APPENDIX C
DETERMINING A PROTOTYPE EPISODE
This Appendix contains the flowcharts and corresponding transcripts for Group 4D. To
draw the Group 4D prototype episode, the flowcharts were laid side by side and common
features noted using the following procedure. Episodes that contained numerous digressions or
off-task chatter were omitted (Episodes 3-5 and 12-14, during which the Teaching Assistant
interrupted the entire class or spoke individually to this group). For Group 4D, five of the
remaining seven episodes began with a Claim, so that was the first symbol drawn on the
prototype. This group preferred to support their Claims with Warrants, then Backings, and then
Ground. Hence, the prototype flowchart shows Warrants and Backings followed by Grounds.
This group uses an exceptionally large number of Warrants, but many of them are multiple
Warrants by one person in one sentence. These longer sentences were split into smaller
statements when the individual components all presented unique ideas. In other words ST, in
particular, has a tendency to include multiple Grounds, Warrants, and Backings in one utterance.
The most common type of support statement was an Acknowledgment statement and thus that
symbol links the Backing and the Grounds symbols. While it is true Group 4D uses a few
Modified Claims (Episodes 6 and 9), ST states them all. Modified Claims and Alternate Claims
are not typical of this group. The Group 4D episodes in this appendix are in chronological
order. The flowchart follows each transcript excerpt. Group 4Dās prototype is reproduced in
Appendix D.