How to Build a Position

Marikit Tara Alto Uychoco

Gather the Evidence:

(10) Assertions are only as good as the quality of one’s evidence. After writing one’s assertions, one
must gather the evidence to prove each point. Although one already went through preliminary
data-gathering in the beginning, it is imperative to make sure that each assertion has strong and
compelling evidence. Evidence can be any of the following: facts; statistics interviews with
experts; and perceived philosophical, socio-political, or psychological truths. Occasionally, it is
good to recount one’s personal experiences as these lend credibility and have some persuasive
impact; however, if not done skillfully, these may be questioned as they recount only one’s
experiences out of many others.

(11) It is not appropriate to use moral or religious truths as these differ from person to person, and
one cannot assume that the person reading has the same religious background. Hence, it is
inappropriate to cite the Bible or the Koran in order to further one’s argument. It is also
inappropriate to call people that you disagree with as savages, heathens, or demons; most of the
time, those who disagree with your position have valid reasons for doing so.

Have credible resources

(12) One must make sure that one’s sources are credible. The best sources are bills, laws, and
Declarations from government and international non-government organizations, such as the
United Nations. One may also use scholarly articles from academic journals; books; articles
from
Reputable newspapers, magazines, television stations, and other news media sources; and
Entries from encyclopedia or dictionaries. Should you plan to use articles from the Internet, one
must double-check their credibility.

(13) This is true for the most commonly used resource by students which is the Wikipedia website.
When using Wikipedia, it is always best to look at its reference list, and to click on the links, as
these articles will be more credible than the Wikipedia entry. As you should know, anyone can
edit and create articles in Wikipedia, which means that it is open to mischief and the spread of
errors and lies. It is best not to use Wikipedia as your primary source, but as a source that will
help point you toward the right source.

(14) Furthermore the following are not credible at all: Twitter feeds; Facebook statuses; and the
threads in chat rooms, and the like. These are all too often hacked. It would be a mistake to think
that everything in social media is true, or that the source of the post is who he says he is. Hoaxes
abound in social media, posted in memes, and shared by those who are fooled by them; It is a
modern frustration how many people have trouble differentiating between a hoax and the truth.

(15) One can only hope that the teaching of critical thinking in the school extend to knowing which
 sources of knowledge are credible and which ones aren’t; the differences between a fact and an
opinion; and the inherent integrity found in print resources over web resources. In the end, the
library is still the best place to find the best resources for your research. Should your school
library
prove to be limited, it is suggested that you try researching in other schools or public libraries,
such as the Main Library of the University of the Philippines, which only requires an official
letter
and a small fee for entrance.

Refine the Argument

(16) An Argument is made of three elements: assertion, evidence, and explanation. Although the
logic of the assertion and the evidence may be clear to you, this logic may not be clear to you,
this logic may not be clear to your reader. Further explanation is often needed such as the
clarification between the link of the assertion and the evidence, the use of further examples and
situations, and the explanation and contextualization of the evidence and its importance. The
best arguments are filled with nuance and sophistication, arguments that cannot be quickly
discounted or set aside.