Unpacking a headline

Posted by: Dr Ashley Tan on: January 27, 2022

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Commentary: Why are companies still doing annual appraisals in a transformed work environment? https://t.co/d66mxptdDt pic.twitter.com/f2uaezys8w

— CNA (@ChannelNewsAsia) January 24, 2022

The premise of the headline in this tweet is flawed. For the question to work, you have to accept that work environments have transformed. You also have to know what those transformations are and how much has changed. 

An alternative premise is that some work environments have changed little so that traditional and ineffective appraisals still rule the day.

The article was actually about promoting 360-degree feedback with the help of a technology platform. So a better headline might be “How might 360-degree feedback transform a work environment?”

You guess is as good as mine if there was a battle about the headline between the writer and editor. But that point is moot — the bad headline won. But it did not have to.

Unpacking the headline is one way to start modelling or teaching critical thinking skills. It is an everyday and accessible example that requires curiosity, skepticism, and analysis. So why doesn’t everyone do this?