Argumentation, Critical Thinking, DIscourse

Misyurov D.A. Dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas // Credo New. 2012. №2

by Dmitry Misyurov

The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with... more The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with dominant and the non-dominant elements; universal formula; formula with symbolic weight of elements; tautological formula. For example, it suggests an opportunity to use the dialectical formulas for modeling and artificial intelligence creation, etc.

L’analyse des contraintes de la justice dans l’argumentation juridique

by Marc-Antoine Dilhac

R. Pilgram (2012). Reasonableness of a doctor's argument by authority: A pragma-dialectical analysis of the specific soundness conditions. Journal of Argumentation in Context, 1(1), 33-50.

by Roosmaryn Pilgram

The RHIZOME Project

by Martin E. Rosenberg

_The RHIZOME Project_ (1988-91; @1991), co-authored with Tom I. Ellis, and created in Hypercard. _RHIZOME_ was a critical thinking hypertext which offered creative as well as rhetorical and logical heuristics for the writing of a range of undergraduate essays. It was available at numerous writing programs in the early 1990's, and several articles were generated to explain its theoretical as well as pedagogical implications. Two other programmers, Stuart Selber, and Johndan Johnson-Eiola, worked briefly on the interface in 1991.

The RHIZOME Project was an experiment in instructional software to use the decision-tree environment of hypertext to... more The RHIZOME Project was an experiment in instructional software to use the decision-tree environment of hypertext to model specific sequential (as in narrative and logic) and non-sequential (as in creative and associative) thought strategies to help students write academic and creative essays. It was available at numerous writing programs in the early 1990's, including U Michigan, UC Berkeley, ASU, University of Illinois and Carnegie Mellon U. Comprised of separate "stacks" each modeling a specific heuristic, these stacks included:
1. Jazzwriting--a non-linear and recursive environment for generating and then exfoliating ideas in response to an automated or self-initiated prompt. Designed with the composing practices of BeBop jazz musicians in mind (improvisation/composition/improvisation), it offered recursive access to strategies for the improvisation of thoughts, and guided students to explore their more formal elaboration according to the rules of rhetoric, which was then linked to another "stack called:
2. Brainstorming--a non-linear, yet also sequential cluster of rhetorical heuristics: "Narrative," "Description," "Definition," "Comparison/Contrast," "Argument,"--each of which consitituted a "stack" which contained a sequence of prompts (often based on challenging heuristics such as Kenneth Burke's Pentad, for Narrative) to help expand the range of implications of ideas generated spontaneously in Jazzwriting. It was also possible to "jump" randomly or deliberately from one to the other of these heuristics, so that five separate threads of thought might be developed from the initial Jazzwriting responses. All five of these stacks then were projected into the next stack:
3. Arguprompt--which guided students through a series of prompts that would generate positions, assumptions, arguments and evidence, objections and replies to those objections, in such a way that each prompt generated a paragraph in sequence. At any point in the process of "inventing" and "arranging" an argument, the user could highlight and then export a particular assertion into another "stack" called:
4. Enthymemes--which would, through the use of dialog boxes, center that assertion into the form of an Enthymeme, which would then prompt the student to respond to a few questions. Answering these additional questions would then trigger the hypertext program to translate the Enthymeme into a formal syllogism; and then offer the opportunity to translate that socratic syllogism into a Toulmin unit of logic, with assumptions and grounds for those assumptions. Furthermore, from Arguprompt, the students could access another stack called:
5. Style--which would offer students exercises to work on semantics, grammar and syntax.
As the student progressed through the sequence of four distinct environments, or worked exclusively with just one of them, the student could export generated text to a word processing program for further engagement with the processes of invention, arrangement and style.

Informed by the specific practices of jazz musicians and composers, the behavior of bifurcating systems in non-equilibrium thermodynamics described by Ilya Prigogine, as well as the non-linear models from philosophy exemplified by the work of Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari and their concept of the rhizome, the project was an application of the theories explored in my theoretical dissertation: _Being and Becoming: Physics, Hegemony, Art and the Nomad in the Works of Ezra Pound, Marcel Duchamp, Samuel Beckett, John Cage and Thomas Pynchon_ (1989). This project was followed by an online real-time text-based virtual reality classroom of multiple rooms with functional tools at the Media Lab MOO called _MER's Fungal Palace_ (1996), with which I taught several graduate seminars linked to seminars at other universities (1996-8); and _Chess RHIZOME_, an exploratory hypermedia database to explore the contradictory epistemological implications of the metaphor of chess across all disciplinary formations (1998).

(Book Review) Argumenter en classe de sciences. C. Buty and C. Plantin (Eds.)

by Antonio Bova

Publicidade, marcas e análise do ethos

by Vander Casaqui

This article presents an epistemologic approach through the optical of the advertising ethos. We detach the strategies... more This article presents an epistemologic approach through the optical of the advertising ethos. We detach the strategies of the enunciate modulations, that project traces of character and shape, on the symbolical negotiation between the announcer and his target public. This process is mediated by the brands communication.

Writing to learn argument and persuasion: A'Trojan Horse'for promoting the adoption of'Writing Across the Curriculum'(WAC) principles in an international …

by Peter Mellalieu

Mellalieu, P. J. (2008). Writing to learn argument and persuasion: A “Trojan Horse” for promoting the adoption of “Writing Across the Curriculum” (WAC) principles (Working paper). Auckland, NZ: Unitec New Zealand Centre for Innovation & Entrepreneurship.

In response to feedback from employers that was critical of business graduates’ writing capability, the article... more In response to feedback from employers that was critical of business graduates’ writing capability, the article presents the results of a process of continuous innovation that aimed to develop business students' skills in formal writing, especially written persuasive argument. The learning environment created to achieve this task was informed by a selection of the principles and practices of a Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) programme implemented in New Zealand (Emerson, 1999, 2002, 2004).


The techniques were deployed within one specific course - organisational behaviour - in a class where students had little affection for formal writing tasks. Furthermore, the institution had no commitment towards implementing a formal WAC programme, and the teacher/researcher had no formal education in language teaching. Consequently, the study presents results of a 'pathfinder' study aimed at probing the extent to which WAC principles might be of value in achieving the learning outcomes sought by the business school.


An orchestrated sequence of interventions included the adoption of five-paragraph essay writing, Halswell’s Minimal Marking (1983), peer critiques, and McAlpine’s Global English (1997) as a style guide. A Small Group Instructional Diagnostic (SGID) conducted at the conclusion of the formal teaching sessions identified the reasons why most students valued the interventions as contributing to important developments in their academic literacy.


Carroll (2005) argues that ‘teachers themselves remain the most significant facilitator of students’ adjustments to studying in English’. Accordingly, the investigation presents practical strategies that can be implemented by a motivated teacher in a variety of courses - irrespective of course content - in a manner which minimises risk to both student and teacher, and do not require extensive language teaching skills on the part of the teacher.

O'Halloran, K.A. (2011) 'Limitations of the logico-rhetorical module: Inconsistency in argument, online discussion forums and Electronic Deconstruction', Discourse Studies 13(6): 797-806.

by Kieran O'Halloran

My focus is the ‘logico-rhetorical module’ (Sperber, 2000). This mental module, Sperber hypothesizes, is an evolved... more My focus is the ‘logico-rhetorical module’ (Sperber, 2000). This mental module, Sperber hypothesizes, is an evolved ability of human beings to examine critically what someone is saying, for example, to detect inconsistency or inadequate evidence in an argument. On the assumption that we have this natural ability, Chilton (2005) questions the need for Critical Discourse Analysis; in contrast, on his reading of Sperber’s work, Hart (this issue) argues the opposite. In this article, I agree with Chilton’s (2005) stance to the extent that the competence of the logico-rhetorical module is, generally speaking, adequate for enabling critical engagement with verbal input. That said, I highlight two (non-competence related) limitations of the logico-rhetorical module for detecting inconsistency in arguments. To address these limitations, I hold a new approach is needed in Critical Discourse Analysis. This is one which draws on the corpus linguistic method; I refer to it as Electronic Deconstruction.

O'Halloran, K.A. (2012) 'Electronic deconstruction: Revealing tensions in the cohesive structure of persuasion texts', International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 17(1): 89-121.

by Kieran O'Halloran

This article introduces a corpus-based procedure for revealing tensions in a text which seeks to persuade an audience... more This article introduces a corpus-based procedure for revealing tensions in a text which seeks to persuade an audience into a particular point of view on a particular topic, tensions which may otherwise be difficult to see; the text is thus deconstructed and loses credibility. I refer to this corpus-based, critical approach to revealing tensions in such texts as Electronic Deconstruction. In drawing on corpus linguistic method for this end, as well to help reduce interpretative bias, the article bears resemblance to Corpus-based Critical Discourse Analysis. However, in two crucial respects it is different. This is because: i) its corpus-based, deconstructive focus is cohesion in a text which seeks to persuade an audience into a particular point of view and ii) it takes its theoretical stimulus from the work of Jacques Derrida.

Enabling and disabling discourses in promoting RPLO policy and practice in Higher Education

by Tony Wall

2010
EducatiOn-Line

This paper captures and presents some of the powerful and sometimes contradictory discourses, which limit the... more This paper captures and presents some of the powerful and sometimes contradictory discourses, which limit the diffusion and uptake of the recognition of prior learning outcomes (RPLO) in higher education: quality, funding, capacity, and student experience. Each of these is analysed and ‘opened up’ (Derrida, 1978; Bhabha, 1994). In doing so, it aims to ‘open up’ some of those discourses for practitioners and/or leaders to initiate or develop policy and practice in institutions further afield (Kemmis, 2008). The data that forms the basis of this paper was generated through various action research projects in a UK University and multiple development events in the UK.

Interpersonal Stance in L1 and L2 Students' Argumentative Writing in Economics: Implications for Faculty Development in WAC/WID Programs

by Zak Lancaster

This article offers a linguistic analysis of interpersonal stancetaking in four argumentative term papers written in... more This article offers a linguistic analysis of interpersonal stancetaking in four argumentative term papers written in an upper-level undergraduate course in economics. Two of the papers were written by English L2 writers who experienced particular difficulty with the assignment and two by English L1 writers who received the highest grades among the forty students in the course. My analysis is guided by the question of how recurring patterns of interpersonal meanings operate to construct an argumentative stance that indexes, or not, the specific goals and expectations for writing in the course. Considered alongside interviews with the professor and the graduate student instructor (GSI) who graded and commented on the papers, my analysis draws on the Engagement framework from systemic functional linguistics (Martin & White, 2005), which has proven useful in recent years for understanding the ways both professional and student writers (Chang & Schleppegrell, 2011; Derewianka, 2009; Wu, 2007) use language to construct an authorial stance within specific disciplinary contexts. Following my analysis, I consider implications of this line of research for working with English L2 writers in upper-level courses in the disciplines.

La pensée critique et l’acceptation de la diversité

by Georges NAHAS

Nahas, G. N. (28-30 novembre 2011). La pensée critique et l’acceptation de la diversité. In Le rôle de la Pensée Critique dans le Développement des Systèmes éducatifs (le cas de l’Afrique du Nord). La chaire UNESCO en « Philosophie et Pensée Critique », Université Mohamad V. Rabat. Maroc.

L'objectif de cette intervention est de montrer comment la formation à la Pensée Critique peut aider à la... more L'objectif de cette intervention est de montrer comment la formation à la Pensée Critique peut aider à la compréhension de l’autre et à la relativisation des différences. L’esprit critique étant un positionnement objectif aussi bien vis-à-vis de soi que vis-à-vis de l’autre, elle permet de voir en la diversité une source d’enrichissement par le dialogue et pour le cheminement culturel. L’autre, au lieu d’être « l’enfer » peut ainsi devenir un partenaire privilégie dans l’évolution de la Civilisation mondialisée.

Cette intervention se base sur une classification par étapes de la démarche de la pensée critique et sera illustrée par des exemples tirés de l’expérience vécue dans le cadre du Centre d’Etudes Islamo-Chrétiennes de l’Université de Balamand.

Varieties of Reasoned Argument in Interpretive Inquiry Learning

by Evangelia Dimaraki

paper under review, please consult me before citing, comments welcome

Reasoned argument over knowledge claims is central to academic discourse that inquiry learning seeks to emulate in the... more Reasoned argument over knowledge claims is central to academic discourse that inquiry learning seeks to emulate in the classroom. However, the conception of reasoned argument that informs most research and practice of inquiry learning foregrounds a model of evidence-based theory selection most suitable for a specific type of science inquiry tasks. This article contributes to a more comprehensive conception by documenting reasoned argument in the context of Archaeotype, a computer-supported inquiry environment for history learning that centers around the interpretation of archaeological evidence. Our qualitative analysis of dialogic reasoning in a series of 6 teacher-led and 11 peer discussions, delineates several forms of argument: direct coordination arguments, nesting arguments, cohesion arguments, integration arguments, demonstration arguments, accommodation arguments, plausibility arguments, historical contextualization arguments and methodological arguments. These argument forms cannot be readily described within a uniform model, indeed some diverge drastically from the normative ideal of evidence-based reasoning. However, we demonstrate that Archaeotype participants used them productively to advance their inquiry. Our findings suggest that to understand better the potential of reasoned argument in inquiry learning across subject areas, we need to adopt a broader definition of reasoned argument encompassing a plurality of substantial arguments with different merits and to examine how actual arguments work in various inquiry situations.

La médiation en tant que dialogue raisonnable

by Sara Greco Morasso

Is Common Ground a Word or Just a Sound? Second Order Consensus and Argumentation Theory

by Italo Testa

(with P. Cantù), published in "Dissensus and the Search for Common Ground", ed. by Hans V. Hansen, Christopher W. Tindale, J. Anthony Blair, Ralph H. Johnson and David M. Godden, OSSA,Windsor, ON, 2007

This paper focuses on the role played by the concept of Common Ground by investigating various roles played by... more This paper focuses on the role played by the concept of Common Ground by investigating various roles played by consensus and dissensus in different argumentation theories. A dynamic conception of Common Ground as a second order consensus will be invoked.

The Respect Fallacy: On the Limits of Respect in Public Dialogue

by Italo Testa

Draft, forthcoming in: Christian Kock & Lisa Villadsen (eds.), Rhetorical Citizenship and Public Deliberation, Penn State University Press, 2012

Deliberative politics should start from an adequate and differentiated image of our dialogical practices and their... more Deliberative politics should start from an adequate and differentiated image of our dialogical practices and their normative structures; the ideals that we eventually propose for deliberative politics should be tested against this background. In this article I will argue that equal respect, understood as respect a priori conferred on persons, is not and should not be counted as a constitutive normative ground of public discourse. Furthermore, requiring such respect, even if it might facilitate dialogue, could have negative effects and lead to fallacious paths of thought –as seems to happen on matters of deep disagreement such as the Colorado Fundamentalist/Gay HIV issue I discuss in paragraph 6. I will put forward this argument from the standpoint of argumentation or discourse theory, drawing consequences for dialogical theories of politics. Basing my argument on a pluralistic notion of public discourse – understood as a mixed discourse of persuasion, information-seeking and negotiation – I will argue that respect is a dynamic, situational phenomenon, and that the norm of equal respect for persons is contextually contingent in political deliberation: equal respect should be considered as a potential outcome, a discursive achievement – which I understand as a second order consensus achieved dynamically on a provisional basis – rather than as an universal condition for dialogue.

Take My Advice--I Am Not Following It: Ad Hominem Arguments as Legitimate Rebuttals to Appeals to Authority

by Moti Mizrahi

In this paper, I argue that ad hominem arguments are not always fallacious. More explicitly, in certain cases of... more In this paper, I argue that ad hominem arguments are not always fallacious. More explicitly, in certain cases of practical reasoning, the circumstances of a person are relevant to whether or not the conclusion should be accepted. This occurs, I suggest, when a person gives advice to others or prescribes certain courses of action but fails to follow her own advice or act in accordance with her own prescriptions. This is not an instance of a fallacious tu quoque provided that such circumstantial ad hominem arguments are construed as rebuttals to appeals (administrative) authority (of expertise), or so I argue.

Feminism & Argumentation

by Catherine Hundleby

under consideration for the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

This is an overview, attempting comprehensiveness, of feminist philosophical discussions of argumentation. It is... more This is an overview, attempting comprehensiveness, of feminist philosophical discussions of argumentation. It is intended for a general reader with post-secondary education.

Coffin, C. and O'Halloran, K.A. (2009) 'Argument reconceived?' Educational Review 61(3): 301-313.

by Kieran O'Halloran

Just over 10 years ago, Educational Review published an article “Reconceiving argument” by Richard Andrews. In the... more Just over 10 years ago, Educational Review published an article “Reconceiving argument” by Richard Andrews. In the article, Andrews traced some of the changes in the conception of argument that had taken place within educational contexts (primarily within the UK) over the previous few years. An important aim of the authors’ article is to consider whether there is any evidence that the (re)conceptualization of argument discussed in Andrews’ article has permeated educational theory and practice in the last 10 years. Specifically they will consider
his invocation of new metaphors to conceive of the argumentation process as more akin to a dialogic exchange in contrast to adversarial combat. They question whether such a framing diminishes the value of conflict and confrontation in the argumentation process.

Keywords: argument; education; dialogic exchange; collaborative argumentation; conflict; confrontation; discourse; new technologies.

O’Halloran, K.A (2009) ‘Implicit dialogical premises, explanation as argument: a corpus-based reconstruction’, Informal Logic 29(1): 15-53.

by Kieran O'Halloran