Name that Fallacy
What logical fallacy occurs when someone argues that something is right because everyone else is doing it?
Bandwagon
"Everyone in eighth grade has TikTok, so it must be a good app!"
Bandwagon
What does the C in CASE stand for?
Claim
"School lunches should be better because they're bad."
What's wrong with this argument?
It doesn't provide a specific reason or supporting evidence.
What is the difference between a fact and an opinion?
A fact can be verified through evidence. An opinion expresses a belief, judgment, or preference.
What logical fallacy attacks a person instead of their argument?
Ad Hominem
"You shouldn't listen to her opinion about school lunches because she failed math."
Ad Hominem
What does the A in CASE stand for?
Argument
"Everyone wants to eliminate homework, so we should!"
Identify the fallacy and explain how to improve the argument.
Bandwagon. Replace the popularity claim with a relevant reason and evidence about homework.
Why is evidence important when making a persuasive argument?
Evidence supports claims and gives an audience a reason to believe the argument.
What logical fallacy occurs when someone makes a conclusion about an entire group based on only a few examples?
Hasty Generalization
"Two basketball players were late to class today. Athletes must not care about their education."
Hasty Generalization
What does the S in CASE stand for, and what is its purpose?
Support — facts, examples, or evidence that strengthen an argument.
"Students should get longer breaks because I said so."
What part of CASE is missing that would make this more convincing?
A meaningful argument/reason, support, and explanation.
A student says, "We should have four-day school weeks because students would have more time to rest."
Identify the claim and the argument.
Claim: Schools should have four-day school weeks.
Argument: Students would have more time to rest.
What logical fallacy presents only two choices when other reasonable options exist?
False Dilemma
"If teachers let us turn in one assignment late, eventually nobody will turn anything in, and the entire school will become chaotic!"
Slippery Slope
What does the E in CASE stand for, and why is it important?
Explanation — it explains how the support connects to the claim and makes the argument convincing.
"We should eliminate dress codes because teachers just want to control everyone!"
Identify the weakness in this argument and improve it.
It attacks teachers' motives instead of supporting a policy change. A stronger argument would explain a specific concern about the dress code and provide evidence.
Your opponent argues, "Students shouldn't choose their seats because they'll talk to their friends instead of working."
Give a convincing rebuttal.
"Although sitting near friends might distract some students, teachers could allow students to choose their seats as long as they stay on task. Students who become distracted could be reassigned."
Explain the difference between a Straw Man fallacy and a Slippery Slope fallacy.
Straw Man misrepresents someone's argument to make it easier to attack. Slippery Slope assumes a small action will lead to a series of increasingly extreme consequences without sufficient evidence.
Student A says, "I think we should have less homework." Student B responds, "So you think students shouldn't have to learn anything?"
Straw Man
A student says, "Schools should have longer lunch periods because students need more time to eat and socialize. A student survey could help determine whether current lunch periods provide enough time."
Identify the claim, argument, and proposed support. What is missing to complete CASE?
Claim: Schools should have longer lunch periods.
Argument: Students need more time to eat and socialize.
Proposed support: A student survey about lunch periods.
Missing: An explanation connecting actual evidence to the claim. The survey would need to be conducted before its results could serve as evidence.
What is the logical fallacy and rewrite this argument to eliminate it:
"If schools allow students to use their phones at lunch, they'll start using them during class, stop paying attention, and eventually fail every subject!"
Slippery Slope. Example: "Schools should consider restricting phone use during lunch because students may need a screen-free break to socialize, although we'd need evidence to determine whether such a restriction is beneficial."
Your team has 60 seconds to create a persuasive argument using all four parts of CASE for this topic:
"Students should be allowed to listen to music while completing independent work."
Full points if students include a clear claim, reason, relevant support, and an explanation connecting the support to the claim.