spring 2009

CS376: Research Topics in Human-Computer Interaction

Critique Guidelines

The goal of paper critiques are to get you to think critically about the research that a paper presents and why that research is important. The goal is not to summarize the paper — everyone reading your critique will have already read the paper!

Some appropriate topics to address in a critique are:

• why the paper does/doesn't seem important
• observations of novel methodology or methodology that seems suspect
• things in the paper that you disagree with or believe not to be true
• why the paper is/isn't effective at getting its message across
• how the paper has changed your opinion or outlook on a topic

Of course, these aren't the only appropriate topics — feel free to discuss anything you deem important. (But remember not to summarize!) An excellent way to structure your critique is to discuss three "positive" topics and one "criticism" for each paper (or three "I like"s and one "I wish", for those familiar with that terminology). Each topic should be a short paragraph (about 4 sentences in length).

Additionally, we'd like everyone to rate each paper on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the best). These numbers will be used to determine which papers to keep on the syllabus for subsequent years.

Critiques are due at 7am on the day of class, submitted through the course submission system. After 7am, your critique will be viewable by all students in the course. (Discussants will read these critiques to prepare for class, and all other students are encouraged to do so as well!)

Critique Submission Format

Please format each critique submission as follows: