Module 9 - Using the Showing Evidence Tool to Target Thinking Skills
Activity 9.1
Step 2: Taking a Look at the Format of an Argument
One of the most common formats for an argument is the one proposed by Stephen Toulmin in 1958. His argumentation structure contains six components:
• Claim • Backing
• Data • Qualifier
• Warrant • Rebuttal
The Showing Evidence Tool uses a modified version of Toulmin's argumentation model. The basic structure is similar, although the terms have been changed to make them more accessible to learners:
- Make a claim (Toulmin's claim)
- Provide evidence (Toulmin's data)
- Evaluate the quality of evidence (Toulmin's qualifier)
- Make explicit links between the claim and evidence (Toulmin's warrant)
- Provide reasoning for why the evidence supports the claim (Toulmin's backing)
- Consider counterarguments
Note: Click here to read additional information on Toulmin and his argumentation model. You may also want to review the resources on argumentation available at: www.intel.com/education/designprojects |
Showing Evidence also adds the idea of counterargument—it is important for learners to consider the evidence against their claim as well as the evidence for their claim.
In the table below, the basic elements of an argument are defined, along with examples from an argument about whether genetically engineered food should be banned in South Africa.
Note: Because this table is provided to give examples of the components of an argument, only one piece each of supporting and opposing evidence is listed. However, an argument would normally include multiple pieces of evidence. |
| Component | Definition | Example |
| Claim | The conclusion or assertion that a learner is attempting to prove. | "Genetically modified foods should not be banned." |
| Evidence | Facts or data that are used to support the claim. | "Crops can be genetically engineered to produce a pesticide." |
| Quality of Evidence | Confidence in the evidence: Do you trust the source? Do multiple sources agree? | "High quality" — Many sources discuss this. Numerous crops, such as potatoes, cotton, and corn, have been modified with a Bt gene that controls production of a toxic protein. |
| Linking Claim and Evidence | A connection between the claim and evidence. | If a crop produces a pesticide that is harmful only to pests, it is a very strong reason to allow genetically engineered food. |
| Reasoning | The general principle or idea that allows you to make the connection between the claim and the evidence. | A pesticide is a chemical substance used to kill pests, like insects. By genetically engineering crops to produce insecticides, fewer crops will be lost to insects, which will produce more food. |
| Counterargument (Evidence Against the Claim) | Consideration of evidence and reasoning that goes against the claim. | Genetically engineering crops that include pesticides can kill other "non-target" insects, such as butterflies. |
Showing Evidence
requires learners to specifically link their claim and evidence. This
helps learners consider the relevance and the importance of the
evidence that they are collecting. Besides connecting their evidence,
learners need to provide their reasoning as to why their evidence
supports their claim. The reasoning should include general ideas or
principles that allow learners to make that connection. In this
example, learners talk about what a pesticide is and why it might be an
important consideration in whether genetically engineered food should
be banned.
Different thinking skills are required depending upon whether learners make a claim and then gather evidence, or they gather evidence first, and then determine their claim. Both approaches are valid and require learners to evaluate evidence when making a conclusion about a claim.
