Integrating Digital Argument Mapping into Contemporary Pedagogies

Argumentation is a highly transferable core skill and principal component of Critical Thinking. Argument mapping is a low cost and effective way of teaching this skill but guidance is needed to implement it in pedagogies outside of philosophy. This project aims to extend existing digital argument mapping software developed by the UQ Critical Thinking Project and supported by HASS TEL seed funding, and to integrate it into a diverse range of UQ courses. The software enables students to identify, analyse, evaluate and construct arguments in preparation for writing well-structured research papers and assists teaching staff in making explicit the conceptual and logical relationships among knowledge claims in their disciplines. Reasons.js will be embedded in UQ’s learning management system, be easily available as an open source tool, operational on mobile devices and user-friendly.