User:Sydneycremer/Evaluate an Article

Which article are you evaluating?
Oral hygiene

Why you have chosen this article to evaluate?
I chose to evaluate this article as it relates to my interest in the field of Dentistry. It's important to study the impact that oral hygiene has on the total body. With observation in the clinical setting, I thought it would be interesting to analyze the methods and details within this article. I noticed that the article does not contain any historical background describing the origin of oral diseases, teeth-brushing, or how preventative methods evolved. I believe it is necessary to provide historical information on what led to the practice of routine brushing. It would help the readers comprehend how essential it is to maintain proper oral hygiene if additional information was present explaining, historically, what led to this common routine of brushing.

Evaluate the article
Lead section: The lead section in this article is precise as the first sentence directly defines the practice of proper oral hygiene. Although the led sentence gives an outlook on a topic heavily impacting oral hygiene, there is much more to oral hygiene other than a daily practice of brushing. This section provides informative information, but additional information other than a statistical fact about cavities would have been more beneficial to the overview of the article. Major factors affecting oral hygiene or types of prevention could have been mentioned instead which would introduce the reader to further major sections.

Content: After reading this article, I believe that tooth brushing is very heavily weighed in comparison to other major sections. I didn't notice any historical background or explanations about the impact oral hygiene makes on the body as a whole. I do believe that the content sections are relevant to oral hygiene, and it does do a good job of explaining what plaque and calculus are which are sources of problems that negatively impact oral hygiene. Different methods of preventative care are explained in the following sections, which is informative but I can see where readers might get confused as these sections were not previously introduced.

Tone and Balance: The tone of this article is neutral. In my opinion, I think the practice of brushing is over-presented, but not in a biased way. The author of this article is clearly informing readers about preventative methods, techniques, types of toothbrushes, but not expressing persuasion towards any major sections in any way.

Sources and References: With all the information provided in this article, a large number of references must be cited. The author will provide sentences that seem more like an un-cited fact. Processes mentioned in the preventative care section are cited, with step by step techniques. I thought this was beneficial as simple ways to floss are still important as flossing is an essential preventative method requiring reliable and accurate instruction. Foods that are beneficial to oral hygiene, mentioned in food and drink section, contain a list of foods with explanations. These explanations explain why each enhances in prevention of tooth decay. It's noticeable that some of these explanations are not cited but again, are explained in factual ways. Many of these sources are current and I noticed a variety of primary research articles, secondary research articles, and peer reviews.

Organization and writing quality: Overall the organization is good, I found it easy to navigate the different major sections along with their sub sections. I think at some points the wording is too informal for a scientific-based article. It is very easy to read. Some sentences introduce an idea without any supporting details. It heavily emphasizes that readers should be aware of the importance on oral hygiene, but a majority of the article illustrates how to brush your teeth/how to prevent tooth decay, not really the overall idea of why oral hygiene is important.

Images and Media: Many images are included that are helpful in illustrating a specific method or technique. I was confused about one image as it doesn't necessarily support the ideas mentioned in the section and seems as just an additional visual. It is found under the tooth decay section, whereas a more important image, such as a photo of what a cavity actually looks like, could give more insight to the reader. Overall, the images and media are easy to locate and there is a necessary amount located within the major sections.

Talk page discussion: I found that this article is related to the following WikiProjects: Dentistry, Medicine, and Health & fitness. There is a talk page discussion presenting ideas about how some of the information regarding flossing is incorrect. It was also mentioned that this article seemed like more of a handbook rather than a scientific context. In relation to topics we discuss in class, this article presents a broad introduction with detailed sections. The ideas discussed in class directly support an overall idea, and this article provides supporting details to major sections but lack this in regards to the overall idea.

Overall impressions: Overall, I think this article is good for being scientifically-informative and well-developed. I believe there can be more additional research and information added to actually address the overall idea along with providing supportive sections. The article's strengths are the sources they provided, such as information from the FDA and ADA, as they are reliable and influential in the field of Dentistry.