Logical Fallacies - Think Better, Reason Better, Argue Better...

Welcome to my class on Logical Fallacies! 

I taught this subject for many years at a public school and understanding this concept help my students be better thinkers, reason better, and write more persuasively.

Why is it important to learn about Logical Fallacies?

Because a logical fallacy is an error in reasoning that creates an invalid argument. And if you don't know that you're arguments are invalid, then you don't know if your arguments are going of track - or if your arguments are even good arguments!

In this class, I will share with the learner one logical fallacy a week (sometimes two, depending on the complexity of the fallacy).

We will start out each class with a quick overview of the fallacy with the teacher, then we will work in small groups to work through a few examples of each fallacy. After the small groups, we will come back together and walk through each example of the logical fallacy so that I can confirm that students understand the idea.

My style is to ask questions to help understanding rather than just give answers outright. Whether I'm teaching logical fallacies, law, or any other subject, I've found the act of questioning helps students clarify their understanding or confusion in their own minds, which allows them to gain clarity on the topic eventually.

Then it's off to the races - by which I mean I give them some more practice problems to cement their understanding. If there is time - depending on student questions and the need to clear up any confusion - we try to create our own examples of that week's logical fallacy and share it with the class through the Outschool classroom.

Depending on the speed we go through the one logical fallacy for the week, there will always be a backup fallacy so that we use our time completely each week.

No prior knowledge is needed, and you can slip into the classes at any time. If we do not finish all of the practice problems during a class, then an answer sheet or a video explaining the answers will be provided so that students can finish up on their own.

This is one of the subjects I started teaching as a high school teacher that really helped students learn to be better thinkers and spot arguments that others make that are fallacious in nature.

January 2025 Schedule (January to May) (subject to change):

Week 1 (January 5 - 11): Equivocation Fallacy

Week 2 (January 12 - 18): Hasty Generalization

Week 3 (January 19 - 25): False Analogy

Week 4 (January 26 - February 1): Loaded Words Fallacy

Week 5 (February 2 - 8): Appeal to Emotion

Week 6 (February 9 - 15): Ad Hominem, (Circumstantial and Tu Quoque)

Week 7 (February 16 - 22):  Confirmation Bias

Week 8 (February 23 - March 1): Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc

Week 9 (March 2 - 8): Sunken Cost Fallacy

Week 10 (March 9 - 15): False Dilemma Fallacy

Week 11 (March 16 - 22): Red Herring Fallacy

Week 12 (March 23 - 29): Slippery Slope

Week 13 (March 30 - April 5): Middle Ground Fallacy

Week 14 (April 6 - 12): Appeal to Fear

Week 15 (April 13 - 19): Appeal to Anonymous Authority

Week 16 (April 20 - 26): Ad Hominem, (Abuse and Guilt by Association)

Week 17 (April 27 - May 3): Appeal to Accomplishment

Week 18 (May 4 - 10): Appeal to Popularity 

Week 19 (May 11 - 17): Circular Reasoning

Week 20 (May 18 - 24): Equivocation Fallacy (Same topic as first week of January - starting over)

Week 21 (May 25 - May 31): Hasty Generalization

Week 22 (June 1 - 7): False Analogy

Week 23 (June 8 - 14): Loaded Words Fallacy

Week 24 (June 15 - 21): Appeal to Emotion

Week 25 (June 22 - 28): Ad Hominem, (Circumstantial and Tu Quoque)

Week 7 (June 29 - July 5):  Confirmation Bias

Week 8 (July 6 - 12): Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc

Week 9 (July 13 - 19): Sunken Cost Fallacy

Week 10 (July 20 - 26): False Dilemma Fallacy

Week 11 (July 27 - August 2): Red Herring Fallacy

Week Off

Week 12 (August 10 - 16): Slippery Slope

Week 13 (August 17 - 23): Middle Ground Fallacy

Week 14 (August 24 - 30): Appeal to Fear

Week 15 (August 31 - September 6): Appeal to Anonymous Authority

Week 16 (September 7 - 13): Ad Hominem, (Abuse and Guilt by Association)

Week 17 (September 14 - 20): Appeal to Accomplishment

Week 18 (September 21 - 27): Appeal to Popularity 

Week 19 (September 28 - October 5): Circular Reasoning

I look forward to working with you in this class!