I. Introduction/ Background: Explain the purpose and significance of the study
o Start the introduction with an identification sentence that includes the name of the article, the author, and the year and the purpose of the research.
o Research problem/question: What problem did the authors want to study?
o Research Rational: What rationale did the researchers give for studying this topic? Why was the research necessary? What gap in knowledge were the researchers trying to fill?
o Hypothesis or hypotheses tested if given: If the article reports on an empirical research study, what research questions or hypotheses did the authors present as a basis for the article? What result(s) did the researchers anticipate or expect?
II. Methods: Describe the method used in the study, type of study, participants, data collection
o Research Design: What type of the study: qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods, other?
o Methods used: What did the researchers do to test the hypothesis or to try to find the answer to the research question?
o Participants: How many participants? What were the basic demographics of the participants, age, gender, ethnicity? How were the participants selected? (random, blind) What did the participants experience, e.g., treatment, conditions, intervention, etc.?
o Data Collection: What data or information was recorded or collected? What materials, interviews, surveys, group discussions, observations, were used to collect the data?
o Data Analysis: What method of analysis was used to determine the results?
III. Results: Describe the results and indicate whether they were significant
o What were the major findings or discoveries of the study or experiment?
o Did the results support the researchers hypothesis or hypotheses?
o Did the results suggest an answer to the research question and if so, what was that answer?
IV. Discussion/Limitation: Explain strengths/weaknesses, key implications, and future application of results discussed in the study.
o What was important about the results of the work and why?
o Did the researchers indicate that more research should be done, if so, in what area(s)?
o Do the researchers mention a policy change?
o What limitations do the researchers see in how their study was conducted?
V. Your response: Why do YOU believe that this is a relevant and important topic to study? What further questions might you want to ask? Do you have any personal experience that helps you understand this topic, study, or findings?
