In this work, the data derived from a didactic intervention in high school chemistry classes, in three socially differentiated schools, are discussed. From a problem of social-scientific nature related to the acid-base theory, it was propitiated the development of argumentative competences in the students. The preliminary findings allow us to conclude that they develop different argumentative models, which would be explained in part by the conditions and learning environments distinctive of these institutions, which favor a different interpretation between school chemistry and the students' real world.