personal critique of literature review

Critique of a Research Article

The goal of this activity is to give you an opportunity to apply whatever you learned in this course in evaluating a research paper. Warning!!!! You might have done some article summaries or even critical evaluation of some resources. However, this activity is unique because you evaluate a research article from a methodology perspective .  

For this assignment you briefly summarize and extensively evaluate the  attached educational research article (If you cannot download the article please go to BeachBoard/Content/Articles to download the article). 

This assignment should be done individually. In the summary section, you should write a brief (up to 500 words) summary of the article in your own words . Don’t use copy and paste try to rephrase. This will be a good practice for your final project’s literature review. In the critique section, you evaluate the article using the following grading criteria.

Grading criteria for research critique

In your summary, you should identify main elements of the research including

1.          Research problem

2.          Research goal

3.          Hypothesis

4.        Research Questions

5.        Research Method (briefly explain)

6.        Sample (participants)

7.        Variables

8.        Tools (instruments, tests, surveys)

9.        Main findings (brief summary of the results)

10.    Conclusion

The critique part should be 2-3 pages (1000-2000 words) and include to the following sections. Your critique should be longer than your summary and you pay special attention to the design and procedure . Your grade on this assignment is based on your answer the following questions.

There is a long list of questions. You don’t have to address all questions. However, you should address highlighted questions as you are writing your critique part. Some questions are relevant to this article some are not. I listed so many questions simply because I’d like you to learn what to look for in evaluating a research article.

The format of your paper should NOT be like a Q & A list . Instead, you should integrate your answers into an essay format similar to the given examples.  

Introduction

1.     Is there a statement of the problem?

2.     Is the problem “researchable”? That is, can it be investigated through the collection and analysis of data?

3.     Is background information on the problem presented?

4.     Is the educational significance of the problem discussed?

5.     Does the problem statement indicate the variables of interest and the specific relationship between those variables which are investigated? When necessary, are variables directly or operationally defined?

Review of Related Literature

1.     Is the review comprehensive?

2.     Are all cited references relevant to the problem under investigation?

3.     Are most of the sources primary, i.e., are there only a few or no secondary sources?

4.     Have the references been critically analyzed and the results of various studies compared and contrasted, i.e., is the review more than a series of abstracts or annotations?

5.     Does the review conclude with a brief summary of the literature and its implications for the problem investigated?

6.     Do the implications discussed form an empirical or theoretical rationale for the hypotheses which follow?

1.     Are specific questions to be answered listed or specific hypotheses to be tested stated?

2.     Does each hypothesis state an expected relationship or difference?

3.     If necessary, are variables directly or operationally defined?

4.     Is each hypothesis testable?

Method          Subjects

1.     Are the size and major characteristics of the population studied described?

2.     If a sample was selected, is the method of selecting the sample clearly described?

3.      Is the method of sample selection described one that is likely to result in a representative, unbiased sample?

4.     Did the researcher avoid the use of volunteers?

5.     Are the size and major characteristics of the sample described?

6.     Does the sample size meet the suggested guideline for minimum sample size appropriate for the method of research represented?      

Instruments

1.     Is the rationale given for the selection of the instruments (or measurements) used?

2.     Is each instrument described in terms of purpose and content?

3.     Are the instruments appropriate for measuring the intended variables?

4.     Is evidence presented that indicates that each instrument is appropriate for the sample under study?

5.     Is instrument validity discussed and coefficients given if appropriate?

6.     Is reliability discussed in terms of type and size of reliability coefficients?

7.     If appropriate, are subtest reliabilities given?

8.     If an instrument was developed specifically for the study, are the procedures involved in its development and validation described?

9.     If an instrument was developed specifically for the study, are administration, scoring or tabulating, and interpretation procedures fully described?

Design and Procedure

1.     Is the design appropriate for answering the questions or testing the hypotheses of the   study?

2.     Are the procedures described in sufficient detail to permit them to be replicated by another researcher?

3.     If a pilot study was conducted, are its execution and results described as well as its impact on the subsequent study?

4.     Are the control procedures described?

5.     Did the researcher discuss or account for any potentially confounding variables that he or she was unable to control for?

1.     Are appropriate descriptive or inferential statistics presented?

2.     Was the probability level, α, at which the results of the tests of significance were evaluated,

       specified in advance of the data analyses?

3.     If parametric tests were used, is there evidence that the researcher avoided violating the

       required assumptions for parametric tests?

4.     Are the tests of significance described appropriate, given the hypotheses and design of the

       study?

5.     Was every hypothesis tested?

6.     Are the tests of significance interpreted using the appropriate degrees of freedom?

7.     Are the results clearly presented?

8.     Are the tables and figures (if any) well organized and easy to understand?

9.     Are the data in each table and figure described in the text?

Discussion (Conclusions and Recommendation)

1.     Is each result discussed in terms of the original hypothesis to which it relates?

2.     Is each result discussed in terms of its agreement or disagreement with previous results

        obtained by other researchers in other studies?

3.     Are generalizations consistent with the results?

4.     Are the possible effects of uncontrolled variables on the results discussed?

5.     Are theoretical and practical implications of the findings discussed?

6.     Are recommendations for future action made?

7.     Are the suggestions for future action based on practical significance or on statistical

       significance only, i.e., has the author avoided confusing practical and statistical

       significance?

8.     Are recommendations for future research made?

Make sure that you cover the following questions if you have not already covered them in your crtique .  

1.    Is the research important? Why?

2.    In your own words what methods and procedures were used? Evaluate the methods and procedures.

3.    Evaluate the sampling method and the sample used in this study.

4.    Describe the reliability and validity of all the instruments used.

5.    What type of research is this?  Explain.

6.    How was the data analyzed?

7.    What is (are) the major finding(s)? are these findings important?

8. What are your suggestions to improve this research?

Here is a hint on how to evaluate an article.

Use this resource for writing and APA style.

Examples (please note some examples are longer than what is expected for this article)

·          Good example

·          Poor example

More examples

·          Original article

·          Article critique

How to Critique an Article

What Is an Article Critique?

An article critique is an assignment that requires a student to critically read a research article and reflect upon it. The key task is to identify the strong and weak sides of the piece and assess how well the author interprets its sources. Simply put, a critique reflects upon the validity and effectiveness of the article's author's arguments in his or her work.

The key to success in writing this paper is critical thinking. The task of every research article author is to convince readers of the correctness of their viewpoint, even if it is skewed. Thus, the only ways to distinguish solid arguments from weak ones are to be a good researcher, have the right tools to pick out facts from fiction and possess solid critical thinking skills.

How to write a critique paper – In this guide, we will take you through the process of writing this type of work step by step. However, before we move on, it is worth noting that the main purpose of a good article critique is to bring up points that determine whether a reviewed article is either correct or incorrect—much like you would do while writing a persuasive essay. Although the purpose is similar, the structure of the article critique that we are going to address in this guide is slightly different from the standard 5-paragraph essay; however, both formats are suitable for convincing readers about the validity of your point of view.

How to Critique an Article: The Main Steps

This form of assignment is naturally challenging and rather confusing. It is no wonder why students may begin to feel overwhelmed with figuring out how to write an article critique.

To help you get your task done with ease, we have prepared a simple 3-step guide on how to summarize and critique an article:

Step 1: Reading the Article

First of all, to critique the article, you need to read it carefully. It is recommended to read the piece several times—until you fully understand the information presented for a better outcome. Next, you need to address the following questions:

1. Why is the article's author considered an expert in their field?

What makes a particular author's opinion sound valid? Does the author know about the topic? What do other field experts say about the author? Is the article's author covered in academic praise or not taken seriously?

2. What is the author's thesis/hypothesis?

What is the main message the author is trying to convey? Is this message clear? Or are there just plenty of general phrases without any specific details?

3. Who is the article's target audience?

Is the article geared toward a general audience? Or does it appeal to a specific group of people and use only understandable language for that audience?

4. Are the arguments presented valid?

Are the sources used by the author from all over the place? Does it seem like some sources are taken from areas that share a cult-like vocabulary?

5. What are the logical fallacies in the author's viewpoint?

Are there any logical blindspots? How much do they affect the outcome?

6. Is the conclusion clear and logical? Did the author arrive at a clear outcome in his or her work?

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Step 2: Collecting Proof

The first step will help you read and understand the piece, look at it from a critical point of view, and reflect upon it. Now, when you have an idea about which way you should be heading in your critique paper, it is the time to start gathering evidence. Here are the main steps you should undertake:

1. Define Whether the Author Is Following Formal Logic One of the key things to look for when writing an article critique is the presence of any logical fallacies. Establishing that the author's general idea follows logic is not easy, but it is essential to coping with the task.

Often, undereducated people have some common logical fallacies. An example is to accept certain information based on the feelings and/or emotions it evokes rather than focusing on the supporting arguments.

Here is a list of some common examples of logical fallacies with brief explanations of each:

• Ad hominem – when the author attacks someone expressing an opinion to discredit the other's point of view.
• Slippery Slope – when the author claims that an action will always end up being the worst possible scenario.
• Correlation vs. Causation – when the author concludes that actions 1 and 2 occurred one after the other, action two must be the effect of action 1. The problem with such a statement is that the author concludes the correlation between the two actions without looking deeper to see the real causes and effects.
• Wishful thinking – when the author believes something that is not backed up by any proof. This issue typically occurs when someone thinks the information is true because it makes them feel good.

2. Search for Any Biased Opinions in the Article Another step is to evaluate the piece based on biased opinions. The thing is that people often pick sides of an argument based on the outcomes rather than the evidence. So, if the result makes them feel bad in any way, they can search for any proof that would discredit it and, thus, make them feel better.

3. Pay Attention to the Way the Author Interprets Others’ Texts. Does He or She Look at Others’ Viewpoints through Inappropriate Political Lenses? It takes much time and experience in research practice to recognize the fingerprints of all the political slants out there. To grasp the concept, let's look at the subject of animal studies. To begin with, it's worth noting that some people become involved in certain industries due to their emotional involvement in their related topics. For example, people who write about animals are likely those who genuinely love them. This can put their work at risk of being biased toward portraying animals in a way that gives their topic more importance than it deserves. This is a clear example of what you should be looking for.

When reading and re-reading the article, find and highlight cases in which the author overstates the importance of some things due to his or her own beliefs. Then, to polish your mental research instruments, go back to point 1 of this list to review the list of logical fallacies you can look out for.

4. Check Cited Sources Another big step to writing a perfect critique paper is identifying whether the author cited untrustworthy sources of information. Doing this is not easy and requires a certain experience.

For example, let's look at Breitbart news. How would you define whether it is an untrustworthy source or not? To rate trustworthiness, one should know about its long history of distorting facts to suit a far-right agenda. Learning this requires paying a lot of attention to local and international news.

5. Evaluate the Language Used in the Article Language is vital in every article, regardless of the field and topic. Therefore, while working on your critique, you should pay close attention to the language the article's author uses.

Just to give you a clear example of what you should be looking for: some words have cultural meanings attached to them, which can create a confrontation in the article. Such terms can place people, objects, or ideas into the 'them' side in the 'us vs. them' scenario.

For example, if someone conservative refers to an opponent using the word “leftist”, this can be considered a form of attacking the messenger and not the message. A similar concept applies to a case when someone progressive refers to an opponent using the word “bigot”.

Using such language in an article is a clear sign of logical fallacies. Authors use it to discredit their opponents on the merit of who they are rather than what they say. This is poor word choice because the debate does not get resolved.

6. Question the Research Methods in Scientific Articles

This may not always be mandatory, but if you write an article critique for a scientific piece, you are expected to question and evaluate how the author did their research.

To do this, ask the following questions:

• How is the design of the study? Are there any errors in it?
• How does the piece explain the research methods?
• Was there a control group used for this research?
• Were there any sample size issues?
• Were there any statistical errors?
• Is there a way to recreate the experiment in a laboratory setting?
• Does the research (or experiment) offer any real impact and/or value in its field of science?

Step 3: Formatting Your Paper

Just like any other written assignment, a critique paper should be formatted and structured properly. A standard article critique consists of four parts: an introduction, summary, analysis, and conclusion. Below is a clear checklist to help you grasp the idea of how a good paper should be formatted:

‍ Introduction ‍

• The name of the author and title of the article.
• The core idea of the author.
• A clear thesis that reflects the direction of your critique. ‍
• The main idea of the article.
• The main arguments presented in the article.
• The conclusion of the article. ‍
• Highlight the strong and weak sides of the article.
• Express an educated opinion regarding the article's relevancy, clarity, and accuracy, and back up your claims with direct examples from the piece. ‍

Conclusion ‍

• Summary of the key points of the article.
• Finalization of your conclusion with your comments on the relevancy of the research.
• If you claim the research is relevant, explain why further study in this field can be useful.

How to Critique a Journal Article

So, you were assigned to write a critique paper for a journal article? If you are not sure where to start, here is a step-by-step guide on how to critique a journal article:

1. Collect basic information Regardless of the article subject you are going to critique; your paper has to contain some basic information, including the following:

• Title of the article reviewed.
• Title of the journal where it is published, along with the date and month of publication, volume number, and pages where the article can be found.
• Statement of the main issue or problem revealed in the piece.
• Purpose, research methods, approach, hypothesis, and key findings.
• Therefore, the first step is to collect this information.

2. Read the article once and re-read after First, get an overview of it and grasp the general idea of it. A good critique should reflect your qualified and educated opinion regarding the article. To shape such an opinion, you have to read the piece again, this time critically, and highlight everything that can be useful for writing your paper.

3.Write your critique based on the evidence you have collected Here are the main questions to address when writing a journal article critique:

• Is the article's title clear and appropriate?
• Is the article's abstract presented in the correct form, relevant to the content of the article, and specific?
• Is the purpose stated in the introduction made clear?
• Are there any errors in the author's interpretations and facts?
• Is the discussion relevant and valuable?
• Has the author cited valid and trusted sources?
• Did you find any ideas that were overemphasized or underemphasized in the article?
• Do you believe some sections of the piece have to be expanded, condensed, or omitted?
• Are all statements the author makes clear?
• What are the author's core assumptions?
• Has the author of the article been objective in his or her statements?
• Are the approaches and research methods used suitable?
• Are the statistical methods appropriate?
• Is there any duplicated or repeated content?

You might also be interested in an article about how to write a descriptive essay .

How to Critique a Research Article

If you are wondering how to critique a research article in particular, below we’ve outlined the key steps to follow.

Before you start writing:

• Pick a piece that meets the instructions of your professor.
• Read the whole article to grasp the main idea.
• Re-read the piece with a critical eye.

While reading:

• Define how qualified the author is on the chosen topic. What are the author's credentials?
• Reflect on the research methods used. Are the methods the author chose appropriate and helpful for answering the stated research question(s)?
• Evaluate the results. Are there any signs of the generalizability of the outcomes?
• Look for any bias in the article. Is there any conflict of interest or proof of bias?
• Define the overall quality of the research work. Does the article seem relevant or outdated?
• Pay attention to the sources used. Did the sources back up their research with theory and/or previous literature related to the topic?

Struggling to find the strong and weak points that can shape your critique? Here is a simple checklist to help you understand what to critique in a research article (separated by sections):

Introduction

• Does the author make a problem statement?
• Does the problem statement correspond with the focus of the study?
• Is the problem stated researchable?
• Does the author provide background information regarding the problem?
• Does the author discuss the significance of the problem?
• Does the author mention variables and their correlations?
• Does the author have decent enough qualifications to perform this particular study?

2. Review of the Relevant Literature

• Is the review of the literature comprehensive?
• Are all references cited properly?
• Are most of the sources used by the author primary sources?
• Did the author analyze, critique, compare, and contrast the references and findings?
• Does the author explain the relevancy of his or her references?
• Is the literature review well organized?
• Does the review competently inform the readers about the topic and problem?

3. Hypothesis

• Does the author specify key research questions and hypotheses?
• Is every hypothesis testable?
• Are all hypotheses and research questions clear, logical, and accurate?

1. Participants

• Does the author describe the size and main characteristics of participant groups?
• Does the author specify its size and characteristics if a sample is selected?
• Is there enough information on the method of selecting a sample used by the author?
• Are there any limitations or biases in the manner the author selected participants?

2. Instruments

• Does the author specify the instruments used?
• Are the chosen instruments appropriate?
• Do the instruments meet general guidelines for protecting participants of the experiment?
• Did the author obtain all of the permissions needed?
• Does the author describe each instrument regarding reliability, purpose, validity, and content?
• If any instruments were developed specifically for this study, does the author describe the procedures involved in their development and validation?

3. Design and Procedures

• Is there any information given in terms of the research design used?
• Does the author describe all of their procedures?
• Are the specified design and procedures appropriate to investigate the stated problem or question?
• Do procedures logically relate to each other?
• Are the instruments and procedures applied correctly?
• Is the context of the research described in detail?
• Did the author present appropriate descriptive statistics?
• Did the author test all of his or her hypotheses?
• Did the author explicitly use the inductive logic used to produce results in their qualitative study?
• Are the results clear and logical?
• Did the author provide additional tables and figures? Are those easy to understand, relevant, and well-organized?
• Is the information from the presented tables and figures also provided in the text?

Discussion, Conclusion, or Suggestions

• Does the author discuss every finding concerning the original subject or hypothesis to which it relates?
• Does the author discuss every finding in agreement or disagreement with previous findings from other specialists?
• Are generalizations consistent with the results?
• Does the author discuss the possible effects of uncontrolled variables in the findings?
• Does the author discuss the theoretical and practical implications of their findings?
• Does the author make any suggestions regarding future research?
• Does the author shape his or her suggestions based on the study's practical significance?

Abstract or Summary

• Did the author restate the problem?
• Is the design used in the research identified?
• Did the author describe the type and number of instruments and subjects?
• Are all performed procedures specified?
• Did the author restate all of their key conclusions and findings?

Overall Impression

• The structure of the article – Is the work organized properly? Are all titles, sections, subsections, and paragraphs organized logically?
• The author's style and thinking – Is the author's style and thinking easy to understand, clear, and logical?

As you go through all these steps, you can transition to writing. When writing your critique paper, you should critically evaluate the research article you have read and use the evidence collected from the piece. To help you structure your research article critique properly, here is a sample outline of a critique of research for the article The Effects of Early Education on Children's Competence in Elementary School:

1. Bibliographic Information

• Author(s): M. B. Bronson, D. E. Pierson & T. Tivnan
• Title: The Effects of Early Education on Children's Competence in Elementary School
• Year of publication: 1984
• Source: Evaluation Review, 8(5), 143-155

2. Summary of the Article

• Problem statement: Do early childhood education programs have significant and long-term impacts on kids’ competencies in elementary school?
• Background: To perform well in elementary school, children need to possess a variety of competencies.
• Hypothesis: Early childhood education programs decrease the rate of children who fall below the minimal competencies defined as necessary for effective performance in the second grade.
• Dependent Variables: mastery skills, social skills, and use of time; Independent Variables: Brookline Early Education Program; Controlled Variables: mother’s level of education.
• Research Design: A Quasi-experimental design, with a post-test only comparison group design, with no random selection of children, assignment to treatment, or control group.
• Sampling: The study engaged 169 students into the BEEP program. Students were selected randomly from the same second-grade classrooms and matched by gender. Also, the group was divided into children who continued their BEEP program (104) and those who moved elsewhere but were still tracked (65).
• Instrumentation: For the research, the authors used a specially developed tool – the Executive Skill Profile – to help detect and track students’ mastery, social, and time use skills.
• Collection/Ethics: The observation took place in Spring, during the students’ second-grade year. On different days (between three and six weeks apart) the observers recorded behaviors of all children for six 10-minute periods. Duration and frequency of behaviors were also recorded.
• Data analysis: The researchers conducted a series of tests to examine any significant changes in mastery, social, and time use skills between matched pairs of children (those who were engaged in BEEP and those who moved elsewhere).
• Authors’ findings: The study showed that children who were engaged in the BEEP program performed better on tests and showed better mastery and social skills. There were no significant changes in students’ time use skills. The early education program made a difference at all three levels of treatment for students whose mothers have college educations. However, the same program made a difference only at the most intense level for students whose mothers don’t have college educations.

3. Critique

• Possible Threats to the Internal Validity
• ~ History: Was not controlled as the comparison children may have not spent their entire lives in the same area as the treatment students.
• ~ Maturation: Controlled. Students were matched by gender and grade.
• ~ Testing: The observers recorded students’ behaviors within 3-to-6 week periods. This fact may have influenced their behaviors.
• ~ Instrumentation: The tool used may have been a subject to bias from the observers' perspective.
• ~ Selection bias: All selected students volunteered to participate in the study. Thus, the findings could be affected by self-selection.
• ~ Experimental mortality: Students who left the area were still tracked as a part of the treatment group, though they should have been evaluated separately.
• ~ Design contamination: It is possible that children in the comparison group learned skills from the students in the treatment group since they all were from the same classroom.
• Possible Threats to External Validity
• ~ Unique features of the program: The program was available both for community residents and non-residents.
• ~ Experimental arrangements: Brooklin is an affluent community, unlike many others.

4. Conclusion

• Is the reviewed article useful?
• Does it make sense?
• Do the findings of the study look convincing? Explain.
• Does the study have any significance and/or practical value for its respective field of science?

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Video Guide: How to Write an Article Critique

Article critique example.

Now, as you know how to write this type of assignment step by step, our nursing essay writing service are going to share an example of journal article critique to help you grasp the idea of how the finished work should look.

“The education system cannot address what it does not acknowledge” (Shewchuk, and Cooper 942). Ontario, a province in Canada, understands this and has come up with an initiative and policies to improve equity in their schools. To achieve this, they have implemented an Equity and Inclusive Education (EIE) strategy. The practical purpose for EIE strategy is to ensure that in Ontario there is inclusive education, in which there are no biases, barriers, or power dynamics that discourages student learning possibilities. Acknowledging a problem and committing to finding its solution is the first step an administration can do to be supportive of their education system. However, the proper thought, research, and policy guidelines should be formulated to ensure the policies and strategy are inclusive of the potential issues, and have room for expansion. The procedures proposed are religious accommodative, anti-discrimination, and harassment of any kind. The policy should have a sound technique of how it will be implemented and reviewed and monitored after. Ontario has done just that, and the purpose of this article is to evaluate how well the equity program has been implemented in the province in attempts to foster equity in schools.

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Related Articles

IOE Writing Centre

• Writing a Critical Review

Writing a Critique

A critique (or critical review) is not to be mistaken for a literature review. A 'critical review', or 'critique', is a complete type of text (or genre), discussing one particular article or book in detail.  In some instances, you may be asked to write a critique of two or three articles (e.g. a comparative critical review). In contrast, a 'literature review', which also needs to be 'critical', is a part of a larger type of text, such as a chapter of your dissertation.

Most importantly: Read your article / book as many times as possible, as this will make the critical review much easier.

1. Read and take notes 2. Organising your writing 3. Summary 4. Evaluation 5. Linguistic features of a critical review 6. Summary language 7. Evaluation language 8. Conclusion language 9. Example extracts from a critical review 10. Further resources

Read and Take Notes

To improve your reading confidence and efficiency, visit our pages on reading.

Further reading: Read Confidently

After you are familiar with the text, make notes on some of the following questions. Choose the questions which seem suitable:

• What kind of article is it (for example does it present data or does it present purely theoretical arguments)?
• What is the main area under discussion?
• What are the main findings?
• What are the stated limitations?
• Where does the author's data and evidence come from? Are they appropriate / sufficient?
• What are the main issues raised by the author?
• What questions are raised?
• How well are these questions addressed?
• What are the major points/interpretations made by the author in terms of the issues raised?
• Is the text balanced? Is it fair / biased?
• Does the author contradict herself?
• How does all this relate to other literature on this topic?
• How does all this relate to your own experience, ideas and views?
• What else has this author written? Do these build / complement this text?
• (Optional) Has anyone else reviewed this article? What did they say? Do I agree with them?

^ Back to top

Organising your writing

You first need to summarise the text that you have read. One reason to summarise the text is that the reader may not have read the text. In your summary, you will

• focus on points within the article that you think are interesting
• summarise the author(s) main ideas or argument
• explain how these ideas / argument have been constructed. (For example, is the author basing her arguments on data that they have collected? Are the main ideas / argument purely theoretical?)

In your summary you might answer the following questions:     Why is this topic important?     Where can this text be located? For example, does it address policy studies?     What other prominent authors also write about this?

Evaluation is the most important part in a critical review.

Use the literature to support your views. You may also use your knowledge of conducting research, and your own experience. Evaluation can be explicit or implicit.

Explicit evaluation

Explicit evaluation involves stating directly (explicitly) how you intend to evaluate the text. e.g. "I will review this article by focusing on the following questions. First, I will examine the extent to which the authors contribute to current thought on Second Language Acquisition (SLA) pedagogy. After that, I will analyse whether the authors' propositions are feasible within overseas SLA classrooms."

Implicit evaluation

Implicit evaluation is less direct. The following section on Linguistic Features of Writing a Critical Review contains language that evaluates the text. A difficult part of evaluation of a published text (and a professional author) is how to do this as a student. There is nothing wrong with making your position as a student explicit and incorporating it into your evaluation. Examples of how you might do this can be found in the section on Linguistic Features of Writing a Critical Review. You need to remember to locate and analyse the author's argument when you are writing your critical review. For example, you need to locate the authors' view of classroom pedagogy as presented in the book / article and not present a critique of views of classroom pedagogy in general.

Linguistic features of a critical review

The following examples come from published critical reviews. Some of them have been adapted for student use.

Summary language

•     This article / book is divided into two / three parts. First...
•     While the title might suggest...
•     The tone appears to be...
•     Title is the first / second volume in the series Title, edited by...The books / articles in this series address...
•     The second / third claim is based on...
•     The author challenges the notion that...
•     The author tries to find a more middle ground / make more modest claims...
•     The article / book begins with a short historical overview of...
•     Numerous authors have recently suggested that...(see Author, Year; Author, Year). Author would also be once such author. With his / her argument that...
•     To refer to title as a...is not to say that it is...
•     This book / article is aimed at... This intended readership...
•     The author's book / article examines the...To do this, the author first...
•     The author develops / suggests a theoretical / pedagogical model to…
•     This book / article positions itself firmly within the field of...
•     The author in a series of subtle arguments, indicates that he / she...
•     The argument is therefore...
•     The author asks "..."
•     With a purely critical / postmodern take on...
•     Topic, as the author points out, can be viewed as...
•     In this recent contribution to the field of...this British author...
•     As a leading author in the field of...
•     This book / article nicely contributes to the field of...and complements other work by this author...
•     The second / third part of...provides / questions / asks the reader...
•     Title is intended to encourage students / researchers to...
•     The approach taken by the author provides the opportunity to examine...in a qualitative / quantitative research framework that nicely complements...
•     The author notes / claims that state support / a focus on pedagogy / the adoption of...remains vital if...
•     According to Author (Year) teaching towards examinations is not as effective as it is in other areas of the curriculum. This is because, as Author (Year) claims that examinations have undue status within the curriculum.
•     According to Author (Year)…is not as effective in some areas of the curriculum / syllabus as others. Therefore the author believes that this is a reason for some school's…

Evaluation language

•     This argument is not entirely convincing, as...furthermore it commodifies / rationalises the...
•     Over the last five / ten years the view of...has increasingly been viewed as 'complicated' (see Author, Year; Author, Year).
•     However, through trying to integrate...with...the author...
•     There are difficulties with such a position.
•     Inevitably, several crucial questions are left unanswered / glossed over by this insightful / timely / interesting / stimulating book / article. Why should...
•     It might have been more relevant for the author to have written this book / article as...
•     This article / book is not without disappointment from those who would view...as...
•     This chosen framework enlightens / clouds...
•     This analysis intends to be...but falls a little short as...
•     The authors rightly conclude that if...
•     A detailed, well-written and rigorous account of...
•     As a Korean student I feel that this article / book very clearly illustrates...
•     The beginning of...provides an informative overview into...
•     The tables / figures do little to help / greatly help the reader...
•     The reaction by scholars who take a...approach might not be so favourable (e.g. Author, Year).
•     This explanation has a few weaknesses that other researchers have pointed out (see Author, Year; Author, Year). The first is...
•     On the other hand, the author wisely suggests / proposes that...By combining these two dimensions...
•     The author's brief introduction to...may leave the intended reader confused as it fails to properly...
•     Despite my inability to...I was greatly interested in...
•     Even where this reader / I disagree(s), the author's effort to...
•     The author thus combines...with...to argue...which seems quite improbable for a number of reasons. First...
•     Perhaps this aversion to...would explain the author's reluctance to...
•     As a second language student from ...I find it slightly ironic that such an anglo-centric view is...
•     The reader is rewarded with...
•     Less convincing is the broad-sweeping generalisation that...
•     There is no denying the author's subject knowledge nor his / her...
•     The author's prose is dense and littered with unnecessary jargon...
•     The author's critique of...might seem harsh but is well supported within the literature (see Author, Year; Author, Year; Author, Year). Aligning herself with the author, Author (Year) states that...
•     As it stands, the central focus of Title is well / poorly supported by its empirical findings...
•     Given the hesitation to generalise to...the limitation of...does not seem problematic...
•     For instance, the term...is never properly defined and the reader left to guess as to whether...
•     Furthermore, to label...as...inadvertently misguides...
•     In addition, this research proves to be timely / especially significant to... as recent government policy / proposals has / have been enacted to...
•     On this well researched / documented basis the author emphasises / proposes that...
•     Nonetheless, other research / scholarship / data tend to counter / contradict this possible trend / assumption...(see Author, Year; Author, Year).
•     Without entering into detail of the..., it should be stated that Title should be read by...others will see little value in...
•     As experimental conditions were not used in the study the word 'significant' misleads the reader.
•     The article / book becomes repetitious in its assertion that...
•     The thread of the author's argument becomes lost in an overuse of empirical data...
•     Almost every argument presented in the final section is largely derivative, providing little to say about...
•     She / he does not seem to take into consideration; however, that there are fundamental differences in the conditions of…
•     As Author (Year) points out, however, it seems to be necessary to look at…
•     This suggest that having low…does not necessarily indicate that…is ineffective.
•     Therefore, the suggestion made by Author (Year)…is difficult to support.
•     When considering all the data presented…it is not clear that the low scores of some students, indeed, reflects…

Conclusion language

•     Overall this article / book is an analytical look at...which within the field of...is often overlooked.
•     Despite its problems, Title offers valuable theoretical insights / interesting examples / a contribution to pedagogy and a starting point for students / researchers of...with an interest in...
•     This detailed and rigorously argued...
•     This first / second volume / book / article by...with an interest in...is highly informative...

Example extracts from a critical review

Writing critically.

If you have been told your writing is not critical enough, it probably means that your writing treats the knowledge claims as if they are true, well supported, and applicable in the context you are writing about. This may not always be the case.

In these two examples, the extracts refer to the same section of text. In each example, the section that refers to a source has been highlighted in bold. The note below the example then explains how the writer has used the source material.    

There is a strong positive effect on students, both educationally and emotionally, when the instructors try to learn to say students' names without making pronunciation errors (Kiang, 2004).

Use of source material in example a: 

This is a simple paraphrase with no critical comment. It looks like the writer agrees with Kiang. (This is not a good example for critical writing, as the writer has not made any critical comment).        

Kiang (2004) gives various examples to support his claim that "the positive emotional and educational impact on students is clear" (p.210) when instructors try to pronounce students' names in the correct way. He quotes one student, Nguyet, as saying that he "felt surprised and happy" (p.211) when the tutor said his name clearly . The emotional effect claimed by Kiang is illustrated in quotes such as these, although the educational impact is supported more indirectly through the chapter. Overall, he provides more examples of students being negatively affected by incorrect pronunciation, and it is difficult to find examples within the text of a positive educational impact as such.

Use of source material in example b: 

The writer describes Kiang's (2004) claim and the examples which he uses to try to support it. The writer then comments that the examples do not seem balanced and may not be enough to support the claims fully. This is a better example of writing which expresses criticality.

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Further resources

You may also be interested in our page on criticality, which covers criticality in general, and includes more critical reading questions.

Further reading: Read and Write Critically

We recommend that you do not search for other university guidelines on critical reviews. This is because the expectations may be different at other institutions. Ask your tutor for more guidance or examples if you have further questions.

IOE Writing Centre Online

Self-access resources from the Academic Writing Centre at the UCL Institute of Education.

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How to Review a Journal Article

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For many kinds of assignments, like a  literature review , you may be asked to offer a critique or review of a journal article. This is an opportunity for you as a scholar to offer your  qualified opinion  and  evaluation  of how another scholar has composed their article, argument, and research. That means you will be expected to go beyond a simple  summary  of the article and evaluate it on a deeper level. As a college student, this might sound intimidating. However, as you engage with the research process, you are becoming immersed in a particular topic, and your insights about the way that topic is presented are valuable and can contribute to the overall conversation surrounding your topic.

IMPORTANT NOTE!!

Some disciplines, like Criminal Justice, may only want you to summarize the article without including your opinion or evaluation. If your assignment is to summarize the article only, please see our literature review handout.

Before getting started on the critique, it is important to review the article thoroughly and critically. To do this, we recommend take notes,  annotating , and reading the article several times before critiquing. As you read, be sure to note important items like the thesis, purpose, research questions, hypotheses, methods, evidence, key findings, major conclusions, tone, and publication information. Depending on your writing context, some of these items may not be applicable.

Questions to Consider

To evaluate a source, consider some of the following questions. They are broken down into different categories, but answering these questions will help you consider what areas to examine. With each category, we recommend identifying the strengths and weaknesses in each since that is a critical part of evaluation.

Evaluating Purpose and Argument

• How well is the purpose made clear in the introduction through background/context and thesis?
• How well does the abstract represent and summarize the article’s major points and argument?
• How well does the objective of the experiment or of the observation fill a need for the field?
• How well is the argument/purpose articulated and discussed throughout the body of the text?
• How well does the discussion maintain cohesion?

Evaluating the Presentation/Organization of Information

• How appropriate and clear is the title of the article?
• Where could the author have benefited from expanding, condensing, or omitting ideas?
• How clear are the author’s statements? Challenge ambiguous statements.
• What underlying assumptions does the author have, and how does this affect the credibility or clarity of their article?
• How objective is the author in his or her discussion of the topic?
• How well does the organization fit the article’s purpose and articulate key goals?

Evaluating Methods

• How appropriate are the study design and methods for the purposes of the study?
• How detailed are the methods being described? Is the author leaving out important steps or considerations?
• Have the procedures been presented in enough detail to enable the reader to duplicate them?

Evaluating Data

• Scan and spot-check calculations. Are the statistical methods appropriate?
• Do you find any content repeated or duplicated?
• How many errors of fact and interpretation does the author include? (You can check on this by looking up the references the author cites).
• What pertinent literature has the author cited, and have they used this literature appropriately?

Following, we have an example of a summary and an evaluation of a research article. Note that in most literature review contexts, the summary and evaluation would be much shorter. This extended example shows the different ways a student can critique and write about an article.

Chik, A. (2012). Digital gameplay for autonomous foreign language learning: Gamers’ and language teachers’ perspectives. In H. Reinders (ed.),  Digital games in language learning and teaching  (pp. 95-114). Eastbourne, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Be sure to include the full citation either in a reference page or near your evaluation if writing an  annotated bibliography .

In Chik’s article “Digital Gameplay for Autonomous Foreign Language Learning: Gamers’ and Teachers’ Perspectives”, she explores the ways in which “digital gamers manage gaming and gaming-related activities to assume autonomy in their foreign language learning,” (96) which is presented in contrast to how teachers view the “pedagogical potential” of gaming. The research was described as an “umbrella project” consisting of two parts. The first part examined 34 language teachers’ perspectives who had limited experience with gaming (only five stated they played games regularly) (99). Their data was recorded through a survey, class discussion, and a seven-day gaming trial done by six teachers who recorded their reflections through personal blog posts. The second part explored undergraduate gaming habits of ten Hong Kong students who were regular gamers. Their habits were recorded through language learning histories, videotaped gaming sessions, blog entries of gaming practices, group discussion sessions, stimulated recall sessions on gaming videos, interviews with other gamers, and posts from online discussion forums. The research shows that while students recognize the educational potential of games and have seen benefits of it in their lives, the instructors overall do not see the positive impacts of gaming on foreign language learning.

The summary includes the article’s purpose, methods, results, discussion, and citations when necessary.

This article did a good job representing the undergraduate gamers’ voices through extended quotes and stories. Particularly for the data collection of the undergraduate gamers, there were many opportunities for an in-depth examination of their gaming practices and histories. However, the representation of the teachers in this study was very uneven when compared to the students. Not only were teachers labeled as numbers while the students picked out their own pseudonyms, but also when viewing the data collection, the undergraduate students were more closely examined in comparison to the teachers in the study. While the students have fifteen extended quotes describing their experiences in their research section, the teachers only have two of these instances in their section, which shows just how imbalanced the study is when presenting instructor voices.

Some research methods, like the recorded gaming sessions, were only used with students whereas teachers were only asked to blog about their gaming experiences. This creates a richer narrative for the students while also failing to give instructors the chance to have more nuanced perspectives. This lack of nuance also stems from the emphasis of the non-gamer teachers over the gamer teachers. The non-gamer teachers’ perspectives provide a stark contrast to the undergraduate gamer experiences and fits neatly with the narrative of teachers not valuing gaming as an educational tool. However, the study mentioned five teachers that were regular gamers whose perspectives are left to a short section at the end of the presentation of the teachers’ results. This was an opportunity to give the teacher group a more complex story, and the opportunity was entirely missed.

Additionally, the context of this study was not entirely clear. The instructors were recruited through a master’s level course, but the content of the course and the institution’s background is not discussed. Understanding this context helps us understand the course’s purpose(s) and how those purposes may have influenced the ways in which these teachers interpreted and saw games. It was also unclear how Chik was connected to this masters’ class and to the students. Why these particular teachers and students were recruited was not explicitly defined and also has the potential to skew results in a particular direction.

Overall, I was inclined to agree with the idea that students can benefit from language acquisition through gaming while instructors may not see the instructional value, but I believe the way the research was conducted and portrayed in this article made it very difficult to support Chik’s specific findings.

Some professors like you to begin an evaluation with something positive but isn’t always necessary.

The evaluation is clearly organized and uses transitional phrases when moving to a new topic.

This evaluation includes a summative statement that gives the overall impression of the article at the end, but this can also be placed at the beginning of the evaluation.

This evaluation mainly discusses the representation of data and methods. However, other areas, like organization, are open to critique.

Literature reviews

• Introduction
• Conducting your search
• Store and organise the literature

Evaluate the information you have found

Critique the literature.

• Different subject areas
• Find literature reviews

When conducting your searches you may find many references that will not be suitable to use in your literature review.

• Skim through the resource - a quick read through the table of contents, the introductory paragraph or the abstract should indicate whether you need to read further or whether you can immediately discard the result.
• Evaluate the quality and reliability of the references you find - our page on evaluating information outlines what you need to consider when evaluating the books, journal articles, news and websites you find to ensure they are suitable for use in your literature review.

Critiquing the literature involves looking at the strength and weaknesses of the paper and evaluating the statements made by the author/s.

Books and resources on reading critically

• CASP Checklists Critical appraisal tools designed to be used when reading research. Includes tools for Qualitative studies, Systematic Reviews, Randomised Controlled Trials, Cohort Studies, Case Control Studies, Economic Evaluations, Diagnostic Studies and Clinical Prediction Rule.
• How to read critically - business and management From Postgraduate research in business - the aim of this chapter is to show you how to become a critical reader of typical academic literature in business and management.
• Learning to read critically in language and literacy Aims to develop skills of critical analysis and research design. It presents a series of examples of `best practice' in language and literacy education research.
• Critical appraisal in health sciences See tools for critically appraising health science research.

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• Next: Different subject areas >>
• Last Updated: Dec 16, 2022 10:03 AM
• URL: https://guides.library.uq.edu.au/research-techniques/literature-reviews