Peer Review Draft Due: 6/2 F

Part One

• Using the online catalog’s keyword search, find a professional journal, trade journal, newsletter, or some other regularly published document produced by professionals in your field. You may not find one that matches up exactly. That’s okay: get as close to your area of expertise as possible. Locate that publication in the library, or in an online version. If your publication is located in the library, make sure and note whether it’s shelved with the bound journals or in the microforms room; bound journals will probably be easier to work with.

Hint: To speed up your library search, you may want to use the words "journal" or "serial" in your keyword search. For example, do a keyword search on "physical therapy journal," "mechanical engineering serial," "horse thief journal," or whatever your field is. This will call up all the files that contain these words in any combination, and should narrow your search down a lot.

• Take one volume (not issue—volume) of this publication and browse through it. Read over the titles of the articles, skim articles that look interesting, take detailed notes about this publication and the kinds of features it contains: Does it contain only full-length articles, or articles of various lengths? Does it include a lot of graphics, or is it mostly text? Does it contain advertisements? Does it list job openings? How long is each issue? Who publishes it? Where is the publisher located? Do you note any discussions or concerns that seem to arise frequently, either on the "letters" page or in the articles themselves? Does the volume you selected contain any "new" or "breaking" research? Write down as many specific features of the publication as possible. 

• Now that you’ve thought about the kinds of information the publication contains, who do you think it’s written for? Who’s reading this? Why would they be interested? Make inferences and guesses based on what you’ve observed about the publication itself: A publication that contains job openings, for example, may have a large novice/student readership. Would the general public understand any of this, or is it directed towards a more "expert" readership?

• Now select one article from that volume and photocopy it (if the magazine is online, print it out). Look this article over, closely and carefully. What is this article about (what’s its subject)? What is the background for the writing; why was it written (its occasion)? Who is it written for (its audience)? What is it intended to do, or teach, or accomplish (its purpose)? Note any words, phrases, concepts, or ideas that come specifically from your field, which might cause confusion for "general" readers. (Some of part D, especially regarding why the article was written (the occasion), you may have to guess at; not every author will give a lot of background, because he/she will be assuming the readers’ familiarity with the subject. If you have to guess, that’s okay. You may even find clues in other issues.)

Part Two

Your first assignment is to write an evaluation of a serial publication in your field, along with a brief summary of one article from one issue of that publication. Your challenge is to present the information contained in the publication in such a way that an uninformed reader (like myself... your resident uninformed reader...) can follow it.

Tell us about this publication, using the prompts from Part One:

• Who is it written for? 
• What kind of audience do the editors and publishers want to reach? 
• What are its distinguishing features and characteristics? 

Then tell us about the article you chose:

• How is it typical of the publication in which it appears? 
• Is it part of a series that continues throughout several issues or is it a one-time appearance? 
• Does this writer contribute regularly to the publication? 
• What is this article's focus? 
• What information is the writer trying to get across?

The reason we are starting with this "translation" assignment is so we can start becoming aware of the kinds of language, concepts, and ideas that are a fundamental part of our professions. We have to understand them, and we have to be able to communicate them to people who have no idea what our "code" is. As you write, especially the article summary, think about various informational strategies--graphics, glossaries, outlines, etc.--which may help to get the idea across. Some of us are better at interpreting visual information than written information; don’t be afraid to experiment with possible ways to present the information--but remember you’re audience. Make sure it is presented in the clearest and most effective way you know.

Some things to consider when writing up your evaluation and summary (this is a VERY loose list; if some of these questions don’t work for you exactly, then rephrase them or come up with different ones):