare for the breakers” | While the text doesn't directly state the speaker's occupation, these references suggest that the speaker is part of a team, possibly linked to maritime activities |
The speaker's experience | “as always” and “I began to feel vulnerable again” | It implies that the speaker has encountered similar situations before and this is not their first time facing challenging conditions at sea |
The dangerous nature of the situation | “The swell had grown, and conditions were becoming increasingly frenzied” | The description of the ocean swell growing, the wind gusting at 40 knots and the increasingly frenzied conditions suggest that the environment is dangerous |
The importance of daybreak | “If we can just make it to daybreak, it will be easier to reаd the waves and prepare for the breakers” | It implies that daybreak will bring improved visibility, allowing for better assessment of the waves and preparation for any potential dangers |
Understanding implicit information and ideas in a text requires you to go beyond the explicit surface level and delve into the subtleties and nuances of the writer’s craft. By doing so, you are able to gain a much richer and more profound comprehension of the text's underlying messages and themes. Remember, different readers may interpret these implicit elements slightly differently and the above examples are only some of the potential ideas that can be gleaned from this text.
Inferences
Similarly, making inferences refers to your ability to draw conclusions, make interpretations or make logical deductions based on evidence, observations or information that is not explicitly stated in the text. When you make an inference, you are using your reasoning and critical thinking skills to fill in the gaps or connect the dots between the information provided and the conclusions that can be logically derived from that information. It involves going beyond the surface-level information and understanding the implicit or hidden meanings that may not be directly presented.
In order to draw successful inferences from the text in the exam, you need to develop the ability to independently ask questions as a reader in order to interrogate the text. For example:
Questions to ask yourself… | ||
|---|---|---|
What does this suggest to you about (…) ? | What might you imply from this about (…)? | What does it make you realise (...)? |
We will now explore a more detailed set of inferences which could be drawn from the text. Again, we will use the same extract from Source A from the June 2019 AQA GCSE past paper, but this time the focus will be on a different part of the text:
Example | “The swell was gathering, and the breaking waves were becoming more frequent. ‘Come on, sun,’ I thought, willing the day to break. Something wasn’t right.” |
|---|---|
Inference 1 | The mention that the “swell was gathering” and the “breaking waves are becoming more frequent” implies that the ocean is becoming increasingly challenging and dangerous |
Inference 2 | The phrase “Something wasn't right” implies that the speaker is feeling a sense of unease or apprehension about the situation which suggests that there may be potential risks which the speaker is becoming aware of |
Inference 3 | The phrase “Come on, sun, I thought, willing the day to break” implies that the speaker is anticipating better visibility and safer conditions once the sun rises |
As is evidenced from the above table, it is possible to make several different inferences based on a short piece of text. To achieve the highest level, you need firstly to be clear in your interpretations and also provide additional detail about your ideas in order to extend your understanding.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
It is important to note that making inferences involves some level of interpretation and it is subject to individual perspectives and experiences. Therefore, different readers may draw slightly different inferences when presented with the same information.
Therefore, the mark scheme will not prescribe what inferences you should come to in your synthesis, but it will look to reward the quality and plausibility of any inference that you choose to make.
Synthesising and summarising
Question 2 also requires that you synthesise information from two different texts and form these into a summary. Synthesising information into a summary means combining and condensing multiple pieces of information and ideas from Source A and Source B to create a concise and coherent overview of their main points, in your own words. It requires you to extract the most essential information, organise it in a logical order and present it in a way that fully addresses the question.
We are now going to explore how you might synthesise and summarise two different texts using a short extract from each one.
Read through each of the paragraphs below:
Source A It was still dark. We had at least three hours of darkness to go before daybreak and, as always, I had the sunrise shift. The ocean had continued to build, with an ever-increasing wind that was gusting at 40 knots. The swell had grown and conditions were becoming increasingly frenzied. I began to feel vulnerable again. If we can just make it to daybreak, I thought, it will be easier to read the waves and prepare for the breakers. |
Source B In a few moments more of the passengers began streaming out onto the deck in a great state of alarm. Last of all, the old Captain, white and hollow-eyed, appeared like a ghost among us. We had not been standing there long when, by some freak chance, the steamship got off the rocks and plunged on through the seething, milky surf; then very suddenly passed out of it into black and comparatively calm water. For ten minutes she sped rapidly and smoothly on. Then it was said that we were stuck fast in the sand of the shore, although no shore was visible in the darkness. |
Now look at an example of Question 2 below:
Q2: You need to refer to Source A and Source B for this question. The writers in Source A and Source B are experiencing a similar type of journey on the sea. Use details from both sources to write a summary of what you understand about their experiences on the sea. [8 marks] |
In order to address this question, you might wish to create a brief summary of each text like the ones below:
Source A Summary | Source B Summary |
|---|---|
In the darkness at sea, the writer anticipates daybreak during their sunrise shift. The ocean's conditions worsen with strong winds and growing waves, causing the writer to feel vulnerable. They hold onto hope for daybreak, seeking better visibility to navigate the challenging waves ahead. | The passengers on the steamship find themselves in a perilous situation, as the ship gets off the rocks amidst seething surf, causing alarm among them. Although the ship passes into calm water, it unexpectedly becomes stuck in the sand near an unseen shore, leaving them in a precarious state. |
Next, you will need to think about comparing both texts and consider some of the inferences which could be drawn from each of them. Read through each part of the responses below.
Student Response | What makes this response successful? |
|---|---|
In Source A and Source B, both speakers describe a similar situation: being at sea in the darkness and facing challenging sea conditions | This opening statement immediately links to the question and summarises the similarities between both texts |
In Source A, the ocean’s conditions are worsening with gusting winds and growing swells and the writer's feeling of vulnerability implies a sense of danger and apprehension. The writer's mention of having “at least three hours of darkness to go before daybreak” creates a sense of prolonged anticipation and underscores the challenging and uncertain duration ahead. Nonetheless, there is a sense of hope and anticipation, as the speaker looks forward to daybreak when improved visibility will hopefully better prepare them for any potential dangers that lie ahead. Similarly, in Source B, the passengers on a steamship also find themselves in a perilous situation. The Captain's appearance as “white and hollow-eyed” suggests he is distressed and concerned about the safety of the vessel and its passengers | This paragraph makes perceptive inferences about Source A |
Perceptive similarities between both Source A and Source B are explored | |
References and quotes from the text are clearly linked to the focus of the question | |
In Source B the ship's encounter with rocks and seething surf adds to the sense of danger and unpredictability, followed by a sudden transition to calmer waters. However, the mention of being “stuck fast in the sand of the shore” indicates that the calmness is only temporary and the passengers remain in a dangerous situation. The shifting fortunes of the steamship, from rocky waters to calmness and then back to peril, evoke a tense and unpredictable atmosphere. Further, the lack of visibility in the darkness in both Source A and Source B adds to the sense of uncertainty, making their situations appear even more precarious. Both speakers yearn for more stable and safer circumstances. | This paragraph makes perceptive inferences about Source B |
References and quotes from the text are clearly linked to the focus of the question | |
Perceptive similarities between both sources are explored towards the end of this paragraph |
In the above examples, inferences related to the focus in both texts are made and these are supported with appropriate textual detail. Furthermore, connections between the two source texts are also made in order to interpret their similarities and differences.
You will find further detailed information about how to structure your response to Question 2 in the Model Answer section.
Examiner Tips and Tricks
In order to prepare for this type of question, you should read not just literary non-fiction, but a diverse range of other non-fiction texts which incorporate a focus on specific and concrete issues. As you do so, practice searching and locating key details from different text sources, considering both the similarities and differences between each text.
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