Abstract
In broad terms, studies in argument can be ranged on a continuum between formal ‘internal’ notions of argument (e.g. ‘evidence supporting a conclusion’), to argument as action aimed at belief and behaviour within communicative situations. A number of divisions can be discerned in these studies. The first stems from early Greek thought and results in, on the one hand, the philosophical tradition in which language is used transparently in the pursuit of truth and, on the other, a rhetorical tradition concerned with the style and arrangement of language for the production of effects. The second is roughly a division between ‘nature and nurture’: the nature view, in various forms generally held by psychologists, is that the ability to argue is acquired developmentally; whilst the nurturers (generally educationalists) are concerned with the way argument may be developed through teaching and learning strategies (see the review by Costello).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Andrews, R., (ed.): 1989, Narrative and Argument, Open University Press, Milton Keynes.
Andrews, R.: 1995, Teaching and Learning Argument, Cassell, London.
Barnes, D., Britton, J. & Rosen, H.: 1969, Language, the Learner and the School, Penguin, Harmondsworth.
Berrill, D.: 1992 ‘Issues of audience: Egocentrism revisited’, in Andrews, R. (ed.), Rebirth of Rhetoric, Routledge, London, 81–101.
Brassart, D.G.: 1989, ‘La gestion des contre-arguments dans le texte argumentatif ecrit chez les eleves de 8 a 12 ans et des adultes competents’, European Journal of the Psychology of Education 1, 51–69.
Britton, J., Burgess, T., Martin., McLeod, A. & Rosen, H.: 1975, The Development of Writing Abilities (11-18), Macmillan, London.
Clark, R., Fairclough, N., Ivanic, R. & Martin-Jones, M.: 1991‘Critical language awareness. Part 2: Towards critical alternatives’, Language and Education 5, 41–54.
Coirier, P.: 1996‘Composing argumentative texts: cognitive and/or textual complexity’, in G. Rijlaarsdam, A. van den Berg & M. Couzijn (eds.), Theories, Models and Methodology in Writing Research, Amsterdam University Press, Amsterdam, 317–338.
Coirier, P. & Golder, C.: 1993, ‘Writing argumentative text: A developmental study of the acquisition of supporting structures’, European Journal of Psychology ofEducation 2, 169–181.
Costello, P.J. & Mitchell, S. (eds.): 1995, Competing and Consensual Voices: The Theory and Practice of Argument, Multilingual Matters, Clevedon.
Costello, P.J.: 1997, Liberating Children’s Minds; Education, Citizenship and Critical Thinking, Multilingual Matters, Clevedon.
Dixon, J. & Stratta, L.: 1986‘Argument and the teaching of English: A critical analysis’, in A. Wilkinson (ed.), The Writing of Writing, Open University Press, Milton Keynes, 8–21.
Dolz, J., Pasquier, A. & Bronckart, J.P.: 1993, ‘L’aquisition des discours: Emergence d’une compétence ou apprentissage de capacités langagieres?’, Etudes de Linguistique Appliquée, 89.
Dolz, J.: 1996, ‘Learning argumentative capacities: A study of the effects of a systematic and intensive teaching of argumentative discourse on 11-12 year-old children’, Argumentation 10(2), 226–251.
Fisher, A.: 1988, The Logic of Real Arguments, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Flower, L., Stein, V., Ackerman, J., Kantz, M.J., McCormick, K. & Peck, W.C.: 1990, Reading to Write: Exploring a Cognitive and Social Process, Oxford University Press, New York.
Freedman, A. & Pringle, I.: 1985, A Comparative Study of Writing Abilities in Two Modes at the Grade 5, 8 and 12 Levels, Ministry of Education, Ontario.
Geisler, C.: 1994, Academic Literacy and the Nature of Expertise: Reading, Writing, and Knowing in Academic Philosophy, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, New Jersey.
Gorman, T.P., White, J., Brooks, G., MacLure, M. & Kispel, A.: 1988, Language Performance in Schools: A Review of APU Language Monitoring 1979–83, HMSO, London.
Greene, S.: 1995‘Making sense of my own ideas: The problems of authorship in a beginning writing classroom’, Written Communication 12(2), 186–219.
Knapp, P. & Watkins, M.: 1994, Context/Text/Grammar, Text Productions, Broadway NSW.
Mitchell, S.: 1994, Teaching and Learning A rgument in Sixth Forms and Higher Education: Final Report, University of Hull, Hull.
Moffett, J.: 1968, Teaching the Universe of Discourse, Houghton Press, Boston.
Monk, J.: 1992, ‘The language of argument in the writing of young children’, Looking into Language: Classroom Approaches to Knowledge About Language, R. Bain, B. Fitzgerald & M. Taylor, Hodder & Stoughton, London.
Perelman, C. & Olbrechts-Tyteca, L.: 1969, The New Rhetoric: A Treatise on Argumentation, J. Wilkinson & P. Weaver (trans. from French, 1958), University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame.
Street, B.: 1984, Literacy in Theory and Practice, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Toulmin, S.E.: 1958, The Uses of Argument, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Voss, J.F. & Means M.L.: 1991, ‘Learning to reason via instruction in argumentation’, Learning and Instruction 1, 337–350.
Watanabe, S.: 1993, ‘Cultural differences and framing: American and Japanese group discussions’, in D. Tannen (ed.), Framing in Discourse, Oxford University Press, New York, 176–209.
Wilkinson, A.: 1990, ‘Argument as a primary act of mind’, English in Education 24(1), 10–22.
Womack, P.: 1993, ‘What are essays for?’, English in Education 27(2), 42–59.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1997 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Mitchell, S. (1997). Teaching, Learning and Assessing Argument. In: Van Lier, L., Corson, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Language and Education. Encyclopedia of Language and Education, vol 6. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4533-6_20
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-4533-6_20
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-7923-4933-4
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-4533-6
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive