"An Inconvenient Truth": Counter-Evidence
Permanent Link(s)
Author
Kuby, Emma
Description
A winner of the Knight Award for Writing Exercises and Handouts, this work originates from the Department of History, Hist 1105, The Problem of Violence in Western Political Thought, 1776-2001. In history—as in other disciplines—an ability to deal frankly and convincingly with facts that don't seem to "fit" is a hallmark of truly excellent writing. A vigorous, conscious process of trying to engage with counter-evidence can also help students enormously in refining their theses as they proceed through multiple drafts of a paper. This in-class exercise is designed to give students an opportunity to develop their skills in working with counter-evidence. The handout explains what counter-evidence is and provides some strategies for dealing with it successfully. A group writing activity then allows students to try out some of these strategies for themselves, and to reflect on the results. 6 page pdf
Date Issued
2008
Type
learning object