According to the EAPFoundation.com critical reading “involves questioning a text, rather than assuming everything it contains is factual. This means that in addition to what a text says, the reader needs to consider how it says it, who is saying it, when it was said, where it was said (i.e. published), and why it was said (i.e. the writer's purpose), in order to be able to evaluate the evidence and make a careful judgement as to how trustworthy the information is.” Critical Reading Skills. EAPFoundation.com
Reading critically is key to extending your analytical skills. Mastering this skill can help improve your academic success. This kind of reading requires you to actively engage with the text by questioning and evaluating the quality and relevance of the information for your task.
While texts such as advertisements, newspaper editorials or opinion columns are written for the purposes of persuasion, this could be also true of literary texts and research reports. The writer’s purpose is to convince the audience of their viewpoint or of the validity of their conclusions. Particularly these days of social media and the easy spread of digital information without much critical review or comment, it is more important than ever to be able to critically evaluate what we read.
How to read critically
To read critically you need to consider the questions below. They are grouped into 3 categories:
Author/Source
Is the author an expert in his field; is he reputable, what are his credentials?
Is the source of the text trustworthy?
Is the publication date recent, within a relevant timeframe? This can vary with the topic
Who is the intended audience?
Is the author's purpose to persuade or inform?
Evidence
How strong is the evidence?
Are all the author’s points supported by the evidence presented?
Does the writer avoid making unsupported generalisations?
Is there a clear distinction between fact and the author’s opinion?
Are citations used? If so, are the cited sources trustworthy and recent?
Are the images or diagrams presented clear? Do they relate directly to points in the text and support the author’s argument?
If it is a research article, is the methodology valid (e.g. sample size, method of sampling)? Are the limitations clear? Are the results consistent with the objectives?
Assumptions/Bias
What assumptions has the writer made? Are they clear to the reader? Are they valid?
What is the author’s stance (i.e. position) on the topic? Is this explicit?
Does the writer present a balanced viewpoint? Are other viewpoints considered (e.g. via counter-arguments)?
Does the writer represent the ideas of others accurately?
Are the writer's conclusions reasonable in the light of the evidence presented?
Is the writer's language neutral? Does the writer use tentative language (e.g. It appears that... This may be caused by...) and avoid the use of emphatic words/phrases (e.g. It is obvious... Clearly... Of course...)?
Does the writer avoid using emotional language and dramatic images?
Are the examples representative and free from bias?
Smith, S. (2020, April 28). Critical reading. EAPFoundation.com. Retrieved from https://www.eapfoundation.com/reading/critical/