Research Students' Annual Conference (RSAC) 2010 - School of ...

Room 2 /
St
George
Room1 / Great Woodhouse
School of Education Research Students’ Annual Conference (RSAC) 2010
24 November, University House, University of Leeds
Abstracts
Name
Email
Title
10.00 – 10.25 Parallel sessions 1
Nahieli Greaves
nahielig@yahoo.com
Decision-making on pseudoscientific issues: the role of the nature of science
It has been argued that a sophisticated understanding of the nature of science (NOS) can help students
distinguish between science and pseudoscience. However, up until now the role played by the NOS in
decision-making about pseudoscientific issues remains controversial. As part of this study, the role
played by the NOS in decisions about pseudoscientific issues, and whether its use is itself influenced
by the context, were assessed. Three scenarios were designed to probe students‘ decision-making and
its underlying rationale: weight-loss pills, Aids denialism and quantum medicine. The first two
touched upon topics students were familiar with, whereas the last was new to them. 128
undergraduates were asked to make, and justify, a decision about whether to use a therapy or health
product. They tended to reject the claims made by Aids denialists and weight-loss pills sellers, while
remaining open to the claims of quantum medicine advocates. Whenever students used the NOS to
justify their decisions, they rejected the pseudoscientific claims. In contrast, justifications outside the
scope of the NOS led students to accept them. These findings suggest that the NOS is useful in
distinguishing science from pseudoscience, independently of the context.
Name
Email
Title
10.00 – 10.25 Parallel sessions 2
Michael Hepworth
edmdh@leeds.ac.uk
The teaching and learning of spoken argumentation in ESOL classrooms
What is argumentation? How do teachers and learners engage with it in ESOL classrooms?
In this session I will present a short stretch of data gathered as part of my investigation into the
teaching and learning of argumentation in an ESOL context. This data will form the basis of the rest
of the presentation and some discussion.
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