CBEST

Facts are objective statements that can be verified through observation, measurement, or research; they remain true regardless of what anyone believes. Opinions are subjective statements of belief, interpretation, preference, or judgment, and they cannot be proven true or false in the same way. Strong arguments support opinions with facts; weak arguments present opinions as though they were facts or use opinions to support other opinions.

The Civil War was inevitable.

The Civil War began with the attack on Fort Sumter.

Our school has the best reading program in the county.

Our school's reading scores rose 8 points last spring.

The new schedule is a terrible idea.

The new schedule adds 20 minutes to each class period.

Factual statements often contain names, dates, numbers, or measurable quantities. Opinions often contain evaluative words such as beautiful, terrible, should, best, important, or successful. Some statements blur the line by presenting an interpretation in factual-sounding language: "Studies show that meditation reduces stress" sounds factual, but its truth depends on which studies, how they were conducted, and how "stress" was defined.

A false statement is not an opinion. "The library closes at noon" is a factual claim even if it is wrong, because it can be checked. An opinion is a judgment that cannot be checked in that way.

Author's Purpose and Point of View

Authors write to inform, to persuade, to entertain, to explain, to describe, or to analyze. Identifying the purpose explains why certain information is included and how it should be interpreted.

Point of view is the author's perspective on the subject, shaped by background, values, experience, and purpose. To identify it, consider the position the author takes on the controversial parts of the topic, the assumptions beneath the argument, and the author's relationship to the subject. Bias occurs when point of view produces unfair or unbalanced treatment: one side is presented more favorably, contrary information is omitted, loaded language is used to stir emotion, or different standards are applied to different sides.

Closely related is the intended audience. A letter to parents, a memo to faculty, and a research summary for administrators differ in vocabulary, formality, and the background knowledge they assume. Questions that ask which sentence best fits a blank in a passage usually turn on purpose and audience: the correct sentence continues the writer's purpose in language suited to the reader.

A sound argument has a conclusion that follows from true premises supported by relevant and sufficient evidence. To evaluate an argument, identify the conclusion and the premises offered for it, decide whether the premises are true and actually support the conclusion, and check whether important counterarguments are addressed.

Every argument also rests on assumptions: unstated beliefs that must be true for the reasoning to work. If a writer argues that a new reading program caused higher test scores because scores rose the year it began, the writer assumes nothing else changed that year. Questions that ask which statement would most strengthen or weaken an argument usually target this link: evidence that confirms the assumption strengthens the argument, and evidence that breaks it (another cause, an unrepresentative sample) weakens it.

Fallacy	TheError	Example
Adhominem	Attacksthepersoninsteadoftheargument	"Herbudgetplaniswrong;shehasneverevenrun
		abusiness" .
Strawman	Misrepresentstheopposingviewtomakeit	"Supportersoflaterstarttimesjustwantstudentsto
	easiertoattack	sleepallday" .
Falsedilemma	Presentsonlytwooptionswhenmoreexist	"Eitherwecuttheartsprogramorweraiseclass
		sizes" .
Slipperyslope	Claimsonestepwillinevitablyleadtoextreme	"Ifweallowoneretake studentswillneverstudy ,
	results	again" .
Hastygeneralization	Drawsabroadconclusionfromtoofewcases	"Twostudentsdislikedthebook sothewholeclass ,
		willhateit" .
Appealtoauthority	Reliesonanauthorityoutsideitsexpertiseor	"Afamousathletesaysthismathappworks soit ,
	insteadofevidence	must" .
Bandwagon	Arguesthatsomethingisrightbecausemany	"Everydistrictisbuyingtablets soweshouldtoo" , .
	peopledoit
Falsecause(posthoc)	AssumesthatbecauseBfollowedA Acaused ,	"Attendanceroseafterthenewmascot sothe ,
	B	mascotraisedattendance" .
Circularreasoning	Usestheconclusionasapremise	"Thisisthebesttextbookbecausenotextbookis
		better" .
Redherring	Shiftsattentiontoanirrelevantissue	"Whyworryaboutrecesstimewhenthecafeteria
		needsnewtables?"

Two things that occur together are not necessarily cause and effect. A third factor may cause both, or the relationship may be coincidence. Any answer choice that treats a correlation as proof of cause is a reasoning error.