Abstract
In a teaching experiment 16 face-to-face and 11 e-mailFinnish university students studied academic debatingin an argumentation course. The 19 students of thecontrol group did not engage in the course. The courseinvolved two lectures, exercises with argumentativetexts, and face-to-face or e-mail seminar discussionsbased on these texts. Free debate, role play,problem-solving and panel discussion were the devicesused in organizing the course. The level of thestudents' argumentation skills were measured in apretest before the course and in a post-test after it.The results were compared between and within thegroups. The results indicated that during the e-mailstudies the students learned to identify and chooserelevant grounds, while the face-to-face studentsimproved in putting forward counterargumentation. Thecontrol group did not improve in these skills. Thestudy suggests that argumentation skills can bepromoted by short-term e-mail and face-to-faceteaching, and that practising argumentation indifferent learning environments develops differentkinds of argumentation skills.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alavi, M. (1994). Computer-mediated collaborative learning: An empirical evaluation. Management Information Systems Quarterly 18: 159–174.
Anderberg, M. (1973). Cluster Analysis for Applications. New York: Academic Press.
Atwater, T. (1991). Critical thinking in basic U.S. government classes. Political Science and Politics 24: 209–211.
Austin, R. (1997). Computer conferencing: Discourse, education and conflict mediation. Computers and Education 29: 153–161.
Bacig, T.D., Evans, R.H., Larmouth, D.W. & Risdon, K.C. (1990). Beyond argumentation and comparison/contrast: Extending the Socrates CAI design principles to classroom teaching and the interpretation and production of other forms of discourse. Computers and the Humanities 24: 15–41.
Banta, T.W. (1993). Toward a plan for using national assessment to ensure continuous improvement of higher education. The Journal of General Education 42: 33–58.
Berge, Z.L. (1997). Computer conferencing and the on-line classroom. International Journal of Educational Telecommunications 3: 3–21.
Bensley, A.D. & Haynes, C. (1995). The acquisition of general purpose strategic knowledge for argumentation. Teaching of Psychology 22: 41–45.
Björk, L. & Räisänen, C. (1996). Academic Writing. A University Writing Course. Lund: Studentlitteratur.
Borg, W.R. & Gall, M.D. (1989). Educational Research: An Introduction (5th edn.). New York: Longman.
Broady, D. (1986). Piilo-opetussunnitelma [The hidden curriculum]. Tampere Vastapaino.
Campbell, D.T. & Stanley, J.C. (1963). Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Designs for Research. Chicago: Rand McNally.
Corrie, M. & Zaklukiewicz, S. (1989). Qualitative research and case-study approaches: An introduction. In S. Hegarty & P. Evans, eds, Research and Evaluation Methods in Special Education: Quantitative and Qualitative Techniques in Case Study Work (pp. 114–139). Oxford: NFER-Nelson.
D'Souza, P.V. (1991). The use of electronic mail as an instructional aid: An exploratory study. Journal of Computer-Based Instruction 18: 106–110.
Garton, L. & Wellman, B. (1995). Social impacts of electronic mail in organization: A review of the research literature. In B.R. Burleson, ed, Communication Yearbook 18 (pp. 434–453). London: Sage.
Gow, L. & D. Kember. (1990). Does higher education promote independent learning. Higher Education 19: 307–322.
Hacker, R. & Sova, B. (1998). Initial teacher education: a study of the efficacy of computermediated courseware delivery in a partnership context. British Journal of Educational Technology 29: 333–341.
Harasim, L. (1990). Online education: An environment for collaboration and intellectual amplification. In L. Harasim, ed, Online Education. Perspectives on a New Environment (pp. 39–64). New York: Praeger.
Haughey, M. & Anderson, T. (1998). Networked Learning. The Pedagogy of the Internet. Montreal: Cheneliere.
Henri, F. (1992). Computer conferencing and content analysis. In A. Kaye, ed, Collaborative Learning Through Computer Conferencing (pp. 117–136). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Hiltz, S.R. (1997). Impacts of college-level courses via asynchronous learning networks: Some preliminary results. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks 1: 1–19.
Jonassen, D., Davidson, M., Collins, M., Campbell, J. & Haag, B. (1995). Constructivism and computer-mediated communication in distance education. The American Journal of Distance Education 9: 7–26.
Jonassen, D., Mayes, T. & Mcaleese, R. (1993). A manifesto for a constructivist approach to uses of technology in higher education. In T.M. Duffy, J. Lowyck & D.H. Jonassen, eds, Designing Environments for Constructive Learning (pp. 231–247). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
King, P.M., Wood, P.K. & Mines, R.A. (1990). Critical thinking among college and graduate students. The Review of Higher Education 13: 167–186.
Littlefield, R.S. (1995). Teaching argumentation and debate skills to young children: Bridging theory and practice. In F.H. van Eemeren, R. Grootendorst, J.A. Blair & C.A. Willard, eds, Proceedings of the Third ISSA Conference on Argumentation. Reconstruction and Application. Vol. III (pp. 287–296). Amsterdam: International Centre for the Study of Argumentation.
Lucas, W. (1998). Effects of e-mail on the organization. European Management Journal 16: 18–29.
Marttunen, M. (1994). Assessing argumentation skills among Finnish university students. Learning and Instruction 4: 175–191.
Marttunen, M. (1997). Studying Argumentation in Higher Education by Electronic Mail. Jyväskylä, University of Jyväskylä. Jyväskylä studies in education, psychology and social research 127.
Marttunen, M. (1998). Electronic mail as a forum for argumentative interaction in higher education studies. Journal of Educational Computing Research 18: 387–405.
Marttunen, M. & Laurinen, L. (1999). Learning of argumentation in face-to-face and e-mail environments. In F.H. Van Eemeren, R. Grootendorst, J.A. Blair & C.A. Willard, eds, Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference of the International Society for the Study of Argumentation (pp. 552–558). Amsterdam: Sic Sat, International Centre for the Study of argumentation.
Mauranen, A. (1993). Opiskelijan diskurssimaailmat-vaihto-opiskelijoiden perspektiivi [The students' discourse worlds-exchange students' perspective]. In H. Jalkanen & L. Lestinen, eds, Korkeakoulu-opetuksen kriisi. Artikkelikokoelma Jyväskylässä 19.-20.8.1993 järjestetystä korkeakoulutuksen tutkimuksen V symposiumista (pp. 169–188). Jyväskylä: Kasvatustieteiden tutkimuslaitos.
McCann, T.M. (1989). Student argumentative writing knowledge and ability at three grade levels. Research in the Teaching of English 23: 62–76.
McComb, M. (1994). Benefits of computer-mediated communication in college courses. Communication Education 43: 159–170.
McMillan, J.H. (1987). Enhancing college students' critical thinking: A review of studies. Research in Higher Education 26: 3–29.
Miller, M.M. (1991). Electronic conferencing in the networked classroom. College Teaching 39: 136–139.
Murphy, K.L., Drabier, R. & Epps, M.L. (1998). A constructivistic look at interaction and collaboration via computer conceferencing. International Journal of Educational Telecommunications 4: 237–261.
Newman, D.R., Johnson, C., Cochrane, C. & Webb, B. (1996). An experiment in group learning technology: Evaluating critical thinking in face-to-face and computer supported seminars. Interpersonal Computing and Technology 4: 57–74.
Olaniran, B.A. (1994). Group performance in computer-mediated and face-to-face communication media. Management Communication Quarterly 7: 256–281.
Oostdam, R. & De Globber, K. (1998). Students' Skill in Judging Argument Validity. Paper presented at the Fourth International Conference on Argumentation (ISSA), June 16–19. University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Pascarella, E.T. (1989). The development of critical thinking: Does college make a difference? Journal of College Student Development 30: 19–26.
Perkins, D.N. (1985). Postprimary education has little impact on informal reasoning. Journal of Educational Psychology 77: 562–571.
Quinn, C.N., Mehan, H., Levin, J.A. & Black, S.D. (1983). Real education in non-real time: The use of electronic message systems for instruction. Instructional Science 4: 313–327.
Ruberg, L.F., Moore, D.M. & Taylor, C.D. (1996). Student participation, interaction, and regulation in a computer-mediated communication environment: A qualitative study. Journal of Educational Computing Research 14: 243–268.
Simons, P.R.J. (1993). Constructive learning: The role of the learner. In T.M. Duffy, J. Lowyck & D.H. Jonassen, eds, Designing Environments for Constructive Learning (pp. 291–313). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Steinberg, E.R. (1992). The potential of computer-based telecommunications for instruction. Journal of Computer-Based Instruction 19: 42–46.
Terenzini, P.T., Spinger, L., Pascarella, E.T. & Nora A. (1995). Influences affecting the development of students' critical thinking skills. Research in Higher Education 36: 23–39.
Toulmin, S., Rieke, R. & Janik, A. (1984). An Introduction to Reasoning. New York: Macmillan.
van Eemeren, F.H. & Grootendorst, R. (1994). Rationale for a pragma-dialectical perspective. In F.H. van Eemeren & R. Grootendorst, eds, Studies in Pragma-Dialectics (pp. 11–28). Amsterdam: International Centre for the Study of Argumentation.
Voss, J.F., Blais, J., Means, M.L., Greene, T.R. & Ahwesh, E. (1986). Informal reasoning and subject matter knowledge in the solving of economics problems by naive and novice individuals. Cognition and Instruction 3: 269–302.
Voss, J.F. & Means, M.L. (1991). Learning to reason via instruction in argumentation. Learning and Instruction 1: 337–350.
Wesp, R. & Montgomery, K. (1998). Developing critical thinking through the study of paranormal phenomena. Teaching of Psychology 25: 275–278.
Zucchermaglio, C. (1993). Towards a cognitive ergonomics of educational technology. In T.M. Duffy, J. Lowyck & D.H. Jonassen, eds, Designing Environments for Constructive Learning (pp. 249–260). Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Marttunen, M., Laurinen, L. Learning of argumentation skills in networked and face-to-face environments. Instructional Science 29, 127–153 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003931514884
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003931514884