Independent Activity

This activity will help you strengthen your understanding of logical fallacies and improve your ability to construct persuasive arguments. You’ll use AI as a tool to analyze examples of fallacious reasoning and practice strengthening weak arguments,. You’ll work with 3 examples, one at a time.

Instructions:

1. Review Fallacies: Review the descriptions of common logical fallacies in your textbook (straw man, hasty generalization, appeal to emotion, slippery slope, ad hominem, false dilemma, bandwagon fallacy, red herring, post hoc, etc.).

2. AI Interaction: Fallacy Example Generation: Provide an AI tool with a prompt similar to the following:

   “I’m learning about logical fallacies in argumentative writing. Please provide one short argument (1-2 paragraphs) that contains at least one common logical fallacy. Try to include one of the following fallacies: straw man, hasty generalization, appeal to emotion, slippery slope, ad hominem, false dilemma, bandwagon fallacy, red herring, or post hoc. Do not tell me which fallacy is present.”

3. Analyze AI Example: Carefully read the example provided by the AI.

   • Identify the logical fallacy (or fallacies) present.
   • Explain why you think the argument contains that fallacy. Be specific about what makes the reasoning flawed.
   • Ask the AI if it agrees with your analysis.

4. Strengthening Argument 1: Write a revised version of the argument that eliminates the fallacy and strengthens the reasoning. Consider the following:

   • Provide more robust evidence. (For this exercise, the evidence may be fictitious.)
   • Make clearer connections between the evidence and the claim.
   • Use objective language and avoid emotional appeals.
   • Address potential counterarguments.

5. Feedback on Revised Argument: Provide the AI with your revised version of the argument. Prompt the AI for feedback:

   “Here’s my revised version of the argument: [your revised argument]. Please provide feedback on my revised argument. Have I effectively eliminated the fallacy (or fallacies)? Are there other areas where I could improve the reasoning or evidence?”

6. Repeat: After receiving feedback on your analysis and revision of Example 1, repeat steps 2-5 for two more examples. Each time, ask the AI to provide a new example with a different fallacy.

7. Reflection: Write a short reflection on what you learned from this activity. How did analyzing the AI-generated examples help you understand logical fallacies? Did you find it challenging to identify the fallacies and strengthen the arguments? How did the AI’s feedback help you refine your analysis and revisions? How will you apply these insights to future writing assignments?

Estimated Time: 45 minutes

Discussion Board Activity

Instructions:

This activity will help us collectively strengthen our understanding of logical fallacies and improve our ability to construct persuasive arguments. We’ll be working together to analyze AI-generated arguments and strengthen them through peer collaboration.

Before You Begin:

• Review Logical Fallacies: Review the descriptions of common logical fallacies in your textbook (straw man, hasty generalization, appeal to emotion, slippery slope, ad hominem, false dilemma, bandwagon fallacy, red herring, post hoc, etc.). Pay close attention to the characteristics of each fallacy.

Part 1: Fallacy Challenge (Initial Post)

1. AI Fallacy Generation: Use an AI writing tool (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini, etc.) to generate a short argument (1-2 paragraphs) that contains a logical fallacy. Use the following prompt:
   • “I’m learning about logical fallacies in argumentative writing. Please provide one short argument (1-2 paragraphs) that contains at least one common logical fallacy. Try to include one of the following fallacies: straw man, hasty generalization, appeal to emotion, slippery slope, ad hominem, false dilemma, bandwagon fallacy, red herring, or post hoc. Do not tell me which fallacy is present.”

1. Post Your Fallacy: In your initial post, paste the AI-generated argument. Do not reveal the name of the fallacy you suspect it contains.
2. Your Suspicions: Briefly describe the logical fallacy (or fallacies) you believe are present in the argument. Instead of naming the fallacy, explain the flaw in the argument’s reasoning.
3. Invite Analysis: Ask your peers to identify the fallacy and explain their reasoning.

Estimated Time: 30 minutes

Part 2: Peer Analysis and Revision (Peer Responses)

1. Identify the Fallacy: Read the arguments posted by your classmates. Identify the logical fallacy (or fallacies) you believe are present.
2. Explain Your Reasoning: Provide a detailed explanation of why you think the argument contains that fallacy. Be specific and refer to the text of the argument.
3. Suggest Revisions: Offer suggestions on how the argument could be revised to eliminate the fallacy and strengthen the reasoning. Consider:
   • Providing more robust evidence. (For this exercise, the evidence may be fictitious.)
   • Making clearer connections between evidence and claim.
   • Using objective language.
   • Addressing potential counterarguments.
4. Constructive Feedback: Provide constructive feedback on your classmate’s analysis of the fallacy.

Estimated Time: 45 minutes

Part 3: Revealing and Refining (Follow-Up)

1. Reveal the Fallacy: After receiving feedback from your peers, reveal the actual fallacy present in the AI-generated argument.
2. Discuss the Analysis: Discuss the different analyses provided by your peers. Which analysis was closest to your own? What did you learn from the different perspectives?
3. Refine Revisions: Based on the feedback you received, refine your revised version of the argument.
4. Reflect: In a follow-up post, reflect on what you learned from this collaborative activity. How did analyzing your classmates’ arguments help you understand logical fallacies? How did their feedback help you refine your analysis and revisions? How will you apply these insights to future writing assignments?

Estimated Time: 30 minutes