Purpose of WRiting Arguments in Science

Writing arguments is essential not only in science, but across the disciplines. Specifically in science, there are particular norms around what counts as a strong justification. Scientists frequently justify their claims through the use of empirical evidence and reasoning that articulate why one claim is stronger than other potential competing claims. For students in science, we want them to use similar types of support when they write their arguments. Because there are multiple characteristics that determine the strength of a written scientific argument, we developed multiple constructs to assess student performance.

Summary of writing  assessments