| Evidence Questions Prove the Author Right |
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| You may see this question in a PRAXIS I Reading Test: The author's argument would be strengthened if it could be proved that ... What does it mean to strengthen an argument? Strengthen means to make stronger, so this type of question asks the test-taker to try to help the author prove his/her argument. Your job in this type of question is to make the author's argument more believable. Would you like to see this question re-written? Here are a couple of examples. I would be more likely to believe the author if I knew this were true... This argument seems a little weak. This new piece of evidence would make it stronger for me... Here are few examples to get you used to this kind of question. 1) Mushrooms are the new miracle food! They contain B vitamins to help combat stress and more protein than most vegetables. I would be more likely to believe the author if I knew that A) his mother told him this. B) he read it in a medical journal. C) he read it in an advertisement. While it is wise at any age to heed (pay attention to) the advice of one's mother, in this instance choice A is not the best answer. Chances are you don't know the author, so you also don't know the author's mother. On the other hand, medical journals are carefully reviewed before publication; choice B is the best answer because more than one professional agrees that this is possible. As for choice C, while many advertisements are truthful, others are created only to sell a product and therefore sometimes stretch the truth. 2) Police believe they have finally caught the city's most prolific graffiti producer. The fifteen-year old boy was found with two cans of spray paint in his knapsack, standing beside a building that had recently been re-painted. This argument seems a little weak. This new piece of evidence would make it stronger for me. A) Several eye-witness from other graffiti crimes identified the boy. B) The boy confessed to being the top graffiti producer. C) The boy's art teacher says he has promise (could be successful) as an artist. D) The boy's father and uncle are both in prison. While it is true that sometimes children imitate their parents, they sometimes learn from their parent's mistakes; the fact that the boy has relatives in prison, choice D, is not strong evidence in this situation. There are many kinds of artists, and not all artists start out by vandalizing buildings through graffiti. Choice C does not strengthen the author's argument. Choice B is also not the best choice because people confess to crimes for many reasons; perhaps the boy wanted to have his name in the newspaper, or maybe he confessed to hide the identity of a friend. Choice A is the best choice because eye-witnesses from different instances identified the boy. 3) Online games help your child learn in many ways. It is important that this new generation be as computer literate as possible, so let them play as much as they like. The author's argument would be strengthened if it could be proved that A) Children who play online games on a regular basis receive poorer grades in school. B) Many children wish they had more time to play online games. C) Children who spend hours a day on the computer face health risks. D) Computer games are too simple to be used as a learning tool. E) There are no health risks involved in allowing a child to spend up to four hours a day on the computer. Choices A, C, and D all negate - go against - the author's argument that playing online games is good for children. Choice B addresses children's wishes, not necessarily what is good for them and thus does not strengthen the author's argument. Choice E is the only option that makes the author's argument stronger by stating that there are no health risks involved in children playing the games for up to four hours a day. |
| Argument: a discussion that gives reasons to agree or disagree with something. |
| The author's argument is often the main idea of a passage! |
| Justice Mutita says listen to your mother, but pay attention to the doctors! |
| Justice Mutita says don't judge a child by his or her parent's actions. Believe evidence from many sources. |
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