Written Argumentation for Different Audiences. A Study of Addressivity and the Uses of Arguments in Argumentative Student Texts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5617/adno.4727Keywords:
Writing, communication, argumentation, audience, addressivity, rhetoricAbstract
Abstract
In this article we investigate how students in upper secondary school argue in writing in two different communicative situations and how the intended audience may influence how the students construct their arguments. A class of social science students was instructed to write a text arguing for how we may best prevent crime. The text was to be handed in as homework within the week. The same week, the students were instructed to write a text in an online discussion forum about a topic relevant to social science, arguing in favor of their opinion. We collected 34 texts from 17 students in one class, one from each student in each of the two communicative situations. Our findings show that although the students in both tasks were asked to argue for an opinion, the argument fulfills different purposes in the different situations, and the different audiences played an important role in the way the argumentation was carried out. The students tend to argue with intellectual appeal, using data from reliable sources when arguing for the teacher. When they write for the general public online, they tend to argue with emotional appeal, using data from their own values instead of other sources. Our findings may contribute to improving the construction of writing tasks for argumentative writing as well as to the ongoing debate about authentic writing situations among writing researchers across the world.
Keywords: writing, argumentation, addressivity, Toulmin
Skriftleg argumentasjon for ulike publikum. Ein studie av adressivitet og bruk av argument i argumenterande elevtekstar
Samandrag
I denne artikkelen undersøker me korleis elevar i vidaregåande skule argumenterer skriftleg i to ulike kommunikasjonssituasjonar, og korleis det intenderte publikummet kan påverka korleis elevane konstruerer argumenta sine. Ein klasse samfunnsfagelevar vart bedne om å skriva ein tekst der dei argumenterer for korleis me best kan førebyggja kriminalitet. Teksten skulle leverast inn som lekse i løpet av veka. Same veka vart elevane bedne om å skriva ein tekst på eit diskusjonsforum på nettet, om eit emne som var relevant for samfunnsfag, der dei argumenterte for si eiga meining. Me samla inn 34 tekstar frå 17 elevar i ein klasse, ein frå kvar elev i kvar av dei to kommunikasjons-situasjonane.
Funna våre viser at sjølv om elevane i begge oppgåvene vart bedne om å argumentera for eit synspunkt, fyller argumentasjonen ulike føremål i dei ulike situasjonane, og dei ulike publikumma spela ei viktig rolle i korleis argumentasjonen vart gjennomført. Elevane har ein tendens til å argumentera med intellektuell appell, ved hjelp av underbygging frå truverdige kjelder når dei argumenterer overfor læraren. Når dei skriv for det generelle publikummet på nettet, har dei ein tendens til å argumentera med appell til kjensler, og underbygger med eigne verdiar i staden for andre kjelder.
Funna våre kan bidra til å betra utforminga av skriveoppgåver for argumenterande skriving, og er også eit bidrag i den pågåande debatten mellom skriveforskarar verda over om autentiske skrivesituasjonar.
Nøkkelord: skriving, argumentasjon, adressivitet, Toulmin
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