We have learned from the previous topic about determining the

relevance and the truthfulness of the ideas presented in the

material viewed. Now, let us move on to judging the validity of the
evidence listened to. Before that, let us understand the different
text type first. A text refers to the written, spoken and visual
forms of language that people live with every day. You heard this
definition from Module 2. From the text you heard, you need to
weigh if the evidences given by the writer are valid or not.
As a 21st century learners, the changing world and global trends may
influence or affect you as a person and as a citizen. Every day of your lives,
you hear information from different sources. These information help you
to become perceptive and widen your perspective about something and
anything under the sun. In some cases, you will be forced to make decisions
or make a stand about an issue or to judge the validity of the evidence you
heard from an issue. All those things have an implication in your daily life. It
will either make or break you as a person. For you to be ready during these
circumstances, let’s hone your listening prowess by being familiar with the
following terms:
1. Factual vs. Literary text

Factual texts inform, instructor persuade the reader or listener by giving

facts or information. The reader or listener wants to know something about
a particular subject so they should give useful information and focus on
facts.
Examples of factual texts are news reports, interviews, recipes, records of
history, and instructions. You often heard news reports over the radio, or
television, read them in the newspaper or hear what happened from
reliablesources. While reading or listening to a news report, you are already
activating your knowledge about the information.
Literary texts are pieces of writing that tell a story or entertain.
They engage the reader/listener to respond emotionally by
using creative language to paint pictures through
words(imagery). They include nondramatic works with or
without illustrations, published or unpublished.
Examples of literary texts are fiction, nonfiction, manuscripts,
poetry, dissertations, theses, speeches, pamphlets, brochures,
and advertisements
Characteristics of literary text include characters,
setting, plot(problem/solution), and sequence. These
characteristics help the reader understand who is in the
story, where and when the story takes place, what
happens in the story, and how the events
happen(www.pdesas.org)
2. Persuasive text vs. Discussion Text
Persuasive text/ writing offers the opportunity to convince the
reader/ listener to adopt a particular viewpoint or to believe in
what the writer is telling. It is designed to prompt the reader or
listener to take a certain action. It is very common in ad
campaigns wherein they are marketing/selling a certain product
and they are convincing you to buy their product. Ads can also be
used in several situations as well like reminders or election
campaigns
Discussion text/ content also known as argumentative text/ content
presents an issue surrounding a particular topic--usually one that is
debatable and open to arguments. In here, the writer needs to discuss both
sides of the issue to make sure that you researched and gathered enough
information about the topic. To know if the information presented by the
writer is valid or not, you need to extract the supporting (pros) and
opposing (cons) opinions about the issue. Many writers use argumentative
content to persuade the readers or listeners to agree to their points of
view. The information may influence you to believe certain ideas and push
you to take some form of action.
An argumentative content tries to change the reader’s mind by
convincing him/her to agree with the writer’s point of view. It is
a piece of writing that takes a stance on an issue. The writer
attempts to persuade readers to understand and support their
point of view about a topic by stating their reasoning and
providing evidence to back it up. It should have a
straightforward structure so they are easy for readers to
follow. The goal of an argumentative content is to clearly
outline a point of view, reasoning, and evidence.
(www.masterclass.com.articles)
Characteristics of an Argumentative Content
An argumentative essay attempts to be highly persuasive and
logical. It usually assumes that the reader disagrees with the
writer, but it should be noted that the reader is no less
intelligent than the writer. Hence, an argumentative
content should be written objectively and logically.
An argumentative content has the following characteristics:
• Presents and explains the issue or case
• Gives reasons and supports these reasons to prove its point
• Refutes(prove wrong) opposing arguments
Parts of an Argumentative Content
1. Introduction
First is the introductory paragraph. It introduces
the problem and gives the background
information needed for the argument and the
thesis statement.
The thesis statement/Topic sentence is a concise,
one-sentence summary of your main point and claim.
2. Body
The body of the essay contains the reasons. It is a three or more
paragraphs that explain the reasons why you support your
thesis. Each paragraph talks about one reason and it should
cover a different idea or piece of evidence and contain a topic
sentence that clearly explains why the reader should agree with
your position. These supporting materials can be examples,
research, statistics, studies, and text citations, personal
experiences or quotations. Address opposing points of view and
disprove them or explain why you disagree with them.
3. Conclusion
One paragraph that restates the thesis and summarizes all of the
arguments made in the body paragraphs. Rather than introducing
new facts or more arguments, a good conclusion will appeal to a
reader’s emotions.
To judge the validity of the evidence listened to, you need to be
familiar with the essential concepts in evaluating an argument.
You have to bear in mind the following steps:
1. Identify the point the speaker is trying to prove (the claim).
2. Identify the specific facts the speaker give to support the claim
3. Explain how the evidence supposed to relate to the claim
Types of evidences:
A. Testimonial evidences are statements of truth from a certain person made
under oath in a court or testimonies offered to prove the truth of the matter.
B. Statistical evidences are the result of researches or surveys that can never
be proven because of probability or likelihood which is from random
sampling.
C. Anecdotal evidences are collected in a casual or informal manner and
relying heavily or entirely on personal testimony.
D. Analogical or a specific way of thinking, based on the idea that two or
more things are similar in some aspects, there is a tendency that they are
also similar in other aspect.
These three specific types of questions lead to your opinion:
1. Questions of Fact are those that ask you to answer whether
or not something is true. These questions are always
answerable with either “Yes” or “No”.
Example: Is the wall blue? (Yes or No, and then evidence)
2. Questions of Value address the relative merit (goodness or
badness) of something. Here you are usually asked to choose
between things, ideas, beliefs, or actions.
Example: Which is more valuable, love or money? (Which
and why?)
3. Questions of Policy ask the writer to explain what
they would do. The key word of these topics is
usually “should” as in “what should we do…?) The
question asks the writer to make a plan of action to
solve some sort of problem. The answer is a
breakdown of the plan and a justification that it fixes
the problem.
Example: What should be done to combat the drug
problem? (Plan and justify)