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Literature review examines the impact of argumentation on educational outcomes, suggesting it enhances motivation and conceptual understanding.
The aim of this paper is to review the literature on the use of argumentation in education in order to summarize and synthesize empirical findings that examine the assumption that argumentation is an effective mechanism for promoting important educational outcomes. We analyzed eight highly cited, peer-reviewed studies covering typical developmental school and college demographics. The research confirms that participation in argumentation is associated with desirable educational outcomes such as mastery of curriculum content, bigger gains in knowledge tests, compared to other teaching and learning methods, conceptual change and conceptual understanding of scientific concepts, and knowledge transfer to new domains. Additionally, it leads to longer reading time, increased motivation and engagement, and more positive attitudes toward learning the subject. Qualitative data show that more nuanced distinctions within argumentation itself (e.g., one-sided/dialectical, quarrelsome/deliberative) can be made. The findings suggest that argumentation yields the greatest academic gains when it focuses on examining different alternatives rather than advocating for only one and constructing one-sided arguments. Therefore, it is essential to teach students how to engage in sound argumentation carefully and systematically.
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Ljiljana Plazinić (2025) studied this question.
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