Q16 - Debater: As a pedagogical practice

[judaydaday]

Is (D) correct because the debater is talking about the hierarchy between the people/agents involved with lecturing while the respondent is talking about the hierarchy within the subjects?

Also, can someone please explain why (E) is incorrect?

[rinagoldfield]

Hi Judaydaday,

Thanks for your post.

You’re exactly right about (D) here. The debater discusses hierarchy between people, such as a boss/employee relationship. The respondent talks about the hierarchy of ideas, which is a really different use of the term “hierarchy.” Thus the respondent engages with the debater’s words, but not with his ideas.

(E) is incorrect because math is explicitly offered as an example in the respondent’s argument. The respondent does not generalize from math to other disciplines; rather, he makes a general claim an offers a specific example to illustrate that claim.

(A) is incorrect because the respondent offers no concession.
(B) is wrong for the same reason as (E); math is an example, not the foundation of the respondent’s argument.
(C) Is out of scope. This argument concerns hierarchy, not other issues.

Best,
Rina