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Level 4 Diploma in Business Management

Evaluating an argument: coherence, testing the evidence and using sources fairly

BM401 · Academic Writing and Research Skills — Week 11 of 16

CourseBM401
Week11 of 16
SemesterI
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This week’s topics

Evaluating an argument: coherence, testing the evidence and using sources fairly

  1. Argument coherence
  2. Evidence testing
  3. Validity testing

What you will be able to do

  • 3.4 Explain how to apply techniques to evaluate an argument.

Activity

Start with this week’s 3 videos, then discuss how they apply to this week’s topic and note one example from a real business.

Study materials

Videos

  • Using single paragraph outlines to plan an effective argument · Oak National Academy, Key Stage 4 (GCSE level) · plays on Oak’s website · for registered students
  • How to Use Sources in a Research Paper and Avoid Plagiarism - 3 Easy Steps · YouTube · David Taylor · 9 min · for registered students
  • How to reference with Harvard referencing system – in-text citations & reference list, with examples · YouTube · Degree Doctor · 13 min · for registered students

Further resources

  • College Success, ch. 7.7: Information literacy · PDF · OpenStax (2020), section 7.7 on judging sources and separating fact from opinion; pp. 219–222 · for registered students
  • Harvard Referencing quick guide 2025 (York St John University) · PDF · York St John University (2025), two-page guide to Harvard in-text citations and reference lists · for registered students
  • Writing Guide with Handbook, ch. 13.6: Ethical research · PDF · OpenStax (2021), section 13.6 on plagiarism and using sources honestly; pp. 445–446 · for registered students
  • Citations in search of a purpose: Source use and authorial voice in L2 student writing · Open-access article · McCulloch (2012), International Journal for Educational Integrity. Contrasts students who just insert quotations with those who use sources to support their own argument. · for registered students
  • Patterns in plagiarism and patchwriting in student research proposals · Open-access article · Vieyra et al. (2013), International Journal for Educational Integrity. Shows how 'patchwriting' (light rewording of sources) slips into student writing and how to avoid it. · for registered students
Materials marked “for registered students” open in the student portal, which is set up as soon as you receive final acceptance.
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Course plan
  • Week 1: What academic research and writing is: seeking the truth an…
  • Week 2: Academic writing conventions: academic language, paragraphs…
  • Week 3: Paraphrasing, summarising and writing to a word count
  • Week 4: Types of research (descriptive, associational, intervention…
  • Week 5: Sources of information and evidence: journals, textbooks, c…
  • Week 6: The research process: primary and secondary research
  • Week 7: What critical thinking is: a systematic way to evaluate arg…
  • Week 8: Midterm evaluation
  • Week 9: Critical thinking skills: critical reading, analysis, inter…
  • Week 10: Why critical thinking matters in research: creativity, lang…
  • Week 11: Evaluating an argument: coherence, testing the evidence and…
  • Week 12: What makes a reliable academic argument: evidence, premise …
  • Week 13: Inductive and deductive reasoning
  • Week 14: Building a logical argument structure for a given topic
  • Week 15: Review and coursework completion
  • Week 16: Final evaluation and project assessment
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