Undergraduates and the development of argument

Abstract: This article emphasizes the need to encourage undergraduate students to develop arguments, which involves enhancing their analytical skills and capacity for critical thinking, across disciplines regardless of level. It argues that these skills, required by the Quality Assurance Agency’s (QAA) benchmarks, are developed not by instruction but by engaging with the philosophic process that leads to the deep learning. This process of learning is based on a dialectical approach, viewing dialogue with colleagues, primary texts and written assignments, as central to developing an inductive argument and a critical perspective. This article proposes an analytical framework to analyze the extent to which a tutor is facilitating the development of argument. It suggests that while, if required one must provide students with explicit guidelines about this process, nevertheless this practice is problematic because of the inherent tension between explicit teaching and deep learning, which facilitates the acquisition of these analytical skills. Key words: analytical skills; critical thinking; deduction; deep learning; development of argument; dialectic; explicit teaching; formative assessment; induction; implicit teaching 1