Question

Read the resolution and the affirmative claim.


Resolution: Higher education should be available at no cost in the US.


Affirmative claim: All students should have access to a free college education. Within the last twenty years, the average cost of college has nearly tripled, making a college degree unobtainable for many.

Which piece of evidence would be most effective for the affirmative side?

The cost of attending a trade school is about half the cost of attending a traditional college.
Students attending college in the US spend an average of nearly $26,000 a year for tuition and fees.
A recent survey determined that nearly 63 percent of high school graduates attend college.
The government spends over $720 billion to educate students from kindergarten through high school.

Answer 1

"Students attending college in the US spend an average of nearly $26,000 a year for tuition and fees."

Explanation: this directly supports the affirmative's argument about rising, prohibitive costs and the need for free college. The other options either compare costs (trade school) without showing unaffordability, give enrollment rates that don't address cost, or note K–12 spending that doesn't prove why higher ed should be free.