Development of students’ argumentative skills through higher order thinking questions
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Authors
Abisheva, Saltanat
Issue Date
2025
Educational Level
ISCED Level 3 Upper secondary education
Curriculum Area
Geographical Setting
Kazakhstan
Abstract
Background and purpose: Developing critical thinking and analytical skills is a key priority in education. Higher-Order Thinking Questions (HOTQs) are questions that require students to engage in deep thinking processes such as analysis, evaluation, and creation, rather than simply recalling facts. Based on Bloom’s Taxonomy, these questions encourage critical reasoning, problem-solving, and argumentation skills by prompting learners to interpret information, justify opinions, and explore multiple perspectives. Research shows that higher-order thinking questions significantly foster these skills and improve students' ability to present arguments effectively (Bloom, 1956; Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). This study examines how such questions help students construct arguments, support claims, and critically analyze different perspectives.
Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of higher-order thinking questions in developing argumentative skills in secondary school students, with a particular focus on question frameworks that promote critical discussion and evidence-based reasoning.
Study design or methodology: The study involved 25 secondary school students, aged 15 to 17, from various socioeconomic backgrounds. Conducted over one academic semester in a classroom setting, data collection included pre- and post-assessments, classroom observations, and structured interviews with students and teachers. A question bank based on Bloom’s Taxonomy was used to promote higher-order thinking. Data were analysed using thematic coding.
Findings: The results showed that students exposed to higher-order questions demonstrated some improvement in their argumentative skills, including clearer argument structure, better use of evidence, and more thoughtful evaluation of different viewpoints. These findings suggest that structured questions may support the development of students' critical thinking and argumentation, though further research with a larger sample would be needed to confirm the extent of this impact.
Conclusions, originality, value and implications: This study enhances the understanding of instructional approaches that support higher-order thinking. Using Bloom’s Taxonomy as a question framework provides educators with a valuable tool for fostering critical thinking in the classroom. The findings offer important implications for curriculum design, instructional practices, educational policy, and teacher training (Pellegrino & Hilton, 2012), reinforcing the need to integrate such questions into the educational process to encourage deep learning and critical reasoning.
Aims: The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of higher-order thinking questions in developing argumentative skills in secondary school students, with a particular focus on question frameworks that promote critical discussion and evidence-based reasoning.
Study design or methodology: The study involved 25 secondary school students, aged 15 to 17, from various socioeconomic backgrounds. Conducted over one academic semester in a classroom setting, data collection included pre- and post-assessments, classroom observations, and structured interviews with students and teachers. A question bank based on Bloom’s Taxonomy was used to promote higher-order thinking. Data were analysed using thematic coding.
Findings: The results showed that students exposed to higher-order questions demonstrated some improvement in their argumentative skills, including clearer argument structure, better use of evidence, and more thoughtful evaluation of different viewpoints. These findings suggest that structured questions may support the development of students' critical thinking and argumentation, though further research with a larger sample would be needed to confirm the extent of this impact.
Conclusions, originality, value and implications: This study enhances the understanding of instructional approaches that support higher-order thinking. Using Bloom’s Taxonomy as a question framework provides educators with a valuable tool for fostering critical thinking in the classroom. The findings offer important implications for curriculum design, instructional practices, educational policy, and teacher training (Pellegrino & Hilton, 2012), reinforcing the need to integrate such questions into the educational process to encourage deep learning and critical reasoning.
Description
Keywords (free text)
critical thinking , analytical skills , argumentative skills , higher-order thinking , Bloom's taxonomy , question frameworks , curriculum design