Spotting misinformation
Logical fallacies describe logically flawed or deceptive arguments that can be disproven through reasoning. Humans have been using them for centuries – Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote about them in Sophistical Refutations, and Hindu philosophers wrote about them even earlier.
Sometimes this happens unintentionally because the user hasn’t thought the argument through or perhaps doesn’t fully understand the issue.
Unfortunately, logical fallacies are often used to undermine and distort facts, information and debates. Social media, advertising and opinion pieces may use them to promote or invalidate an issue or a person – depending on one’s point of view.
Learning how to identify logical fallacies is key to avoid being fooled or manipulated by misinformation and disinformation.
Common logical fallacies
This interactive provides an overview and examples of some common logical fallacies. Click on the labels for a definition of each logical fallacy, ways to spot it and examples.
Select here to view the full transcript and copyright information.
In this activity, students are presented with statements containing logical fallacies. Through discussion or discovery, they work through the statements, identify specific vocabulary or characteristics and match the statement with a common logical fallacy technique.
By the end of this activity, students should be able to:
read a statement and identify what aspect of it might be distorted or dishonest
discuss what the person behind the statement is/may be doing to distort the facts
identify key words or phrases that identify the statement as a fallacy
locate information that disproves or refutes the statement
match the statement with one or more common fallacy techniques
use what they’ve learned to create a fallacious statement of their own for others to interpret and call out.
Download the Word file (see link below).
Use the following resources to support learning about recognising misinformation and disinformation:
Related content
The article Read news like a scientist looks at how to approach science news like a scientist – see past the sensational and find the facts.
This activity includes statements that may cause disagreement. The article Managing classroom discussions contains helpful suggestions on how to create safe spaces and navigate potentially difficult conversations.
In the article Fraudulent study: MMR vaccine controversy, learn about a real-life example of how an unethical and later retracted scientific paper has had ongoing ramifications for accurate information on vaccinations.
Activity ideas
The Connected article Fake facts defines misinformation, malinformation and disinformation – how they are used in online media, with examples of each. It also delves into the human brain and how it deals with information and fake news.
In Manipulation tactics – create an inoculation campaign, students watch videos and use a template to analyse the inoculation messages they explain. Students then use the template to plan and create their own inoculation campaigns.
Acknowledgement
This resource has been developed with the help of The Workshop, who are experts in framing – the conscious and unconscious choices people make about how to present an issue. They conduct research and draw on data and insights from various disciplines, including psychology, linguistics and oral storytelling. Their work on false information draws specifically on the work of Dr Jess Berentson-Shaw from her book A matter of fact: Talking truth in a post-truth world.
The Workshop shares their work under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial Share Alike International Licence, encouraging people to pick up and use it for non-commercial purposes.
