Ideas about argument

One of the questions we are thinking about this week is what role does argument play in debate.  In my mind the two go hand in hand, wouldn't debate be a form of argument?  You take a position, back it with evidence and logic, and of course counterargument and rebuttal play a part in debate also.  

I thought the website: http://www.compuhigh.com/demo/eng12les09.htm handles this question well, as it states, "An argument can be defined as an opinion that is supported with evidence. Debates are based upon arguments. A formal debate usually takes place in a formal setting with a team representing each side of the argument."  Based on this line of thinking, debates would be a form of argument, since debate is based on argument.  This leads to another topic we have been pondering, which is, what forms can argument take?  

I attended an AP conference on Wednesday, and the main focus was helping students read text closely, and analyze various components of that text.  As the group of teachers attending the conference went through the steps of analyzation, there were differences in opinions about what an author was saying, or what a piece of writing meant, since, as we all know, our own personal experiences, along with the symbols on the page, affect how we interpret various pieces of literature.  As we discussed our differing opinions on what a text meant, I thought, would this not count as argument?  We didn't produce a formal paper, or hold a formal debate, but in the process of reading, analyzing, discussing, and backing our opinions with evidence from the text, were we not technically using argument techniques?  I guess this line of thinking lends itself to consideration of how we use argument and what we consider argument in our classrooms.  I know students need to learn to formally write an argument, but can we scaffold and strengthen those techniques through conversation based around texts we study in our classrooms?

And my last contribution today is an idea presented in a PLC I attended yesterday, during which a colleague presented an idea for writing what she calls an ABC sentence, which I think can be used to help students begin an argument paragraph (which is where I'm starting before we jump to an essay:

Identify the Text Complete title Include type of text (article, short story, song, movie, poem, novel, etc.) Author

Choose a Strong Verb Advises Compares Contrasts Describes Explains Identifies Illustrates Presents Provides Recommends Suggests Teaches

Add a Big Finish ·         The answer/your opinion ·         The main idea? ·         The big idea? ·         The theme? ·         The moral? ·         The message?

                        A                                         B                                                              C

I used this basic format when I asked my students to respond to a news story we watched yesterday, and they did really well after we did one together.  I then asked them to add two sentences with their evidence/explanations.  Starting with baby steps.  I don't know if it's the right way, but I'm trying.

Videos to the rescue

Today was a long day.  I attended an conference on using AP strategies for reading (the 5 S Strategy), which I really enjoyed.  I then went back to school to hear the report after our school's PED audit since we are a D school and to tutor until 5.  Then, it was off to the NEA rally, where we encouraged people to vote for education friendly politicians in the upcoming election.  Oh, and I managed to get a flu shot, vote, and run in there too.  Anyways, I wasn't up for heavy reading, so I decided to see what YouTube had to offer in the area of argument writing.  I ended up finding two resources that I thought were interesting. They aren't linking, so you would have to copy and paste, sorry!

One was this video by Shmoop:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lzGy5gizKg

I like this video because it gives a brief overview of an argument essay, in student friendly terms, and using student friendly, real life examples.  However, it also uses terms that students need to know in writing an essay, such as: claim, support, and counterargument.  I also like that it ends with a brief review to recap the important points, and it’s short, since my students sometimes seem to have limited attention spans, even when watching a video.  One thing that I found interesting, especially since we've discussed it in class and I've seen it on other's blogs, is that the video seems to use argument and persuasion as synonyms, not as separate entities, a concept some of us in class seem to be grappling with still.

The other video is focused on writing an essay for an AP exam:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNK2cH0d7cQ

I thought this video was interesting for different reasons.  I personally would not show it to my middle school students, but I guess it could be helpful for a teacher teaching an AP course that wanted a quickish (16 minute) overview on writing an argument essay for an AP exam.  What I did find interesting about the idea of the argument essay on the AP exam is that students are not given sources, rather they have to use information from the prompt, along with personal experiences and observations as their evidence.  We've discussed different formats of arguments, and perhaps this is one idea that could be useful, not just on an AP exam, but in class, where we can give students a prompt, and ask them to use personal experiences and observations as their evidence.  I thought this might help in two ways.  One, it would hopefully get students to express themselves, something a few of us have expressed wanting student to do more.  Two, it would be (possibly) be a shorter process, as it eliminates the time needed to research and synthesize outside resources.  Obviously this is not what we always want to do, but it might be an idea for at least one form of argument writing.  One last observation about this video, again along the blurred lines of argument versus persuasion.  The video uses a prompt from a 2008 AP English Language and Composition Exam as an example.  Part of the prompt reads, "Some people argue that corporate partnerships are a necessity for cash-strapped schools.  Others argue that schools should provide an environment free from ads and corporate influence.  Using appropriate evidence, write an essay in which you evaluate the pros and cons of corporate scholarship for schools and indicate why you find one position more persuasive than the other."  Within that prompt, both argument and persuasive are used, not sure if that is significant, but it does seem hard to distinguish one concept from the other still.

Trying Ideas

After reviewing Hillocks article again (sometimes I have to read information a few times to really digest it), I realized I have access to the whole book from which it came at school.  With this new revelation, I am excited to read more and hopefully gain more effective strategies for teaching, and a better understanding just what argument writing is.

I actually tried the crime scene case scenario activity he describes with my students last year.  They did a great job with it, and had I read as much as I have now about argument writing, I think I would have taught it more effectively.  It was interesting, as in the case Hillocks documents in the article, that students were able to go from specific statements about the picture, oh he..., to general statements, or claims, such as when a person...  I think where we faltered was my own shortcomings.  After I completed the activity, I was not really sure how to get students to go somewhere with this new way of thinking and writing.  We even did another of the crime scenes that are available in the book, and students worked more independently on their claims and "reports," but I wasn't sure, after that, how to get students to generalize that new knowledge, and apply that thinking process to a broader area of research and writing.  I'm hoping, through more exploration of the book, and the other resources I am currently exploring through this study, that I can better help my students make those general claims about research they conduct, and in turn, help them develop stronger argumentative writing skills.

An interesting idea

As part of my quest to improve my teaching of argument writing, I came across a really neat idea.  Like most of the ideas I come across, I'm not quite sure how I will use it yet, but I think it's something that will become useful when we get to argument writing later this year.  It is from a website that is published by the New York Times, a section for educators/students called "The Learning Network."  If you haven't used it before, I highly recommend browsing some of the articles and ideas available through this resource.  With the shift to more informational text, it provides a wealth of articles on a wide variety of subjects.  Some of the articles are a bit difficult, but I've even had my seventh grade students struggle with the harder readings, just to show them that they can get the idea of what the article is about, even if they didn't know every word.  

Okay, sorry, back to argument writing.  The specific link I found with ideas for argument writing is:

http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/13/constructing-arguments-room-for-debate-and-the-common-core-standards/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

The website provides a few ideas for argument writing, including use of their blog, Room for Debate.  This blog has posts on a wide variety of topics, and can serve as an example of how to format writing, as well as a springboard for argument writing topics.  I also like their "student opinion" questions.  These are less formal, but I think reading some of the questions, and even responding to some of them, maybe in an informal way at first, will give students the idea of, and maybe some confidence in, expressing their opinion in writing.  I believe you can also read other students' responses, and maybe that would be a way to discuss various writing styles with students.

I know there are a lot of  maybes in there, but that's how most of my ideas start.  I find something that I think will be useful, and then try it, tweaking things along the way as needed.

Now, off to help with the Jog a thon, then the staff vs. student volleyball game at school.  I know some people hate losing instructional days, and really I do too, but I also like interacting with my students in an avenue other than the classroom.  I learn things about them as individuals I may not have known otherwise.

Where to start

With the shift from the New Mexico Standards and Benchmark to the Common Core standards, came some shifts in how we, or maybe it was just me, teach writing.  Instead of writing expository pieces, we now write information pieces, and instead of persuasive writing, we now explore argument.  I have to admit, this has been a tough shift for me, I guess it's true that change is hard.  I've never been the type of teacher who does all of the same things from year to year, but I guess I was a creature of habit at least somewhat, because these shifts in writing have been really hard for me to wrap my brain around.  It probably didn't help that we didn't (at least in my district, at my school) receive much, okay really any, formal training on the new standards.  We were given a copy of the red book, and went through and highlighted and marked various features of the new text, so it looked like we have delved into the standards, when really, all we did was color.

After doing some research of my own, and learning from other, wiser colleagues, I am finally starting to "get it" (at least I think I am).  But, I know I still need a lot of work before I am prepared to really teach my students how to be effective writers of argument, and informational text for that matter.  So, I'm actually pretty excited that we are exploring this genre of writing, as it will kind of force me to dive further into exploring argument writing, which, in turn, will help strengthen my instruction and my students' learning.