English Language Arts and Reading.5.9.E.ii

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The student is expected to

recognize characteristics and structures of argumentative text by:

 

explaining how the author has used facts for or against an argument; and

multiple genres TEKS talk image

Knowledge and Skills Statement

Multiple genres: listening, speaking, reading, writing, and thinking using multiple texts--genres. The student recognizes and analyzes genre-specific characteristics, structures, and purposes within and across increasingly complex traditional, contemporary, classical, and diverse texts.

Provide students with a short article to read about a familiar topic. Have students work in pairs to fill out a graphic organizer identifying the author's claim and listing all evidence used by the author to support or refute the claim. Once students have identified the examples, they should differentiate facts from opinions. Last, have students explain how the facts were used by the author and whether the author was successful in presenting the argument.
 

Further Explanation

Students must first understand that an argumentative piece has a claim and then be able to identify that claim. Students who are unable to identify the claim will not be able to identify the facts that support it. Students should also be able to recognize effective use of facts and whether they are presented in support of or to refute the claim.

a position on a topic or issue developed through appeals to the audience and largely based upon logic, reasoning, and evidence
a text written to demonstrate to an audience that a certain position or idea is valid and that others are not The writer appeals to reason, develops, defends, or debates the topic, connecting a series of statements in an orderly way so they lead to a logical conclusion.
a detail or idea that can be shown and verified as true, to exist, or to have happened; a statement that can be proven with data, observations, and reliable sources
Arguments are presented through reasoning and must be supported by facts. Explaining how an author uses facts to support or refute an argument is a skill that students are expected to acquire and use. It is important that students recognize the different positions presented in a text about certain topic or issue so they can explain how the author uses evidence in favor or against arguments and counterarguments.
Recognizing characteristics requires determining the specific components of something. In reading, students are expected to have a clear idea of the particular attributes of argumentative text. For example, they should know that an argumentative text has unique characteristics such as a claim, an intended audience, and the use of facts in support or refutation of an argument.
Students should recognize structures, such as introduction, claim, facts, arguments, counterarguments, and conclusion, of argumentative text that create the way an argumentative essay is organized. Each one of these structures has a specific function in an argumentative text that students should identify and explain.

Research

1. Mirra, N. Honoroff, B., Elgendy, S., & Piertzak G. (2016). Reading and writing with a public purpose: Fostering middle school students' academic and critical community literacies through debate. Journal of Language and Literacy Education. 12(1), 1–22. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1100979.pdf

Summary: This study looks at debate as a way to encourage students to analyze complex texts as a means to increase their academic reading, comprehension, and critical literacy skills. Middle school students were given writing prompts from which they built evidenced-based argumentative essays. Those essays were further refined through the debate process.

2. Wagemans, J.H.M. (2011). The assessment of argumentation from expert opinion. Argumentation, 25, 329–330. doi: 10.1007/s10503-011-9225-8

Summary: This article introduces a tool that can be used to format an argument from a position of expertise and experience. The tool allows students to learn how to analyze opposing positions and develop questions from a critical perspective. The tool fosters reading comprehension and writing skills.

3. Nussbaum, E.M., & Schraw, G. (2017). Promoting argument-counterargument integration in students' writing. The Journal of Experimental Education, 76(1), 59-92. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ807872

Summary: This study provides instructional strategies to improve the students' ability to construct an argument for or against a position. A graphic organizer is suggested as a means to identify the argument and counterargument before developing a final conclusion. Although the participants in this study were undergraduates, the practical application of the strategy is consistent with lower grades. The process also increased the students' reasoning and ability to create rebuttals.

4. Jonassen, D.H., & Kim. B. (2009). Arguing to learn and learning to argue: Design justification and guidelines. Education Technology &  Research Development, 5I(4), 439–457. doi: 10.1007/s11423-009-9143-8

Summary: In this study, the researcher suggest that students who experience meaningful learning are also deeply engaged in the learning process. The study focuses on argumentative writing. Jonassen and Kim consider critical thinking as a way to facilitate conceptual change and problem solving in fact critical thinking is foundational to learning how to effectively argue. The study also examines what occurs when a student is unsuccessful in persuading an audience or presenting an argument. The report provides ways to evaluate the arguments for their quality.