Current approaches to evaluating arguments in education are primarily based on structural analysis, such as Toulmin’s (1958) Argument Pattern. Structural analysis focuses on identifying core elements of an argument, such as claims, data, and warrants. Assessments based on structural analysis usually award credit for the number of structural elements present in students’ arguments. In this paper, we discuss the limitations of such assessments, including the absence of criteria for evaluating the quality of the argument elements and their relationships. Next, we present an alternative framework, based on the Rational Force Model (RFM), which originated from the work of a Nordic philosopher Arne Næss (1959). We discuss the potential of the RFM to improve argument evaluation and use it to analyze arguments written by elementary school children in response to a moral dilemma faced by a story character. We conclude by discussing the diagnostic and instructional value of RFM-based assessments.
Reznitskaya, A., Flammia, M., Takahashi, N., Onuorah, A., Sykes, A., Oyler, J., et al. (2025). Enhancing Diagnostic and Instructional Value of Assessments Designed to Evaluate Written Arguments. Intervento presentato a: The European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLI) 2025 conference, "Realising Potentials through Education: Shaping the Minds and Brains for the Future" - 25 - 29 August 2025, Graz, Austria.
Enhancing Diagnostic and Instructional Value of Assessments Designed to Evaluate Written Arguments
Flammia M.
Secondo
;
2025
Abstract
Current approaches to evaluating arguments in education are primarily based on structural analysis, such as Toulmin’s (1958) Argument Pattern. Structural analysis focuses on identifying core elements of an argument, such as claims, data, and warrants. Assessments based on structural analysis usually award credit for the number of structural elements present in students’ arguments. In this paper, we discuss the limitations of such assessments, including the absence of criteria for evaluating the quality of the argument elements and their relationships. Next, we present an alternative framework, based on the Rational Force Model (RFM), which originated from the work of a Nordic philosopher Arne Næss (1959). We discuss the potential of the RFM to improve argument evaluation and use it to analyze arguments written by elementary school children in response to a moral dilemma faced by a story character. We conclude by discussing the diagnostic and instructional value of RFM-based assessments.
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