BREAKING: Target Test Prep releases Brand New 2026 On Demand GMAT prep course

Redeem

Weakening the argument?

This topic has expert replies
Post new topic Post Reply
Previous Topic Next Topic
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 137
Joined: Fri Nov 13, 2015 11:01 am
Thanked: 1 times
Followed by:2 members

Weakening the argument?

by Amrabdelnaby » Tue Dec 15, 2015 10:10 am
Is this a weakening the argument question?

I chose answer choice A based on this understanding and it turned out to be wrong.

Can someone pls explain to me the reasoning here?

Thanks

The Metropolitan Cooking Academy surveyed prospective students and found that students wanted a curriculum that focused on today's healthy dining trends. In order to reverse the trend of declining interest in the school's programs, administrators propose a series of new courses focused on cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables.

Which of the following, if true, supplies the best reason to suspect that the proposed new courses will increase interest in the Metropolitan Cooking Academy?

A)Cooking fish, grains, and vegetables relies on the same culinary fundamentals as does the preparation of other ingredients.

B)In the food and beverage industry, many employers no longer have time to train apprentices and therefore demand basic culinary skills from their new hires.

C)Local producers in the area near the Metropolitan Cooking Academy are excellent sources of exotic fish and organic vegetables.

D)Many other cooking schools have found a decline in the level of interest in their programs.

E)Many advocates of healthy dining stress the importance of including fish, grains, and organically produced vegetables in one's diet.
Top
Source: — Critical Reasoning |
User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 2135
Joined: Mon Feb 03, 2014 9:26 am
Location: https://martymurraycoaching.com/
Thanked: 955 times
Followed by:140 members
GMAT Score:800

by MartyMurray » Wed Dec 16, 2015 6:51 pm
Amrabdelnaby wrote:Is this a weakening the argument question?

I chose answer choice A based on this understanding and it turned out to be wrong.

Can someone pls explain to me the reasoning here?
I believe you can answer your own question. Is there anything in question stem that discusses weakening the argument, undermining the argument or calling the argument into question?

Beyond that, does the question type really matter? Not really. No matter what type of question you are looking at you need to do pretty much the same thing to get the right answer, which thing is to really understand the logic of the argument, clearly identify what the question is asking, and determine the relationship between each answer choice and the question and prompt.

So with that in mind, what's the logic of the prompt?

Students were surveyed and want a curriculum focused on healthy dining trends, and to increase interest in the school's programs, the administrators proposed new courses focused on certain things.

Notice a KEY thing. While the courses might in your mind be connected to the survey results, the courses are not in the prompt itself really connected to the survey results. Getting CR questions right often requires noticing the difference between what is going on in your mind and what is clearly stated.

Now, the question asks which answer choice supplies the best reason to suspect that the courses will increase interest.

Choice E does that. Why? Choice E fills the gap between the survey results and the proposed courses, because by saying that advocates of healthy dining stress the importance of including certain foods in one's diet, it connects the proposed courses focused on preparing particular foods with the desires of the students for courses that focus on healthy dining trends.
Marty Murray
Perfect Scoring Tutor With Over a Decade of Experience
MartyMurrayCoaching.com
Contact me at [email protected] for a free consultation.
Top
User avatar
Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
Posts: 64
Joined: Tue May 22, 2012 10:44 pm
Thanked: 1 times

by evs.teja » Sat Dec 26, 2015 8:58 am
Marty Murray wrote:
I believe you can answer your own question. Is there anything in question stem that discusses weakening the argument, undermining the argument or calling the argument into question?
Dear Marty Murray
According to the chosen answer ....it looks as if it is strengthen the question, but I have never come across such a language in framing a question. It is usually Which of the following if true supports the conclusion or
Which of the following if true weakens the conclusion
Here it is suspect whose meaning, according to my understanding, somewhat resembles weakening the argument.

Please explain where am I thinking wrong ?
Top
User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 15539
Joined: Tue May 25, 2010 12:04 pm
Location: New York, NY
Thanked: 13060 times
Followed by:1906 members
GMAT Score:790

by GMATGuruNY » Sat Dec 26, 2015 12:37 pm
Amrabdelnaby wrote: The Metropolitan Cooking Academy surveyed prospective students and found that students wanted a curriculum that focused on today's healthy dining trends. In order to reverse the trend of declining interest in the school's programs, administrators propose a series of new courses focused on cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables.

Which of the following, if true, supplies the best reason to suspect that the proposed new courses will increase interest in the Metropolitan Cooking Academy?

A)Cooking fish, grains, and vegetables relies on the same culinary fundamentals as does the preparation of other ingredients.

B)In the food and beverage industry, many employers no longer have time to train apprentices and therefore demand basic culinary skills from their new hires.

C)Local producers in the area near the Metropolitan Cooking Academy are excellent sources of exotic fish and organic vegetables.

D)Many other cooking schools have found a decline in the level of interest in their programs.

E)Many advocates of healthy dining stress the importance of including fish, grains, and organically produced vegetables in one's diet.
Premise: Since students want a curriculum that focuses on today's healthy dining trends, administrators have proposed a series of new courses focused on cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables.

Conclusion: The series of new courses will reverse the trend of declining interest -- in the words, the series will INCREASE interest -- in the school's programs.

This CR assumes that there is a link between healthy dining trends and cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables.

Question stem: Which of the following, if true, supplies the best reason to suspect that the proposed new courses will increase interest in the Metropolitan Cooking Academy?
In other words, which of the following answers SUPPORTS the conclusion that the series of new courses will increase interest in the school's programs?

To support the conclusion, the correct answer choice must strengthen the link between healthy dining trends and cooking exotic species of fish, alternative grains such as quinoa, and organically produced vegetables
Only E strengthens this link:
Many advocates of healthy dining stress the importance of including fish, grains, and organically produced vegetables in one's diet.

The correct answer is E.
Private tutor exclusively for the GMAT and GRE, with over 20 years of experience.
Followed here and elsewhere by over 1900 test-takers.
I have worked with students based in the US, Australia, Taiwan, China, Tajikistan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia -- a long list of countries.
My students have been admitted to HBS, CBS, Tuck, Yale, Stern, Fuqua -- a long list of top programs.

As a tutor, I don't simply teach you how I would approach problems.
I unlock the best way for YOU to solve problems.

For more information, please email me (Mitch Hunt) at [email protected].
Student Review #1
Student Review #2
Student Review #3
Top
User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 2135
Joined: Mon Feb 03, 2014 9:26 am
Location: https://martymurraycoaching.com/
Thanked: 955 times
Followed by:140 members
GMAT Score:800

by MartyMurray » Sun Dec 27, 2015 8:49 pm
evs.teja wrote:According to the chosen answer ....it looks as if it is strengthen the question, but I have never come across such a language in framing a question. It is usually Which of the following if true supports the conclusion or
Which of the following if true weakens the conclusion
Here it is suspect whose meaning, according to my understanding, somewhat resembles weakening the argument.

Please explain where am I thinking wrong ?
You are wrong in looking at the single word suspect and from seeing that one word deciding that this is a weaken question.

The question does not ask something along the lines of "Which of the following renders this argument suspect?"

It also does not ask, "Which of the follow supplies the best reason to be suspicious of the conclusion that the proposed new courses will increase interest ... ?"

If the question were to ask either of those things, this critical reasoning question would be a weaken question.

The question asks, "Which of the following, if true, supplies the best reason to suspect that the proposed new courses will increase interest ... ?"

What that means is similar to what is meant by "Which of the following supplies to the best reason to believe that ... ?"

So depending on the context, the use of the word suspect can convey different things.
Marty Murray
Perfect Scoring Tutor With Over a Decade of Experience
MartyMurrayCoaching.com
Contact me at [email protected] for a free consultation.
Top
Post new topic Post Reply
• Page 1 of 1