{"id":4311,"date":"2015-10-16T18:12:38","date_gmt":"2015-10-16T23:12:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/admin.patheos.com\/blogs\/jenniferfitz\/?p=4311"},"modified":"2015-10-16T18:12:38","modified_gmt":"2015-10-16T23:12:38","slug":"how-to-teach-kids-about-the-straw-man-fallacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jenniferfitz\/2015\/10\/how-to-teach-kids-about-the-straw-man-fallacy\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Teach Kids about the “Straw Man” Fallacy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Point them to the internet.<\/p>\n

In class this morning, the kids got their formal introduction to Mr. Straw. \u00a0We\u2019re working through\u00a0The Fallacy Detective<\/em><\/a>, and the way we do most chapters is that the kids read the text at home, we discuss the definition of the fallacy, and then the kids each contribute an example they\u2019ve either invented or endured. \u00a0We do assorted exercises to practice identifying the various fallacies we\u2019ve studied and to distinguish them from legitimate arguments.<\/p>\n

Because of the flood<\/a>, we had to race through two classes in one in order to stay on track with the syllabus for the year. \u00a0Last on the list this morning was the infamous Straw Man.<\/p>\n

The kids, of course, grasped this one intuitively. \u00a0They see it all the time. \u00a0What with literacy and a presidential campaign on, it\u2019s virtually unavoidable. \u00a0If you\u2019re in Catholic blogging, it\u2019s the pollution lacing the air you breathe.<\/p>\n

So here\u2019s the thing that I didn\u2019t have to spell out in class, because teenagers are smarter than anyone lets on: \u00a0All the other fallacies have valid kinsmen. \u00a0An ad hominen<\/em> is a bogus argument, but there do exist situations in which the opponent\u2019s character is relevant. \u00a0A\u00a0tu quoque<\/em> may be illogical, but it does pose a question that deserves to be explored\u00a0\u2014 why exactly does the opponent fail to follow through on his own advice? \u00a0 But the straw man lies alone. \u00a0That\u2019s just someone being stupid.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Want to wade through the dreadful morass and find good things to read? \u00a0Here are some links for your edification. I\u2019m always posting stuff like this on my @JenFitz_Reads<\/a> Twitter feed as I find it:<\/p>\n