Separating and analyzing components and evaluating them may seem very similar, but evaluation might be viewed as a final critique of the opinions we’ve formed about the knowledge. Having reached a preliminary decision, students need to learn to take a step back and judge their own opinions and decisions objectively.

Keywords to help them develop this skill are:

• Appraise
• Assess
• Choose
• Compare
• Conclude
• Consider
• Contrast
• Critique
• Decide
• Defend
• Evaluate
• Interpret
• Judge
• Justify
• Prioritize
• Rate
• Recommend
• Summarize
• Support
• Weigh

An opinion worth having is one you can back up with well-processed reason. The goal is not to become opinionated, but to become convinced is such a way that we know we can stand firm.