Measuring Cogency in Argument in the Seventh-Grade English Classroom

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 10
  In Poster Session: Division D Section 1 Poster Session 3

Abstract

This study investigated a Teacher Designed Rubric Measuring Cogency in argument (TDRMC) informed by Toulmin’s model of argument and Wilson’s framework for assessment. Three primary questions were addressed: What is the reliability of the TDRMC and how does it compare to the reliability of the commonly used assessment instrument from Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC)? Are scores generated from the TDRMC more variable than scores generated from the SBAC? How does the TDRMC correlate with other established measures of writing and academic ability, and how do these correlations compare with those between SBAC and the same measures? Overall, results suggest the TDRMC is a reliable instrument that is as good as, and perhaps better, at assessing cogency than the SBAC.

Author

• Millie Gonzalez-Balsam, Palo Alto High School