Summarising? That’s easy. You just make the text shorter.
Exam Skills · Cambridge C2 Proficiency · Writing Part 1 · C2
Summarising for the C2 Writing Exam
Why summarising matters, and how to do it at C2: the compulsory essay in which you summarise and evaluate the key points of two texts in 240–280 words. Finding the key points, paraphrasing in your own words, reporting and evaluating, structure and timing, with two practice texts, a model essay, and Philo, Sophia, Marcos and Demetria.
MARCOS
SOPHIA
Then try it, Marcos. Make Philo’s favourite scroll shorter without losing anything important, without copying a single phrase, and then tell me which of its arguments is weakest.
MARCOS
Ah. That’s not so easy.
SOPHIA
No. To summarise well, you must understand completely. That is why the highest Cambridge exam, C2 Proficiency, makes it the one task that every candidate must do.
The task
The task
Writing Part 1 of Cambridge C2 Proficiency is compulsory. You read two short texts of about 100 words each on the same topic, often with different points of view. You must write an essay that summarises and evaluates the key points from both texts, in your own words as far as possible, and adds your own view. Length: 240–280 words.
The Writing paper lasts 1 hour 30 minutes for two tasks, so plan about 45 minutes for Part 1: around 10 minutes to read, mark the key points and plan, 30 minutes to write, and 5 minutes to check. Part 1 is worth half of your Writing mark. Examiners assess Content (have you covered all the key points?), Communicative Achievement (is the register and tone right for an essay?), Organisation (is it logical and well linked?) and Language (range and accuracy).
Each text usually contains two key points, so a complete answer covers four. Leaving one out, or copying whole phrases from the texts, are the commonest reasons for a low mark. Summarising is not only an exam skill: it is what you do every time you write a report, review research, take notes at university or explain a meeting to someone who missed it.
To summarise is to understand.
The two texts
Practice task. Read the two texts below. Write an essay summarising and evaluating the key points from both texts. Use your own words throughout as far as possible, and include your own ideas in your answer. Write your answer in 240–280 words.
Text 1 · The library as a commons
In an age when almost every public space expects us to buy something, the library remains a rare exception. Anyone may walk in, sit down and stay for hours, whether to study, to read the newspaper or simply to be warm and among other people. For many, it is the only place outside home and work where they feel they belong. Equally valuable are the librarians themselves. Faced with an endless flood of information, much of it unreliable, people need guides who can help them find, judge and use sources. Closing libraries to save money would therefore be a false economy.
Text 2 · Shelves without walls
Digitisation has transformed what a library can be. A scanned manuscript can be read by a student in Lagos as easily as by a scholar in Oxford, and an online catalogue costs a fraction of what it takes to heat, staff and repair an old building. Funds spent on bricks might arguably be better spent on access. Yet the digital archive is more fragile than it appears. File formats go out of date within a decade, servers fail, and texts can be silently altered. Until these problems are solved, the printed page remains the most dependable guardian of what we know.
A plan, then a model essay
Ten minutes of planning makes the writing faster and better.
| Paragraph | What goes in it | Words |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Introduction | The topic, and that the two texts take different views on it. | 25–35 |
| 2 · Text 1 | Key point A (libraries are free public spaces) · Key point B (librarians guide people through unreliable information) · your evaluation | 70–80 |
| 3 · Text 2 | Key point C (digitisation gives cheap worldwide access) · Key point D (digital archives are fragile, so print still matters) · your evaluation | 70–80 |
| 4 · Conclusion | Link the texts and give your own view. | 60–80 |
Model essay (263 words)
Notice the four key points, the paraphrasing, the reporting verbs and the evaluation (in bold).
Introduction: the topic and the two texts
Few institutions have been as thoroughly reshaped by technology as the library, and the two texts consider what its future should be.
Text 1: two key points, then evaluation
The first text maintains that libraries are among the last truly public spaces: places where anyone can study, read or simply spend time without being expected to pay. It adds that librarians are more valuable than ever, since people need skilled help to find their way through a mass of unreliable information. This is a persuasive case, particularly the point about guidance; however, the writer arguably overstates the matter in suggesting that every closure is a false economy, as some libraries are barely used.
Text 2: two key points, then evaluation
The second text takes a more technological view. It argues that digitisation has made collections available worldwide at a far lower cost than maintaining buildings, and that money might be better invested in access. Crucially, though, the writer concedes that digital records are vulnerable: formats become obsolete, systems break down and texts can be changed without anyone noticing, so printed copies remain the safest form of preservation. This candid admission considerably strengthens the argument.
Conclusion: your own view, linking both texts
In my view, the two positions are less opposed than they first appear. Digital access and physical libraries meet different needs: the former spreads knowledge, while the latter offers community, expert guidance and a secure record. Rather than choosing between them, public money should support both, with libraries evolving into places where people learn to use digital resources wisely. Ultimately, a library is defined not by its shelves or its servers but by its ability to make knowledge reliable and available to all.
Why summarising matters
PHILO
In the Library, Callimachus made the Pinakes, a catalogue of every scroll, with a few lines on what each one contained. Without his summaries, nobody could have found anything among half a million scrolls.
SOPHIA
And at C2, summarising shows that you have understood a writer’s argument so well that you can rebuild it in your own words, and judge it. That is the real meaning of proficiency.
Step 1: finding the key points
MARCOS
How do I know what’s a key point and what’s just an example?
SOPHIA
Ask: what is the writer trying to persuade me of? Key points are claims; examples, figures and descriptions support them. Look for topic sentences and signals: equally valuable, crucially, yet, however, therefore. In Text 2, “a student in Lagos… a scholar in Oxford” is an example; the point is worldwide access at low cost.
Step 2: paraphrasing in your own words
DEMETRIA
Text: “the printed page remains the most dependable guardian of what we know.” Mine: “printed copies remain the safest form of preservation.”
SOPHIA
Change the words (dependable → safe), the word class (guardian → preservation), and the structure. You may keep key topic words, like library or digitisation, but never lift whole phrases. A good test: cover the text and explain the idea from memory.
Step 3: reporting the writers
PHILO
The first text maintains that… It adds that… The second writer argues that… but concedes that…
SOPHIA
Reporting verbs show the writer’s attitude: maintain, contend, argue, claim, assert (strong positions); acknowledge, concede, admit (accepting a counter-point); suggest, imply (indirect). Use the present simple: the writer argues, not argued.
Step 4: evaluating, and your own view
MARCOS
So I have to say whether the writers are right?
SOPHIA
Yes: that is the “evaluate” in the task. Use precise language: a persuasive / compelling / convincing case; somewhat simplistic; overstates; overlooks; fails to take into account; considerably strengthens. Then link the texts and give your own view: In my view, the two positions are less opposed than they first appear.
Structure, register and word count
DEMETRIA
Four paragraphs: introduction; Text 1 summarised and evaluated; Text 2 summarised and evaluated; conclusion with my view.
SOPHIA
Or organise by theme, comparing the texts point by point: both work if every key point is covered. Keep a formal, impersonal register: no contractions, no chatty questions, no “In my opinion I think”. Stay within 240–280 words: far fewer usually means missing content, far more usually means repetition.
Sophia’s comparison: Hillel’s summary
PHILO
A man once came to Rabbi Hillel and asked him to teach the whole Torah while standing on one foot. Hillel answered: what is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour. That is the whole Torah; the rest is commentary. Now go and learn it.
SOPHIA
The greatest summary I know. Notice that Hillel could only do it because he knew the whole Torah perfectly. That is the secret: you cannot shorten what you have not understood.
Sophia’s summary
| Words and forms | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| two texts × two key points | the content you must cover | four key points in total |
| maintain, argue, contend / concede, acknowledge | reporting verbs (present simple) | The writer concedes that… |
| persuasive, overstates, overlooks, fails to take into account | evaluative language | The argument overlooks the cost. |
| change words, word class, structure | paraphrasing | dependable guardian → safest form of preservation |
| 240–280 words, formal register, about 45 minutes | the task | Part 1 is compulsory. |
Practice
Listen to the song for Section A, then do the rest. Press “Check my answers” at the end. You can try again as many times as you like.
A · The task and the two texts
Listen to the song and choose the best answer.
1. How many words should your Part 1 essay be?
2. How many key points does a complete answer usually cover?
3. What must you do with the key points?
4. According to Text 1, why are libraries special?
5. According to Text 2, what is the problem with digital archives?
6. In Text 2, what is “a student in Lagos… a scholar in Oxford”?
B · The language of summary
Write the missing word or words.
7. The first writer that libraries are essential public spaces. (maintain)
8. The second writer that digital records are fragile. (accept a counter-point)
9. The of manuscripts has widened access. (digitise)
10. This argument fails to take into the cost of buildings.
11. The writer the problem of misinformation. (does not notice)
12. This is a case. (convincing, persuading)
C · Good summary writing, or not?
Is the sentence correct English?
13. “The first text says that ‘the library remains a rare exception’.”
14. “The second writer concedes that digital records are vulnerable.”
15. “In my opinion I think both texts are interesting.”
16. “While the second writer makes a compelling case for digitisation, she arguably underestimates the value of libraries as meeting places.”
Talk and write
Discussion and writing
Find the key points. In pairs, underline the two key points in each text above, then explain each one to your partner from memory, without looking.
Discuss. 1. Why do you think Cambridge makes summarising the compulsory task at C2? 2. When do you summarise in real life? 3. Should public money go to library buildings or to digital access?
Write (240–280 words, 45 minutes). Using the two texts above, write your own essay summarising and evaluating the key points from both texts, in your own words, and give your own view. Then check it with the list: four key points? own words? reporting verbs? evaluation? clear paragraphs? formal register? 240–280 words?