A:Writing a journal article review

You may be asked to write a journal article review. Although this may be an unfamiliar exercise, it is not as complex a task 
as writing an essay requiring a lot of library research, and not the same as a review in The Canberra Times which is written 
for the general reader.Your journal article review is written for a reader (eg, your supervisor, lecturer or tutor) who is 
knowledgeable in the discipline and is interested not just in the coverage and content of the article being reviewed, but also 
in your critical assessment of the ideas and argument that are being presented by the author.
Your review might therefore be guided by the following questions:
Objectives What does the article set out to do?
Theory Is there an explicit theoretical framework? If not, are there important theoretical assumptions?
Concepts What are the central concepts? Are they clearly defined?
Argument What is the central argument? Are there specific hypotheses?
Method What methods are employed to test these?
Evidence Is evidence provided? How adequate is it?
Values Are value positions clear or are they implicit?
Literature How does the work fit into the wider literature?
Contribution How well does the work advance our knowledge of the subject?
Style How clear is the author's language/style/expression?
Conclusion A brief overall assessment.
B: A good article review requires careful reading, critical thinking, and clear, well-organized
writing. 1. READ
• Read the article several times: once quickly to get the big picture and once or more slowly
to understand the details.
• Determine the author's main idea/thesis/argument and supporting points. (Check the intro,
conclusion, section headings, summaries to each section, etc.)
• Map the main points. (Headings may be helpful.) 
WRITE TO THINK
2. Reflect on the author's main points by freewriting about them for yourself. This helps you
uncover your ideas and find language to express them. 
• After reading each section (on one of the author's points), write answers to questions such
as these:
What is the author saying in this section?
Why is he/she saying this?
How does this point fit with his/her other ideas?
How does this point fit with ideas from your course?
How does this point fit with your own experience and opinion?
So what? What are the implications of this idea? 
3. WRITE TO COMMUNICATE
• Plan your paper. A review usually contains a summary of the author's main ideas (refer to
your map) and your evaluation or assessment of these ideas (refer to your freewriting).
Determine your overall opinion/assessment of the author's ideas: positive, negative or
mixed. Then find reasons backed by evidence (examples) to support your opinion. Arrange
your ideas hierarchically. 
• Write your paper quickly, following your plan. Don't edit as you write. Focus on
communicating your ideas. 
• Fix up your paper by working on one concern at a time.
1) Content: Make your points clear and developed
2) Organization: Present ideas in chunks introduced by summaries.
3) Language: Edit for conciseness. Correct errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation.