Using online data to generate an argument.

Webtools 2.0 assignment: Generating an Argument (Sampson and Grooms, 2010)

Which River in Connecticut is the Healthiest? 

           As indicated in the introduction to the Project Search Student Water Quality Testing Manual, the quality of Connecticut’s rivers and streams has greatly improved following the passage of the Connecticut Clean Water Act of 1967 and other related legislation.  But just how clean is the water and which river in Connecticut is the healthiest?  This will be the focus of a student assignment that is based upon the Sampson and Grooms instructional model, Generating an Argument.  At this point in the year students will have studied the local watershed and they will have completed a full water quality analysis of a local river.  The analysis includes physical, chemical, and biological parameters.  

          For this activity students will be divided into small groups.  All students will be presented with the same question to answer.

Task 

Which river in Connecticut is the healthiest?  
          Access the Project Search data webpage http://www.projectsearch.org/downloads.htm. Scroll down to the water quality summary reports.  Examine the data.

Generate an argument 

What does the data say to you? 
          Examine all the data.  Find a data set that reveals a healthy river or stream.   Compare the data from this stream with the others. Make a decision.  Which stream/river is the healthiest.  Use data to support your decision.

Produce a poster 

Use Glogster or a digital method of your own (approved) choice to create a poster that shares your decision.              The poster should include the following:

• The question clearly stated. 
• Your group decision.
• The evidence/data/rationale that clearly supports your group decision.
• The name of each group member.

Examine and compare the arguments of others.

To share your work with others, we will be using a round-robin format. This means that one member of the group stays at your work station to share your groups’ ideas while the other group members go to the other groups, one at a time, to listen to and critique the explanations developed by your classmates.

Remember, as you critique the work of others, you have to decide whether their

conclusions are valid or acceptable based the quality of their explanation and how well they are able to support their ideas. In other words, you need to determine if their argument is persuasive and convincing.

• Is their explanation sufficient (i.e., it explains everything it needs to) and coherent (i.e., it is free from contradictions)?
• Did they use genuine evidence (i.e., They organized their data in a way that shows a trendover time, a relationship between variables, or a difference between groups)?
• Did they use enough evidence to support their ideas (i.e., They used more than one piece of               evidence and all their ideas are supported by evidence)?
• Is there any evidence that does not support their explanation?
• How well does their explanation fit with other theories and laws that are used in science toexplain or describe how the world works?
• Is their rationale adequate (i.e., They explain why the evidence was used and why it supports the       explanation)?
• Is their reasoning appropriate (rational and sound)?

Write to learn

            After the round robin poster session return to your group.  Share what you learned and then participate in the whole class discussion.  Finally, write a persuasive and convincing argument based upon the question, Which River in Connecticut is the Healthiest? Be sure to include the following:

A.  Restate the question. 
B.  Indicate what qualities you used to compare the health of the rivers. 
C.  What is your decision?  
            1.) Explain your reasons. 
            2.) Include supportive data. 
D. Pay attention to the 6 traits of good writing.  Focus on the following traits:  word choice;                     voice(scientific); conventions.

Sources

Sampson, V. and J. Grooms. 2010. Generate an argument. The Science Teacher 77 (5): 32-37.

Project Search:  http://www.projectsearch.org/download.htm