GUIDELINES FOR ARTICLE REVIEW ASSIGNMENT

What is an article review?

An article review analyses one or several articles so that readers can decide whether the article/s is useful to them. The review:

provides a brief description of the purpose and content of one or more articles

analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the article/s shows how the article/s contributes to a field of knowledge.

You will be told the required word length. They are often set as early assessment as a way of introducing you to the literature in your field of study. They require you to show your knowledge of the content area, your ability to understand and interpret what you read and your writing skills. You may or may not be required to refer to other literature, so check the requirements in the course outline.

You are typically required to:

review particular articles or review one or more journal articles on a particular theme. A number of journals may be recommended. It is better to review recently published material.

Article reviews have three main parts or stages a heading which provides all the necessary bibliographic information about the article/s a summary which outlines the article and reports briefly on its purpose and overall argument

a critique which evaluates the article.

The summary and critique follow one another without subheadings. More information about summarising and critiquing is given below.

Steps in writing an article review:

I. Reading and noting II. Writing the first draft III. Revising and redrafting IV. Using feedback

I. Reading and Noting

Be clear about your purpose so that you can read with useful questions in mind. Brainstorming the topic can be a good starting point before you start your detailed reading. Jot down all you know about the topic and your questions about it. Have alternative views been presented on this topic? This process can identify the strengths and gaps in your knowledge and it may prompt questions to guide your reading of the article and any wider reading.

The following questions might be helpful:

What is the authors stated purpose? Where and how is this stated? Who is the intended audience? Is it a specialised or general audience? What is the main line of argument? Is the main line of argument logical?

What other arguments does the author use to support the main line of argument?

What evidence does the author use to support the main line of argument?

Is the evidence well presented, sufficient and convincing? Are there alternative points of view or lines of argument? Where does the author stand in relation to other points of view on this topic?

Does the text present or refute opposing lines of argument and evidence?

Some of these questions will be addressed through your wider reading on the topic. Your notes on the main article/s should include an outline of the authors argument and the structure of the overall article/s. This will forms the

basis of your summary. Note the relevant bibliographic details about all sources (author, date, title, publisher etc).

II. Writing the First Draft

Assume your audience is interested in your assessment of the article/s.

Introduction
Provide the required bibliographic information at the beginning: author, title, year of publication, name and number of journal. This tells the reader that you are writing about a particular article by a particular author.

Summary
A good summary demonstrates that you understood the article well. In the summary you provide readers with: a clear sense of what the article is describing its main ideas in the same order as in the article an understanding of the authors purpose. This is be done by providing evidence from the article.

Critique

The critique is your evaluation of the article. Critique each of the points in your summary so your critique mirrors the organisation of the summary. You need to be explicit about your reasons for your claims of strength and weakness. Present the evidence that influenced you. For example if you consider that the author had a biased view, you need to provide examples of bias from the article.

Make recommendations

It may be appropriate to offer recommendations. For example you may decide that the article has valuable ideas but they are difficult to find because the article is not well organised. You might want to recommend another authors work on the same topic. You can do this as long as you support your point of view. This enables your readers to make their own decisions about the article in the light of the evidence that you have presented.

III. Revising and redrafting

You need to allow time for revision between the completing the first draft and the final version. Some students find it useful to seek comments on their first draft. You could ask someone whether: your meaning is clear the language is error free the presentation meets requirements eg length, layout etc.

Note that your assignment has to represent your workin seeking feedback you should not ask another person to amend or rewrite any part of your work, but you can use their comments as a basis for refining your work.

IV. Using feedback

Use feedback from previous assignments to inform your current work. Staff may indicate your strengths and weaknessesmake use of the feedback that you receive.

Finding model reviews

If you are writing your first article review, read a review that someone else has written. Most professional journals have a review section where you can read published reviews on issues relevant to your studies. See the journals recommended by your lecturer or use the Library to locate relevant periodicals.

When you look at a review that could serve as a model, consider the reviews purpose, structure, organisation, and use of language. What does it set out to do and how well does it do it?

Source: Learning and Teaching Unit at University of South Australia, at http://www.unisa.edu.au/ltu/students/study/assessment/reviews.asp . Wednesday, April 14, 2010