Scribd
Upload
7K views

Assertions

This document discusses how to evaluate claims and identify evidence in expository writing. It defines assertions as statements that are either true or false. Common types of assertions are classified as facts, conventions, opinions, or preferences based on how easily they can be objectively verified. The document also defines evidence as details an author provides to support a claim. Good evidence is unified, relevant, specific, accurate, and representative. Questions are provided to help determine what evidence is present in a text.

Uploaded by

Amstrada Guieb Palomo-Tinte
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
7K views

Assertions

This document discusses how to evaluate claims and identify evidence in expository writing. It defines assertions as statements that are either true or false. Common types of assertions are classified as facts, conventions, opinions, or preferences based on how easily they can be objectively verified. The document also defines evidence as details an author provides to support a claim. Good evidence is unified, relevant, specific, accurate, and representative. Questions are provided to help determine what evidence is present in a text.

Uploaded by

Amstrada Guieb Palomo-Tinte
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

FORMULATING EVALUATIVE STATEMENTS

Identifying assertions
Becoming a good critical reader means that you are able to evaluate claims of the writer logically. Any writer
would want the reader to consider and possibly agree with the claims that he or she puts forward. In expository writing,
assertions become the primary channel for a reader to assent to a claim.
Assertions are declarative sentences that claim something is true about something else. Simply put, it is a
sentence that either true or false.
Read the following:
1. The sampaguita’s roots are used for medicinal purposes, such as an anesthetic and a sedative.
2. The sampaguita belongs to the genus Jasminum of the family Oleaceae.
3. The popularity of sampaguita flowers is most evident in places of worship.
4. Sampaguitas are the most beautiful and most fragrant of all flowers.
(There are four more common types of assertion, which are classified according to the degree of certainty they can be
judged as true or false. How would you classify the previous statements?)
Common Types of Assertion
1. Fact is a statement that can be proven objectively by direct experience, testimonies or witnesses, verified
observations, or the results of research. Because statements of fact can be double checked for accuracy, there is
general agreement about the truth they hypothesize.

The sampaguita’s roots are used for medicinal purposes, such as an anesthetic and a sedative.
The statement is a fact because it can be directly verified by experience or reliable research reports.
2. Convention is a way in which something is done, similar to traditions and norms. conventions depend on
historical precedent, laws, rules, usage, and customs. Thus, their truthfulness is verified by how commonly held
definitions and beliefs are interpreted.
Something to note about conventions is that they may sound factual due to their being derived from customs, but
because they are socially accepted ways of doing things, they cannot be verified objectively by measurements.
The sampaguita belongs to the genus Jasminum of the family Oleaceae.
This statement is a convention because it is based on a classification system made up by scientists and is
acceptable to the scientific community.

3. Opinions are based on facts, but aredi4cult to objectively verify because of the uncertainty of producing
satisfactoryproofs of soundness. Cpinions result from ambiguities; the more ambiguous a statement, the more
difficult it is to verify. Thus, they are open to disputes.

The popularity of sampaguita flowers is most evident in places of worship.


The above statement is an opinion because it is based on an observation that
needsto be proven by studies and repeated observation; there are too many factors involved that makes explicit
judgment difficult.
4. Preference is based on personal choice; therefore, they are subjective and cannot be objectively proven or
logically attacked.

Sampaguitas are the most beautiful and most fragrant of all flowers.
This statement is a preference because it says a lot about the type of flowers that the writer likes, instead of
objectively comparing the qualities of sampaguitas to that of other flowers.
Determining Textual Evidence

To better evaluate the author’s argument, you should be able to determine the evidence from the text. This
will allow you to validate the assertions of the author and your own counterclaims as a response to reading.

Evidence is defined as the details given by the author in order to support his or her claim. The evidence
provided by the writer validates the text. It reveals and builds on the position of the writer and makes the reading
more interesting. evidence is crucial in swaying the reader to your side. A jury or judge, for example, relies
on evidence presented by a lawyer before it makes a decision regarding a case.

Evidence can include the following:


Facts and statistics (objectively validated information on your subject);
Opinion from experts (leading authorities on a topic, like researchers or academics); and
Personal anecdotes (generalizable, relevant, and objectively considered).

The following are some questions to help you determine evidence from the text:
What questions can you ask about the claims?
Which details in the text answer your questions?
What are the most important details in the paragraph?
What is each one’s relationship to the claim?
What details do you find interesting? Why so?
What are some claims that do not seem to have support? What kinds of support could they be provided
with?
What are some details that you find questionable? Why do you think so?
Are some details outdated, inaccurate, exaggerated, or taken out of context?
Are sources reliable?

The following are the characteristics of good evidence:


unified
relevant to the central point
specific and concrete
accurate and
representative or typical

Prepared by: Mrs. Amstrada P. Tinte


SHS Teacher II

You might also like