Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: Fact versus opinion

15 minutes

Find Out: Media motivations

30 minutes

Take Action: Critical readers

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

understand the difference between fact and opinion in media and political language
identify how vocabulary influences perceptions of clean energy.

Success criteria

Students can:

differentiate between fact-based and opinion-based statements.

Tune In: Fact versus opinion

Step 1

Write these 2 sentences on the whiteboard:

1. Solar power is an efficient and reliable energy source.

2. Solar power is the smartest and only good energy solution for the future.

Ask the class to identify which of these sentences is more factual and which is opinion-based. For your reference, sentence 1 is more factual, and sentence 2 is opinion-based.

Step 2

Examine the language choices in these 2 statements. Ask students to tell you which specific words suggest opinion and why. It is recommended to focus on the use of adjectives by posing the question:

Which words imply positive or superlative qualities (‘the best’, ‘the only good’) and their opposite, negative qualities (‘inferior’, ‘unreliable’)?

Step 3

Challenge students' thinking by asking them if sentence 1 could be opinion-based. Based on their responses, underline the 2 adjectives that could make it opinion-based.

For example:

Solar power is an efficient and reliable energy source

Discuss this as a class. Introduce and explain the use of hyperbole with a statement such as: ‘Everyone knows that using solar energy wears out the sun, and eventually we will all be sitting in the dark.’ Hyperbole is a statement that is so exaggerated that it cannot be taken literally. It is a popular device in humour writing.

Step 4

Discuss how subtle word choices can shift a statement from fact to opinion, and how this can be tricky to spot because it requires a judgement based on:

the reliability of the source
the evidence and facts that are presented to support a statement
the special or expert knowledge of the author or speaker of the statement.

Statements that use opinion-based adjectives not backed by verifiable evidence are likely false claims.

Find Out: Media motivations

Step 1

Split the class into small groups of 2-4 students. Ask half of the groups to spend 2 minutes discussing this question:

Why might the media use opinion-based language when discussing clean energy?

Ask the other half of the groups to spend 2 minutes discussing this question:

How can blending fact and opinion influence public perception?

Step 2

After 2 minutes, have groups report to the class and discuss students’ findings. In their discussion, themes such as the following may be raised:

The competition for an audience.
Media ownership and alliances: Who wants what to be believed, and why? Who owns which media outlets, and what do they gain from swaying public opinion?
How do election cycles shift this? Does this happen more in the run-up to a national election?
Readers need to learn to spot opinion when disguised as fact. For example, it is important to check the reliability of a source, the speaker/author, and the evidence on which they base their claims.

Take Action: Critical readers

Step 1

Put students into pairs. Provide each pair with 3 excerpts about clean energy. Ensure the texts include fact, opinion, and blended statements.

Use the list below to guide you. Depending on your student's needs, you may need further research and source additional articles.

Written articles

• ABC News – Farmers for Climate Action finds most regional residents impacted by renewables are supportive

• ABC News – NSW's energy supply is 'extremely tight'. Here's how another heatwave could tip it over the edge

• ABC News – Central West NSW will be key in the green energy transition. But the proposed projects are dividing farming communities

• Carbon Brief – Solar is now the cheapest electricity in history

• Channel 9 – Residents say wind farm would ruin town's 'ambience'

• The Conversation – Australia needs better ways of storing renewable electricity for later

• The Guardian – Let’s not waste another summer debating climate science

• The Guardian – The Public wants clean energy, but this is Australia where climate wars never die

Video

Media Watch - Climate conversion. View from 01:08 to 02:00.

Step 2

In pairs, your student’s task is to write a report that analyses 3 excerpts.

In their report, students must:

identify which parts of the text are more factual, opinion-based, and likely misleading
highlight language that signals fact (for example, ‘data from [source] shows’ or ‘according to research by [source]’ or ‘the IEC reports that …’ ), opinion (for example, ‘it is believed’, ‘people say’) and hyperbole (for example, ‘everyone knows that…’)
evaluate the article's credibility and give the article a rating of high, medium or low likelihood of being verifiable by fact-checking.

Step 3

Circle the classroom to check for student understanding as they complete their report. Once they have finished, encourage students to seek feedback from other pairs.

Reflection

Invite pairs to share 1 example from their analysis and explain their reasoning to the class.

Fact vs Opinion in the Media

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Summary

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