ACT Preparation / Unit 18 ACT 1719 worked example, 60 to 90 seconds
What Would Strengthen the Claim?
The idea
A strengthen-or-weaken question is answered in three steps. First, state the claim and the gap in its support: the assumption it relies on, or the alternative it ignores. Second, for strengthen, look for the choice that closes the gap; for weaken, the one that widens it or supports the alternative. Third, check that the choice addresses this claim, not the topic in general.
In practice
Worked example: the invented breakfast claim assumes that breakfast causes higher grades. A finding that grades rose in schools that began serving breakfast, compared with similar schools that did not, would strengthen it, because it tests the cause directly. A finding that students who eat breakfast also sleep more would weaken it, because it supports another explanation.
Where people slip
A choice can be true and on topic yet irrelevant to the gap. "Breakfast is the most important meal" neither tests nor challenges the cause.
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