User:Mackamarine/Evaluate an Article

Evaluate an article

This is where you will complete your article evaluation. Please use the template below to evaluate your selected article.

• Name of article: (Restorative justice)
• Briefly describe why you have chosen this article to evaluate: this topic (Restoritive Justice) falls within the scope of the criminal justice system, as well as the role it plays within Indigenous communities. Additonally, restorative justice has the potential to be implemented within schools, which is another field of interest for me. All of these topics grouped together interest me greatly.

Lead

Guiding questions

The introductory sentence defines what restoritive justice is and how it is used, describing it in a helpful manner. Throughout the lead/introductory section of this article many of its major topics are noted. However, it is mildly misleading in that it does not include any mention of the criticisms that can be found further within the article. Although informative, the lead would be considered more concise if the entire last section of it were removed. It delves into the topic in an overly detailed manner that should not be present within the lead section.

• Does the Lead include an introductory sentence that concisely and clearly describes the article's topic?
• Does the Lead include a brief description of the article's major sections?
• Does the Lead include information that is not present in the article?
• Is the Lead concise or is it overly detailed?

Content

Guiding questions

The content shared within this article is all relevant to the topic, as it even includes information on 'Black Lives Matter at Schools' which relies heavily on restoritve justice policies/practices. If possible some of the information, such as the section on 'Family Group Conferencing,' should be updated with newer data/stats. Additionally, updates should be provided on the effects of restoritive justice in relation to recidivism. This article touches only briefly on the role and importance restoritive justice holds within Indigenous communities. To further enhance this article, more information should be provided in respect to Indigenous contribution and uses of these practices within their communities.

• Is the article's content relevant to the topic?
• Is the content up-to-date?
• Is there content that is missing or content that does not belong?
• Does the article deal with one of Wikipedia's equity gaps? Does it address topics related to historically underrepresented populations or topics?

Tone and Balance

Guiding questions

Overall this article is quite neutral as it states information pretaining to what restoritive justice is, how it works, its history and present significance within avenues not explicit to the criminal justice system. Additionally, it includeds criticisms of the practice/system, although this section could be elaborated further if more critisms exist. Due to this aspect, one could say that the positive viewpoint is overrepresented throughout this article while the negative viewpoint is narrowly touched on.

• Is the article neutral?
• Are there any claims that appear heavily biased toward a particular position?
• Are there viewpoints that are overrepresented, or underrepresented?
• Does the article attempt to persuade the reader in favor of one position or away from another?

Sources and References

Guiding questions

A significant amount of the sources found within this article date from the late 1990's into the early 2000/2010s. It should be noted that there are a few more recent sources from the mid to late 'teens' (2015-2019). All of the links tested - around 8 - brought me to their correct source. Many of the sources reviewed are from very short web articles, such as "The Courage to Change," and "Restoritive Justice on the Rise." However, there are many sources from creditable institutions as well. The section within 'Other Social Movements' titled "Positive criminology and positive victimology" lacks any and all citations, which is concerning.

• Are all facts in the article backed up by a reliable secondary source of information?
• Are the sources thorough - i.e. Do they reflect the available literature on the topic?
• Are the sources current?
• Are the sources written by a diverse spectrum of authors? Do they include historically marginalized individuals where possible?
• Check a few links. Do they work?

Organization

Guiding questions

This article is well written, in that is is very easy to read, uses common language, is clear in its topic/subjects and provides benefical information. The sections in which this article is broken up into aid in deconstructing the topic and highlight the major concerns/matters. One significant spelling error is present, in that the 'I' in Indigenous is not capitalized throughout the entirety of the article.

• Is the article well-written - i.e. Is it concise, clear, and easy to read?
• Does the article have any grammatical or spelling errors?
• Is the article well-organized - i.e. broken down into sections that reflect the major points of the topic?

Images and Media

Guiding questions

The article does not include an images/media.

• Does the article include images that enhance understanding of the topic?
• Are images well-captioned?
• Do all images adhere to Wikipedia's copyright regulations?
• Are the images laid out in a visually appealing way?

Checking the talk page

Guiding questions

A few of the conversations on the talk page points to a lack of understanding/concern for the terminology and language used within the article This article is rated as 'Start-Class' and is of interest to the following WikiProjects; Social work, Philosophy and Law. Additionally, it is rated as being a level-5 vital article in society, which is a scale that I am unfamiliar with.

• What kinds of conversations, if any, are going on behind the scenes about how to represent this topic?
• How is the article rated? Is it a part of any WikiProjects?
• How does the way Wikipedia discusses this topic differ from the way we've talked about it in class?

Overall impressions

Guiding questions

I believe this article has a few minor adjustments to make, in regard to spelling errors, making the lead more concise, ensuring that citations are present throughout and adding more up-to-date statitcs and studies. In doing so, the article would be considered well-developed, rather than slighly under-developed as it stands now.

• What is the article's overall status?
• What are the article's strengths?
• How can the article be improved?
• How would you assess the article's completeness - i.e. Is the article well-developed? Is it underdeveloped or poorly developed?

Optional activity

• Choose at least 1 question relevant to the article you're evaluating and leave your evaluation on the article's Talk page. Be sure to sign your feedback

with four tildes — ~~~~

• Link to feedback: