Many of you may be familiar with the term review. We see them all around, with people delivering reviews on nearly everything on God’s green Earth. Product reviews, service reviews, book reviews, movie reviews, reviews of events, tourist destinations, hotels – the list goes on. Critical reviews are a bit different, though!

A critical review is a more in-depth, thorough, nuanced, and objective evaluation of some entity. Developing a critical review generally takes more time and effort as it involves careful criticism and comparisons with entities in the same category. Critical reviews are integral to the world of academics, with students being tasked with conjuring reviews on books, write-ups, research paper format, and articles.

Our focus in this article will be on the process of writing critical article reviews in academics. Let’s start right away.

The True Meaning of A Critical Review

So, how to write a critical article review?

The primary purpose of any critical review written in an academic context is to analyze, evaluate, and criticize any academic content. Academic reviews involve a near-exhaustive study of the article followed by careful comparisons, criticisms, discussions, and summarizations of major insights.

To develop an excellent critical review, a writer must be able to à

  • Reprehend A Content Carefully

In an academic context, being critical does not negatively evaluate something. Instead, one must be objective and unbiased in evaluating—question every explanation, statement, claim, evidence, logic, reasoning, and calculation. Appreciate the strengths of the article and point out the flaws & weaknesses.

Careful and successful criticism of an article requires looking into it from different perspectives and even going so far as to rejig & rethink your ideas, perspectives, and analysis.

  • Review Near Exhaustively

A top-notch critical article review is only possible when you leave no stone unturned in your study of that article. You will have to go over the content time & time again, understanding and evaluating its subject, narrative, viewpoints, facts, etc. Writes need to survey and examine everything to carry out focused interpretation carefully.

There are additional things to keep in mind when you are writing an article review critically.

  • Critical literature is generally written in an expository fashion as they deliver information objectively and formally.
  • Writers must possess copious amounts of underlying knowledge of the article’s subject. This is critical to develop a credible write-up and deliver valuable insights. Prepare yourself by reading far and wide from different information sources.
  • Writers must remember to showcase their understanding of the depth and breadth of the article’s subject matter. That’s vital to score top grades in your critical article reviews.

Now, let’s look at the generic structure of a critical review article template.

The Academic Article Review Template

Critical reviews of any length generally follow a similar structure. Your assignment guidelines and teachers may change things slightly, so remember to check with them for formatting and structural information.

Nevertheless, here are the details of the generic template for the article review.

Introduction

Critical article reviews are normally a single paragraph in length, especially regarding journal article reviews. Book review introductions tend to be longer, with two to three paragraphs.

You will need to open with descriptions and precise background information about the topic & purpose of the article & its author. Remember to be concise and relay only the most crucial details, such as the primary arguments, insights, and conclusion.

Finish your introduction by briefly stating the aim of YOUR text and your evaluation of the article. It can be positive, negative, or a mixed response.

Summary

Summarize all vital points and information of the article under study. Present substantial examples, explain the author’s purpose & perspectives, evaluations, discussions, and key findings. Talk about their stance and how they conclude their discourse.

The summary should make up at least one-third of the article review.

The Critique

The primary aspect of your critical article review is where you dissect and interpret every aspect of the article in a relevant context. Employ potent data analysis techniques and engage your logical reasoning capabilities to evaluate everything minutely.

There must be balanced criticism as you appreciate the strengths, point out the flaws, and highlight the most notable features of the article. Base your discussion on intellectual standards and use your knowledge to determine the accuracy & effectiveness of the author’s ideas & interpretations. Add references and examples to support your methodologies, examinations, and statements.

Proper sequencing and organization are also vital things to keep in mind to weave all your ideas with a cohesive & engaging narrative.

  • Add the most important insights near the beginning.
  • Present negative evaluations before the positive ones if you have more positive points than negative ones. Add positive evaluations first if you have more negative points.
  • Highlight the strengths of every criterion of an article’s evaluation. Then concede and talk about the weaknesses, if any.
  • Be sure to address each criterion separately. Use effective transitions to weave smoothly from one to another.
  • Add recommendations for your readers as you conclude. Talk to them about how the article can be improved regarding ideas, approaches, methods, theoretical frameworks, etc.

Conclusion & References

Conclusions are generally short and precise.

Add your primary observations, statements, and arguments. Present your recommendations briefly and, if need be, add further explanations regarding your judgment to make things fair & reasonable.

Remember to add references to credible and prominent information sources to elevate the quality of your write-up further.

We wrap things up with a few tips on how to carry out structured and intellectual; criticism.

Some Genera Criteria For Evaluating Any Article or Text

  • Determine the significance and contribution of the article to the respective domain.
  • Understand the author’s aim and where he is coming from. Was he successful in his achievements?
  • Does the text add to the overall body of knowledge of the subject? What bearing does the article have on other works in the domain?
  • Pay minute attention to the approach and methodology of research & analysis. Were they objective enough? Are the results and insights valid & valuable?
  • What claims and arguments have been made in the article? Is there a clear hypothesis that has been proven? What evidence and explanations have been used, and were they logically sound & intellectually founded?
  • What conclusions were drawn?

And, with that, we conclude this write-up. Hope it was informative enough and comes in handy when working on your next critical article review. Go through well-written sample article reviews to boost your ideas & skills further and practice to attain absolute mastery.

Author-Bio: Tina Arthur is a professor of applied physics at a leading public university in Houston, Texas. She is also a part-time tutor at AllEssayWirter.com, one of the largest academic service providers in the USA.