Pre-service and beginning in-service science teachers enrolled in a university teacher education program participated in a project to support their teaching through a lens of sustainability. While they demonstrated active and positive engagement, I considered the possibility of any students reacting negatively to the course material and doing so…

There is a critical need to consider ways to enrich the educational experiences and well-being of adolescents when the lack of empathy in the world is high. This paper presents the concepts of "Artful Empathy" and "Artful and Empathic Learning Ecology." The concepts are exemplified from a multi-site case study within Australian…

In this interview, Prof. Vittorio Bufacchi examines in detail the relationship between two equally challenging issues, i.e. violence and social (in)justice [and their intersection]. In the introductory part, he dicusses what triggered his own interest in violence. At the same time, he examines philosophy's main contribution to discussions over…

Black African immigrants from Kenya, like other immigrants, value school. They consider education as a mechanism of upward mobility. School is considered as the key to a better life that would provide access to social mobility, and economic stability for immigrant families as they settle in their new home. But unknown to immigrant students and…

The aim of the "National Academy of Education (NAEd) Educating for Civic Reasoning and Discourse" report is to better prepare students to examine and discuss complex civic, political, and social issues by ensuring that the curricula, pedagogy, and learning environments that they experience are informed by the best available evidence and…

This is the executive summary for the report, "Educating for Civic Reasoning and Discourse." This report aims to better prepare students to examine and discuss complex civic, political, and social issues by ensuring that the curriculum, pedagogy, and learning environments that they experience are informed by the best available evidence…

Have you ever avoided discussing controversial issues in the classroom? Teachers report often avoiding these types of discussions due to concerns about the unpredictability of student reactions, accusations of trying to push a political agenda, and insufficient knowledge or skills to work through complex issues. Debates, however, have been shown…

This article outlines, critiques, and revises Griff Foley's analytical framework for the study of informal learning in social action. This reformulation is prompted by the author's own research on young women's experiences and learning in social struggle, and by the need to take into account the interdependence of systems of domination underlying…

This study examined forms of violence in Zimbabwean schools and sought to draw an analogy with the country's macro-politics. Key interrelationships emerged which painted an endemic culture of violence. Over three hundred (300) students and eighty, (80) teachers submitted 2-3 page-written accounts on their schools' micro-politics. Thirty, (30)…

In this article, Eric Freedman examines the extent to which critical pedagogy can be considered a democratic form of education. Comparing Paulo Freire's notion of dialogue to Jurgen Habermas's "ideal speech situation," Freedman argues that such dialogue cannot realistically occur in educational situations where the teacher remains in an…

Student attitudes and the educational consequences of the introduction of controversial course materials into the social studies curriculum are explored. (Author/DE)

The authors conducted a study using student teachers in secondary schools to assess the impact of the organization and climate of secondary schools on the teaching of controversial social and political issues. They conclude that there is an atmosphere of censorship in the schools. (KC)

Discusses the importance of fostering conversation about difficult issues such as racism and injustice. Offers six guidelines for teacher facilitated group discussions in the classroom about sensitive issues that cover planning, goals, setting the stage, rules, and encouraging openness. (JB)

This paper explores the notion of schools as sites of democratic and political struggle, and as "sites of possibility." The need for building community within the schooling experience is discussed in the first section, as well as the need for moral discourse instead of the traditional, technical, and instrumental educational discourse.…