Source based-skills-lesson-1202775750791710-3

SOURCE BASED SKILLS: INFERENCE AND

RELIABILITY

TODAY’S LESSON

Re-cap Inference skills.How to draw inferences.Answering inference questions

Re-cap Evaluation of Reliability skills.How to evaluate reliability.Answer evaluation of reliability skills.

Practice Source-Based Questions.

ACTIVITY

She took the knife and walked towards him. There were no words to express how she felt. He had subjected her to a life of misery and now he was going to pay.

What did she intend to do to him?How do you know?

DRAWING INFERENCE

Step 1: Identify what the question requires you to draw inferences about:

For example:What does Source A tell you about the early history of Singapore?

DRAW INFERENCE

Step 2: Examine Source:What information is provided by the source?What can I infer from the source?

PRACTICESource A: A picture of Chinese coolies in Singapore, taken during the late 1800s to early 1900s.

Study Source A: What does Source A tell you about the life of Chinese coolies incolonial Singapore?

REMEMBER:For all questions about inference, you need to make 2 inferences:- Linked to the ‘context’ of the source.- Supported by evidence from the source.

PRACTICESource A: A picture of Chinese coolies in Singapore, taken during the late 1800s to early 1900s.

Study Source A: What does Source A tell you about the life of Chinese coolies incolonial Singapore?

Draft your answer:Answer the question: start

with the topic statement.2 paragraphs – Each

containing the following:

Point: Make your inference

Evidence: Utiliserelevant evidence from the source.

Explanation: Explain how the evidence is linked to your inference.

LORMS FOR INFERENCE

L1/1 Based on provenance or source type (1 mark) - description

L2/2 Inference w/o support (2 marks)

L3/3-4 Inference with support (3-4 marks) 3 marks for 1 inference and 4 marks for 2 inferences.

DRAFT YOUR ANSWER!

EVALUATION OF RELIABILITY

TYPES OF RELIABILITY QUESTIONS

Do you believe….Does this source prove that….How far is this source reliable in proving that…

QuestionPURPOSE

QuestionCONTENT

QuestionTYPICALITY

CROSS-REFERto other sources

QuestionPROVENANCE

Checklistfor

reliability

PROVENANCE

Provenance:Who is the speaker/writer? What is the occasion? When ? Where ? Who is the audience?

Provenance:Who is the speaker/writer? What is the occasion? When ? Where ? Who is the audience?

CONTENT What is being said?

Fact or opinion?Is there a gap in information?What do the other sources say about the same issue?

How it is being said? Is the view one sided or balanced? Any exaggeration? Any over generalizations?What are the emotive words?

TONE

Cross reference

CROSS REFERENCE

Process of checking the reliability of a specific part of the source by comparing:

The part of the source against what another source says;Cross refer to the relevant source!

CROSS REFERENCE

How to cross reference?What is being checked? E.g. Source claims that Farquhar was the founder of Singapore.Indication of confirmation/doubt. E.g:

But I am not sure that is true…This confirms what the source is saying…

What are you cross-referencing against:‘…because Source A says that Singapore was not a great trading port while in Source B it says that…’

All of the above must be present in any cross-reference.

CROSS REFERENCE

When cross-referencing, do not generalise:Source X is true because Source Y supports itSource X is reliable because it agrees with my knowledge.I can believe Source X because this is the kind of thing that was going on.

PURPOSE

Why was the source created? Why does the speaker want to say this at that time/place ?What does the speaker expect by saying this?

PURPOSE

Remember:Purpose is the impact that the author wanted to have on his/her audience.Hence, any answer on purpose must include the author, the intended audience and the expected outcome.

SOURCE

Source B: ‘The Padang in Singapore, 1851’, a painting by John Turnbull Thomson, a British artist

Source A: An editorial from the Straits Times on Singapore in the 1850s by Robert Woods, a British Editor.

Poverty was stalking the streets where the haunts of vice and disease are unobserved by the European part of the community. Many are dying daily for the lack of labour and food.

How far is Source B a reliable portrayal of life in colonial Singapore?

LORMS FOR RELIABILITYLevel of analysisL1/1 Provenance or details onlyL2/2 Uncritical acceptance of contentL3/3 Unsupported assertion of biasL4/4 Reliability affected by date of the sourceL5/5 Cross-reference to other sources/specific contextual knowledge[1. Identify content 2. Identify supporting or contradictory content from other sources 3. Draw your conclusion]L6/6 Evaluation of source content using provenance/purpose/audience etc. [Content + who, where, when > purpose + motive > audience and how (tone)]