You will submit three Journal Critiques throughout the course. You must choose an article to review related to the topics listed below. Articles from different professional journals must be used for the development of your critiques:

Journal Critique: Disability and Advocacy

Journal Critique: Community-Based Supports and Services

Journal Critique: Transition Planning

Instructions

How to write journal critiques

How to write journal critiques

For each of the Journal Critiques, follow these guidelines:

  • Articles are not to be more than 1 year old.
  • Articles must present original research (quantitative, qualitative, mixed-methods, or meta-analysis are acceptable). Do not choose articles that argue a position but don’t present new research. These are important articles but don’t help you build the skills you will need to successfully complete a dissertation
  • When composing your reviews, practice using graduate professional writing. Do not begin with “This article is about…” and don’t relate your personal stories.
  • Current APA format must be used, including:
    • A title page,
    • A reference page, and
    • Writing in third-person. Avoid “I” statements or personal stories. The reader knows something is your opinion because you are the one writing it. You don’t need to statements like “I think that …”, or “I believe …”
  • Critiques must be 2–5 pages in length, not including the title page or reference page.

Count on us to write a narrative, expository, argumentative, persuasive, descriptive essay, do journal critiques and so on.

The following general format should be followed:

  • Statement of the problem: What is the issue this research is trying to address? You need to make a case for why the research is important based upon the background information provided in the article. For example, when reviewing an article about a new reading methods instruction you could report poor student reading outcomes.
  • Statement of a research question: The research question is almost always found in the paragraph directly before the methods section. The research question is a clear, one-sentence explanation of what the researchers wanted to find out in their research. How will this research expand what we know about SPED?
  • Methods: In this section, you need to explain how the researchers conducted their study to answer the research question. Who participated in the study? What did they do? How was the data collected?
  • Results: Present what the research found in Journal Critiques. If the study was quantitative, present some of the statistical results. If the study was qualitative, provide specific information they learned. Don’t talk in general vague statements.
  • Reflection: What does this mean for SPED practice in general? Do you agree or disagree with any part of the study or claims? Where should research go from here?