Bioethics is an important aspect of understanding the relationship between science and society, but studies have not yet examined undergraduate student experiences and comfort in bioethics courses. In this study, we investigated undergraduate bioethics students' support of and comfort when learning three controversial bioethics topics: gene…

Shared meaning-making across differences in today's polarized society requires a socio-political perspective toward conceptualizing and operationalizing collaborative competence. Thus, there is a pressing need for socio-political pedagogies and designs in CSCL to empower students as cultural-historical agents who can communicate and work…

Controversies are a potentially powerful teaching tool in the management classroom enabling students to explore different perspectives on an issue and to develop their skills in areas such as critical thinking and communication. Controversy is implicit to learning and to leadership and management roles in workplaces where multiple opposing views…

Socioscientific issues (SSIs), or controversial scientific issues with social implications, influence members of society regardless of demographic. SSIs are contentious and ill-structured, meaning they do not have a definitive answer. To properly equip students with the tools needed to handle SSIs, undergraduate science curricula emphasize…

The heightened resonance of identity-driven politics in many states across twenty first century Europe emphasizes the critical role of history in shaping public contestation of the idea of the nation, and accordant manifestations of nationalism and national identity. How the past is interpreted or what and how is remembered has proven increasingly…

Gay academics in China face multiple risks when addressing queer issues on heteronormative and repressive campuses. Little is known about their experiences of navigating the social and political constraints placed upon them. Drawing on interview data from 40 gay academics in China, this article explores participants' strategies for addressing…

Creating a positive classroom experience for students can be a challenge, especially when teaching a contested topic such as gender studies. Teaching and learning gender is teaching and learning against the grain, which can lead to feelings of comfort and discomfort among students. The objective is to capture different manifestations of…

Traditional biology curricula depict science as an objective field, overlooking the important influence that human values and biases have on what is studied and who can be a scientist. We can work to address this shortcoming by incorporating "ideological awareness" into the curriculum, which is an understanding of biases, stereotypes,…

This study seeks to understand students' perceptions of self-agency and how they demonstrate their agency by engaging in discussions of a highly controversial wetland policy facing their community. Five focal students participating in this 13-month long curriculum were selected for further explorations. We traced their learning trajectories to…

Purpose: Many K-12 teachers teach difficult topics as part of their curricula, and discussions of difficult topics are common across grade levels and content areas. As teachers increasingly engage with difficult topics in their classrooms, the need for high-quality professional learning experiences has also grown. In response, the purpose of this…

Open conversations regarding sexuality education and gender and sexual diversity with young children in early childhood education settings are still highly constrained. Educators report lacking professional training and fearing parental and community pushback when explicitly addressing these topics in their professional practices. As such, gender…

Purpose: This study seeks to gain an understanding of the complexities involved in real-life classroom teaching. The aim is to trace values and tensions displayed in what the teachers regard as successful and unsuccessful. Design/methodology/approach: Teachers were interviewed to explore their perceptions of success and failures in their teaching…

Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) has a key role to play in promoting healthy living and preventing sexual health problems among adolescents. However, students in Bangladesh do not receive comprehensive sexuality education, which is a major concern. This study investigated barriers preventing home tutors from discussing CSE with their…

Global citizens recognise climate change and feel responsible for protecting a worldwide environment. Global citizens understand that individuals or nations alone cannot solve the complexity of issues such as the increasing and ongoing international migrations. Global citizens support the banished with empathy, compassion and mutual respect.…

Living in a conservative and traditional society, Kazakhstani people are generally reluctant to openly discuss sex education with their children. However, issues such as family violence, teenage pregnancy and high rates of STIs demonstrate the need to implement good-quality school-based sex education. Access to sex education is the inherent right…