#16 - Media consultant: Electronic media are bound to bring

[kristinajohnson@berkeley.edu]

KP,

In order to pick an answer like C, you would have to be able to show that somewhere in the stimulus the author included a premise that whatever he is trying to prove can happen and then conclude that it therefore will happen. While it must be true that the author assumes that traditional schools can fail to survive, he never actually says it. Also, perhaps more importantly, he would have to base his conclusion primarily, maybe even solely, on that premise. In other words, the argument would have to be something explicit like "Traditional schools could fail to survive due to the increased prevalence of electronic media, therefore they will fail to survive."

That didn't happen here - the idea that they could fail was only embodied in the assumptions and in his conclusion, rather than in any premises. Additionally, he based his conclusion not merely on that possibility, but on some historical evidence about printed books. That should take answer C out of the running - it only covers a portion of the argument and not the heart of the argument.

I think there is something very important to note in your analysis, and that's your statement that answer D is "more concrete". I think it's fair to say that's pretty close to saying it's a better answer, isn't it? Remember that the instructions tell us to pick the best answer and not merely a good answer or even the correct answer. If D is more concrete, it's better, and that means that if you are stuck between C and D you MUST pick D, even if you think C is also possibly true. Don't let your feelings about an answer being good stop you from picking another answer that's better.

Again, good job and good thinking. Keep it up!

Subsidiary conclusion: "Electronic media are bound to bring an end to the institution of the traditional school in our culture."

Premise: "This is because the emergence of the traditional school, characterized by a group of students gathered with a teacher in a classroom, was facilitated by the availability of relatively inexpensive printed books."

Premise: "Currently, however, the function of books in communicating information is gradually being taken over by electronic media."

Main conclusion: "So, it is inevitable that the traditional school will not survive in our culture."

I don't understand why C is incorrect. C says, "presupposes that just because something can happen it will happen." Is the "presupposes that just because something can happen" part referring to: "Currently, however, the function of books in communicating information is gradually being taken over by electronic media" in the stimulus, and is the "it will happen" part referring to: "So, it is inevitable that the traditional school will not survive in our culture" in the stimulus? The "can happen" part is "taken over by electronic media," and the "will happen" part is "will not survive" in my mind. Obviously, I'm mistaken.

Also, I don't see how I was supposed to see that books was sufficient and school was necessary. Can someone further elaborate on these issues?

Thank you.