An argument gives someone a reason to accept a claim. A strong argument makes the reasoning clear and supports it appropriately.
I expect you to go beyond stating what you like or dislike. Explain your position, choose relevant support, and show how it connects to your conclusion.
01 / Build the connection
| Part | Its job | Ask yourself |
|---|---|---|
| Claim | The position you want the reader to accept. | What exactly am I arguing? Is my claim narrow enough to defend? |
| Reason | The justification for your position. | Why should someone accept this claim? Am I giving a real reason rather than repeating it? |
| Evidence / example | Support for the reason: relevant facts, source material, observations or an illustrative case. | Is it relevant and trustworthy? Is it a fact, a personal experience or a hypothetical example? |
| Explanation | The connection between your support and your claim. | How does this support my reasoning? What does it establish, and what does it leave open? |
This is a planning tool, not a rule requiring exactly four sentences. The parts can overlap. Some arguments rely on principles or logical reasoning rather than statistics; support should fit the claim.
An argument is not automatically a good argument. “We should cancel the lesson because I am bored” gives a reason, but a weak one for a decision affecting the whole class. The next question is whether that reason is relevant and sufficient.
02 / Watch an argument take shape
The following example was written for this guide. It illustrates reasoning without claiming to report a study.
Question: Should classroom discussions use a clear turn-taking rule?
Claim: Classroom discussions should use a clear turn-taking rule.
Reason: Students need a fair opportunity to finish a point before others respond.
Example: Imagine a discussion in which two confident speakers repeatedly interrupt a quieter classmate. A rule requiring speakers to wait their turn would allow that classmate to complete their contribution.
Explanation: In this situation, the rule addresses a specific obstacle to participation. It does not guarantee that everyone will speak, but it makes being heard less dependent on speaking over others.
As one paragraph
Classroom discussions should use a clear turn-taking rule because students need a fair opportunity to finish a point. If two confident speakers repeatedly interrupt a quieter classmate, requiring them to wait would give that student room to complete their contribution. The rule would not guarantee equal participation, but it would reduce one avoidable barrier to being heard.
Notice the limit: the claim is not that one rule solves every problem. A qualified argument can be more convincing because it states precisely what its support can justify.
03 / Choose support that fits
| Support | What it can contribute | What to watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Facts & research | Evidence about what happens, how often, or under which conditions. | Use an identifiable, relevant source. Check what it actually measured. Never invent a study or statistic. |
| Personal experience | A concrete account of how an issue affects an individual. | Your experience may differ from other people’s. One case cannot establish a general rule. |
| Hypothetical example | A possible situation that makes a principle or consequence easier to understand. | Signal it with “Imagine …” or “For example, a student could …”. It illustrates a possibility, not how often it occurs. |
| Principle & reasoning | A justification based on values such as fairness, followed through logically. | Explain why the principle applies and consider competing values. A preference is not automatically a shared standard. |
A sequence is not proof of a cause. If something improves after a change, other factors may explain it. “I started listening to music and my marks improved” does not by itself establish that music caused the improvement.
04 / Test your argument before someone else does
- Relevance: does the reason actually help answer the question?
- Clarity: have I explained words such as “better”, “fair” or “effective”?
- Support: what would make a reader accept the reason? Is the evidence reliable and sufficient for the claim?
- Connection: have I explained why the support leads towards my conclusion?
- Scope: am I moving from one person to everyone, or from one case to an absolute rule?
- Objections: what is a reasonable alternative explanation or counterargument? Does it require a limit or a revised claim?
Be careful with circular reasoning: “Group work is useful because it is beneficial” repeats the claim in different words. Explain a specific benefit and how it arises.
Criticize the reasoning, not the person making it. Disliking someone does not show that their claim is false; liking them does not make it true.
05 / Diagnose, then improve
Read each statement and decide what is missing or weak before checking the suggested diagnosis. There may be more than one reasonable revision.
| Starting point | Diagnosis | A stronger direction |
|---|---|---|
| “Group work is annoying.” | A judgement without a reason. “Annoying” does not specify the problem. | Identify a problem such as unequal workload, explain when it occurs, and consider whether clearer roles could address it. |
| “Summer is best because it is awesome.” | The reason is vague and effectively repeats the preference. | State a criterion: “I prefer summer because the longer evenings give me more time for outdoor activities.” This supports a personal preference, not a universal ranking. |
| “Music helps everyone focus. It helps me.” | A personal experience is used to support a claim about everyone. | Limit the claim to your experience, or investigate wider evidence before generalizing. Consider that others may find music distracting. |
| “PE should be cancelled because it makes us sweat.” | A reason is present, but its significance is unexplained and the proposed response is very broad. | If changing facilities are the concern, explain that specific problem and assess practical remedies rather than jumping straight to cancelling the subject. |
Try it yourself
Choose one question: Should students choose their own project partners? or Should a school library have a silent working area?
- Write a clear claim.
- Give one relevant reason.
- Add evidence you can identify, or a clearly marked illustrative example.
- Explain the connection to your claim.
- Write one objection, then answer it or adjust your position.
06 / Useful language
| Purpose | Possible phrasing |
|---|---|
| State a claim | … should … I support …, provided that … |
| Give a reason | One reason is that … This matters because … |
| Add support | The source reports that … In my experience, … Imagine a situation in which … |
| Explain the link | This supports the claim because … In this case, … would make it possible to … |
| Recognize limits | This does not necessarily mean that … The argument applies when … |
| Address an objection | A possible objection is … This concern suggests that we should … |
A connector cannot repair a missing logical link. After writing “therefore” or “because”, check that the ideas really have the relationship you claim.
07 / The quick check
Can a reader identify what you claim, why you claim it, what supports it, and how that support connects? If so, test whether the conclusion is proportionate to the evidence and whether you have considered a reasonable objection.
My priority: a clear, defensible connection between your ideas. Sounding certain is easy. Giving someone a good reason to agree takes work.
Use your argument in a comment →
Build a longer argumentative essay →
Explore linking words →