A Digital Tool for Argumentation Construction that Assists Users in Writing Argumentative Essays

Abstract

This study aims to improve students' argumentative capability and enable them to produce better argumentative essays. The "digital argument-map writing system" was designed for this study to help students build a complete structure of argumentation step by step so they can produce better argumentative essays with the structure as a thinking frame. We conducted an experiment to the students in an elementary school in New Taipei City for one semester. The experimental result showed that the system provided by this study could improve the students' argumentative capability. From the result of regression analysis, we found that the students using the digital argument-map writing system had a more thorough thinking on the forming of argumentation. Their evidence accords with their reasons and their reasons accord with their claims. The argumentation in their argumentative essays is thus highly connective and more integrated.