Build a polished interactive educational web app called “The Evidence Room” for middle-school students in seventh grade.
GOAL Teach students to evaluate claims using evidence.
Students should learn that evaluating information involves multiple dimensions:
- Who is making the claim?
- What evidence is provided?
- How directly does the evidence address the claim?
- How strong is the evidence?
- What might be missing?
- Does another source support or contradict it?
This should feel like an investigation or detective case, not a quiz.
TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS
- Build a self-contained browser-based app requiring no login, backend, API key, installation, or internet access.
- Prefer index.html plus CSS and JavaScript.
- No external APIs.
- Make it highly usable on a classroom projector, Chromebook, laptop, or tablet.
- Use accessible typography and controls.
- Keep the interface visually sophisticated enough that middle-school students do not perceive it as an elementary-school game.
OPENING EXPERIENCEOpen with:
THE EVIDENCE ROOM“Can you decide what the evidence actually shows?”
Give students a claim to investigate.
For the default case, use a fictional school-related claim that is interesting but nonpolitical, such as:
“Starting school one hour later would improve student learning.”
Make clear that the task is NOT to agree or disagree initially.
The task is:“Decide how strongly the available evidence supports the claim.”
THE EVIDENCE DESKDisplay six evidence items as visually distinct documents/cards.
Use fictional but realistic examples representing different evidence types, such as:
- a student social-media post
- a school survey
- a local news report
- a scientific research summary
- an expert interview
- a school attendance/data report
The evidence should NOT be designed so that one source is obviously “good” and another obviously “bad.”
Introduce realistic complications:
- a credible source that is only weakly relevant
- a highly relevant source with a small sample
- correlation that does not establish causation
- an anecdote that is emotionally compelling but weak evidence
- a study with useful evidence but limitations
- a source that selectively presents information
SOURCE INSPECTION When a student opens a source, let them inspect:
- source
- date
- author/organization
- evidence presented
- methodology or sample, where appropriate
- possible limitations
Students should be able to annotate each source using categories such as:
RELEVANCE Low / Medium / High
EVIDENCE STRENGTH Weak / Moderate / Strong
TRUSTWORTHINESS Low / Medium / High
Then require a short justification:“What made you rate it this way?”
IMPORTANT:Do not automatically equate prestigious sources with strong evidence.Do not teach “website A is credible, website B is not.”Teach students to evaluate the actual evidence and reasoning.
EVIDENCE BOARD Create an investigation board where students can organize evidence into:
SUPPORTS THE CLAIM CHALLENGES THE CLAIM UNCERTAIN / NOT ENOUGH INFORMATION
Allow them to drag evidence cards among the categories.
As evidence accumulates, visually show that conclusions can become:
- stronger
- weaker
- more uncertain
FINAL VERDICT At the end, require the student to choose:
Strongly supportedSomewhat supportedEvidence is mixedSomewhat unsupportedStrongly unsupportedNot enough evidence
Then require:
“My conclusion is ______ because the strongest evidence is ______.”
and
“One important limitation or unanswered question is ______.”
Do not tell students that only one verdict is acceptable if multiple conclusions could reasonably be defended.
Instead, evaluate the QUALITY OF THEIR REASONING.
Provide feedback such as:“You relied heavily on one anecdote.”“You noticed that the largest study supports the claim, but also identified its limitation.”“You classified this evidence as relevant, but did not explain why.”
AI-ERA EXTENSION Include one evidence item generated by an AI system.
Do not label it initially as “bad.”
Its content should sound plausible but include a subtle unsupported statement or invented statistic.
After students analyze it, reveal:“This source was generated by AI.”
Ask:“What should you verify before relying on it?”
The lesson should be that AI output must be evaluated using the same evidence standards—not that AI is automatically unreliable.
TEACHER MODE Include a collapsible Teacher Settings section.
Make it easy for a teacher to replace the entire case using a configuration object.
Teacher-customizable fields should include:
- case title
- central claim
- student instructions
- evidence cards
- evidence metadata
- hidden strengths/limitations of each source
- recommended discussion questions
- whether the AI-generated evidence card is included
- final reflection question
Include a button:“Load Example Case”
and provide at least one alternate built-in case in a different subject, such as:“Does adding fertilizer always make plants grow faster?”
This is important because I want teachers to immediately understand that the SAME TOOL can be repurposed for English, science, social studies, health, and other subjects.
TEACHER DEBRIEF After the student submits a verdict, provide optional teacher discussion prompts such as:
- Which source changed your thinking most?
- Is the most trustworthy source necessarily the most useful?
- What evidence would you want before making a decision?
- Can two reasonable people examine the same evidence and reach different conclusions?
- What does “not enough evidence” mean?
POLISH Make the interface visually resemble an investigation workspace:
- evidence folders
- cards
- subtle connecting lines
- investigation board
Avoid cartoon detective clichés.Make it modern and intellectually serious.
Before finishing:
- run and test the artifact
- make sure drag/drop or alternative accessible controls work reliably
- confirm that the default case contains genuine ambiguity
- ensure students cannot succeed simply by guessing the “approved” source
- improve the UI wherever needed
Finally, create a README explaining:
1. the learning objective,
2. a suggested 30-minute classroom activity,
3. how a teacher can create a completely new Evidence Room by editing the configuration.