This guide is for NURS 839 Week 1 Article Critique and Leveling, start to submission. Critique a research article for your scholarly project and assign its level of evidence, following the instructions in the course.
NURS 839 is Proposal Development, 2 credit hours, in Liberty University's DNP. Canvas and the course guide file print the code as NURS839; it is the same course.
| Course | NURS 839 Proposal Development |
|---|---|
| Module/Week | 1 |
| Points | 75 points |
| Length | Not set in the guide; follow the course instructions |
| Sources | The article under critique and appraisal sources |
| Faith integration | Not required by the guide |
| Format | Current APA |
What NURS 839 Week 1 Article Critique and Leveling asks for
The first scholarly project proposal assignment is the article critique and leveling, due in Module/Week 1 with Moran et al. chapters 1 to 4 and Roush chapters 2 and 6, using the instructions provided in the course. Worth 75 points.
Where it fits in NURS 839
In the published schedule, Article Critique and Leveling is one of 8 graded written assignments in NURS 839. It follows Week 1 Discussion Board Forum 1 and comes before Week 2 Level of Evidence Table Utilizing the Melnyk Pyramid. The same week also has Discussion Board Forum 1, so plan the week's writing together.
How NURS 839 Week 1 Article Critique and Leveling is graded
Liberty grades Article Critique and Leveling with the rubric attached to the assignment in Canvas, worth 75 points in the published guide. That is about 7% of the course's 1,010 points. The rubric rows are the real instructions. Draft against them, and you will rarely be surprised by the grade.
Course grades in NURS 839 use Liberty's point scale: an A is 960 to 1010 points of the course total. Missing the length or source minimum usually costs points on several rows at once, which is why the checklist below starts with them.
Timing in the published guide: Each course module/week begins on Monday morning at 12:00 a.m. (ET) and ends on Sunday night at 11:59 p.m. (ET). The final module/week ends at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday. Check the due dates in your Canvas section, which govern.
The NURS 839 Week 1 method, step by step
Read the article twice, differently
Read the article once for what it says and once for how it was done. On the second pass, note the design, sample, measures, analysis and any limitation the authors admit.
Describe before you judge
Open with an accurate, brief description of the study: purpose, question or hypothesis, design, sample and main findings. The critique only works if the reader trusts your summary.
Appraise each part of the study
Work through the study section by section and ask the questions the course uses: is the design suited to the question, is the sample adequate, are the measures valid, do the results support the conclusions?
Name strengths as well as weaknesses
Balance the appraisal. Strengths that are explained carry as much weight with graders as weaknesses, and a one-sided critique reads as careless.
Say what it means for practice
Finish by judging whether the findings are strong enough to use, and where. This is where the critique earns the analysis points in NURS 839.
Keep to the length and format
Write in paragraphs, inside Not set in the guide; follow the course instructions, with current APA citations. A critique that turns into a table or list usually loses its argument.
A structure for NURS 839 Week 1 Article Critique and Leveling
Word targets are planning numbers for about 1,100 words of body text, set by the length in the guide; the rubric decides where to spend more.
| Section | What it must do | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Article summary | Purpose, design, sample and findings. | ~260 words |
| Critique | Validity, reliability and applicability. | ~420 words |
| Level of evidence | The level and why. | ~200 words |
| Usefulness for the project | How it supports your PICO question. | ~220 words |
A topic angle that works
Choose an article you will actually cite in the proposal and use a recognized appraisal tool (the Johns Hopkins appraisal tool or a CASP checklist) so the critique is structured and defensible.
Model paragraph with notes
An original paragraph written by our desk to show the register that earns full rubric credit. It is study material: learn the moves, then write your own.
Using the CASP cohort checklist, the study's main weakness is confounding: patients on the protocol units were younger and had shorter stays, both of which lower catheter days independently.1 The authors adjusted for age but not for length of stay. The study is a prospective cohort, Level IV on the Melnyk pyramid, and supports the project's intervention while leaving room for stronger evidence.2
- Uses a named tool.
- Identifies a specific bias.
- Assigns and explains the level.
Mistakes that cost points on NURS 839 Week 1
- Summary with no critique.
- A level with no reason.
- An article unrelated to the project.
Checklist before you submit
- Length: Not set in the guide; follow the course instructions
- Sources: The article under critique and appraisal sources
- The summary of the study is accurate and brief
- Strengths and weaknesses are both explained
- Each rubric row read against the section that answers it
Questions students ask
When is the NURS 839 article critique due?
In Module/Week 1, alongside Forum 1.
How many points is NURS 839 Week 1 Article Critique and Leveling worth?
75 points in Liberty's published course guide for NURS 839, out of a course total of 1,010 points (about 7% of the grade). The rubric attached to the assignment in Canvas shows how those points are divided.
Is NURS 839 Week 1 the same in every section of NURS 839?
This guide follows Liberty's published course guide for NURS 839. Liberty notes that course content can change from term to term, so if your Canvas section shows different instructions, a different week or different points, follow Canvas and your instructor.
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