ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL

PURPOSES
Name of Learner: Grade Level: Section:
Score:

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET

Writing a Balanced Review or Critique

Background Information for Learners

One of the significant roles of Language teaching is to identify the strengths

and the weaknesses of every learner, understanding how various information can lead
to different expressions, understanding and versions, it is where students form
arguments based on research, surveys, interviews and facts. It is a process that learners
need to undergo to address problems in fluency, oral intelligibility, grammar, reading
and vocabulary development

A critique is a genre of academic writing that briefly summarizes and critically evaluates a
work or concept. Critiques can be used to carefully analyse a variety of work such as: novels,
film, exhibits, images, poetry. While a review is an academic essay, paper, or thesis argues a
topic using credible sources to back up the argument. It can be an embedded introduction in
your paper, or relevant parts of the review can appear in the sections of your paper.

This session covers the objective/ balanced review of things or an event.

Balanced Review/ Critique: What do I need to convey?

Critiques are important rhetorical pattern in Academic Writing as they present

a balanced view of things. Critiques should provide background information for the
reader to grasp the issue raised. Your critiques, however, should be based not only on
your personal perspective but should be grounded on actual observations.

You may want to consider the following tips in developing your critique.
1. Remember that the critique should be accessible to the audience. Therefore,
providing background information for the readers will be helpful. Including the
central ideas of the book, the concept, the event, or the movie to be critiqued is
necessary.

2. Relating your critique to greater realities will also help you as you ground your
critique on the wider scheme of things. For instance, what subject? Theme does
the movie, concept, book or event address? Are there questions that people
constantly ask that this particular subject / theme you are reviewing can
answer?

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 How will I make it powerful?

In general, the critique should be organized in the following manner.

1. The first part should provide the readers a sense of ideas you want to tackle.
(What are some problems people face in their daily lives? What are some
healthy debated topics discussed among groups concerning the community?
2. The next part should provide the summary of the concept.
3. Strengths and weaknesses should be part of the critique. Remember that this
is challenging and requires tact.
4. The final section of the critique should include the final recommendations of
the author. For instance, is the movie, book, gadget, event, or concept a
good investment of time, effort, and money? What background knowledge
does one need to see or use them? Will other activities help to appreciate
these?

Mechanics
1. Identify what you most need help with
2. Spot patterns and trends in your feedback
3. Take what’s useful and discard the rest
4. Return the favor when you get writing help
5. Get biased feedback slide off your back
6. Quote statements properly, don’t forget to acknowledge the sources.

Grammar
1. USING ACTIVE VOICE- Remember the simple rule for your sentences:
S+V+0 (Subject+ Verb+ Object). Using the active voice easily directs your
message towards the readers laying the foundation of clear communication
of thoughts.
2. AVOID DANGLING MODIFIERS- avoid confusion and target
clarification to make the meaning of the sentence in your review/ critique
clear and complete.
3. DON’T MISS OUT ON PUNCTUATIONS – When it is comma, semi-
colon, or any other punctuation mark, as a higher education student you
must be able to display an ability to implement the use of various
punctuations.
4. INCORPORATE THE CORRECT TENSES-Use correct tenses all the time.
5. MAKE USE OF CONJUCTION WORDS- if you are planning to convey
your critique in a long and lengthy sentence make sure that more than two
similar ideas presented should be joined together with a meaningful and
adequate conjunction word.
6. CORRECT PRONOUN-use correct pronouns to help you deliver your
work without much time and effort and to produce a more conversational
critique.
7. PREPOSITIONS MATTER- Prepositions though confusing allow you to
locate and express movements as well as a lapse in time. They are as
important as any other words in the English Language.

Learning Competency:
MELC: Writes an objective/ balanced review or critique of a work of art, an event
or a program (CS_EN11/12A- EAPP-Id-f-18)
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 Directions:

Welcome to the “new normal” as we take a leap in the Philippine educational

system. We move forward by championing your future despite this pandemic. The
Department of Education ensures you have equal access to quality education with the
different alternative modalities; hence, you are one of the lucky learners who will
surely appreciate flexible learning while developing your resourcefulness, creativity,
honesty and independence.
With this learning modality, you will be directed to 5 learning phases that will
lead you to mastering the most essential competencies of a Grade 11 student taking up
English for Academic and Professional Purposes. Specifically, this activity sheet deals
with writing an objective/ balanced review or critique of a work of art, an event or a
program.

So, prepare for the quest to achieve our common goal of L-E-A-R-N-ing by
accomplishing the 5 activities through the LOAD, ENGAGE, ADVANCE, REFINE
and NURTURE with the different tasks designed for you.

Together let us HEAL AS ONE and LEARN AS ONE.

LEARNING CONTRACT

AGREEMENT: By signing the contract, you are hereby accepting the responsibility to finish
the activity package and submit it to your subject teacher ( _ ) on ( _).

LOAD
Reflect and tell!

Keep safe and stay at home while doing the task!

EAPP STUDENT-DETECTIVES, LET’S INVESTIGATE!

Your task is to analyze the meaning of the picture below; then, answer the questions that follow.

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 1. What do you see? What do you think is happening in this piece of art?

2. What materials do you think the artist used to make this piece of art?

3. Does this piece of art remind you of anything?

4. Pretend you could go inside this piece of art. What do you see, hear, smell, or feel?

5. Which part of the piece of art catches your attention? Why?

6. Who do you think is the central subject of the piece of art?

7. If you could change one part of this piece of art, what would you change? Why?

ENGAGE

Watch and learn!

Wash hands with soap and water at least 20 seconds before doing the task.
Stay at home. We are slowly learning the protocols.

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 Your task is to list down your movie critique by filling out the strengths and the
weaknesses of the movie in the chart below. Remember, that your critique should be
written in complete sentences always.

A single mother sacrificing as a domestic helper

in Hong Kong, hoping for a better life for her
family discovers that her efforts have caused a
barrier between her and her children during her
vacation. Josie, the mother knew she could
generate more money abroad than she could at
home even it means being separated with her
love ones. After years of separation, Josie
arrived home with the hope of reconnecting
and filling the gap with her children but they
didn’t welcome her with open arms. You may
watch the movie through this link

STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES

ADVANCE

Advance your skills and enhance your potentials!

We are slowly flattening the curve. Stay at home and do this task!

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 One of the special skills an academic writer should master is his/ her ability to
review and give a balanced view of things based on his/her experience, study, research,
survey or interview. Read carefully or sing the song “Heal the World” by Michael
Jackson. Make a critique of the song by completing the table below.

Make a better
Heal The World Chorus: place for You and
Michael Jackson Heal the world for me.
Make it a better place
There's a place in your For you and for me and the Refrain (2x)
heart entire human race.
And I know that it is love There are people dying There are people
And this place could be If you care enough for the dying if you care
much living enough for the
Brighter than tomorrow. Make a better place for living
And if you really try You and for me. Make a better
You'll find there's no place for you and
need Bridge: for me.
to cry And the dream we would There are people
In this place you'll feel conceived in dying if you care
There's no hurt or Will reveal a joyful face enough for the
sorrow. There are ways And the world we once living
to get there believed in Make a better
If you care enough for Will shine again in grace place for you and
the living Then why do we keep for me.
Make a little space, strangling life
make a better place. Wound this earth, crucify
it's soul
Chorus: Though it's plain to see,
Heal the this world is heavenly
world Be God's glow.
Make it a better place
For you and for me and
the We could fly so high
entire human race Let our spirits never die
There are people In my heart I feel
dying You are all my brothers
If you care enough for Create a world with no
the living fear Together we'll cry
Make a better place for happy tears
You and for me. See the nations turn
Their swords into
plowshares
If you want to know why We could really get there
There's a love that If you cared enough for the
cannot lie living
Love is strong Make a little space to
It only cares for joyful make a better place.

giving. Chorus:
If we try we shall see Heal the world
In this bliss we cannot Make it a better place
feel Fear or dread For you and for me and the
We stop existing and entire human race
start living There are people dying
Then it feels that always If you care enough for
Love's enough for us the living
growing
Make a better world,
make a better world.
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 SONG LYRICS REVIEWS SUGGESTIONS

REFINE

Refine your skills!

We are enjoying the new normal. Protect yourself and others in our community, be
a hero by following community protocols. Stay at Home and enjoy this task!

To maximize your skills, choose a soap, alcohol, sanitizer, food etc. that could be
found at home and do a product review. Remember that your product review should
have the following parts:

Practice personal hygiene protocols at all 7

times
 Introduction: What is the Review: How do these Recommendation: Will you
product about? What are its products compare with its recommend consumers to
features? counterparts or other purchase the item? Why or
brands? Why not?

1.

2.

3.

NURTURE

Nurture your knowledge and skills!

You have finally reached this phase of learning for you have focused to learn
how to give a balanced view of things.

This time develop at least a 200- word critique of your favorite movie or a
popular piece of art, following the rules, tips in writing a critique, grammar rules and
mechanics provided. Make sure to develop a balanced view of things in your written
output. Follow the guidelines in the rubrics below for your reference in answering.
Write your balanced view in the box below.

GOAL ACHIEVED! CONGRATULATIONS! We healed and learned as one!

 Rubrics for Review Critique Activity

Reflection:

Based on the lesson, I learned that