Evaluate conclusions
Bias, framing, and omitted perspectives
Check who is represented, what is missing, and whether the wording fits the measured evidence.
Lesson 5 of 6 in the recommended order · About 25 min (estimate)
On this page
Practical AI glossary — terms and common confusions
- Model
- A learned component used to produce a result.
A drafting model is one part of a letter app; it is not the whole app.
- Application
- The software experience around components and services.
A letter app adds accounts, storage, and a Send button.
- Prompt
- Instructions and input supplied for a task.
“Summarize this notice in two bullets” specifies a task and shape, not a truth guarantee.
- Token
- A unit a model processes; it need not be a whole word.
A tokenizer can split a name into pieces; count using the actual system.
- Context
- Information available for the current request.
An earlier attachment may be absent even when its filename is visible.
- Training
- Adjusting a model using examples.
A training log differs from a conversation correction.
- Inference
- Using a trained model to produce a result.
Drafting another sentence does not by itself prove retraining.
- Retrieval
- Selecting material to supply to a task.
A retrieved notice still needs a relevance and date check.
- Embedding
- A numerical representation used to compare or organize items.
A similar search match is a candidate, not proof of the same meaning.
- Tool
- A function an application can call.
A calendar lookup can be read-only; finding an event is different from creating one.
- Agent
- Software that can choose and carry out steps toward a goal.
An agent still needs bounded permissions and checked action receipts.
- Hallucination
- Plausible generated content that is unsupported or false.
An invented opening time needs evidence or removal, even when phrased confidently.
- Evaluation
- Checking results against stated criteria.
Twenty checked examples establish a bounded result, not universal reliability.
- Multimodal
- Working with more than one kind of input or output.
A photo plus text does not prove every small label in the photo was read correctly.
Outcome
Identify unsupported representation claims and preserve relevant missing perspectives without inventing them.
Why it matters
Check who is represented, what is missing, and whether the wording fits the measured evidence.
Concept
A report can use accurate numbers yet mislead through its framing or omissions. Check who could respond, who actually responded, how questions were worded, and whose needs the decision affects. A convenient sample does not become representative simply because it is large or neatly summarized.
Correcting an omission does not mean inventing what absent people believe. State the gap and seek appropriate input if needed. Avoid replacing one stereotype with another. A balanced account follows the evidence and makes relevant limits visible; it does not require giving unsupported claims equal weight.
Worked example
Cedar received responses from 18 of 24 invitees, and 12 respondents preferred mornings. “Everyone wants mornings” erases both the six other respondents and six nonrespondents. Report the actual count and response coverage. Do not assume that all nonrespondents prefer evenings.
Cedar continuity note: these lessons use separate snapshots—room selection, booking pending, booking confirmed, and later attendance review. Survey responses are preferences, not attendance. Each supplied packet identifies the facts for its own task; do not import a later snapshot into an earlier decision.
Which preferences are known?
One square represents one invited volunteer
| Mark | Group | Count |
|---|---|---|
| M | Known morning preference | 12 |
| R | Other respondents | 6 |
| ? | Nonrespondents: preference unknown | 6 |
What the responses say
Known morning preferences- 12 of 18 respondents
Other respondents- 6 of 18 respondents
The worked example does not assign a more specific preference to the other six respondents.
What the invitation count says
Invited- 24 volunteers
Replied- 18 volunteers
Did not reply- 6 volunteers
Those six preferences are unrecorded. Nonresponse is not a vote against morning.
Before you check
Write a coverage note with invited, responded, and not represented fields. Rewrite one headline so it preserves the limit without burying the measured result.
Practice and fresh transfer
The packets below are fictional and contain the facts needed for these cases. External references are optional background. Judge each response independently: it may be supported, contradicted, or unresolved. Select the passages needed to justify your judgment and write why the distinction matters before revealing feedback.
Assess the response
Use Accept when all material claims are supported. Use Revise when a supplied fact or requirement is contradicted. Use Evidence is insufficient when a key fact cannot be established either way. If a response contains both an unknown and a direct contradiction, choose Revise and explain both problems. Conflicting claims with no established authority remain insufficient; a claim does not become a governing fact merely because a source asserts it.
Some responses are fully supported. Others need correction or more evidence. Judge each on its sources; do not edit a correct answer just to change it.
Your written notes stay in this page and disappear when you leave. Only a self-reviewed completion can be saved to your learning account. These practice checks do not establish independent proficiency.
Practice
Case 1
Consider the proposed response for this fictional Cedar work task. Use the supplied packet and stated requirements.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Survey: 24 volunteers invited; 18 replied. Of replies, 12 selected morning and 6 evening.
- Source 2
- Limit: No preferences are recorded for the 6 nonrespondents.
Response to assess
Twelve of 18 respondents preferred morning; six invitees did not respond, so their preferences are unknown.
Practice
Case 2
Consider the proposed response for this fictional Cedar work task. Use the supplied packet and stated requirements.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Survey scope: Only attendees of the Tuesday online session were asked.
- Source 2
- Headline purpose: Describe what the survey supports.
Response to assess
All neighborhood residents prefer online sessions.
Fresh transfer
Case 3
Consider a fictional note about a missing perspective.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Feedback log: All 10 comments came from daytime staff; night staff were not asked.
- Source 2
- Decision brief: The proposed schedule affects both daytime and night staff.
Response to assess
Night staff views are missing and relevant to this decision; seek their input rather than assuming agreement.
Fresh transfer
Case 4
Consider a fictional causal claim about survey nonresponse.
Source packet
- Source 1
- Survey record: Eight invitees did not respond. No reasons were collected.
- Source 2
- Reminder record: A reminder was sent; the log records no replies explaining nonresponse.
Response to assess
The eight did not respond because they dislike the project.
Save your self-review
Completion records that you reviewed the cases. Your explanation and transfer performance need a facilitator to establish independent learning.
Sign in with your learning-center account to save completion.
Review the explanation for every case before saving.
Optional fictional visual framing example
This generated room is a separate teaching example, not a photograph of Cedar or evidence in the practice packet. Use the images or their equivalent visual descriptions.
Fictional room: whole image and a closer view
View A: whole generated image
Visual description: a table and folding chairs, a blank noticeboard, a window and an open doorway at the right edge. No people are visible.
View B: left-half crop of the same file
Visual description: part of the table, folding chairs, window and blank noticeboard. No doorway or people are visible within this frame.
A headline based only on View B says, “This room has no doorway.” What context did the headline omit? Rewrite it so it states only what the cropped view establishes. Can either view establish who booked or attended an event here?
Check the limited claim
View B does not show a doorway within its frame. View A includes one at the right edge, so the cropped view cannot establish that the room has no doorway. A faithful headline would say, “No doorway is visible in this cropped view.” Neither view is a booking or attendance record, and neither settles the room’s accessibility.
Summary and next step
Apply the checklist to a new task. Preserve supported content, explain any change with evidence, and name what remains unresolved. Saving records self-review, not independently demonstrated proficiency. A facilitator must assess the explanation and fresh transfer for human learning evidence.