Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Step 1:
Once a paper has been selected for review, you will need to skim
trough the article without taking down notes. This will give you a
birds eyeview of the content of the paper.
You may start by reading the abstract. This will tell you all major
keypoints of the study.
Step 2:
Re-read the article. This time, do it carefully and make sure you
understand most of what are being discussed.
Look for the Results and the Materials and Methods. You must be
able to know from the article if it is novel or a repeated experiment.
If it is novel, why was the study conducted? If it is repeated, how
does the first experiment differ from the current one? What variables
were held constant? What factors might affect the outcome of the
experiment?
Step 3:
Go back to the Materials and Methods and Results. Make sure
you understand all graphs, tables and diagrams. Practice
interpreting these figures without reading through the
captions.
Step 4:
Begin your first draft. Try describing the article in your own
words but make sure you are accurate in all the keypoints.
Avoid injecting your opinion on materials and methodology
used. Reserve that for the critiquing part of the journal paper
critique.
Organization
Start with an introductory paragraph. Give a summarized
version of the background of the study as well the purpose of
the experiment. Make the research questions your guide in
this part.