Teaching article
Check a civic claim beyond its confident headline
Identify exactly what a statement claims and what official source could confirm or qualify it.
A sentence can contain a true detail and still reach too far. Underline the whole claim, find the official explanation and compare the scope of the evidence with the conclusion the sentence asks readers to accept.
Underline the claim's checkable part. Choose a relevant authority's page. Revise certainty if the information is incomplete.
Which part can the source actually support?
A statement about who manages a particular park needs that park's local information, not only a general government poster.
Trace the claim to the official explanation and check its scope. A claim can contain a correct detail while drawing an unsupported conclusion.
A website looking official is not enough evidence by itself.
What information remains unverified? Compare two short prepared source extracts.
Resources
- Who Does What? Government Power Match — Use the responsibility matching activity for a separate checked-service comparison.
Further reading
- Parliamentary Education Office — classroom activities
- Australian Electoral Commission — Democracy Rules
Read next
- Two civic sources may be repeating the same claim
- Is that classroom rule fair? Start with who can join in
- What does the federal government do? Choose a checked example
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