Critical Article Analysis

What do we mean by “read critically”?  Critical reading means more than just skimming the subheadings of a textbook chapter or highlighting the occasional phrase.  Critical reading means taking the time to think carefully about what is being said in a text.  It involves identifying key features in the reading, such as the author’s argument and the evidence being used to support it.  It means not taking for granted that whatever you are reading is objective or absolute fact, but analyzing and evaluating the credibility of a the text using a set of criteria. 

Once you have read the article, answer the following five questions: 

1. What is the main topic of the article? 

2. What is the issue being discussed?

3. What position (argument) does the author make? 

4. What evidence does the author put forward?

5. How convincing is this evidence (quality of evidence, inclusion/discussion of counter-arguments, glaring omissions)? 

Your Article Analysis should be no more than 3 pages in length, double-spaced. Write 1-2 paragraphs for each question and ensure that you’ve given sufficient detail in your answer.   Paragraphs must be at least FIVE SENTENCES.