The role of students' epistemic beliefs for their argumentation performance in higher education

• Published in: Innovations in education and teaching international Vol. 60; no. 4; pp. 501 - 512
• Main Author: Noroozi, Omid
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Routledge 04.07.2023; Taylor & Francis Inc
• Subjects: Argumentation performance; argumentative essay writing; argumentative peer feedback; Beliefs; epistemic beliefs; Epistemology; Essays; Feedback; Feedback (Response); Foreign Countries; Higher education; Knowledge Level; Peer Evaluation; Peers; Persuasive Discourse; Revision (Written Composition); Student Attitudes; Student Role; Student writing; Undergraduate Students; University students; Writing Achievement; Netherlands
• ISSN: 1470-3297; 1470-3300
• DOI: 10.1080/14703297.2022.2092188

Students' argumentation performance can be influenced by their epistemic beliefs, however, in the context of argumentative essay writing and argumentative peer feedback in online setting this has not been clearly investigated. This study explores relationship between students' epistemic beliefs and argumentation performance regarding essay writing and peer feedback. In total, 101 undergraduate students filled out the epistemic beliefs survey and wrote an argumentative essay. Then, they provided two sets of feedback on the essays of their peers and finally submitted their revised essays. Students' beliefs about the Internet-specific justification of knowledge did not play a significant role in their argumentation performance in essay writing, while it was related to their constructive peer feedback performance. Students' beliefs about the nature of scientific knowledge were significantly related to their argumentative essay writing and peer feedback performance. In terms of uptake of peer feedback, no significant role was found for epistemic beliefs.