Lesson plan

John E. Olson

John Eric Olson (November 27, 1917 – October 2, 2012) was a U.S. Army Colonel, West Point graduate (class of 1939), and one of the last surviving officers of the Bataan Death March of World War II. He was also a military historian and author of three books, as well as numerous magazine articles dealing primarily with his experiences as a prisoner of war in the Philippines and in Japan from 1942 to 1945.

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Article summary

John Eric Olson (November 27, 1917 – October 2, 2012) was a U.S. Army Colonel, West Point graduate (class of 1939), and one of the last surviving officers of the Bataan Death March of World War II. He was also a military historian and author of three books, as well as numerous magazine articles dealing primarily with his experiences as a prisoner of war in the Philippines and in Japan from 1942 to 1945.

Key claims

  1. date of birth: 1917-11-27 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
  2. publication date: 1983 — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95

Discussion questions

  1. Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
  2. The record states that the date of birth is "1917-11-27". What evidence would count against this claim?
  3. The record states that the publication date is "1983". What evidence would count against this claim?
  4. Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
  5. If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?

Bibliography

  1. Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1361635792

Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.