The limitations of conducting collaborative argumentation when teaching argumentative essays in Malaysian secondary schools

Aireen Aina Bahari,Raja Nor Safinas Raja Harun,Norfaizah Abdul Jobar,Haddi Junaidi Kussin,Misrah Mohamed

doi:10.24815/siele.v8i3.19287

Abstract

The writing of argumentative essays promotes higher-order thinking skills amongst students regardless of their level of studying only when it involves collaborative argumentation. Hence, argumentation researchers recommend that teachers use group argumentation to teach argumentative essays since Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory believed that group argumentation improves students’ writing skills. The study’s objective is to explore the use of group argumentation during the teaching of argumentative essays in English as a Second Language (ESL) classrooms in Malaysia. Hence, the involvement of practitioners is significant so that the full extent of the problem is known rather than being interpreted solely by researchers. This qualitative study was conducted on nine ESL teachers through convenience sampling. Data was collected through online interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings demonstrated that ESL teachers did not practice group argumentation when teaching argumentative essays. They resorted to the whole-class discussion instead. Five factors contribute to the negligence of group argumentation in ESL classrooms, that is, time, pressure to deliver curriculum, students’ attitude, students’ speaking skills, and the use of the first language (L1). The findings indicated that it is necessary to promote the teaching of argumentative essay writing using group argumentation as one of the teaching approaches in secondary schools to ensure students reap the benefits of collaborative learning to improve their argumentation skills.

Highlights

Argumentation as a research topic is receiving increasing recognition worldwide in the education field
This study is significant as it responds to the account made by researchers who insist that argumentation is a skill that should not be neglected by teachers and students appropriate approach should be implemented by English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers in school
We believe by exposing secondary school students to the group argumentation skill, it will help them to discuss better and voice their opinions freely

Summary

Introduction

Argumentation as a research topic is receiving increasing recognition worldwide in the education field. It is a skill that needs to be taught to secondary school students to prepare them for the 21st century. In Malaysian secondary schools, the argumentative essay is one of the writing genres included in the English language syllabus. According to Knudson (1992), students do not master the writing of argumentative essays due to the lack of explicit teaching of argumentation skills in the curriculum. This is supported by Gárate and Melero (2005), who agreed that the teaching of argumentative writing is given less attention, and teachers often face significant challenges when attempting to conduct argumentation practices within their classrooms (Clark et al, 2007). Other difficulties reported amongst L1 learners are the inability to recognize and apply persuasive, argumentative text structures (Reznitskaya et al, 2007), inability to expand their argument due to limited ideas (Felton & Herko, 2004), and the lack of support for reasons, poor organization, and immature language (Crowhurst, 1990)

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