Critical Evaluation Toolkit

Checklists for students to monitor their skills development

Encourage students to ask the following questions each time they read printed or web-based source material for their assignments:

Checklist to develop critical evaluation skills
How relevant is this text to my research needs?
What is the author's stance in relation to the topic? Are they for it or against it, or neutral towards it? Is there evidence of the author's personal, political or cultural bias in the text?
Do I accept or challenge their stance?
How do I know whether the author has academic credibility?
Where does the article/text 'fit' in the context of the broad issue? Is it dated or current? Does it present a new perspective or possible solutions?
What is the author really saying? Can I write it down in one thesis statement? Is it argued consistently throughout the article?
What are the main issues and the sub-issues dealt with? Can I use a concept map to show how they all fit together?
Is this article/text convincing or persuasive?
What are its strengths and weaknesses?
What else will I need to know before I can make a judgement about this text?

Checklist for evaluating web sites
Who is the author - an individual or an organisation? Are their credentials listed? Email address? Is there any bias?
Do they give references for their source material? If links are provided, do they work and are they current?
Do the graphics serve a purpose or are they primarily decorative? Are the icons meaningful?
Does the site download quickly? Does it present problems for older browsers?
When was it produced, updated or revised?
Does it seem to give comprehensive information?

Prompt questions to ask students about course content, concepts, ideas, written material, web sites, etc.

• What point is the author trying to make?
• What is its significance, or what are its implications?
• How will you act on this?

Keep asking students to:

• Identify any underlying assumptions or biases in their resource material or their own work;
• Pinpoint what is difficult about doing this;
• Question whether the author is using valid arguments or relying on persuasive means to convince the reader;
• Check other sources to see if the information presented has been validated;
• Monitor how often they question and challenge information, and how often they don't;
• Identify what they think gives an author credibility and authority on the topic; and
• Check their own written work for faulty reasoning.

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