World language education (WLE) offers students the opportunity to explore the linguistic and cultural identities of the target language. However, critical issues, such as the diverse sexual identities found within the target cultures and of the language learners themselves are often not addressed within the language learning experience. Also…

This study examined constructive controversy in theological education, an application area yet unstudied. It investigated (a) the feasibility of controversy for grappling with theological/ethical issues, (b) whether complex thinking was enhanced, (c) whether social interaction was positive, and (d) advantages/disadvantages for use in…

The authors identify the necessity of focusing on and pluralizing understandings of transgender youth experiences and trans-specific topics. This is especially important for preservice teachers, who will be the ones to have similar discussions with their own students in the future. The authors describe a series of classroom activities and…

The social roles and responsibilities expected from citizens are increasing due to changing global living conditions. Science education is expected to prepare conscious and sensitive students because today's students are the adults of the future. To do so, the main pre-requisite is quality teacher education. In the past decade, one of the most…

Recent scholarship on civic education has introduced some useful ways to engage students in learning about controversial topics, debating them, and participating in democratic life. However, while those are valuable tools for active citizenship, they're not sufficient. Democratic education should focus on issues that matter intensely to students'…

In doing antiracism education there is a risk that it can in effect reinforce the very racialisation it is supposed to fight against. This paradox becomes a formidable challenge given the ubiquity of race in contemporary ways of knowing and ways of being for both its subjects and its objects: more so in an era of "racism without race," a…

This case study investigated the issue of incorporating controversial topics in EFL classroom of pre-university students and their attitude toward such controversial topics namely, E-stalking in terms of their own cultural background. The objective of the study was to bring a new dimension in language teaching and learning in Bangladeshi…

Preemptive censorship occurs when educators avoid particular books because they dislike the ideas or values the books contain or fear the controversy the books may evoke. Although not as blatant as other forms of censorship, preemptive censorship has the unfortunate consequence of restricting children's access to ideas and information. Moreover,…

Partisan politics challenge educators to determine how best to navigate discussions of controversial subjects within their classrooms. This can be particularly true for new educators in the early stages of developing their confidence and classroom management skills. This qualitative case study uses situated learning and the communities of practice…

What are the current challenges and opportunities for bringing actor-network theory (ANT) into issues-based science education? This article discusses experiences gained from introducing an educational version of ANT deploying digital technology into an upper secondary school science class. This teaching innovation, called "controversy…

This year, labor unions got a reprieve: The Supreme Court deadlocked in a much-anticipated case that could have turned almost every state into Wisconsin, where partisan interests have crippled union power. The case, "Friedrichs vs. California Teachers Association," addressed a previous case, "Abood v. Detroit Board of…

In this article, we promote the use of controversial images to enhance the discussion of social justice issues in schools. Controversial images provide rich opportunities for students to question what is occurring currently in society as well as what has occurred in the past. We provide an example set of activities to be used in teacher education…

This article presents the current perception of dialogical teaching models as a notion that is concerned primarily with the cognitive layers of the dialogue, and focuses on the cognitive functions of learning, information processing, interpretation and decision-making. This perception, according to different researchers, ignores the relational…

In this paper, we look closely at two events selected through event-oriented inquiry that were part of a classroom presentation on race. The first event was a provocative discussion about Mark Twain's ("Pudd'nhead Wilson", Harper, New York, 1899) and passing for being White. The other was a discussion on the use of the N-word. Grounded…

We present an empirical investigation of a classroom training fostering vocational students' consideration of source information when deciding about science-based controversies. The training was specifically aimed at raising students' awareness of the division of cognitive labor and the resulting need to take a source's competence into account…