Exploring high school student’s argumentation structure through ecology: a case study

Abstract

Ecology is an important part of Biology that addresses all the interactions between living things and the environment. This case study research aims to reveal the structure of written and oral argumentation in grade X students in one of high school in West Java Indonesia on ecology. Research subjects were 42 students and 1 teacher with length of research for 2 months. The referenced argumentation pattern is by Toulmin’s Argument Pattern (TAP). The results showed that students’ written argument ability are in average structure of claim, data, and warrant pattern. The quality of written argument is quite good with the addition of counter-claim and rebuttal argument counterparts to a particular group in support of the claim. Oral argument capability also shows similar Toulmin’s argument structure as written, with no additional structures of qualifier, counter-claim, and rebuttal. The comparison between the two shows that a higher quality is owned by a written argument.