Ruth Amos

The Design and Enactment of Argumentation Activities

The benefits of scientific argumentation are often treated as an automatic consequence of any argumentative activity. Yet the experiences of teachers introducing argumentation in their classrooms suggest that these benefits are far from certain. Our research has shown that pedagogic practice is influenced by both the design of an activity and the interpretation of the design in the enactment of the activity. Design involves purpose – the learning goals of the activity, resource – the sources of evidence that can be used in argumentation, and strategy – the ways in which students and teachers can collaborate/interact. This chapter draws on our research on activity design and enactment to show how pedagogic guidance can be developed for the teaching of argumentation that takes into account the layers of interpretation needed for effective pedagogy. The research considers how the guidance can support transfer of design to different settings and for different teachers, and will be illustrated using an activity designed for the development of students’ knowledge and reasoning about sustainability in the context of the new Olympic Park for London 2012.