Grade 8 · Evaluating Sources and Reasoning · Source Quality and Faulty Reasoning
Reading Media and Data Claims
Interpret graphs, percentages and headlines without being misled by scale, base rates or framing.
Learning objectives
- Detect a misleading axis or scale
- Explain the difference between percentage and absolute change
- Rewrite a misleading headline accurately
Common Core ELA alignment
RI.8.7
Integrate information presented in different media, formats and words to develop a coherent understanding of a topic or issue. Grade 8 emphasis: analyse subtler techniques such as irony, conflicting evidence and differing interpretations.
RI.8.8
Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and relevant evidence from claims that are not. Grade 8 emphasis: analyse subtler techniques such as irony, conflicting evidence and differing interpretations.
SL.8.2
Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats and explain how it contributes to a topic, text or issue under study. Grade 8 emphasis: analyse subtler techniques such as irony, conflicting evidence and differing interpretations.
MYP criteria
- Criterion A — Analysing
- Criterion D — Using language
ENGAGE
Risk doubles!
A headline announces that a habit doubles your risk of a rare disease. The risk moves from 1 in 100000 to 2 in 100000. The doubling is real; the alarm is not.
Think about it
- Why is the headline technically true but misleading?
- What number would you want before worrying?
EXPLAIN
Four tricks and their fixes
| Trick | How it works | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Truncated axis | A y-axis starting at 95 makes a tiny change look huge | Check where the axis starts |
| Missing base rate | Relative risk without absolute numbers | Ask 1 in how many |
| Cherry-picked window | A chart starting at a low point | Ask what happened before |
| Framing | 90 per cent fat free versus 10 per cent fat | Restate both ways |
Percentage versus percentage point
- Support rising from 40 to 44 per cent is a rise of 4 percentage points.
- That is also a 10 per cent increase in support.
- Writers choose whichever number sounds bigger.
Habit
Whenever you meet a striking statistic, ask: out of how many, over what period, compared with what?
EXPLORE
Three claims to interrogate
- Crime up 50 per cent in our town! (from 4 incidents to 6)
- Nine out of ten dentists recommend it. (sample of ten dentists paid by the maker)
- Reading scores collapse, says chart starting in the best year on record.
Think about it
- Name the trick used in each claim.
- Rewrite each as an accurate one-sentence headline.
MYP_PRACTICE
Criterion A and D task
Find a news chart or statistic this week. Write 150 words explaining what it shows accurately, what a careless reader might conclude, and one extra number you would need.
EXIT_TICKET
Check yourself
Think about it
- What is the difference between per cent and percentage point?
- Which trick fools you most easily?
Interactive practice · headline rewrite
Rewrite the headline
Rewrite each misleading headline so it is accurate, then name the trick it used.
Headlines
Your answer
This draft stays in this tab only. Copy anything you want to keep into your learning log below.
Key vocabulary
- Base rate
- How common something is in absolute terms.
- Truncated axis
- A chart axis that does not start at zero, exaggerating change.
- Percentage point
- The arithmetic difference between two percentages.
- Framing
- Choosing wording that steers interpretation.
Practice questions
0/2 correct
Level 1 · Criterion D
Crime up 50 per cent, from 4 incidents to 6, mainly misleads by
Level 2 · Criterion A
Support rises from 40 to 44 per cent. Which statement is accurate?
MYP criterion tasks
Level 3 · Criterion D
Rewrite the doubling headline accurately in one sentence.
Reflect & track
Your learning log
Saved privately in this browser — no account needed.
How confident do you feel?