During this lesson, students will study fallacies in logic. At the end of the lesson, students are going to: 
- describe typical fallacies in logic. 
- write a dialogue to get experience with reasoning and spotting flaws in an argument.

- In what ways does text interaction encourage thought and action?

- Cause and Effect: Cause statements stem from actions and events, and effects are what happens as a result of the action or event.
- Propaganda Techniques and Persuasive Tactics: Propaganda techniques and persuasive tactics are used to influence people to believe, buy, or do something. Students should be able to identify and comprehend the propaganda techniques and persuasive tactics listed below. 
1. Name-calling is an attack on a person instead of an issue. 
2. A bandwagon appeal tries to persuade the reader to do, think, or buy something because it is popular or because “everyone” is doing it. 
3. A red herring is an attempt to distract the reader with details not relevant to the argument. 
4. An emotional appeal tries to persuade the reader by using words that appeal to the reader’s emotions instead of logic or reason. 
5. A testimonial attempts to persuade the reader by using a famous person to endorse a product or idea (for instance, a celebrity endorsement). 
6. Repetition attempts to persuade the reader by repeating a message over and over again. 
7. A sweeping generalization (stereotyping) makes an oversimplified statement about a group based on limited information. 
8. A circular argument states a conclusion as part of the proof of the argument.

- “Dust, Wind, Dude” from Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. (optional) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krCkL24ae1k 
- Socratic Rhetoric handout (L-L-8-3_Socratic Rhetoric)

- During discussion periods, call on various pairs and individual students to gauge the students' understanding of the material, and move around to offer assistance when needed.
- Offer reteaching as well as extra materials for individual practice.
- Give students comments on their written dialogues and let them make any necessary revisions to show that they can reason logically and present counterarguments. To elucidate logical fallacies, pose guiding questions.

Explicit instruction, modeling, scaffolding, and active participation 
W: Lead students through an example of a Socratic circle to investigate the topic of what constitutes a reasonable justification for a belief. 
H: Involve students in a discussion of a philosophical assertion and a funny video clip. 
E: Lead a model Socratic discussion to familiarize students with the technique of asking probing questions to learn. 
R: To assist students in determining whether their arguments are logical or illogical, use a Socratic circle. 
E: Give students the chance to demonstrate their understanding through their Socratic circle, peer review, and in-person evaluation. 
T: Customize instruction by giving students extra or different dialogues to consider. 
O: Assign tasks, supervise practice, and provide direct instruction to arrange learning.

Focus Question: How does the Socratic method foster critical thinking and reasoning abilities?

Play the YouTube scene "Dust, Wind, Dude" from Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure.

Part 1

Say, "Dialogues and persuasive arguments, including essays, speeches, and various campaign mailings, may reveal different types of fallacies."

Distribute the Socratic Rhetoric handout (L-L-8-3_Socratic Rhetoric) to all students. Read aloud and talk about the definitions and examples. After that, assign students to finish the quick matching test on their own. Ask them to double-check their responses with a friend. (KEY: 1. B, 2. G, 3. E, 4. F, 5. A, 6. D, 7. C)

Part 2

On the board or interactive whiteboard, write the following:

"The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing." (Socrates)

Say, "To analyze the statement, we'll use a method called the Socratic circle."

Divide the class into two circles, with one student inside the other. Describe the following rules and post them so that students can refer to them:

"The inner circle will debate the claim and determine a 'truth' that each member can agree upon. This is a logical reasoning exercise, not a debate.

Students in the inner circle are expected to pay close attention when others are speaking and to speak without interrupting.

To get more people to join in, I might silence one or more of you.

As the members of the inner circle present their cases, the outer circle will listen and record any techniques and strategies used. You can apply the propaganda and persuasion strategies from earlier lessons.

I might challenge your positions and examples with follow-up queries to find flaws or weaknesses in the case.

Ask the inner circle members to explain the meaning of the statement, "The only true wisdom is knowing that you know nothing," as you lead the students through the process. Explain that the goal is to achieve agreement. Instruct the outer circle participants to record the conversation and note the rhetorical devices that are employed. Make sure students are adhering to the Socratic circle rules by interjecting as needed during the conversation.

End the discussion after ten minutes if a consensus cannot be reached. Invite people in the outer circle to talk about what they saw. Ask, "What kind of reasoning or persuasive strategies did you hear the inner circle using? Which one(s) did you think most effective to get people to agree on the original statement?"

You may want to end the exercise at this point, or you may want to have the circles switch places and roles. Allow time for the new inner circle to talk about the assertion. To get feedback from the outer circle, repeat the procedure.

Describe how Socratic circles and reasoning can be applied, using this example. Ask, "How can Socratic circles enhance critical thinking and reasoning skills?" The following are some suggested responses:

Students get knowledge from each other.

Hearing other people's perspectives helps them understand more.

Feedback on the types of reasoning and logical fallacies employed in the arguments can be obtained through Socratic circles.

Further details regarding Socratic circles can be found under the Related Resources section.

Part 3

For students' convenience, write the following statements, or others of your choosing, on the board or interactive whiteboard:

“Courage is based on love.”

“Fear is the strongest emotion.”

“Moderation can be damaging” or any number of other claims.

“The unexamined life is not worth living.” (Socrates)

Ask students to write a dialogue in pairs to decide which of the statements (or another of their choosing) is true. Give the following instructions:

In your dialogue, employ the question-and-discussion pattern.

Observe logical fallacies and respond to them in the dialogue with appropriate reasoning.

Keep talking about the statement until you arrive at a firm conclusion.

Before submitting dialogues for inclusion in your unit assessment portfolio, review, edit, and revise them.

Extension:

Encourage your students to recognize logical fallacies and persuasive strategies in addition to going beyond the typical research political speeches. Students should be encouraged to point out and justify their flawed ideas.

Give students who require extra learning opportunities to read a passage from a dialogue and select the right reasoning fallacy from a list of multiple-choice answers.