English Language Arts and Reading.7.8.E.iii

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The student is expected to

analyze characteristics and structures of argumentative text by:

 

identifying the intended audience or reader; 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.

Read two texts with very different intended audiences. Elicit a class discussion in which students determine who they believe the intended audience to be. Have students cite specific reasons from the text to support their answers.
 

Further Explanation

Students should be able to identify the group for whom the author’s message is intended. In order to do this, students must first determine the author’s purpose. They must also consider who would be interested in the topic being presented and be aware that the intended audience could be a single person, a group of people, or the general public.

Students should be able to examine specific components of an argumentative text and make determinations about how and/or why the components were used. Students should know that argumentative texts have unique characteristics such as a claim, an intended audience, and the use of facts in support or refutation of an argument. Students should also understand that argumentative texts tend to be structured based on the structure of the claim. For instance, if the claim is that one course of action might be better than another, an advantage/disadvantage structure would likely be used.
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.
Students are expected to identify the intended group meant to receive an author’s message. Authors may have various motivations for what they decide to write. They may want to inform readers about something, explain something to the reader, persuade them to do something, or simply entertain them. It is also possible that the author intends to do any number of these things within the same text. It is also important that students think about who would be interested in the topic being presented and be aware that the intended audience could be a single person, a group of people, or the general public.

Research

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 in response to and for a particular audience. This resource is a advanced deep dive, including charts to illustrate how to analyze opposing positions and develop questions from a critical perspective.