08 January 2011 Last Updated on 08 January 2011 Shaun B

Critique and Criticism

Recently I was doing some reading for a paper I completing and had one of those "AHA!" moments. It had to do with the processes of critiquing and criticising. Two concepts which I have probably fused together too many times. However, at this particular time I had just spent two long evenings reading school reports before they were sent home. Most of the reports were fantastic but there were a couple which I felt uneasy about and this paper spelt it out for me, they read as criticisms of the student. I know this was not a deliberate act on behalf of the teachers who wrote the reports, but the focus was sadly wrong.

Criticism should have no place in our classrooms. In Christian Education we are to be holistically concerned with the development of our students. Whether we are writing reports, evaluating work, giving verbal feedback or completing a pair review with another teacher, our focus must be on building up, moving forward, specific and at all times honest.

The following are some suggestions on the differences between Critique and Criticism from Judy Reeve

The Difference between Critique and Criticism

About Criticism	About Critique
Criticism finds fault	Critique looks at structure
Criticism looks for what's lacking	Critique finds what's working
Criticism condemns what it doesn't understand	Critique asks for clarification
Criticism is spoken with a cruel wit and sarcastic tongue	Critique's voice is kind, honest, and objective
Criticism is negative	Critique is positive (even about what isn't working)
Criticism is vague and general	Critique is concrete and specific
Criticism has no sense of humor	Critique insists on laughter, too
Criticism looks for flaws in the writer as well as the writing	Critique addresses only what is on the page