Critical Analysis & Evaluation
📋 What it is
Judge whether a ratio or percent claim is reasonable; catch misleading statistics.
🗣️ Coach says
Percents can mislead. "50% more!" of a tiny amount is still tiny. A ratio quoted without its total can hide the truth. Checking whether a percent claim is reasonable — and asking "percent of what?" — protects you.
🧠 Memory hook
Always ask "percent of WHAT?" A big-sounding percent of a small base is still small.
😂 Giggle
Why did the percent always feel under pressure?
Because everyone expected it to perform out of 100!
😲 Whoa!
Ads love "up to 70% off!" — but "up to" means a few items; most are barely discounted. A reasoning trap.
✅ Quick check: A shop says "200% more sold!" but sold just 3 last year. How many this year?
Say your answer out loud first — then reveal.
9 — 200% more than 3 is 3 + 6 = 9 (still small).
A huge percent of a small base is still a small number.
🧪 Try it! (2 minutes)
Find a real "% off" claim and work out the actual dollar saving. Is it as big as it sounds?